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Zakuro: W-Well, a few weeks ago... Aha, I think it was a sunny day. *She looked at me with a soft smile, but her face was red and hot, and her fists were clenched. Her palms were probably covered in sweat.* *Her eyes were still tearful... She wiped them a few times, but even then they were moist.* Zakuro: The train to school in the morning is always packed, right? Takuji: Yeah, it is... Wait, are you saying some pervert touched you?! Zakuro: Ahaha... That might have been nice too... Takuji: Huh? Zakuro: Oh, ahaha, nothing! Um, no, no one touched me. *She wasn't put off when I assumed the worst like that. She actually seemed pleased by it.* *Of course, I'm a growing boy, so I love stories like this.* *But I wouldn't want to hear about a beautiful girl I'd just become friends with being defiled by another man.* Zakuro: I-I'll continue the story... if you don't mind... Takuji: O-Of course... Zakuro: It was pretty crowded on that day, so there was nowhere to sit. I was holding onto the handhold and standing... Zakuro: I'm not very strong, so often I can't get to the door in time if I sit in the wrong spot. Takuji: Yeah, yeah, I know what you mean. You have to push your way through the people standing by the door. Zakuro: Right! The door's right there, but it feels like it's a thousand miles away. Zakuro: And I'm afraid to squeeze in between people I don't know... Do you know what I mean? Takuji: Oh, most girls probably feel that way. Zakuro: Oh, excuse me. We're off topic again... Zakuro: At that time, there was a drowsy man in front of me. It was still morning and he already looked like he'd done a full day's work... Zakuro: I... don't know why, but standing next to that smelly old man... I started to feel funny... Takuji: D-Do you like older guys? Zakuro: N-Not at all. I never said I liked older guys. Zakuro: But... on that day, it just so happened that I had put the vibrator in my underwear so that I could turn it on with the remote control in my pocket at any time. Takuji: ...I-I don't think that just happened on its own, did it? Zakuro: I guess so... That's right... It was probably... just a coincidence... *She said she always carried it around, but... it 'just so happened' to be there...* Zakuro: S-So I was relieved, since it wasn't like it was the man in front of me that was making me feel that way... That's what I told myself. Zakuro: But... I imagined it... Zakuro: What would happen if I turned the switch on... Zakuro: What would it be like if I turned the vibrator on in front of him... I felt a little strange the moment that thought popped into my mind... Takuji: Eh? What happened? Zakuro: Oh, nothing... My finger just happened to be on the switch, so I accidentally turned it on... Takuji: ...You turned it on... Zakuro: I didn't mean to... It probably was just a coincidence... So I was a little shocked. Zakuro: But I'm not very quick on my feet, so I hesitated for a moment. I wanted to turn it off, but... Takuji: You didn't turn it off right away? Zakuro: Y-Yes... I totally panicked... I didn't intend to go that far, but I didn't know what I should do next... Zakuro: I was thinking, what should I do... I shouldn't have turned it on in a place like this... I'm not sure what I was doing... Takuji: ...O-Ohh... Zakuro: I didn't know what to do, but... I guess, it kind of felt good... Takuji: Wh-What did it feel like? Zakuro: What did it feel like? Umm... w-well... The vibrator was rubbing up against me and making warm waves of pleasure run through my lower body... Zakuro: A-And then... when I bent over a little bit, the vibrator touched that spot... Takuji: That spot? Zakuro: Umm... my clitoris... Takuji: How did it feel when it touched your clitoris? Zakuro: Umm, when the vibrator hit my clitoris, it felt so good that I couldn't help but jump. Takuji: Oh, ohh... Zakuro: But... I didn't want to overdo it. If it started to feel too good, I wouldn't be able to stand anymore. Zakuro: So every once in a while I would act like I was stretching... Takuji: And when you were stretching, you were trying to escape the pleasure? Zakuro: Th-That's right, but... I felt so miserable standing there and feeling the weak vibrations... Zakuro: So I always leaned over again. Zakuro: And when I did, I couldn't hide the pleasure that was overcoming me. My voice would leak out, like 'Hmmm,' or 'Haaa.' Zakuro: I did my best to cover up my moans, but... Ah, ahh... *It looked like she was remembering what it felt like... I had never seen the expression on her face until that moment... She was shaking and staring off into space.* Zakuro: And then... th-the man in front of me raised his head and looked straight at me. Takuji: Did he find out about the vibrator? Zakuro: I-I don't know... Oh, he probably just thought I looked like I was sick. Takuji: Yeah! There's no way he would think the girl in front of him was secretly masturbating with a vibrator. Zakuro: Aha, ahahaha... Th-That's right... That would be really strange. I would be, like... Takuji: A pervert? Zakuro: Y-Yes... I'm... a pervert...! Mmm!! *She looked strange... She was shaking way more than before...* Takuji: Wh-What's wrong? Zakuro: H-Huh? Oh, excuse me... Takuji: That's not what I mean... What's wrong? Zakuro: Aha... I-I think I might have come a little bit... Takuji: Eh? Takuji: You came just now? Just from words? Zakuro: B-But you called me a pervert, so... I-I... Takuji: No... There's no way you could come just from that. Zakuro: Y-Yes... I think you're right... Takuji: I guess... I shouldn't be surprised, since you masturbate in public... Zakuro: Ah... Don't say that... Takuji: But please, the rest of the story... Zakuro: Ah, okay... He looked at me suspiciously, so I gave him a big smile... Like a silent acknowledgement... Zakuro: And then he smiled a little bit. Takuji: Oh, that's good. Zakuro: He really was wondering if I was all right... Zakuro: At first I didn't think anything of him... I actually kind of disliked him at first, but... Zakuro: As I started to feel better and better from the vibrator, I started to feel connected to that old man who worked his heart out every day... Zakuro: I thought about how... he's ridden this crowded train every day to get to that age... It wouldn't hurt to give him something to cheer him up... Zakuro: It probably wasn't a good decision... I wasn't thinking straight because of the vibrator, so I lifted my skirt in front of the old man. Takuji: Then― He could see your panties plain as day?! Zakuro: Y-Yes... And he could tell right away that there was a vibrator buzzing in my panties... Takuji: Whoa, whoaa... Zakuro: That's why... Zakuro: He noticed what I was doing and his face got bright red. He looked away immediately... Takuji: Well, of course. Anyone would be surprised by that... *After all... the only people who would do something like that are crazy exhibitionists... You would expect an old woman to do something like that.* *You would think it was a trap if a beautiful young girl who 'hasn't even experienced carnal pleasure' suddenly flashed you like that...* Zakuro: Ah, jeez... What if he didn't like it? I guess he didn't... Why did I do something like that... Zakuro: I thought they were going to yell 'stop that immediately' and arrest me at the next stop... Zakuro: I thought my life was over... Zakuro: I thought, but nothing happened... He didn't say anything... Zakuro: Though he still glanced over at me every once in a while... Zakuro: Or maybe... he wanted to look? But why didn't he look straight at me... I still had my skirt up, trying to show him... Takuji: Well, of course... It could have been blackmail. Zakuro: Blackmail? Takuji: That's what he probably thought. There's no way a girl like you would do that for an old guy for free, right? Takuji: He probably thought a scary guy was going to come after him and say 'You looked, didn't you?' Zakuro: But it wasn't... I just wanted to do it... Takuji: But he didn't know that. Zakuro: Oh... He didn't really dislike it... If he disliked it, I would stop... I'm starting to feel good... Zakuro: I really wasn't thinking clearly... My head felt funny... Zakuro: I would bend over and stimulate my clitoris, seeking that ecstasy. Every time, I got a little closer to the old man... And then I lowered my panties. Zakuro: And then... He casually moved his hands to cover his crotch... Takuji: Yeah, he would have a problem if he didn't react to that. *Even I was having trouble hiding my erection from imagining it.* Zakuro: When I saw that, my mind went blank... I was too into it to think about anyone else that might be watching... Zakuro: I lowered my panties and started rubbing the vibrator on my wet pussy... Haa... Takuji: Eh? Did you get caught?! *That's not doing it in secret at all! That's public masturbation! That's clearly a crime...* *Just remembering it made her moan as if she was masturbating.* *No one would ever imagine that she was this kind of girl if they had to judge her at a glance...* Zakuro: Thinking back on it now, it was definitely scary... But at the time, my mind was numb. Zakuro: I tried to hold it in, but my voice was getting louder... Zakuro: It was like, "Aaah," and I think I said "Ooooh, it feels so good" a few times... Takuji: That's like you're telling the people around you. That's too dangerous... Zakuro: Yeah, it was... But still, I... Takuji: You what? *I couldn't help asking. She looked too cute when she looked down so pensively.* Zakuro: They probably thought I was weird... Ahaha, they were all looking at me out of the corners of their eyes, but no one told me to stop. Zakuro: Of course, I was worried about getting caught... Or rather, I thought I shouldn't do something like this... No human being should do something like this... Zakuro: I knew I shouldn't, but... I got even more excited because they were watching... Zakuro: Ahh, it felt so good having all those men looking at me... Just thinking about what a nasty girl I was made me... Zakuro: Ah! But don't get me wrong, please. Zakuro: I'm still a virgin. I just rubbed myself with the vibrator. I never put it inside. Zakuro: Even if I'm no good... I'd like to give my first to the man I love. Zakuro: So I've never crossed that line... Takuji: O-Of course not. *I knew she was an incredibly perverted girl, but I felt like I had been saved when she said she were still a virgin.* *Even if she is a pervert, she should keep her body beautiful...* *And if I could be her first... that would be the best.* Zakuro: I didn't know what was happening anymore, but I probably... Zakuro: I think I kept rubbing my exposed clitoris with the vibrator and watching the reactions of the people around me... Zakuro: I kind of remember seeing that all the men sitting down had erections... Takuji: Those people probably jacked off to you later, you know. Zakuro: Ah... That's embarrassing... Takuji: But the embarrassment made you feel good... Zakuro: Maybe it did... I'm a huge pervert, aren't I? But it felt so good. I just wanted more people to watch... Zakuro: Oh no... My moans probably echoed throughout the entire train... Zakuro: The hand holding the vibrator was covered in love juices... Zakuro: All the strength had left my body. If not for the handhold, I would have fallen... Zakuro: And then I heard the announcer say Suginomiya, and I knew I had to get off soon, so I pressed the vibrator up against my clitoris... Zakuro: I had to go all the way... I had to cum... Zakuro: There was nothing going through my head except... I have to cum, I have to cum, I have to cum... Zakuro: Ahh, ahh... It's so good... Ahh... Zakuro: So good... Ahhh, I'm going to cum, I'm going to cum! Zakuro: Oo, oooohhnnn!! Takuji: ...Amazing. *As she told me about her orgasm, she actually let out a moan that left me starstruck.* Zakuro: At that very instant, I saw the station come into view... I ran off the train without even pulling up my panties...

Takuji: It's awfully hot today, too... *It was too hot, so I was forced to attend class starting with first period.* *One reason was for my credits.* *And another was for the air conditioning.* *It was cool inside the building, but my secret base was pretty stifling.* Takuji: Now that the air conditioning in the floor above my base has turned on, it should start getting cooler... *When the floor above cools down, the underground room cools down as well.* *I guess the air flows down from the floor above.* *So it starts getting cooler down there in the afternoon.* *I planned to head underground once second period ended.* Takuji: And I'm sick of going to classes... *Classes really tire me out.* *I mean, there are so many people in such a small classroom.* *And they're all sitting, facing the same direction.* *It's like a horror movie.* *It would be strange to not get creeped out by that.* *Honestly, while I'm in class, my palms get really sweaty from the stress.* *Just from being in that space...* Takuji: Haa... *I immediately laid down on the sofa.* Takuji: I'm tired... *And incredibly sleepy.* *It's probably because the summer sun steals all my strength.* *No, I'm tired in the spring too.* *But lots of people say they're tired in the spring... so it's not a problem to be tired in the spring.* *The problem is...* *...The problem is...?* *The ... pr ...* *......* * .* *I poured hot water into some of the cup ramen I kept down here.* *Then I used the portable stove to boil water.* *For the record, I do have an electric water heater, but... it cools down while I don't have the generator running.* Takuji: Haa... I slept quite a while. *Since I wore myself out today...* *Sleeping like that makes me hungry.* *But when I eat, I get tired.* *It kind of feels like I'm always sleeping.* Takuji: There we go... *I turned on my computer while waiting on my ramen.* Takuji: Umm... *The signal looked fine... It was working pretty well.* Takuji: That's right... Maybe I should check in on the site I administrate... *After checking my email, I went to the site that I administer.* Takuji: Hmm... More registration applications, huh... Who referred them? Takuji: The referrer is... Wait, ahaha, this address is Senagawa's, isn't it? So this new registration must be another teacher pretending to be a student. *The referrer was Senagawa Yui, one of our teachers.* *She had been registered on this message board for three months.* *After registering, she'd never posted anything. Apparently she was just monitoring the site.* *Or maybe there was something she was worried about...* *Well, even teachers are human. Even they would be interested in what people are saying about them on the message boards.* *I've been the administrator of the underground message board for quite a while.* *Before I started this site, there were several different underground message boards for Kita High, but they were all much smaller sites.* *I knew quite a lot about making websites, despite my age, because I'd been helping my parents manage their site since I was a child.* *Though all I actually did was modify an existing floating thread message board template...* *I don't know if my site was more user-friendly than the rest or what, but it grew larger than all the others.* *Since no one can look at the site without registering, a lot of sketchy things get posted here.* *From personal information to illegal wares... All of that stuff.* Takuji: I wonder who this teacher could be... Well, I suppose I'll find out eventually. *The reason I found out which account was Senagawa's was because she put her name in her email address (what a stupid woman).* *And also from the times she logged in.* *Most of her logins were between classes.* *One time I actually saw the site up on her phone screen.* Takuji: What a stupid teacher... Takuji: Supervision, huh... As if that stupid teacher could... *It's easier to just let her think she's supervising us...* *She can dance in the palm of my hand...* Takuji: Hehehehehe... *I can't get enough of this feeling of omnipotence.* *Since I'm the administrator, I know everything that almost everyone in the school says or does...* Takuji: Though that's only for the people who've registered... *There are 158 people registered... An entire grade consists of about 280 people, so that's not too bad. I guess.* *Though it's not that many out of the whole school...* *For the record, I laid it out in a spreadsheet, and 63% are third years, 25% are second years, 10% are first years, and the other 2% are unknown (probably teachers).* *It's a pretty good percentage of the third years, at least.* *So I know what most of the people in the same year as me are doing.* Takuji: But they're all such idiots... *Mostly they talk about boring stuff, but sometimes they talk about dangerous topics like sex, schoolgirl prostitution, bullying, and occasionally even drugs.* Takuji: Actually... *There was a thread about Takashima-san's bullying, wasn't there...* *Though it was from like a year ago...* *The posters in that thread were Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko... and Tachibana Kimika, I think.* *At the time, I'd glanced at it for a few seconds, but it irritated me, so I ignored it after that.* *Bullying gets on my nerves, even if I'm not the one being bullied.* *Well, I don't really remember what they were talking about, since I haven't looked at it in so long.* Takuji: I wonder what happened after that... *They probably kept bullying her.* *The thread is still there.* *Which means her situation hasn't changed at all.* *Or maybe they're talking about something completely different now...* Takuji: I wonder... *...* *So?* *So who cares?* *After all,* Takuji: What can I do with that knowledge? *Even if I do find out what's happening to her, what exactly am I supposed to do about it?* *I can't even do anything to help myself... How can I possibly help someone else?* *I can't even change my own fate.* *There's no way I could save someone else.* *Though there is one thing I can do.* Takuji: Next time she comes here... I should try to be a bit nicer to her. Takuji: I could show her my favorite anime and favorite manga... *There's no way I can save her.* *But I might be able to ease her pain. I should try showing her some of my anime, manga, and other stuff like that.* Takuji: That's right. She's not an enemy. She's not an enemy... So next time, I should try to be nice to her. Takuji: Haa... It feels a bit cooler now. *The sun had started to weaken.* *But still, the summer sun was persistent.* *The sun scorches the earth, even late into the evening.* Takuji: The clubs probably haven't ended yet... *I got thirsty while I was down there on the Internet.* *I could probably get a small refrigerator to put down here, but for the moment I still had to go out and buy my drinks.* *I usually go to the convenience store when I want something to drink.* Takuji: Although... I'm almost out of ramen. I guess I'll go to the dollar store, though it's a bit further away. *It's cheaper out there...* Takuji: Ah... *"Ah..."* *This girl...* *Girl?* *I know her.* *I know this girl.* *She's―* Tsukasa: Umm.. * Hello, Mamiya-kun."* Takuji: ... *She gave me a thin smile as she greeted me.* *She looked as if she had forced her expression into a smile as she answered...* *Why would she want to go out of her way to talk to me?* Tsukasa: Have you been doing okay, Mamiya-kun? *Her name is Wakatsuki Tsukasa.* *She's the prefect, isn't she... Is that why she's talking to me?* *No, it feels like she might have been on the student council... The class representative?* *Either way, I don't want to talk to anyone like that.* Tsukasa: Umm... it seems like you haven't been in class lately... Takuji: ... *Her smile just gets on my nerves.* *It's not like she's ever done anything to me.* *There's no reason for me to hate her.* *I hate most of the people in my class.* *There's hardly anyone I like.* *I'm not sure why, but I especially hate this girl.* *Why is that...* Tsukasa: Um, Mamiya-kun? Takuji: ... *I couldn't say anything in response to that smile...* Kagami: ... *Wakatsuki Tsukasa... Someone else was standing behind her.* *Why didn't I notice before?* *...She was probably completely hidden in the other's shadow.* *But still, I completely missed her.* *The other one was―* *Wakatsuki Kagami.* *Wakatsuki Tsukasa's twin sister.* *Why didn't I notice her... There was probably some reason.* *I probably didn't notice because I didn't want to see her.* Kagami: Mamiya Takuji-kun. That's your name, isn't it Takuji: ... *She actually had to double check that was my name, even though we're in the same class.* *It's true, I hadn't been going to classes all that much... but still, we'd been in the same class for almost half a year.* Kagami: Haa... He's not even answering. Kagami: That's enough, Tsukasa. Let's go. Tsukasa: Ah, sure.. * But..."* *The Wakatsuki sisters.* *The older one is bursting with energy.* *The younger one is reserved and quiet.* *Their personalities are complete opposites, but...* *Top of the class. Beautiful. Good at sports. Popular.* *I don't have anything in common with them.* *They get on my nerves.* Tsukasa: Though * I did put the printouts from class in your desk."* Takuji: ... *I walked away.* *They're... annoying.* Tsukasa: You don't go to class very often... Mamiya-kun. *What's her problem... Why is she following me?* Kagami: Don't assume that we're following you. Takuji: ... Kagami: We're just heading in the same direction. Tsukasa: Ahahaha... What a coincidence. Takuji: ... Tsukasa: Why are you skipping classes? Takuji: ... Takuji: Who knows... I don't feel so good. *I just made that up so they would stop following me.* Kagami: You don't feel good, huh... *Her voice sounded accusatory.* *What was that supposed to mean? Was she trying to say that it was my motivation at fault, not my health?* Kagami: So you don't go to classes... Can't go... Don't want to go... *This woman... What's her problem?* *How could this woman be so persistent?* *We walked like that all the way to the Suginomiya shopping district.* *It was quite a long distance.* *I was going to go to a closer store, but then these two started following me...* *No, according to them, they were just headed in the same direction.* Kagami: Most of the students here use this station, after all... *Everything she said seemed to be in response to what I was thinking.* Kagami: That's not possible.. * Why do you think I can read your mind?"* *But you just did.* *Just now, you did.* Kagami: You think the world revolves around you? That's ridiculous. Takuji: Huh? Tsukasa: Oh, sorry. Did we upset you? Takuji: Tch. *My head felt itchy.* *It kept getting itchier.* *For some reason, my head gets itchy at times like this.* *All my pores open up.* *I suppose my head itches because there are so many pores on it.* *Anyway, this woman gets on my nerves.* Kagami: ...What? *Our eyes met.* *She had an unpleasant face.* *Her expression was carefully controlled.* *Looking at her face reminded me of something...* *Just looking at those two irritated me.* Kagami: Tsukasa... we shouldn't be so close... Tsukasa: Onee-chan! Kagami: Look. He doesn't want to associate with us. There's no reason for us to talk to him. Tsukasa: Onee-chan, you can't say that... Tsukasa: Uh, umm... Mamiya-kun. *I tried to put distance between us, but Tsukasa was doing her best to keep up with me.* *I was walking fast, so Tsukasa had to run to keep up, since she was so much smaller.* *I walked even faster.* *She ran even harder.* *I started running too.* *Her breath was ragged from running.* *Something like this...* *Did something like this happen in the past?* *I'm not sure why, but... it felt nostalgic.* *As if I knew this situation.* *Why?* *The answer is obvious.* *It's just deja vu...* *Simply deja vu.* *It's not a memory of the past.* Tsukasa: .. *This is just like old times."* Takuji: Huh? Tsukasa: Ah, sorry.. * It has nothing to do with you."* Takuji: ... Tsukasa: That's right. We never met until we came to this school. Sorry for saying something so weird. *What is she saying... Of course we didn't.* Tsukasa: I just remember doing something like this before. Takuji: But we only met recently, right? Tsukasa: Like I said, it's just my memory. It has nothing to do with you.. * I just remembered something."* Takuji: Hmm... *A girl chasing after the protagonist...* *I don't have a sister.* *I didn't even have any female friends when I was growing up.* *So there's no way she could remember me.* *But I still felt nostalgic about something.* *Which means...* *It's probably because that kind of situation comes up so often in eroge.* *I've seen scenes like that so many times in games.* *So when something like it happens in reality, it feels familiar...* *It's kind of sad, really...* *But besides that...* Takuji: Your sister does that too... Would you stop reading my mind? Tsukasa: Ah, s-sorry... I didn't mean to... Takuji: Jeez... Looking at other people's thoughts. What are you, peeping toms? Kagami: What? Are you trying to pick a fight? Takuji: Huh? Kagami: I won't let you off easy if you talk about Tsukasa like that. Takuji: I-I'm not trying to start a fight. *Kagami looked at me fiercely.* *Why is she so outspoken?* Kagami: Then don't say crap like that. Tsukasa: O-Onee-chan! Takuji: Wh-What's your problem... You're the ones trying to talk to me. Kagami: It's not like I want to talk to someone like you. Tsukasa: Onee-chan! Kagami: Ah... sorry... *She apologized when her sister yelled at her.* *That's surprising. It almost looks like the younger one is the one in control.* *Well, not like it matters to me.* Tsukasa: Ah... *Tsukasa pointed to a store window.* Tsukasa: Look over there. Takuji: ... *I wasn't really interested, but I looked where she was pointing.* Tsukasa: It's a big rabbit doll. Takuji: ... *So what?* *That's what I wanted to say, but... I didn't.* *If I had said that, the older one would've gotten on my case again.* Tsukasa: When I was little... I got a big rabbit doll from my brother. Takuji: Hmm, that's nice. *And what about it... What do I care?* Tsukasa: A big doll... It was as tall as I was. Takuji: Hmm, it was really big, huh? Tsukasa: Yeah, it was probably really expensive too. Takuji: How kind of him. Tsukasa: Yeah! *Tsukasa answered with a joyful smile.* *That smile kind of... irritated me.* Kagami: ... *Kagami glared daggers at me.* *What's wrong this time...* *It's not like I did anything to make her sad.* Tsukasa: That was the happiest moment of my life... Tsukasa: I was so happy I wanted time to just stop right there. Takuji: You mean, like, 'Beautiful moment, do not pass away!', right? Tsukasa: Yeah, just like Faust. Takuji: ... *What's this...* *Why did those words...* *Why did Faust's words come out of my mouth? I don't know anything about him. I've never read that book...* *Faust is one of those old novels that they talk about in textbooks.* *Well, who cares...* Kagami: Who cares... Her happiest moment really has stopped, after all. Tsukasa: Yeah. Kagami: But still, you can't talk about that to just anyone on the street, Tsukasa. Kagami: That's one of your most important memories, you know? Tsukasa: Yes, but... Takuji: ... *What's... she saying?* Kagami: Mamiya-kun... right? Takuji: Yeah, and? Kagami: Don't make her worry too much. Takuji: Huh? Kagami: I wouldn't care if you got run over by a bus tomorrow, but Tsukasa would be upset if something happened to one of her classmates. Takuji: ... *But you wouldn't care at all...* Kagami: Well, whatever. This is where we part. Tsukasa: Yeah, this is the station. Takuji: See ya. Tsukasa: Yeah, bye. Kagami: We're off. *...* *What's up with them?* *Their personalities really are complete opposites.* *It bugs me how that Kagami girl is always trying to pick a fight.* *But that girl called Tsukasa...* *I don't know why, but she bugs me too.* *Those two...* *Why do I hate those two?* *Why do they irritate me so much?* Takuji: I bought quite a lot... *The teachers would confiscate this bag if they saw it, so I had to climb over the back fence.* *This way is a shortcut to my secret base, too.* Takuji: Haa... Well then... Takuji: Huh...? Zakuro: Eh? Takuji: Huh? Zakuro: Umm... *Wh-Why did she come out of the manhole?* *Umm... that means...* Takuji: Umm, Takashima-san... what are you doing? Zakuro: U-Umm... Takuji: Did you come to see me? Zakuro: ... Takuji: H-Hey! Takuji: What's wrong? *Wh-Why did she run away?* Takuji: Haa, haa, haa... *I chased after her, but... she was already gone.* Takuji: Sh-She's pretty fast... *She was gone.* Takuji: But still, what was that? Takuji: She came to see me, didn't she? *Why did she run when she saw me?* Takuji: Hmm... *Maybe she came to see me... and ran away because she was embarrassed?* Takuji: What do you mean? That almost makes it sound like she m-might like me, ahahaha. Takuji: D-Does she? *...No.* *This is how they get you to lower your guard. Nothing good has come of this before...* *You can't open up to them so easily...* Takuji: W-Well, it didn't seem to me like she had any bad intentions. Takuji: I wonder if she's going to come again. Takuji: Ahaha... If I get my expectations up, it'll just end in tragedy. *I laughed as I slumped into the couch.* Takuji: Haa... *And then I was assaulted by drowsiness.* *What... I'm getting sleepy again...* *Well, I did talk to those unpleasant girls, and I walked all the way to the shopping district. There were plenty of reasons for me to be tired.* *Sleepy.* *The blazing summer sun steals my energy.* *No, I was tired even before it got hot.* *Lots of people say they're tired in the spring...* *...So being tired during the spring isn't a problem.* *The problem is...* *...The problem is...?* *The ob ...* * ......*

*I haven't seen Takashima-san lately.* *I've tried to stay in my base as much as possible in case she comes by...* Takuji: I guess she really wasn't... *Feminine caprice, huh... Maybe it was just morbid curiosity. Maybe she was just window shopping...* *It's all the same to me...* Takuji: Crap... I should've tried to get some upskirt photos to make sure she wouldn't tell anyone... *I wish I had gotten some pictures of her underwear... Then I could threaten to put them on the Internet if she told anyone...* *...* *But...* Takuji: But it doesn't seem like she's told any of the teachers about this place... *If that was just a prank that the girls in my class were playing on me, then everyone in the school would know about it by now...* Takuji: It doesn't seem like she's told anyone... Takuji: Hmm... I wonder why... *Does she have some reason?* Takuji: Actually... *Takashima-san was being bullied by the other girls in her class, wasn't she...* *Maybe they just wanted to use the girl they were bullying to pull a prank on me...* *That's pretty common... They make one of the girls they bully do something to someone else...* *A while back, I remember a girl was bullied into confessing to all the ugly boys in her class...* *That was terrible... None of them were popular with girls, so a lot of them misunderstood and started stalking her.* *The stalkers all thought she was cheating on them, so they would call her a whore in the classroom, and they posted her personal information online... It was awful.* *Maybe they tried to use Takashima-san in the same way to make me do something like that...* *It's definitely possible.* *...* *But...* *Even then... there are a lot of unanswered questions. If that was the case, they would have already told everyone about this place.* *And yet I don't think anyone but Takashima-san knows about it.* *Maybe they're just waiting to see what I do?* *Hmm... That's a bit strange, too.* *Even if I assume they're waiting and trying to trick me... it's strange.* *The first time she came here was... eight days ago, I think?* *She came here the next day... And it's been a whole week since then.* *Even if they were biding their time, they wouldn't have waited this long.* *Since then, she hasn't come to see me even once.* *Nothing has happened since then.* Takuji: What's she trying to do... If they're trying to mess with me, something should've happened. *If they're waiting for me to let my guard down, they're letting too much time pass.* *So why?* Takuji: Why hasn't anything happened... Whether they plan on telling everyone about this place, or if they're trying to trick me... Takuji: That's right. *If it's one of their plots, they should be talking about it in their thread on the underground message board.* *They've always posted about the different ways they bully Takashima-san...* *I might be able to find something on there.* Takuji: They were in the same class, so... Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and Tachibana Kimika, huh... *15: Megu and Satoko's friendship thread.* *What a stupid thread title.* *It made me nauseous just looking at it.* *Using the word 'friendship' for what they do is just nasty...* *It's really creepy... They shouldn't talk like that at their age. Only a moron would talk like that.* *Paradoxically enough, using those words just shows how weak their friendship truly is.* *Otherwise they wouldn't feel the need to say it like that.* *Most people wouldn't feel the need to do that...* *But because they're selfish people, they don't mind... Honest people wouldn't use those words like that.* *And this thread is the proof.* Takuji: All they talk about in their friendship thread is makeup, boys, complaints about the school, and finally, bullying. *The worst kind of friendship...* Takuji: Well, that's why they always bully other people... *For them to be friends, they have to have someone to bully... Their relationship is founded on having something else to take out their frustration on.* *Well, that's just how it is.* Takuji: Umm... Oh, here it is. Takuji: Huh... What's this? There have been a lot of posts lately... *Threads generally don't move very fast, since there aren't that many people on the site.* *But the past few days this one has been getting a lot of posts.* Takuji: So they really were trying to trick me? *They must have been.* *If not, there wouldn't be so many posts.* *Shit... They really did use Takashima-san to pull a prank on me.* *They're probably laughing at me... I won't forgive them.* Takuji: Crap... What are they saying about me? *680: Satoko: 2012/07/10(F) 01:21:25 ID:satoko* *couldnt we get in trouble for that?* *it seemed like she was broken* *681: Megu: 2012/07/10(F) 01:22:16 ID:megu* *i hope shes totally broken* *then she wont be able tell anyone lol* *682: Satoko: 2012/07/10(F) 01:25:25 ID:satoko* *we might have overdone it.* *if they find out, they wont just let us off with a suspension* Takuji: What's this? *Suspension? Broken?* *They... can't be talking about me...* *What's happening?* *683: Megu: 2012/07/10(F) 01:26:16 ID:megu* *youre worrying too much lol* *nothings going to happen lol* *as long as she doesnt squeal were fine* *684: Satoko: 2012/07/10(F) 01:28:25 ID:satoko* *what about the police?* *685: Megu: 2012/07/10(F) 01:32:16 ID:megu* *there wont be any police lol* *even if there are, we can just keep quiet lol* *It wasn't what I was expecting at all.* *They sounded like they're nervous about something.* *686: Megu: 2012/07/10(F) 01:36:16 ID:meg* *there's no way takashima is going to talk after that lol* *theres no problem.* Takuji: What? They're talking about Takashima-san? *They haven't said a single thing about me...* *All of the recent posts have been about Takashima-san...* Takuji: This means... something happened to Takashima-san... Maybe she's not feeling well. Takuji: What happened... Takuji: Broken, they said... That's awfully ominous. *What's going on...* Takuji: Did Takashima-san...! Takuji: Haa, haa... Her classroom was... *The class next to mine, so...* Takuji: Here... They're having class right now... *I carefully peeked into the classroom...* *Takashima-san's seat is in the back, by the window... I looked at her seat from the door in the back of the classroom.* Takuji: ...She's there. *I could see her in her seat... though she was slumped over on her desk.* Takuji: I can't see her face, but that's Takashima-san. *She looked depressed, but she might have just been sleeping, too.* *Takashima-san... How are you feeling?* *If she's depressed because something bad happened...* Takuji: Then... *...* *Then?* *Wait...* *What am I doing...* *Maybe something happened to her, but what am I supposed to do about it?* *Let's say class ends... What would I do then?* *Talk to her? Ask her about it?* *Ask?* *Ask her what?* *What would I say to her in that situation?* *If she ran to me with all her worries... What would I do?* *I can't even do anything about my own problems... Even if she's being bullied, there's nothing I can do about it.* Takuji: B-But when class is over, I can at least say something to her. *Just a greeting... 'How have you been?' A casual exchange like that.* *I could do that...* *I don't know if something like that could save her, but... But...* Takuji: That's right... When class lets out... Takuji: Ah... *" ooking for you..."* Tomosane: I've been looking for you... Takuji: U-Umm... *Yuuki was looking for me?* *Ah... crap...* *That's right... It's been a week, hasn't it?* *I totally forgot about that promise...* Tomosane: You promised you'd bring me 50,000 yen. Your time's up. *I forgot... He made me promise him last week...* *And I completely forgot...* Tomosane: Hurry up... Give me the money. The money. Takuji: Um, well... Tomosane: Don't tell me you don't have your wallet with you. I can see it in your back pocket. Takuji: Huh? U-Umm... Takuji: Eagh! Tomosane: Now then, hand it over. Takuji: U-Uh... Okay... *There's no point in resisting. If I do, he'll just beat me up and take it by force...* Tomosane: What's this? Takuji: Huh? Wh-What do you mean? Tomosane: There's only 27,571 yen here. Takuji: W-Well... Takuji: Ow... Tomosane: You're not going to have a good time if you can't even keep your promises. You're more than 20,000 yen short. Takuji: I-I'm sorry... Tomosane: Oh, no... Takuji: E-Eek. Tomosane: I don't care for your apologies. It's just, it really bothers me when I don't have any money. Shiroyama: Ah... Numada: Oh, Yuuki-kun. Iinuma: Sup? Tomosane: ... Shiroyama: Gah! Iinuma: Why? Tomosane: Just now... 'Oh crap' was written on your face, like you didn't want to see me. Shiroyama: Th-That's... Tomosane: I don't know why, but I'm not too fond of excuses. Iinuma: Yuuki-kun, I don't think he meant it that way... Tomosane: What? Iinuma, are you talking back to me? Iinuma: N-Not at all, but... Tomosane: If you're going to disobey me, you'd better be prepared to kill me. You know that, right? Iinuma: Y-Yes... That's... Tomosane: Well, whatever. Tomosane: Actually, didn't you know someone who was growing some herb, Numada? Numada: A-About that... He got caught by the police. Tomosane: Really? He got caught? Shiroyama: Yes, and... he snitched on a lot of other people. Tomosane: So you're going to get caught too? Numada: No... I think I'm probably safe, but... Tomosane: Anyway, if you do get caught, don't tell them about me * Otherwise, I'll kill you when I get out."* Numada: I'm not a snitch. Besides, I'm not going to get caught... Probably. Tomosane: Hmm. Well, keep it up then. Tomosane: And as for you, Mamiya-kun, I'll wait till next week * Get me the rest of the money."* Tomosane: If you don't, it won't just be painful. I might end up leaving you in a wheelchair. Takuji: O-Okay... Tomosane: Alright, then... Does anyone have a cigarette? Shiroyama: Ah, you want some of my Sevens? Tomosane: Sevens? Isn't that the stuff that smells like shit? Numada: Yeah, it is. Shiroyama: What? Really? I like it. Tomosane: Whatever, that works. Numada: You always like the offbeat brands. What was it? Never... Neverland, I think? Tomosane: It's not like I want to smoke something weird like that. It's just what's always in my pocket, so I smoke it. Numada: What? Is your pocket an extradimensional portal? Tomosane: I wish. Then I'd have as much as I wanted. Though I'd rather it gave me money instead. Shiroyama: Of course. Shiroyama: Huh? Are you heading home? Tomosane: I just wanted to go to the station. Numada: You're gonna ditch all your classes? Tomosane: Dunno. Anyway, I want to get some coffee at that cafe, Spring Coffee, in front of the station. Numada: Ahahaha, see ya later. *......* *Yuuki finally disappeared...* Takuji: Finally... Numada: Let's go to the roof. Shiroyama: Why? Numada: It's... something I can't talk about here. Shiroyama: Eh? Really? *They were apparently relieved that Yuuki was gone, too. They ignored me and walked off somewhere.* *They said they were going to the roof...* *Why would they want to do that in the middle of summer? The roof is hotter than hell right now...* *And they always avoid the rooftop...* *Huh? Now that I think about it... don't they avoid the rooftop because of Minakami-san?* *They don't go near it because Minakami Yuki is always up there...* Takuji: Are they going to be alright? They might run into her. *Minakami Yuki is in my class... And technically, so is Yuuki.* *She's not as bad as Yuuki, but she's ridiculously violent for a girl. That's why Shiroyama and the others avoid her.* *They don't really want to go near her.* *Apparently they got messed up last time they tried to screw around with her.* *They say she's an experienced martial artist, so she's incredibly strong... And she doesn't hold back at all when fighting guys.* *It's not like they can complain when they get beaten up by a girl.* *She knows that, so she fights dirty.* *Fighting her means taking the risk of getting at least one of your arms broken...* *Even Yuuki Tomosane avoids her.* *I kind of wonder who's stronger, but those two don't cross paths very often.* *I've never heard of them fighting.* *I hear stories about both of them fighting other people, though... And apparently, Minakami-san beats up people from other schools on occasion.* *So why are those guys so calm about going to the roof?* Takuji: Maybe they already know she's not up there... *Is that why they're going up to the roof?* *Like, maybe she already left?* *Well, she usually skips class too, so it wouldn't be a surprise if she left school altogether.* Takuji: But that bastard Yuuki... Takuji: What's wrong with him? He took 30,000 yen from me... Why'd he have to hit me like that? Takuji: Lowlifes like him are such a pain in the ass. Why do they think they're so much better than me? They can't even see ten feet in front of themselves, so they don't care what they're doing to others. Takuji: And 50,000 yen is impossible. I don't have that kind of money. *I don't want to get a job at all...* *How can someone expect me to get a job when I can't even stand to talk to other people...* Takuji: Haa... Why is that Yuuki guy so violent... *Apparently he transferred here from another school last year.* *He doesn't really stand out based on his looks. He's not very tall, and he's skinny... No one expected him to be that strong.* *But now everyone fears Yuuki Tomosane.* *Of course, even Shiroyama and Numada fear him.* *The first day he came here, he beat the two of them up.* *Though it would be better described as physical abuse, since it was completely one-sided.* *I witnessed it happen.* *He's truly a fearsome man...* *Even people from other schools are afraid of him. They say he's a lunatic who's going to murder someone one of these days.* *He probably will kill someone eventually. There's almost no doubt about that.* *He doesn't think twice about using a knife, and he doesn't hesitate to stab someone if they let him.* *Yuuki once stabbed Shiroyama through the palm when Shiroyama made him mad, and he even stabbed Numada in the ass just because he was in a bad mood.* *There are rumors that gang members and lowlifes throughout the town have been stabbed by him, and some have even lost fingers when they ran into him.* *Normally, someone would be more reserved when using a knife. Well, as normal as stabbing someone can be (which really isn't normal at all).* *Considering the way he stabs every single person he fights, it's just a matter of time until he kills someone.* *From the time I entered this school until Yuuki transferred here... I was bullied by Shiroyama, Numada, and Iinuma.* *They didn't use simple violence as much as he does, but they attacked my spirit.* *Their bullying was more constant and subtle, probably so it was harder for others to tell that it was bullying. It made me feel neurotic every day.* *Especially when Nishimura couldn't find a woman... That wasn't just bullying. That demand was beyond mere bullying...* *When Yuuki Tomosane came to this school, all that ended.* *Since he came to this school, all of the bullying changed into outright violence.* *One year ago...* *He came to our school without even introducing himself to the class.* *The reason he didn't get to introduce himself was because he was late on the first day after he transferred.* *My impression of him is from...* *That day when he suddenly appeared before me.* *Yes... that day...* *The bullying on that day was a little unusual.* *At first, they were pretending we were 'playing,' like always... but then it turned into something different.* *I feel sick just remembering it...* *Because...* *For some reason, 'playing around' turned into sexual assault on that day...* Takuji: ...Aah... It hurts... It really hurts... Numada: This could be pretty bad, couldn't it? His bone's probably broken by now. You're crazy, Shiroyama-kun. You've gotta be breaking it. Shiroyama: That just means he's lacking calcium, doesn't it? Iinuma: Osteoporosis, right? Nishimura: Mamiya, you won't be able to jack off anymore. Takuji: Ah, please... stop it... Numada: No way, we have to be fair. Rock, paper, scissors. Iinuma: Come on, throw something out or you lose automatically, and that's 10,000 yen. Go, go, go! Shiroyama: Whoa, this time I lost. Iinuma: Alright, here it comes. Shiroyama: S-Seriously...? Shiroyama: Gaaa, ow, it hurts! Kiyoshi: Alright, rock, paper scissors! *This stupid... pointless game...* *The person that wins at rock, paper, scissors punches the loser's arm as hard as he can.* *I guess it started because people wanted to show off their muscles, but...* *I was forced to participate.* *Hitting someone in the arm isn't fun, and being hit is nothing but painful.* *It's really pointless.* Shiroyama: Rock, paper, scissors! Numada: ...Scissors! Takuji: Ah... *Crap... I was thinking, and... I threw late.* *Throwing late is...* Iinuma: You threw yours after us! Kiyoshi: Alright, alright, a late throw is 10,000 yen. Takuji: I-I don't have that kind of money. Kiyoshi: Of course you do. Pay up. It's a promise. Takuji: B-But... Shiroyama: No buts. Either pay up or we're all going to hit you. Takuji: I'll die if you do that. Iinuma: How are you going to die from getting punched in the arm. No one's that weak. Takuji: B-But... Shiroyama: Shut up. Come on, put out your arm. Takuji: S-Seriously, don't. Just stop. Nishimura: Let's just punch him in the face. Numada: Like I said, we can't do that. It's just a game, after all. Iinuma: But he's a pain in the ass. He's not following the rules. Numada: Well, yeah, he's not. Nishimura: Ah! I have an idea. Shiroyama: What? Nishimura: Hey, Mamiya. Go steal a girl's uniform. Takuji: Eh? Numada: How? Shiroyama: Megu's class is swimming right now. There should be uniforms in the changing room. Nishimura: Of course. Numada: What? That's brilliant. Nishimura: Mamiya, go steal one of their uniforms. Then we'll let you off. Takuji: Wh-Why? Shiroyama: Or would you rather pay 10,000 yen? Better yet, we could all punch you. Takuji: Th-That's... Shiroyama: So then whose uniform should he take? No one wants some fat chick's uniform. Numada: Yeah, a cute girl would be good. Don't pick an ugly girl. Iinuma: Whose then? I wouldn't mind Takashima or Tachibana's. Those two are the cutest. Nishimura: Takashima acts a bit weird, but she is pretty cute. Iinuma: That's right. She's getting bullied by the other girls, but it's just jealousy, isn't it? Nishimura: Yeah, she's getting bullied. Shiroyama: Though it's Megu and Satoko doing it. Iinuma: That's your girlfriend, isn't it... Nishimura: Well, whatever. Just grab Takashima or Tachibana's uniform and bring it here. Takuji: Eh? I-I can't do that... Shiroyama: Of course you can. You need to! Iinuma: It's your punishment, so there has to be a little risk. Takuji: I-I can't... Takuji: O-Ow... Shiroyama: Are you misunderstanding something? We told you to do it. You can't just say you can't. You'll do it. Iinuma: Making the impossible possible is what it means to be a man. If you're a man, you'll do it. Nishimura: I'm not so sure... He's so scrawny, and I bet he doesn't even have a dick. Shiroyama: So if he clears this mission, he'll become a man. Show everyone that you really do have a dick, Mamiya. Takuji: But... Shiroyama: Knock it off. We're not going to ask nicely again. This is what we came up with because you were whining about our other plans. Iinuma: Yeah, you can't just say no to everything. We might just have to beat you up. The next punishment game could be stripping you naked, burning your dick hair, and throwing you out in the field. Nishimura: Hurry up. Their class is about to end. Takuji: But... Numada: It'll be fine. If you steal Takashima's uniform, she'll just think it was one of the girls' pranks. Shiroyama: Then they'll suspect my girlfriend, since she's the one who's been bullying Takashima the most. Numada: But bullying someone is awful. Of course there's a risk to that. She should take responsibility for her actions, right? Shiroyama: Says who? Kiyoshi: Anyway, they won't think it's you, Mamiya, so don't worry about it. Takuji: I guess so... B-But... Shiroyama: Shut up. If you don't go, I'll... Takuji: Ah, s-sorry... Numada: And her seat is number 12. Takuji: Huh? Numada: What do you mean, 'huh'? The changing room lockers use the same numbers as their seats, so you need to know that to find out which locker is Takashima's. Takuji: Ah, I-I see... *The men's lockers were like that, weren't they...* Shiroyama: Well then, we wish you luck. Nishimura: And you can't forget the underwear. You absolutely can't! *Now that I think of it... my first memory of Takashima-san was when I stole her uniform and underwear.* *It's such an unpleasant memory that I've tried my best to forget it, but... it really wasn't a good way to meet someone.* *Maybe you could call it fate.* *I snuck into the changing room, still feeling depressed.* *Once I tried it, it went easier than I expected.* *I couldn't believe it was so easy.* *There was no lock on the door, and no one was watching it.* *And I just had to open the locker with the same number as her seat.* Takuji: This one? *I checked the uniform inside.* *The name 'Takashima Zakuro' was written on the lining.* Takuji: This is it... *I felt guilty taking it, but I had no idea what they would do to me if I turned back.* Takuji: W-Well... Kiyoshi: Hmm? Takuji: I-I got it... Nishimura: Huh? Got what? Takuji: Eh? Iinuma: Isn't this a girl's uniform? Kiyoshi: Are you serious? He really did it! That's terrible! He doesn't know what a joke is at all! Takuji: Eh? A j-joke? Shiroyama: You actually stole it. You're a criminal now. Takuji: Eh... B-But... Numada: This is getting dangerous. We're gonna be accomplices now. Takuji: B-But you all said I had to go get it... Takuji: Ow. Shiroyama: What are you talking about? Are you trying to blame someone else? You're scum. Numada: That's right. You shouldn't do that. Nishimura: We'll have to turn you in. There's no way we're going to be your accomplices. Numada: That's right. We have to turn him in. Takuji: S-Stop it. I'll go return it right now. Iinuma: You can't. Takuji: Ah... Iinuma: If you go back to the changing room now, you'll be caught, 100%. Kiyoshi: Oh boy, you're out of luck. You're totally a criminal now. Numada: Well, I'll go find one of the teachers. Takuji: I'm sorry. I'll apologize. Just don't tell the teachers. I'll do anything, so forgive me. Shiroyama: Don't touch me, girly man! That's nasty! Takuji: Agh... Numada: Jeez, he really is nasty. Shiroyama: You don't even have a dick between your legs, do you? Kiyoshi: Hahaha, he doesn't have one. No way! Takuji: I-I do... Shiroyama: Huh? What did you say? Takuji: E-Even I... have one... Shiroyama: ... *The most powerful punch yet hit me right in the face.* *My vision went blank, as if the wiring in my head had been jostled loose.* *Then, a moment later, a loud bang resonated through my head, and my eyes were filled with the sight of sky.* *When I fell, I hit my head on the concrete.* Takuji: Ah... *My head was spinning too much for me to even move.* Shiroyama: Numada, let me borrow your knife... Numada: Seriously? Are you gonna cut him up? Shiroyama: Just give it to me. *Shiroyama took the knife from Numada.* Takuji: Wh-What?! *Shiroyama cut into my uniform with his knife.* Takuji: S-Stop it. My uniform is... Numada: Are you actually gonna burn his dick hair and throw him out in the field? Takuji: Y-You can't! That's my uniform! *I fought like a dying man to stop them from destroying all my clothes.* Shiroyama: Tch! Takuji: Ow! *The knife went astray and cut into my belly.* Shiroyama: Shut up. If you don't sit still, I'm gonna have to slice you up. Takuji: Eek... *Even after threatening to cut me, he threw in another punch to the face for good measure.* Iinuma: I wonder what his body actually looks like... Nishimura: He really is disgusting... So pale and skinny. He doesn't even have any muscle. Takuji: ...Uuu... Shiroyama: This is awful... I don't even want to bother with the rest. Let's just burn all the hair on his body. Numada: Really? That's evil. Shiroyama: But he really does look like a woman. He's so disgusting, jeez. Nishimura: It's dangerous to burn his hair, though. I know someone who did that once as a joke, and the guy got burned when his head caught on fire. My friend got arrested for it. Kiyoshi: The hair on someone's head burns like crazy, and it stinks something awful. Someone would definitely notice. Shiroyama: Okay, that's fine. We'll just burn his dick hair before we throw him away. That's good enough for me. Numada: Yeah. *Numada grabbed my hands to hold me down.* Takuji: N-No! Shiroyama: He still doesn't understand. What a pain... *I resisted, trying not to let him get ahold of my hands.* Iinuma: Why's this dumbass flailing around like a child? It's hard to look at, man. Takuji: S-Stop it! No! Stop! Shiroyama: Shut up! Iinuma-chan, grab his legs. Iinuma: Got it! Takuji: S-Stop... *My resistance was useless. They exposed my lower body to the world.* Takuji: Ah... Nishimura: ... Shiroyama: What the hell... How old is he? Takuji: Don't look... Don't look... Iinuma: Hahahaha! Seriously? He still doesn't have any even at this age! Shiroyama: There's nothing to burn... Numada: He's even nastier than I thought. Takuji: ... Nishimura: He's not a man. There's no way he's even human. Takuji: What are you saying... Shiroyama: Huh? Takuji: I've done everything you asked! Why are you doing this to me?! Takuji: Aghh! Auighh! *Shiroyama got on top of me and started punching me.* Numada: You really are stupid... Iinuma: Who cares. I'm bored. Let's get out of here. Kiyoshi: The next class is going to end in thirty minutes. We need to go get something to eat before that. *Iinuma and Yokoyama wanted to leave.* *Please... Just do what they're saying and leave...* *I silently prayed.* Shiroyama: Yeah, sure. I'll catch up with you in a minute. Kiyoshi: Well then, we're gonna go. Numada: Yeah, go ahead. Takuji: Eegh... Numada: I'm gonna give him a few more lumps. *Iinuma Kenji and Yokoyama Kiyoshi headed off to the front gates. They wanted to leave before lunch, since if they waited, there would be a teacher at the gates to stop people.* Numada: Huh? Nishimura, aren't you gonna go with them? Nishimura: I packed my lunch. Takuji: ... Numada: He's so nasty... He's not even a real man. Shiroyama: Just looking at him makes me angry. Numada: Oh... *Numada looked at the uniform I had stolen.* Numada: This is Takashima Zakuro's uniform, isn't it? Takuji: Eh? But that's what you told me... Nishimura: What's wrong with you? You stole a uniform from a girl who's already being bullied? Now you're the bully, Mamiya. Takuji: But you told me to! Takuji: Eagh! Shiroyama: Don't try to blame other people... Numada: Is that it? Do you have a crush on Takashima? Takuji: Eh? Takuji: N-No way. I don't even know her... Takuji: Eeahh, s-stop hitting me. Numada: Then don't make me say it twice, okay? You stole her uniform because you have a crush on her, right? Takuji: U-Umm... Shiroyama: Well? Takuji: Y-Yes... Nishimura: Good, then I'll give you the uniform. If you don't like her, then I don't know why you'd want to steal it. In that case, I'd have to keep hitting you. So which is it? Takuji: Y-Yes... I like her... Nishimura: Well then, you can have it. Wear it home. Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: Hahaha, you have such a big crush on her, right? Then you should wear her uniform and jack off. Jack off to her. Takuji: Eh... but... *If I didn't answer yes, he would punch me again...* *And either way, I didn't have a uniform since mine had been cut to pieces.* *Even if a woman's uniform would be better than nothing...* Takuji: Alright... Numada: Hehehehe, Nishimura-chan... You're such a bully. Nishimura: Hurry up and change already. *He threw the uniform at me.* *I put on the underwear first.* *It was the first time I had ever touched a girl's underwear.* Takuji: ... *This... is always touching Takashima-san's most important parts...* *Which means...* *Of course, I've never had any experience with a woman, even now.* *I had never even seen the underwear of a girl my age up close.* Takuji: This is... *I felt the blood pooling in my lower body.* *Even I was surprised.* *Even though they were putting me through such shame, my body reacted when I saw Takashima's panties.* Takuji: O-Oh no... The underwear will be too small for me to wear... Takuji: ... Numada: Seriously? Crossdressing? You're actually going to wear the underwear you stole? You really are a pervert. *That's just what I expected them to say.* *They really are stupid, uncouth people...* *They react the same way every time, repeating the same jokes like clockwork.* Nishimura: You really put her panties on? You even put the panties on? Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: Look at this pervert! Show us whether you actually put on the panties. Takuji: N-No... Shiroyama: What? *Shiroyama's fist clenched again.* *I-It's fine... I managed to calm him down, so now it should be fine...* Takuji: Alright... *I slowly lifted my skirt.* *The breezy feeling I had felt became even more intense.* *Trunks or briefs wouldn't feel this thin.* *I was incredibly conscious of myself, being forced to wear women's clothing outside and then lift my skirt.* *Embarrassing...* Takuji: ... Nishimura: He really did... He put them on. Numada: God damn, those are Takashima's panties! Shiroyama: Hahaha, but it's Takuji wearing them... Nishimura: You're right... There's a little bulge in the crotch... Numada: But his dick is so small you might think he's a woman. Shiroyama: Gross. Nishimura: He doesn't have any hair at all... He's childish in mind and body. Shiroyama: It's nasty how he looks just like a girl. Nishimura: But Takashima has some really sexy panties... Shiroyama: Yeah, since she's a slut, you know? Tools of the trade. Nishimura: She sells her body? Shiroyama: That's what Megu said. Nishimura: But she's just trying to bully her. That's gotta be a lie. Takuji: ... *Selling her body... They mean schoolgirl prostitution, don't they?* *Which means... Takashima-san has been having sex...* *The reason her panties are so sexy is... because she wants to show them to someone.* Takuji: Oo... *C-Crap... I shouldn't have thought about that.* Numada: It looks so soft and smooth... God damn, I wish that wasn't Mamiya's crotch. Shiroyama: Hold on, that's pretty gay. Nishimura: Yeah, even if the panties are sexy, you don't want to touch them. That's dick in there. If you get him excited, he'll just pop a boner. Numada: Ugh. Takuji: ... *Their discussion had focused on Takashima-san's panties.* *When I imagined her engaging in schoolgirl prostitution...* *My privates started pushing up against the fabric.* Takuji: No... Let me go already... Shiroyama: What is it? Takuji: I can't... Shiroyama: Can't what? Takuji: Eh? Um... *I could feel the blood pulsing inside Takashima-san's panties.* *At this rate, it'll...* Takuji: Let me go already... Shiroyama: What are you talking about? Numada: Huh... Numada: Isn't it bigger than before? I don't think it was this big earlier... Nishimura: He's growing? Takuji: No... Numada: Oh, wow... Nishimura: Are you serious? *They could see it moving.* *Takashima-san's tiny panties were being pushed up from beneath.* Takuji: No, no... Don't look... Nishimura: What a freak. He gets a boner from crossdressing out here, with all of us watching... *I was too embarrassed to even comprehend the situation.* *I was so embarrassed that I just wanted to die. My body was flooded with the feeling of regret.* Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry... Don't look... Please don't look... *I started crying, but the blood kept rushing to my crotch, as if a floodgate had been opened.* Numada: ... Shiroyama: What's wrong with him... That's nasty. He really is a freak. Nishimura: He's getting turned on from wearing those panties and having us look at him. Numada: Then he really is some kind of pervert. He almost looks erotic... even though he's a guy. Shiroyama: That's pretty disgusting. Numada: Mamiya, aren't you embarrassed? You're getting a boner now, as you wear your beloved Takashima's panties, while your crotch is exposed to the world... Takuji: Of course I'm embarrassed! So don't look. Just let me go... Numada: Then why is your dick getting hard? Are you getting turned on by wearing Takashima-san's clothes? Takuji: N-No... I hardly even know Takashima-san. Nishimura: Then why are you popping a boner? Takuji: B-Because you guys said she was doing schoolgirl prostitution... Numada: Huh? So? Takuji: I-I imagined it... Takuji: Ah... Numada: ... Nishimura: Whoa... Shiroyama: Tch. *A soft, sliding feeling...* *Takashima-san's panties were made of such smooth material that my penis slipped out.* Numada: Freak... Why are you leaking cum already... Shiroyama: He's the worst... I can't believe he's showing us that thing. Takuji: N-No... I didn't mean to... Numada: It fell out because of your pre-cum. Nishimura: This guy's dick... What the hell's wrong with it? It's so pale. His foreskin is huge, but the tip is pink. Numada: Hahaha... Let's ditch him already. I can't stand to be around this freak. Takuji: No... It only came out because her panties are so smooth... Nishimura: No, it's the pre-cum... They're soaked... Numada: You got a boner from thinking of Takashima-san's pussy, didn't you? Takuji: No... Let me go... Please, forgive me... Shiroyama: For what? You're a pain... Say it already, or I'll cut your dick off! Numada: Wait, that's my knife... It's not made to cut something like that. Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's my fault. Please forgive me... Shiroyama: That's not what I asked you. Answer me. Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry... I'll do anything, so just please forgive me. Shiroyama: He says he'll do anything... What a creepy fucker. Takuji: Ugha... Nishimura: Oh really? You'll do anything, will you? Takuji: U-Umm... Nishimura: You said you'd do anything, right? Didn't you?! Takuji: Eek... *I cowered from his intimidation.* *I had no choice.* *They wouldn't give me a choice.* Shiroyama: Open your mouth! Nishimura asked you a question! Takuji: Ah, yes, I'm sorry! Nishimura: Now answer the question... Takuji: I'll... do anything... Shiroyama: So then what are you gonna do? Personally, I wouldn't mind if you brought us 1,000,000 yen... Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: That'd be nice, but how the heck would he do it? Shiroyama: There are plenty of ways. He could steal the money from his parents' bank account. Numada: No, there aren't that many ways... And even if he did that, we'd get caught too. Shiroyama: Then what should we make him do? He could be our stress relief sandbag. Nishimura: Shiroyama-chan, you always resort to violence first... Numada: Why don't we try something a bit more peaceful? Shiroyama: Huh? Peaceful? I don't get you. Well whatever, what do you have in mind? Numada: What do I have in mind? Nishimura: Yeah... Nishimura: Well, first off, how about he jacks off in his beloved Takashima-san's uniform? Shiroyama: S-Seriously? Nishimura: We should make it clear why he stole it, don't you think? Nishimura: If he jacks off in it, it's not hard to guess why he stole it. Shiroyama: What do you mean... Numada: In other words, we'd have proof that we weren't involved... Nishimura: That's right. Nishimura: And you probably want to jack off so bad right now, don't you, Mamiya-kun? Takuji: Eh? Wh-Why would I... Shiroyama: That's why you stole the uniform... Takuji: B-But that's not― Takuji: Geh. Shiroyama: Don't you ever learn? Don't try to pin it on us... You're the criminal here. Takuji: B-But... Nishimura: Just do it... Stain those clothes with your lust! Takuji: B-But! Numada: Shut up... *Maybe they wanted to make it look like I was the only one that had committed a crime... Or maybe they were just having fun... I'm not really sure.* *I was ordered to wear the uniform and masturbate...* *I'd heard that sometimes bullying took a sexual turn, but... I never thought it would happen to me.* Nishimura: How nice... Little baby stole the uniform so he could do this with it. Takuji: ... *You guys forced me to do all of this... That was what I really wanted to say, but I knew it was pointless.* *Words don't work with these people... They only understand brutality...* Nishimura: Oh, if you pull on the skin, the tip pops out. Numada: He's not even human. *They said lots of nasty things about me, but I tried to ignore them... The only one who would lose out if I reacted was me.* Nishimura: Do it, all the way until you cum... It's what you want to do, after all... Takuji: ... *All the way... How humiliating... Why would they make me do this...* Takuji: ... Numada: His hand is moving faster and faster. Nishimura: I didn't think there was anyone fucked up enough to cum while crossdressing in front of a bunch of other guys. Shiroyama: Just nasty... Numada: I guess perverts like him really do get turned on when people watch them. Nishimura: Of course. Look, his pre-cum is dripping all over his hand. *I just focused on making myself ejaculate.* *It didn't feel good at all... Ejaculation is no different than excreting waste...* *I closed my eyes and intently stroked my penis.* Numada: He's not even listening to us anymore. Nishimura: Come on, yell out your lover's name for us. Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: It's your lover's uniform, right? You have to yell her name out while you're doing it, otherwise the mood isn't right. Takuji: ... Shiroyama: Come on, say it... You love her, right? Takuji: Takashima... san. Numada: Huh? What'd you say? You can't get off like that. Come on, yell it like there's no tomorrow! Nishimura: Come on, as sweetly as you can. You love her, right? Takuji: T-Takashima-san... Takashima-san... Takashima-san... Numada: Come on, get in the mood! You can do better than that! Takuji: Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! *I was desperate... I yelled out her name just like they told me to.* *It didn't feel good at all... I was just miserable.* *I just had to cum, and then it would all be over.* *Then the reason why I stole the uniform would be clear...* Takuji: Oo... agh... *The only time I made a noise was the very moment of ejaculation.* *That's what masturbation is to a boy... There's no need to make any noise. It's just getting rid of bodily waste.* Nishimura: Whoa, he really did it... Numada: Ah, it smells like a freakin' squid! Nishimura: He came so much. Man, did it feel that good? Numada: Hahaha, he's like a dog in heat! Nishimura: His hips are still shaking. He really is like a dumb dog! Shiroyama: He really is just a dog. *I just looked at the ground.* *My ejaculate was pooling there.* *Now that it was over... I felt even more miserable.* *Why would they make me do this...* *Why would they do this to me...* Nishimura: Well, what should we do now? Shiroyama: Huh? You still want to do more? Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: Of course. He only satisfied his own lust just now. Shiroyama: Just leave him. Let's go somewhere else... I'm honestly starting to feel sick. Nishimura: Really? I thought it was fun. Nishimura: So... Takuji: Wha―?! *At the moment when I thought I would be released, I was thrown back into an inescapable darkness.* *At the same time that Numada put his knife back in his pocket, Nishimura laughed and unzipped his pants, exposing his crotch.* Shiroyama: Eh? Wh-What are you doing? Numada: What are you gonna do to him? *Nishimura's half-erect penis dangled in front of my eyes.* *I stared at it in disbelief.* *Even Shiroyama hadn't expected this.* *His face was frozen in astonishment as he looked back and forth between Nishimura's face and his dick.* Nishimura: Well, you know... if you look at him from this angle * he really does look like a girl..."* Numada: No. I know you want to get rid of your virginity, but... that would be really bad. Shiroyama: Not just bad... Nishimura: Who cares? He looks like a girl. Numada: That's not the problem. Nishimura: It's fine. He's just a substitute for the real thing. Shiroyama: Wait, wait... You can use an onahole or something for that. You don't need to use him as a replacement. I mean, it is still Mamiya, you know? *He wasn't concerned by their objections. He thrust his penis in front of my face.* Nishimura: Don't knock it till you try it. Come on, you're crossdressing today, so you can just tell yourself you're a woman. Use that mouth of yours to make me cum. Takuji: Huh? E-Eeeeh? *With my mouth? What's that mean... He...* *Does he mean...?* Shiroyama: ...Come on, you're joking, right? Numada: You can't be serious, Nishimura-kun... Nishimura: Everyone's mouth is the same, isn't it? Numada: But still, it's a guy's mouth. Nishimura: It's fine. Just think of him like a toilet... No one gets fussy about which toilet they piss in, you know? Shiroyama: But a toilet doesn't suck your dick. If it did, they'd probably be a lot more fussy about it. Numada: Or just imagine he's a woman, not a toilet. The idea is just to use him as a way to get rid of all the stress you have saved up. Nishimura: Shut up. I wouldn't do it if I had a girlfriend like you, but I really want to do it. I don't care if it has to be with a toilet or what! Numada: So that's what it is... A virgin will do anything. Nishimura: It'll be fine. Numada: But he's a guy. It's Mamiya. He just came all over the ground. Nishimura: Then I just won't look at that. We have to think positively here. Numada: That's overly positive... And still... Nishimura: Whatever. I'm going to! I'm going to do it! Numada: You don't have to announce it. Nishimura: I'm not asking you guys to join in, though you could watch if you're interested. Shiroyama: Dumbass. No one wants to watch a guy sucking another guy's dick. Numada: Well, that's true. Shiroyama: I don't like that stuff, so I'll just go smoke a couple... Nishimura: Yeah, I'll come find you once I'm done. Shiroyama: Jeez... Your head's messed up. Nishimura: What are you gonna do? Numada: Who knows? I'm kind of curious, so I guess I'll watch. Nishimura: Hmm, so you're thinking of doing it too. Numada: No, not at all. I'm not that brave. Nishimura: Whatever, let's get going. How about you get to sucking? *What?* *Why was this kind of... thing in front of me?* *It had a disgusting shape that I didn't want to see... Why would any man need to have something so filthy...* *As I hesitated, Nishimura said...* Nishimura: Suck it... If you don't do it, I'll punch you. Takuji: ... *I don't want to, I don't want to, I don't want to!* *I can't suck a guy's dick.* *I can't imagine... putting something filthy like this in my mouth.* Nishimura: Hey, Numada-chan, could I borrow your knife for a second? *Numada shrugged and passed the knife to Nishimura.* *The knife in his hand glinted in the light.* *It was so scary that even the light seemed like it was about to pierce my heart.* Nishimura: You have pretty eyes. Takuji: ...Eh? Nishimura: I'd like to get a better look at them. Would you mind if I cut them out? Takuji: Eh? Eeh? *Nishimura held the knife in front of my eyes and giggled as he drew circles in the air with the tip.* Nishimura: I'd just like to use your mouth for a bit. Nishimura: Just close your eyes and bear with it, and then it'll all be over. Nishimura: Or what? Would you like to regret a single bad decision for the rest of your life? Takuji: Eh... Eh? Numada: You're getting hard from threatening him? Just how sadistic are you? *I wasn't just imagining it.* *The dick before my eyes really was getting bigger.* *Its tip was already pointing toward the sky.* *His lips turned upward in a grin as he waved the knife in front of my face.* Nishimura: Hehehe... You did say you would do anything, right? *I couldn't defy them.* *They'd already made me dress up like a woman and masturbate, and now he was going to gouge out my eyes if I didn't do this...* *I had no choice in the matter.* Nishimura: You said you would do anything! Open up!! Takuji: A-Alright! *He suddenly raised his voice, and... I responded without thinking.* Nishimura: Say it one more time, so you don't forget it. *He wanted to humiliate me by making me say it again.* *But I had no choice.* *There was nothing else I could do.* Takuji: ...I'll do anything... Nishimura: Then do it. *That's right...* *I have no choice.* *No matter what I say, there's no way I can convince a lowlife like him.* *So for this one day...* *I just pretended like I had fallen into a ditch.* *I did my best to cut off all my senses.* *Not feel anything―* *Not think anything.* *I became nothing.* *So I felt nothing...* Nishimura: Do it already. *He pushed his dick toward me.* Takuji: Ugh... *I smelled powerful odor like I'd never smelled before... I hated the smell of other people in general, but this smell was...* *I couldn't erase myself...* *I couldn't... do it.* Nishimura: Hey! I'll cut out your fucking eyes! Takuji: A-Augh... *Don't look... Don't look, just do it...* *And try to breathe as little as possible... Then the smell won't bother you...* *My tongue stretched outward...* *I tried to move it as far away from the rest of my mouth as possible...* Takuji: ... *Something touched the tip of my tongue.* *I tried not to think about what it was.* *I couldn't let myself think.* *My tongue was touching the filthiest thing in the world...* *Close your eyes, try not to breathe... and forget that fact...* Nishimura: What are you doing? Just touching it with the tip is no good. Hurry up and suck it. Takuji: S-Suck... *No, don't think... Just do as he says. Just accept it, don't think... Right now, I am nothing.* *Don't think about what you're doing.* *I just moved my tongue because I was told to move it... I didn't think about what it was touching at all.* *Turn your heart to dust... Just disappear... That's right.* Takuji: Amph... Pch, ah... *It tasted... It tasted really bad...* *It tasted salty... That was probably his pre-cum... It was slimy, too.* *No... Don't think about that... Suppress your spirit...* Takuji: Mmph, pff, mmhhha, mmph... *The taste grew stronger...* *No matter what I did, the stickiness started dripping into my mouth.* Nishimura: Mm, why are you just licking the tip? Do it better. Takuji: B-Better? Nishimura: Look, get the underside too. Takuji: Agh... *I reflexively looked, and then I breathed.* *The odor... forced me to recognize just what I was doing.* *No, if you think, you lose... Just move your tongue, like a machine... That's all.* Takuji: Mmph, pch... Ah... Phfmmm, mm... Nishimura: Hmm, you're not really putting any effort into it... Lick my balls, too, and rub my dick with your hands while you do it Takuji: Eh? *He told me to do so many things... There was no way I could do it without thinking...* Nishimura: Come on... Do it already. *But... there was liquid coming out of the tip. There wasn't any coming out of his balls... It might be easier to endure that...* Takuji: Ah... *Nishimura pushed my face into his crotch.* Takuji: ... *I-It in't easier at all... It's sweatier than the shaft, and it smells so bad... I really think I might die.* Nishimura: Hurry up and lick them. Takuji: O-Ohhay... *I couldn't even speak properly due to the stench, but there was nothing else I could do.* Takuji: Hm, schlpp, ah... *At this point, I'd already started sucking it... It didn't really matter where exactly he wanted me to suck anymore.* *I just wanted to make him cum quickly... I didn't want to think. I just wanted to end it.* *I licked his balls, just like he said.* *I stroked his dick.* *I did everything he told me to.* Nishimura: Mmm, it feels good... You know what feels good, since you're a guy too. Takuji: ... *Don't say that out loud... It's gross...* Takuji: Psh, psh, pchh... Nn, ah... Nishimura: Whoa... More, at the base... My balls, and the base of my dick... *Frothing cum was building up in the base of the shaft from the motions of my hand.* Nishimura: Hurry up! Takuji: Hmmm, mmm... Schllp, hwahmm, ooh, ahmm! *I scooped up the frothy liquid with my tongue...* *At first I tried not to get any in my mouth, but... before I knew it, my mouth was full of it.* *Nothing but the taste of Nishimura's cum...* Nishimura: Open your mouth wider... Takuji: Mm, ahhh... *Just as he said... I didn't think of anything.* *There was no point in thinking...* *I opened my mouth wide.* *He pushed his entire dick in.* Takuji: Mm? Uogh... Mm, ahh... *This texture... It's so much worse than just licking it...* *But I can't think about what 'it' is.* *I can't think.* *'It' tasted faintly salty as it violated the inside of my mouth.* *It was like it was trying to make me recognize its existence.* *For a moment, I felt like I was going to puke.* *But I did my best to hold it in and not tense up, so he wouldn't hurt me any more.* *I'm just a hole.* *I'm a hole, devoid of thought... If I think of nothing, then nothing of me remains.* Takuji: Ahmm... Mmm, psh... Nishimura: Whoa～ This is like a whole new world～! *His excited voice skimmed over my head.* Nishimura: I don't know what to say. It's soft, warm, and wet. It's way better than my hand! Numada: ...But it's a guy's mouth, you know? Nishimura: It's way better than an onahole! Whoa, this is great! Takuji: Nmmm... Haa, hmm... Nishimura: This is great. This is really great! *He yelled in pleasure, since it was probably his first time having his dick sucked. He grabbed my head and moved his hips back and forth.* Takuji: Nnkh... Mmhh... *I could hardly breathe as his dick violated the back of my throat.* *It was agonizing.* *I just wished that I could throw up.* *His dick flailed around inside my mouth, oblivious to my growing nausea.* Takuji: Khaa, hmmaa... Mmm, mmhgh... *Agonizing...* *No... It's so gross...!* *To endure this disgrace―I just need to close my eyes tightly, forget my own existence, and try to end it quickly.* *I don't want to think about it, but... it'll only end when he cums, so it would be best if he came as quickly as possible.* Nishimura: Only way this could be better is if you really were a girl. Takuji: Mmm, haa... Mmm... Nishimura: Well, whatever. You look like a girl. Takuji: Hmmm, mm... Haa, mm... Nishimura: Come on, don't just let it sit in your mouth. Use your tongue or something. Takuji: Ahmm, mmm... Augh... *But I... I can't do that..."* *I'm trying my hardest just to endure this!* Nishimura: Come on, the customer is always right. Do it like I told you. Takuji: Ahh, Mmm... Ah! *My foot... He stepped on my foot...* *I didn't have the right to choose.* *The only thing I could do was what he told me to.* *Even if this is what he told me to do...* *That's right...* *I mean, it's better than having my eyes carved out, right?* *It would be awful if I couldn't see...* *...This isn't the time to be lamenting my fate.* *Anyway, I have to end this disaster and put the filth of this entire day out of mind.* *If I do that... I can be happy again.* Takuji: Hmm... Haa, psch... Mmm... Nishimura: Whoa... Th-This is amazing... *He took his weight off the leg that had been crushing my foot.* *When I looked up, I could tell from his expression that he was in ecstasy.* Nishimura: Y-You're better than I thought. Whoa... This is amazing... *I knew what felt good, since I'm a guy too.* *His breathing grew faster when I wrapped my tongue around his penis.* Nishimura: Whoa... Th-This is really great... Numada: How is it? It looks... really good, actually. Nishimura: Yeah, he's really good at this... Whoa... Takuji: Ahmm, ngh... Mmm... Mmhaa... *It's incredibly pathetic to admit, but I was glad to hear him compliment me.* *Because it meant that he was that much closer to finishing...* Nishimura: Hmm? What? Do you want to try? Numada: Ah, well, maybe... Nishimura: It feels really good. Don't think too hard about it. Just try it. If it feels good, isn't that enough? Numada: Yeah... Well, maybe... Nishimura: Yeah, don't hold back. We're friends, you know. Takuji: Agh...! *W-Wait a second...* *Wait.* *Just a second ago he wasn't interested... Give me a break already. I thought it was going to be over... and yet...* Numada: I know, right? Long ago, a wise man once said you're not friends if you can't touch each other's junk. Nishimura: Who cares about that? Get in here, my lifelong friend! Numada: Well then, I'll take you up on that offer. Takuji: ―Mph?! Numada: Whoa! Can't say I expected this. Nishimura: Well yeah, since guys and girls' mouths are made the same. Takuji: Mmmghaa, mmgphh～～ *Of course, I could hardly breathe while taking two of them at once.* *I was just getting the hang of it, too...* *Going from one to two changed the situation completely.* *I changed my technique, going back and forth between the swelling red stalks so that neither one would feel neglected.* Nishimura: Look, he's getting a boner from sucking someone else's dick. Numada: He's a first-class pervert. I knew it when I first saw him. *Ignore it...* *It's not like I'm getting excited.* *It's still erect from earlier, that's all... It's not that I wanted this to happen...* Takuji: Psch... Hmm, pfsch, hmmm... *The stickiness of the pre-cum in my mouth was unbearable.* *Don't think about it... Just think about ending it...* *I wasn't even human to them.* *Toy.* *Trash.* *Hole.* *Saliva.* *Mouth.* *Whatever they want... Whatever it is they desire...* Numada: Oh, wow, we should do this again next time. Nishimura: Well, next time I'd like to make a real woman do it... Numada: Yeah, of course! Takuji: Mmph, pch, haa... Mmm, haa... Numada: Umm, this is kind of embarrassing, but I'm about to cum. Nishimura: Eh? Already? That's awfully fast. Numada: Well, it felt better than I expected, haha... Nishimura: Oh, I'm about to cum too. Numada: Then I'll cum with you. *Clear your thoughts... Just clear your thoughts...* *There's no way I can look at... something so abnormal straight on...* *Right now I am just a hole... There's no need for me to think.* *It's good that the end is coming...* *If I finish my job, I'll be free.* *So, clear thoughts... Do just as they want...* Takuji: Hmm, haa... Haa, psch, haa... Nishimura: Whoa, I'm cumming, I'm cumming! Takuji: Mmkh, mmm... Pfh, pfsch... Mmm, Mmm! Numada: Ah, I can't stand it! Takuji: Ngghmm... Mmm, ngghm?! Nishimura: Mmm, ooh... Numada: Ahhh, ahh... Takuji: Ahhmmghh! Mmghaa, mmmhhghh―! *It spurted into my mouth, followed by an unpleasant, raw odor.* *Most people would describe it as 'bitter,' but in my confusion I couldn't tell what it was...* Takuji: ...Haa, haa, haa, haa... *Two men's worth of semen was too much to hold in my mouth. It spilled out in large drops.* Nishimura: Don't just sit there. Swallow it. Numada: Whoa, you sound like you're in a porno. Nishimura: I just wanted to try saying it. It's a cliche, you know? *Swallow it?* *Swallow this stuff?* *No... Don't think... They told you to, so just do it...* *Then it will end...* *I sucked their dicks for so long... There's no use complaining about a little semen at this point...* Takuji: Gulp... *The moment I swallowed it, I felt my stomach heaving.* *I forced it down.* Nishimura: Ah, that feels so much better. Numada: You went limp as a wet noodle... Nishimura: ...It's because guys cool off right away after they cum. Numada: It's what they call meditation time. Nishimura: Yeah, that's exactly what I'm having right now. Nishimura: We really made a guy suck our dicks... That's kind of gross... Numada: It's a bit late to be saying that, but you're right, it is kind of nasty. *They agitatedly zipped up their pants, and looked down at me as if I were filth.* Takuji: Guaah! *Nishimura suddenly kicked me in the leg as hard as he could.* Nishimura: ...Tch. *He clicked his tongue in disgust and went off with Numada to find Shiroyama.* *...To tell him that it was all over...* *My mind... was still reeling...* *I wasn't even sure... what had happened...* *I... had my classmates, Nishimura and Numada, stick their dicks in my mouth... I stroked them with my tongue... and they came inside my mouth.* *I was forced to stimulate a man with my mouth... and drink the semen after he came...* *Even though I'm a boy myself...* *I took a man's...* *I can't believe it...* *There's no way that could...* *There's no way that could... happen to a human being...* *To a human being...* *I should disappear...* *This... can't happen...* *I...* *want to disappear... and die...* *Be a worm―* *Beneath notice―* *Crushed underfoot―* *I might as well disappear.* *I might as well disappear.* Shiroyama: You really are a nasty fucker! Takuji: Oogh... *Suddenly, Shiroyama was there, too.* *He really did hate me, huh...* *It was like he couldn't forgive the cockroach lying on the ground... so...* Takuji: Uah... *He crushed it...* *That unforgivable creature was crushed and stamped out of existence...* Shiroyama: Disgusting! Numada: What's wrong with him? Did he pass out or something? Nishimura: Hahaha. Mamiya, the world of fighting is kill or be killed. *Their voices are far away...* *My pain is receding too...* *They've hit me so many times... Am I going to die?* *Everything is so far away...* *Far away...* *Just awful... Something's wrong... They made me suck their dicks, and now they're beating me up...* *They're not letting me go at all...* *My consciousness is receding...* *I can't do it... anymore...* *Some strange sound...* *Like something breaking...* *My bones?* *Did one of my bones... shatter?* Shiroyama: Aaah! *...Huh?* *Someone screaming...* Tomosane: How disappointing... *Whose voice?* *A voice I'd never heard...* Numada: Y-You! Shiroyama: Gaaah, my arm, my arm! Numada: Ooogh! Numada: Eek! *I opened my eyes...* *Right next to me, Shiroyama was on the ground with his eyes rolled back into their sockets.* *It looked like he was holding his arm and writhing in agony... before he fainted...* *Beside him, Numada was covered in blood, crying, and trying to apologize.* *Nishimura was just stunned as he watched it unfold.* Tomosane: You thought I would let you off with just the arm? *Then...* *That man was there...* Tomosane: ...Ow... *He muttered as if it had nothing to do with him.* *His fist was covered in blood.* *It wasn't just other people's blood. His fist was covered in multiple lacerations that were each more than ten centimeters long.* *Flesh was protruding from the gaping holes.* *How hard could he be hitting them... to injure his own fist that badly?* Tomosane: I must have cut myself on their teeth. Tomosane: Well then, cleanup time... Numada: S-Stop! Nishimura: F-Forgive me! Nishimura: Gah! *The man picked up some sticks lying around the area and stuck them in the other two's nostrils and mouths... Then...* Numada: Aaggh, aah... *He punched them like that.* *The sticks shattered into pieces inside Numada's nose and mouth, spraying blood into the air.* Nishimura: Eeack! Nishimura: Gaah... Ooh... *Nishimura got punched in the same way, with his mouth and nose full of sticks.* *Blood flew everywhere.* *There was too much blood to see how bad his face looked, but... he would probably need stitches in and around his mouth.* Numada: Ahh... Nishimura: I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry... Tomosane: Hmm? *That man looked at me.* Tomosane: What's with... this guy... Takuji: U-Umm... Tomosane: ... Takuji: Agh! Tomosane: Are you... a boy? Tomosane: That's just sickening... Why are you wearing girls' clothes? Takuji: Auh... Tomosane: Don't grovel... That's disgusting... Takuji: Gnnghh! Tomosane: Come on! Tomosane: Do you get turned on when you wear those clothes?! That's fucking disgusting! Takuji: I-It's not like I wanted to... Ah! Tomosane: I can't let you go after I found you guys being faggots behind the school... Tomosane: I couldn't stand to have the school I transferred to be overrun by disgusting faggots... so I'll have to clean up. Tomosane: It really is disgusting. Takuji: Uagh! Tomosane: Take that off... It's nasty. Takuji: Huh? Tomosane: Don't question me. Tomosane: Take it off! Takuji: The underwear too? Tomosane: Of course! Take off all those girls' clothes! Takuji: Hhk! *I first met Yuuki Tomosane through violence.* *Before I heard him speak... I saw him punching someone else... And then I felt the pain of being punched myself... That's how I first met him.* *He's not a decent human being at all...* *After that, his behavior didn't change.* *When he came across Shiroyama and the others, he hit them. When he came across me, he hit me and took my money.* *I became one of Yuuki's marks, so Shiroyama and his gang stopped bullying me (or rather, just stopped hitting me...)* *My situation became even worse than before.* *The number of times I was hit and the amount of money I was extorted for was on a different level.* Takuji: I wish he hadn't come to this school... *If he wasn't here... it wouldn't be so bad...* *That sexual assault was unbelievably agonizing, but...* *But they didn't punch me so often... and they didn't take nearly as much of my money...* Takuji: Ah, th-the bell... *While I was sitting here thinking about pointless stuff, the bell had rung to announce the end of class.* *Lunchtime... Everyone filed out into the hallway simultaneously.* Takuji: Wh-What should I do for Takashima-san... *The classroom instantly filled with noise.* *People started coming out of the other classrooms too.* Takuji: Umm, I should s-say something to her... *Because of Yuuki, I didn't know what to do or say... My head was spinning.* *I'm not the kind of person who can handle sudden situations like this.* *N-No...* *People flowed into the hallway&* *There's no way I can do anything with this many people around.* Takuji: Haa... I just ran away... *Before I knew it, I had come back to the usual place.* *The old pool where hardly anyone comes.* Takuji: I really can't handle crowded places. Takuji: If she was in the same class, I might have been able to talk to her. Takuji: If I think about it, that was impossible from the beginning. I can't go into another class and just start talking to her. Takuji: I'm the kind of person who sweats just going into his own class... *So talking to her... even just a greeting, is impossible for me.* Takuji: Haa... I guess I should just head back to my base. *I went back to the manhole and looked around.&* *It was lunchtime, so I was especially careful.* Takuji: I'm more likely to be seen entering my secret base during lunch, since there are more people around. *The back lawn, the building windows... The emergency stairs... and the roof...* Takuji: The roof? Takuji: uh? *That silhouette was...* Takuji: Huh... That silhouette looked like Takashima-san... *Why would she be on the roof...* *But...* Takuji: If she's on the roof... *If she's on the roof, where there aren't many people, I might be able to talk to her.* *I might be able to say a casual greeting.* *"What are you doing up here?"* *Something simple like that.* Takuji: Alright! *I ran up the nearest emergency stairwell and went to the roof.* Takuji: Haa, haa, haa... Takuji: Where is she? *I searched the rooftop.* *Huh?* *She's not here...* *Why?&* *I thought she was here just a second ago.&* *Or maybe... it was just my imagination?* Takuji: Ah... The bell... *That was the signal that lunch was over.* *The beginning of class.* Takuji: Class is starting... *I couldn't imagine Takashima-san skipping class, so...* Takuji: I can assume she's not here anymore. Takuji: Haa... *......* Takuji: Huh? *I heard someone talking... I think.&* *It was far off, but... there was definitely someone talking somewhere on the rooftop.* *Over here?* *I slowly walked over to that part of the roof.* Takuji: Ah... *As I squinted, I saw Shiroyama and the others over by the very edge of the roof.* *I couldn't see them very well from afar, since they had climbed over the fence.* Takuji: Why are they... Huh? No way... *Takashima-san isn't over there with them, is she?* *What if she is?* Takuji: Hmm... *I carefully moved closer.* *When I was about halfway there, I started crawling.* Takuji: Huh? She's... *I couldn't see or hear Takashima-san...* *The only people there were Shiroyama, Numada, and Nishimura.* *They were sitting on the edge of the roof.* Takuji: Yeah, of course... There's no way she would be hanging out with them. *It didn't look like Takashima-san was there.* *I was incredibly relieved.* *I thought she might have been friends with them.&* *She's not that kind of person.* *But still...* Takuji: Are they stupid? *Sitting on the edge of the roof like that... they might fall if they slip.* Takuji: What are they doing... *I moved in closer and listened, being careful not to let them see me.* Shiroyama: This is amazing... I can't believe how much we got. Numada: It's crazy. My usual dealer at the college said he got a lot, so he sold it to me for cheap. Nishimura: But should we really keep it a secret from Yuuki-kun? Numada: If we tell him, he'll take it all. So far he's taken like 1,000,000 yen worth from us. Numada: He says he'll pay us back later, but he never has. Shiroyama: Would it really be 1,000,000 yen? Numada: Yeah, of course. Drugs are expensive, and you can't get insurance on something like that. Nishimura: Of course you can't get insurance... Shiroyama: Should we move to our main dish next, then? Numada: No, the ice is last, and that stuff is better if you have girls around. Nishimura: Really? Numada: Yeah, don't you know? Nishimura: Know what? Shiroyama: After you take ice, sex feels crazy good. Nishimura: Really? Shiroyama: Yeah, it's amazing. Yesterday was great, wasn't it? Nishimura: Oh, did you give her drugs? Shiroyama: Yeah. If we gave them ice, girls like Kitami and Satoko would probably let us do them. Nishimura: Maybe, but Tachibana wouldn't... She'd go postal on us. Numada: She hit me so hard... That hurt really bad. Shiroyama: I still bet we could do her if we gave her drugs. Shiroyama: It looks like she's skipping school because of her injuries from yesterday, but when she comes back we can try it. Nishimura: Tachibana? That's impossible. Numada: Nishimura-chan, you don't know squat about this. You don't know why women can't stop taking ice. Nishimura: If they stop, they start hallucinating, and it hurts like hell. Numada: No, the reason most of them can't stop is because of the sex. Nishimura: Really? Numada: Yeah, it feels so good doing it with the drug that they can't go back to normal sex. Nishimura: Have you done it before, Shiroyama-chan? Shiroyama: Actually, one time when Megu came over, I gave her ice, and Satoko was there too. Nishimura: Then what? Shiroyama: I had the first threesome of my life. Nishimura: Seriously?! Shiroyama: After it was over, Megu was pissed, but while we were doing it she was all for it. Shiroyama: It's amazing. It's like they don't feel any pain at all after you give them ice. You can stick it in their ass and they'll be moaning while their ass is bleeding... Numada: Looks like they don't feel pain. It's just pure pleasure. Nishimura: Are you saying you've done it too, Numada-chan? Numada: A few times, but never a threesome. Nishimura: Then how about the next time your girlfriend's over... Shiroyama: Are you stupid? Like I'm gonna let you fuck my girlfriend. Nishimura: What about Kitami then? Numada: I think Kitami is going out with someone from the college in Kanagawa... Nishimura: Then it's fine, right? Numada: Why? Nishimura: Kanagawa's pretty far away, you know? Shiroyama: No, it's pretty close. Numada: Do you really want to do it that badly? Nishimura: Yeah, I do. I'd join the Mafia if it meant I could have sex. Shiroyama: That's kinda... Nishimura: But yesterday I didn't even get to participate, and I did all that work! Numada: That's your own fault. Go complain to your parents, not us. Nishimura: They'd beat me if I did that. I got beaten up by my old man for yesterday. Shiroyama: That sucks. Numada: If you post on the web that you have ice, you can get as many girls as you like. Nishimura: Really * Then we have to do that!"* Shiroyama: No, that's just asking for the police to come arrest you. Nishimura: But girls would come and let us have sex with them, right? Shiroyama: Well, maybe... I don't really know. Nishimura: Then let's do that some time! Shiroyama: So then, what should we do now? Numada: Hehehe... How about paper? Shiroyama: Paper? Numada: Dr. Hoffman. Shiroyama: What's that? Numada: You really don't know... Look, it's this. Nishimura: What's this? What kind of paper is this? Shiroyama: It's L. Don't call it something stupid like paper... Nishimura: What's L? Numada: You don't know anything, do you, Nishimura-chan? It's LSD. It'll make you hallucinate. Nishimura: Hallucinate? Like shrooms? Numada: Better than shrooms. There are too many impurities in shrooms. Nishimura: What? Are you supposed to eat the paper? Numada: No, you don't want to do that. Take off one of the sheets like this and stick it on your tongue... Nishimura: Oh... Shiroyama: I want one. Give it to me. Numada: Alright, one sheet is 2,500 yen. Shiroyama: Th-That's expensive. Numada: It's not. You know, if you bought this from a dealer in the city, it would cost you 5,000 yen. It's half-price. Half-price! Shiroyama: There's no dealer for that stuff. Numada: There's a dealer in the city that comes out of nowhere and then disappears. Takuji: ... Takuji: They're doing drugs in a place like this... Though I guess that's why they came up here... *You usually have to light them, so... I heard it makes a lot of smoke and smells bad.* Takuji: But besides that... I don't want to know what they'll do if they see me... *I have to run...* Takuji: ... Takuji: Huh? Takuji: That's Takashima-san... *I looked into the other building from the roof and saw Takashima-san in the classroom.* Takuji: Oh... She just went back to class. *Though...&* *I thought I just saw her on the rooftop... Was that just my imagination?* *......* *All this time... I was getting worked up over nothing...* Takuji: Anyway... I should go back... *I ran into Yuuki earlier... Nothing good can come of walking around during class.* *Maybe talking with girls at all is impossible for me...* *I wish she would come to my base again...* *Though I doubt something that convenient will actually happen...* Takuji: Eh? Tsukasa: Ah * h-hello..."* *This woman...* *Why is she here?* *Right now... classes should be in session.* *Why is an honors student like her standing here?* Takuji: What are you doing here? Tsukasa: I-I'm sorry. Takuji: Why are you here? Tsukasa: U-Umm... Tsukasa: I thought... I wanted to see you, Takuji: Huh? Tsukasa: Ah, sorry... It was , huh... *What's she saying?* Tsukasa: U-Umm... *For some reason, her words were broken into fragments...* *For some reason, she was far away.* *I couldn't grasp what she was saying.* *It kind of feels like...* *This feeling is...* Takuji: Agh... Tsukasa: Wh-What's wrong? Are you alright? Takuji: Why did you come here?! Tsukasa: Ah! Takuji: Why would you come out here? And... And right now...! Kagami: What's wrong with right now? Takuji: Eh? Kagami: What were you saying about right now? *What... is this?* Kagami: What? *She wasn't there before... It was just Tsukasa there before...* *It should have been just Tsukasa, but...* *Why is this woman here too?* Kagami: Huh? What are you saying? You're so stupid. Kagami: You just couldn't see me behind Tsukasa, I guess. You tried to look away from Tsukasa, so you didn't see me coming, that's all. Takuji: ... *She's doing it again... She's reading my mind...* Kagami: You thought the same thing last time. I thought you understood by now... Takuji: I-I did think that before, but now... Kagami: Now? *I was definitely looking straight at her. I was looking straight at that unpleasant woman.* *And yet this woman, Kagami, appeared out of nowhere before I knew it.* Kagami: That's impossible... I can't just appear out of nowhere before you know it... What do you think I am, a maggot? Takuji: You read my mind again! Tsukasa: S-Sorry. I'm sorry. Kagami: You don't need to apologize! It's all this bastard's fault! Mamiya Takuji is the source of all evil! *Bastard?* *Why is she suddenly insulting me like this?* Takuji: What are you saying? What did I do? Why am I the villain?! Kagami: It's your fault! You're the one who caused it, and you're the one who erased it! *Wh-What is she saying?* Tsukasa: Onee-chan! I'm gonna get mad if you keep talking like that! Kagami: Ah... Kagami: ...Sorry. Kagami: But... But that's so cruel... That's so cruel to ... Kagami: I'm just ... I'm nothing but , so... *Noise mixed in with the sound.* *Her voice was disrupted by noise.* *Something I can't see,* *something I mustn't see,* *was disrupted.* Tsukasa: I'm sorry, Mamiya-kun... Tsukasa: I'm sorry... I was worried about you, so... Takuji: Huh? You got worried about me and skipped class yourself? Kagami: Skipped class? Takuji: Yes! Right now! Kagami: Right now? Takuji: Eh? Kagami: What about right now? Takuji: Ah... Uh... *I think... class was in session until just now...* *But now it must have ended...* Kagami: Don't use a weird excuse like that to try to talk to Tsukasa... Takuji: Eh? *I-I tried to talk to her?* *N-No... She came and talked to me...* Kagami: Aren't you embarrassed? You don't go to classes, and you just wander around the halls between class periods. *What's going on...* *I thought class was in session until just a moment ago...* *But now it's definitely not...* Kagami: Tsukasa, you shouldn't bother with him either. Let's go. Tsukasa: Ah... Tsukasa: W-Wait... Takuji: ... *I just stared dumbfounded at Kagami's back as she walked away.* *I just stared dumbfounded at Tsukasa's back as she walked away.* *They're two people, but... it looked like they were overlapping.* *It looked like... I was looking at just one person's back.* *That back...* *Several hours later, I awoke on the sofa in my secret base.* Takuji: Maybe I feel tired... *But I haven't really done anything...&* *I suppose I'm actually tired from sleeping...* Takuji: I've done nothing but sleep... It feels like my head is always hazy... *When I think about it, the passing of time has been strange lately.&* *Time passes by before I even know it.* *Before I notice, morning turns to afternoon, afternoon to evening, evening to night, night to morning...* *Morning to afternoon, afternoon to evening, evening to night, night to morning, morning to afternoon, afternoon to evening, evening to night, night to morning, morning to afternoon, afternoon to evening, evening to night, night to morning, morning to afternoon, afternoon to evening, evening to night...* *Time is...* *Time advances in fragments...&* *It's like a summarized version of time.* Takuji: No... I'm sleeping too much... *When I sleep, time passes instantly.&* *Sleeping breaks time into fragments.* Takuji: It would be better for me if I just slept once a day... *But as I was thinking that, I felt sleepy again.* *My eyelids grew heavy...* *I lapsed into a shallow sleep, alone, beneath the school.* *Before I forget...* *Something important...* *Sleep.* *Just sleep...* *That's right...*

*My tongue stretched outward...* *I tried to move it as far away from the rest of my mouth as possible...* Takuji: ... *Something touched the tip of my tongue.* *I tried not to think about what it was.* *I couldn't let myself think.* *My tongue was touching the filthiest thing in the world...* *Close your eyes, try not to breathe... and forget that fact...* Nishimura: What are you doing? Just touching it with the tip is no good. Hurry up and suck it. Takuji: S-Suck... *No, don't think... Just do as he says. Just accept it, don't think... Right now, I am nothing.* *Don't think about what you're doing.* *I just moved my tongue because I was told to move it... I didn't think about what it was touching at all.* *Turn your heart to dust... Just disappear... That's right.* Takuji: Amph... Pch, ah... *It tasted... It tasted really bad...* *It tasted salty... That was probably his pre-cum... It was slimy, too.* *No... Don't think about that... Suppress your spirit...* Takuji: Mmph, pff, mmhhha, mmph... *The taste grew stronger...* *No matter what I did, the stickiness started dripping into my mouth.* Nishimura: Mm, why are you just licking the tip? Do it better. Takuji: B-Better? Nishimura: Look, get the underside too. Takuji: Agh... *I reflexively looked, and then I breathed.* *The odor... forced me to recognize just what I was doing.* *No, if you think, you lose... Just move your tongue, like a machine... That's all.* Takuji: Mmph, pch... Ah... Phfmmm, mm... Nishimura: Hmm, you're not really putting any effort into it... Lick my balls, too, and rub my dick with your hands while you do it Takuji: Eh? *He told me to do so many things... There was no way I could do it without thinking...* Nishimura: Come on... Do it already. *But... there was liquid coming out of the tip. There wasn't any coming out of his balls... It might be easier to endure that...* Takuji: Ah... *Nishimura pushed my face into his crotch.* Takuji: ... *I-It in't easier at all... It's sweatier than the shaft, and it smells so bad... I really think I might die.* Nishimura: Hurry up and lick them. Takuji: O-Ohhay... *I couldn't even speak properly due to the stench, but there was nothing else I could do.* Takuji: Hm, schlpp, ah... *At this point, I'd already started sucking it... It didn't really matter where exactly he wanted me to suck anymore.* *I just wanted to make him cum quickly... I didn't want to think. I just wanted to end it.* *I licked his balls, just like he said.* *I stroked his dick.* *I did everything he told me to.* Nishimura: Mmm, it feels good... You know what feels good, since you're a guy too. Takuji: ... *Don't say that out loud... It's gross...* Takuji: Psh, psh, pchh... Nn, ah... Nishimura: Whoa... More, at the base... My balls, and the base of my dick... *Frothing cum was building up in the base of the shaft from the motions of my hand.* Nishimura: Hurry up! Takuji: Hmmm, mmm... Schllp, hwahmm, ooh, ahmm! *I scooped up the frothy liquid with my tongue...* *At first I tried not to get any in my mouth, but... before I knew it, my mouth was full of it.* *Nothing but the taste of Nishimura's cum...* Nishimura: Open your mouth wider... Takuji: Mm, ahhh... *Just as he said... I didn't think of anything.* *There was no point in thinking...* *I opened my mouth wide.* *He pushed his entire dick in.* Takuji: Mm? Uogh... Mm, ahh... *This texture... It's so much worse than just licking it...* *But I can't think about what 'it' is.* *I can't think.* *'It' tasted faintly salty as it violated the inside of my mouth.* *It was like it was trying to make me recognize its existence.* *For a moment, I felt like I was going to puke.* *But I did my best to hold it in and not tense up, so he wouldn't hurt me any more.* *I'm just a hole.* *I'm a hole, devoid of thought... If I think of nothing, then nothing of me remains.* Takuji: Ahmm... Mmm, psh... Nishimura: Whoa～ This is like a whole new world～! *His excited voice skimmed over my head.* Nishimura: I don't know what to say. It's soft, warm, and wet. It's way better than my hand! Numada: ...But it's a guy's mouth, you know? Nishimura: It's way better than an onahole! Whoa, this is great! Takuji: Nmmm... Haa, hmm... Nishimura: This is great. This is really great! *He yelled in pleasure, since it was probably his first time having his dick sucked. He grabbed my head and moved his hips back and forth.* Takuji: Nnkh... Mmhh... *I could hardly breathe as his dick violated the back of my throat.* *It was agonizing.* *I just wished that I could throw up.* *His dick flailed around inside my mouth, oblivious to my growing nausea.* Takuji: Khaa, hmmaa... Mmm, mmhgh... *Agonizing...* *No... It's so gross...!* *To endure this disgrace―I just need to close my eyes tightly, forget my own existence, and try to end it quickly.* *I don't want to think about it, but... it'll only end when he cums, so it would be best if he came as quickly as possible.* Nishimura: Only way this could be better is if you really were a girl. Takuji: Mmm, haa... Mmm... Nishimura: Well, whatever. You look like a girl. Takuji: Hmmm, mm... Haa, mm... Nishimura: Come on, don't just let it sit in your mouth. Use your tongue or something. Takuji: Ahmm, mmm... Augh... *But I... I can't do that..."* *I'm trying my hardest just to endure this!* Nishimura: Come on, the customer is always right. Do it like I told you. Takuji: Ahh, Mmm... Ah! *My foot... He stepped on my foot...* *I didn't have the right to choose.* *The only thing I could do was what he told me to.* *Even if this is what he told me to do...* *That's right...* *I mean, it's better than having my eyes carved out, right?* *It would be awful if I couldn't see...* *...This isn't the time to be lamenting my fate.* *Anyway, I have to end this disaster and put the filth of this entire day out of mind.* *If I do that... I can be happy again.* Takuji: Hmm... Haa, psch... Mmm... Nishimura: Whoa... Th-This is amazing... *He took his weight off the leg that had been crushing my foot.* *When I looked up, I could tell from his expression that he was in ecstasy.* Nishimura: Y-You're better than I thought. Whoa... This is amazing... *I knew what felt good, since I'm a guy too.* *His breathing grew faster when I wrapped my tongue around his penis.* Nishimura: Whoa... Th-This is really great... Numada: How is it? It looks... really good, actually. Nishimura: Yeah, he's really good at this... Whoa... Takuji: Ahmm, ngh... Mmm... Mmhaa... *It's incredibly pathetic to admit, but I was glad to hear him compliment me.* *Because it meant that he was that much closer to finishing...* Nishimura: Hmm? What? Do you want to try? Numada: Ah, well, maybe... Nishimura: It feels really good. Don't think too hard about it. Just try it. If it feels good, isn't that enough? Numada: Yeah... Well, maybe... Nishimura: Yeah, don't hold back. We're friends, you know. Takuji: Agh...! *W-Wait a second...* *Wait.* *Just a second ago he wasn't interested... Give me a break already. I thought it was going to be over... and yet...* Numada: I know, right? Long ago, a wise man once said you're not friends if you can't touch each other's junk. Nishimura: Who cares about that? Get in here, my lifelong friend! Numada: Well then, I'll take you up on that offer. Takuji: ―Mph?! Numada: Whoa! Can't say I expected this. Nishimura: Well yeah, since guys and girls' mouths are made the same. Takuji: Mmmghaa, mmgphh～～ *Of course, I could hardly breathe while taking two of them at once.* *I was just getting the hang of it, too...* *Going from one to two changed the situation completely.* *I changed my technique, going back and forth between the swelling red stalks so that neither one would feel neglected.* Nishimura: Look, he's getting a boner from sucking someone else's dick. Numada: He's a first-class pervert. I knew it when I first saw him. *Ignore it...* *It's not like I'm getting excited.* *It's still erect from earlier, that's all... It's not that I wanted this to happen...* Takuji: Psch... Hmm, pfsch, hmmm... *The stickiness of the pre-cum in my mouth was unbearable.* *Don't think about it... Just think about ending it...* *I wasn't even human to them.* *Toy.* *Trash.* *Hole.* *Saliva.* *Mouth.* *Whatever they want... Whatever it is they desire...* Numada: Oh, wow, we should do this again next time. Nishimura: Well, next time I'd like to make a real woman do it... Numada: Yeah, of course! Takuji: Mmph, pch, haa... Mmm, haa... Numada: Umm, this is kind of embarrassing, but I'm about to cum. Nishimura: Eh? Already? That's awfully fast. Numada: Well, it felt better than I expected, haha... Nishimura: Oh, I'm about to cum too. Numada: Then I'll cum with you. *Clear your thoughts... Just clear your thoughts...* *There's no way I can look at... something so abnormal straight on...* *Right now I am just a hole... There's no need for me to think.* *It's good that the end is coming...* *If I finish my job, I'll be free.* *So, clear thoughts... Do just as they want...* Takuji: Hmm, haa... Haa, psch, haa... Nishimura: Whoa, I'm cumming, I'm cumming! Takuji: Mmkh, mmm... Pfh, pfsch... Mmm, Mmm! Numada: Ah, I can't stand it! Takuji: Ngghmm... Mmm, ngghm?! Nishimura: Mmm, ooh... Numada: Ahhh, ahh... Takuji: Ahhmmghh! Mmghaa, mmmhhghh―! *It spurted into my mouth, followed by an unpleasant, raw odor.* *Most people would describe it as 'bitter,' but in my confusion I couldn't tell what it was...* Takuji: ...Haa, haa, haa, haa... *Two men's worth of semen was too much to hold in my mouth. It spilled out in large drops.* Nishimura: Don't just sit there. Swallow it. Numada: Whoa, you sound like you're in a porno. Nishimura: I just wanted to try saying it. It's a cliche, you know? *Swallow it?* *Swallow this stuff?* *No... Don't think... They told you to, so just do it...* *Then it will end...* *I sucked their dicks for so long... There's no use complaining about a little semen at this point...* Takuji: Gulp... *The moment I swallowed it, I felt my stomach heaving.* *I forced it down.*

Takuji: ... Numada: Seriously? Crossdressing? You're actually going to wear the underwear you stole? You really are a pervert. *That's just what I expected them to say.* *They really are stupid, uncouth people...* *They react the same way every time, repeating the same jokes like clockwork.* Nishimura: You really put her panties on? You even put the panties on? Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: Look at this pervert! Show us whether you actually put on the panties. Takuji: N-No... Shiroyama: What? *Shiroyama's fist clenched again.* *I-It's fine... I managed to calm him down, so now it should be fine...* Takuji: Alright... *I slowly lifted my skirt.* *The breezy feeling I had felt became even more intense.* *Trunks or briefs wouldn't feel this thin.* *I was incredibly conscious of myself, being forced to wear women's clothing outside and then lift my skirt.* *Embarrassing...* Takuji: ... Nishimura: He really did... He put them on. Numada: God damn, those are Takashima's panties! Shiroyama: Hahaha, but it's Takuji wearing them... Nishimura: You're right... There's a little bulge in the crotch... Numada: But his dick is so small you might think he's a woman. Shiroyama: Gross. Nishimura: He doesn't have any hair at all... He's childish in mind and body. Shiroyama: It's nasty how he looks just like a girl. Nishimura: But Takashima has some really sexy panties... Shiroyama: Yeah, since she's a slut, you know? Tools of the trade. Nishimura: She sells her body? Shiroyama: That's what Megu said. Nishimura: But she's just trying to bully her. That's gotta be a lie. Takuji: ... *Selling her body... They mean schoolgirl prostitution, don't they?* *Which means... Takashima-san has been having sex...* *The reason her panties are so sexy is... because she wants to show them to someone.* Takuji: Oo... *C-Crap... I shouldn't have thought about that.* Numada: It looks so soft and smooth... God damn, I wish that wasn't Mamiya's crotch. Shiroyama: Hold on, that's pretty gay. Nishimura: Yeah, even if the panties are sexy, you don't want to touch them. That's dick in there. If you get him excited, he'll just pop a boner. Numada: Ugh. Takuji: ... *Their discussion had focused on Takashima-san's panties.* *When I imagined her engaging in schoolgirl prostitution...* *My privates started pushing up against the fabric.* Takuji: No... Let me go already... Shiroyama: What is it? Takuji: I can't... Shiroyama: Can't what? Takuji: Eh? Um... *I could feel the blood pulsing inside Takashima-san's panties.* *At this rate, it'll...* Takuji: Let me go already... Shiroyama: What are you talking about? Numada: Huh... Numada: Isn't it bigger than before? I don't think it was this big earlier... Nishimura: He's growing? Takuji: No... Numada: Oh, wow... Nishimura: Are you serious? *They could see it moving.* *Takashima-san's tiny panties were being pushed up from beneath.* Takuji: No, no... Don't look... Nishimura: What a freak. He gets a boner from crossdressing out here, with all of us watching... *I was too embarrassed to even comprehend the situation.* *I was so embarrassed that I just wanted to die. My body was flooded with the feeling of regret.* Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry... Don't look... Please don't look... *I started crying, but the blood kept rushing to my crotch, as if a floodgate had been opened.* Numada: ... Shiroyama: What's wrong with him... That's nasty. He really is a freak. Nishimura: He's getting turned on from wearing those panties and having us look at him. Numada: Then he really is some kind of pervert. He almost looks erotic... even though he's a guy. Shiroyama: That's pretty disgusting. Numada: Mamiya, aren't you embarrassed? You're getting a boner now, as you wear your beloved Takashima's panties, while your crotch is exposed to the world... Takuji: Of course I'm embarrassed! So don't look. Just let me go... Numada: Then why is your dick getting hard? Are you getting turned on by wearing Takashima-san's clothes? Takuji: N-No... I hardly even know Takashima-san. Nishimura: Then why are you popping a boner? Takuji: B-Because you guys said she was doing schoolgirl prostitution... Numada: Huh? So? Takuji: I-I imagined it... Takuji: Ah... Numada: ... Nishimura: Whoa... Shiroyama: Tch. *A soft, sliding feeling...* *Takashima-san's panties were made of such smooth material that my penis slipped out.* Numada: Freak... Why are you leaking cum already... Shiroyama: He's the worst... I can't believe he's showing us that thing. Takuji: N-No... I didn't mean to... Numada: It fell out because of your pre-cum. Nishimura: This guy's dick... What the hell's wrong with it? It's so pale. His foreskin is huge, but the tip is pink. Numada: Hahaha... Let's ditch him already. I can't stand to be around this freak. Takuji: No... It only came out because her panties are so smooth... Nishimura: No, it's the pre-cum... They're soaked... Numada: You got a boner from thinking of Takashima-san's pussy, didn't you? Takuji: No... Let me go... Please, forgive me... Shiroyama: For what? You're a pain... Say it already, or I'll cut your dick off! Numada: Wait, that's my knife... It's not made to cut something like that. Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's my fault. Please forgive me... Shiroyama: That's not what I asked you. Answer me. Takuji: I'm sorry. I'm sorry... I'll do anything, so just please forgive me. Shiroyama: He says he'll do anything... What a creepy fucker. Takuji: Ugha... Nishimura: Oh really? You'll do anything, will you? Takuji: U-Umm... Nishimura: You said you'd do anything, right? Didn't you?! Takuji: Eek... *I cowered from his intimidation.* *I had no choice.* *They wouldn't give me a choice.* Shiroyama: Open your mouth! Nishimura asked you a question! Takuji: Ah, yes, I'm sorry! Nishimura: Now answer the question... Takuji: I'll... do anything... Shiroyama: So then what are you gonna do? Personally, I wouldn't mind if you brought us 1,000,000 yen... Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: That'd be nice, but how the heck would he do it? Shiroyama: There are plenty of ways. He could steal the money from his parents' bank account. Numada: No, there aren't that many ways... And even if he did that, we'd get caught too. Shiroyama: Then what should we make him do? He could be our stress relief sandbag. Nishimura: Shiroyama-chan, you always resort to violence first... Numada: Why don't we try something a bit more peaceful? Shiroyama: Huh? Peaceful? I don't get you. Well whatever, what do you have in mind? Numada: What do I have in mind? Nishimura: Yeah... Nishimura: Well, first off, how about he jacks off in his beloved Takashima-san's uniform? Shiroyama: S-Seriously? Nishimura: We should make it clear why he stole it, don't you think? Nishimura: If he jacks off in it, it's not hard to guess why he stole it. Shiroyama: What do you mean... Numada: In other words, we'd have proof that we weren't involved... Nishimura: That's right. Nishimura: And you probably want to jack off so bad right now, don't you, Mamiya-kun? Takuji: Eh? Wh-Why would I... Shiroyama: That's why you stole the uniform... Takuji: B-But that's not― Takuji: Geh. Shiroyama: Don't you ever learn? Don't try to pin it on us... You're the criminal here. Takuji: B-But... Nishimura: Just do it... Stain those clothes with your lust! Takuji: B-But! Numada: Shut up... *Maybe they wanted to make it look like I was the only one that had committed a crime... Or maybe they were just having fun... I'm not really sure.* *I was ordered to wear the uniform and masturbate...* *I'd heard that sometimes bullying took a sexual turn, but... I never thought it would happen to me.* Nishimura: How nice... Little baby stole the uniform so he could do this with it. Takuji: ... *You guys forced me to do all of this... That was what I really wanted to say, but I knew it was pointless.* *Words don't work with these people... They only understand brutality...* Nishimura: Oh, if you pull on the skin, the tip pops out. Numada: He's not even human. *They said lots of nasty things about me, but I tried to ignore them... The only one who would lose out if I reacted was me.* Nishimura: Do it, all the way until you cum... It's what you want to do, after all... Takuji: ... *All the way... How humiliating... Why would they make me do this...* Takuji: ... Numada: His hand is moving faster and faster. Nishimura: I didn't think there was anyone fucked up enough to cum while crossdressing in front of a bunch of other guys. Shiroyama: Just nasty... Numada: I guess perverts like him really do get turned on when people watch them. Nishimura: Of course. Look, his pre-cum is dripping all over his hand. *I just focused on making myself ejaculate.* *It didn't feel good at all... Ejaculation is no different than excreting waste...* *I closed my eyes and intently stroked my penis.* Numada: He's not even listening to us anymore. Nishimura: Come on, yell out your lover's name for us. Takuji: Eh? Nishimura: It's your lover's uniform, right? You have to yell her name out while you're doing it, otherwise the mood isn't right. Takuji: ... Shiroyama: Come on, say it... You love her, right? Takuji: Takashima... san. Numada: Huh? What'd you say? You can't get off like that. Come on, yell it like there's no tomorrow! Nishimura: Come on, as sweetly as you can. You love her, right? Takuji: T-Takashima-san... Takashima-san... Takashima-san... Numada: Come on, get in the mood! You can do better than that! Takuji: Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! Takashima-san! *I was desperate... I yelled out her name just like they told me to.* *It didn't feel good at all... I was just miserable.* *I just had to cum, and then it would all be over.* *Then the reason why I stole the uniform would be clear...* Takuji: Oo... agh... *The only time I made a noise was the very moment of ejaculation.* *That's what masturbation is to a boy... There's no need to make any noise. It's just getting rid of bodily waste.* Nishimura: Whoa, he really did it... Numada: Ah, it smells like a freakin' squid! Nishimura: He came so much. Man, did it feel that good? Numada: Hahaha, he's like a dog in heat! Nishimura: His hips are still shaking. He really is like a dumb dog! Shiroyama: He really is just a dog. *I just looked at the ground.* *My ejaculate was pooling there.* *Now that it was over... I felt even more miserable.* *Why would they make me do this...* *Why would they do this to me...*

Takuji: I'm glad it came out today... *It's pretty common for stuff like this to get delayed...* *You can only buy CDs like this at huge CD stores or anime specialty shops.* *Of course, I could put in an order for it at the CD store by the station, but no one would buy anything there.* *That's obvious.* *No matter how much you buy, that shop doesn't give out telephone cards or other frequent shopper bonuses.* *By the way, I bought a few manga and a light novel too.* *This light novel is being made into an anime right now.* *It's a pretty big hit. It was even in the display rack at the bookstore.* *This light novel has tons of parodies that make people think, 'is that even legal?' It's super interesting, and it has good reviews online too.* *"That's a lie!" or "I have no interest in ordinary humans." You can't parody that stuff, I'm telling you (heh.)* *I walked along and thought about the blog entry I was going to write later.* *I bought a CD and two manga today.* *I don't have a job, so even just a few things is pretty expensive for me.* *I think voice actors' CDs are too expensive.* *That's what it is. The only one that benefits is the organization or whatever that has the copyright... It bugs me.* *I'm not sure, but I've heard CDs in other countries are cheap. I hear you can even buy one for like 1,000 yen.* *Why doesn't anyone care that CDs in Japan are 3,000 yen? Isn't that a rip-off?* Takuji: Haa... Well, time to head home... *There's nothing but scum walking around the shopping district on Sundays... I should leave as soon as I can.* *But...* Takuji: I guess... I'm a bit tired. *I was thinking of getting on the train and then walking back to my house from the station, but I started feeling drowsy on the way.* *Maybe I need something to drink...* *And then I might... want to sit down.* Takuji: Though a cafe would be expensive, so... I'll just use the vending machine. *I don't really need anything more than a bench and a vending machine. There's no reason to go all the way to a cafe.* *I don't drink coffee anyway, and I don't like tea because it's bitter.* Takuji: Is there a department store with a roof around here? *The roof of a department store in the afternoon.* *That's probably the first place I found to waste time.* *There aren't usually many people on the roof. It'll probably be deserted today, since it's the weekend.* *Especially in the places where most people don't go... For instance, behind the canopy where they put the games.* *I spend a lot of time in places like that.* Takuji: Haa... *I drank a can of Magic Potion alone in the corner.* *I probably don't need to explain, but... Magic Potion is just plain old juice.* *But its taste is almost like an energy drink, so it's probably got some ingredients that perk people up.* *I drink it a lot when I feel tired.* *It's silly, but... it does give me my energy back.* Takuji: Ahh... *I looked up from the book I was reading and gazed at the sky.* *There was nothing but the sky above me.* *No, I could also see the wire fence and... some kind of pole (maybe a lightning rod?) up there.* *It occurred to me... as long as I live in this city, I'll never see the pure sky, even here on top of the department store.* *There's no such thing as a 100% pure sky in this city.* *Something needless always comes into view.* Takuji: The sky, huh... *The sky is mysterious...* *I've thought it was mysterious ever since I was a child.&* *A blue sky looks fake, like an image projected on a screen.* *Irreverent, fake clouds drift across the fake blue screen.* *Clouds are especially mysterious.* *How does something so big and so seemingly heavy float...* *Of course, in my mind I know they're not heavy, and I can imagine that they would just look like mist up close.* *But looking at the clouds like this makes them appear too big and heavy to be real.* *A boulder... sometimes dragons, or people... I can't really see them as anything but oddly shaped flying rocks.* *I suppose flying rocks would be softer than other rocks... Or maybe they're alive―though I know that's impossible―since they change shape as they move across the sky.* *One might be a dragon at first, but then start to look like a cow instead after it moves a few centimeters across my field of vision.* *I think when that happens, it only looks like a dragon at first, and after a while I realize that it's closer to a cow.* *At night, I can't see the clouds.* *I can vaguely make out their shapes, but... for the most part I don't notice them.* *And even more interestingly, if I look at the night sky for a long time, I start to see the spherical shape of it, like a bowl or the roof of a planetarium.* *I wonder why.* *It makes me wonder if we might be sitting under a hemispherical dome.* *But the truth is that we aren't. The night sky extends into the infinity expanses of space.* *Apparently space has no end...* *It's not a big deal, but it really doesn't make sense to me for there to be no end.* *Just like if a two-dimensional man lived on the surface of a three-dimensional sphere. No matter how far he walked, there would be no end.* *But I still don't really get it...* *I don't get why the world is full of things I don't understand.* *It seems a bit insolent how everyone else lives life as if they understand all of that stuff.* *It's strange.* Takuji: Maybe my grades are bad because there are so many things I don't understand... *The world is full of things I don't understand...* Takuji: Haa... Well, who cares... Takuji: Haa... *I'm kind of... feeling sleepy.* *Kind of...* *Very...* Takuji: Ah... *Did I fall asleep?* *Huh?* *I thought I was just looking at the sky...&* *But...* Takuji: I guess I fell asleep. Takuji: I fell asleep again... I wanted to stay awake the whole day, too... *I fell asleep in the middle of the day again.* *Well, whatever...* Takuji: Well then, time to head home... *It didn't feel like much time had passed, but the sun was already setting.* *It was already time to go home...* Takuji: Go home, huh... *I looked disinterestedly out over the city from the rooftop.&* *The traffic on the evening highway was getting heavier. It was starting to clog up already.* Takuji: Hahahaha... That's because you drove a car here. They're so annoying. *Cars are just nuisances.&* *No other mode of transportation does as much damage to the environment.* *There's almost always just one or two people in a single car.* *And they put out so much exhaust.&* *A train doesn't put out any exhaust at all... Cars are just annoyances.* *The number of people smoking has been declining lately. I wish the same thing would start to happen with cars.&* *Car exhaust is just as bothersome as cigarette smoke.* *And what's even more annoying than that...* Takuji: Girls like guys who can drive... *Are you stupid?&* *Don't use a car. Just ride the train...* *Everyone talks about going green and how we should save the planet, so why do they drive cars?* *Well, I guess that's just how it is... They're just being manipulated by the media.* *Because the media has to answer to the big corporations.* *Yeah, it bugs me... Those fools should just die.* *Pretty much all the guys who are into cars are lowlifes... Well, either that or gearheads.* *And pretty much only idiots like cars.* Takuji: Yeah, that's right... And girls pretty much only like idiots... Takuji: ... Takuji: Huh? *While I was looking down at the station, lost in thought, something strange caught my eye.* Takuji: That's... *She wasn't wearing her uniform, so I wasn't a hundred percent sure, but...* Takuji: That's Minakami Yuki, from my class... and that's Takashima Zakuro, from the next... *I watched over the two from above.* *Takashima-san, huh...* *She knows about my secret place.* *But she still hasn't told anyone about it.* *This is something I noticed lately, but... that girl is different.&* *She's different from the other idiots who get swept away by life.* *That's why I like her, but...&* *I like her a lot, but...* Takuji: In the end, I didn't get to talk to her a couple days ago, either. We haven't talked at all since that one time... *I wish she would come to my base sometime...* Takuji: Maybe I creeped her out? *Maybe there is something that comes to mind...* Takuji: Ah... *While I was lost in thought, Takashima-san and Minakami-san said their goodbyes.* Takuji: Who are those two... *After Takashima-san separated from Minakami-san, she met up with two girls I had never seen before.&* *Then they turned and went into the alley.* Takuji: That was... another school's uniform... *I wonder what school's uniform that is... I've seen it a few times before...* Takuji: Maybe I should go see... Takuji: They're gone... Did I miss them? *I came running from the roof, but... Takashima-san was gone.* Takuji: Maybe they went off somewhere... *I was a bit disappointed...&* *I thought I might have been able to calm down and talk to them, since they went into the alley...* *Well, probably not...* Takuji: I guess I really can't talk to people unless I'm in my base... Hahahaha... Takuji: Whatever... I should head home... Takuji: I wonder... where she went... *It felt like the atmosphere was a little unusual...&* *A little unusual...* *I can't really put into words just how it felt... I just felt uneasy...* *Of course, I was watching from the roof, so I didn't exactly know what, but... something was different.* *Thinking back upon what I saw from the roof... it was her expression that seemed different.* Takuji: She seemed more confident than usual. Something was strange. *Could I actually see her expression from the roof?&* *I thought it was a little strange that I could.* *Maybe I just made up my own interpretation because I was worried about her.* *But...* *I stared at the evening sun outside the window. I had to squint because of the harsh red glare.* *How would her hair look, bathed in the evening sun?* *That's what I thought about...* *Just because...* Takuji: What's wrong... *I felt oddly apprehensive.&* *What is this feeling? I can't put a name to it, but... it's strange.* *I exited through the opened doors onto the platform.&* *And then I ran to get on the train going the opposite way...* Takuji: What is this? Why am I so worried? *I know this feeling...* *I know this feeling, this apprehension in my chest. That's why I came back.* Takuji: ... *A bad premonition... I had a very bad premonition.&* *The feeling that something terrible was about to happen.* *I'm never right when I expect something good to happen, but I don't think I've ever been wrong about something bad happening. Maybe that's because my life is full of nothing but bad things.* *I went back to the place where I'd seen Takashima-san.* Takuji: Takashima-san... I'm pretty sure she went that way. *Maybe she's not here anymore.&* *Nevertheless, I chased after her.* *I left the crowded street behind and arrived at more of a residential area.* *I don't think Takashima-san lives around here.* *"..."* Takuji: Huh? *What was that... I think I heard a scream...* *Suddenly, something fell on my head from above.* *I felt something like gravel in my hair when I reached up and touched it.* Takuji: Gravel? From above? *I looked up and saw something on the roof of the apartment complex.* Takuji: Is that a person? Takuji: Th-That's...?! *Why...&* *Why are there...* Takuji: Why are there people fighting up there?! *They were about to fall. They were on the wrong side of the fence, struggling and fighting on the precipice.* Takuji: What the hell are they doing?! *Takashima-san was one of the figures.&* *She was struggling with someone on the roof.* Takuji: ... *I ran inside the apartment building.* *I had no idea what they were doing, but I had to stop them.* *I smashed the button, but there was no sign of the elevator.* Takuji: What's taking so long, jeez! Takuji: While I'm doing this... *Before I could finish my sentence―&* *A sound that split the air in twain.* *The moment I looked back, that sound echoed throughout the area.* *I heard a sound as if something had just been crushed... It was louder than if a tornado had just ripped the roof off someone's house.* Takuji: Ah... *A moment ago, there was no one in the street...* *There were three girls on the asphalt.* *They weren't moving a muscle... Just lying there.* Takuji: U-Umm... *There wasn't that much blood.* *Looking at them like this, they just seemed to be lying on the ground.* Takuji: A-Are you alright? *Maybe it was an absurd question.&* *But... they weren't bleeding...* *They weren't bleeding...&* *Which meant they weren't injured...* *But... is a human's leg supposed to bend like that?* *Is that where a human arm is supposed to be attached?* *And what is this pink stuff scattered around on the asphalt...* *I'd never seen anything like it. They were pink pieces of something that... almost looked like tofu.* Takuji: Ah... *Then the ground around them was stained with a red liquid.* *It gushed out onto the asphalt.* *That sticky liquid... Is that blood?* *And more importantly...* *That was the spot...* *Where I had just been standing.* *If they had... fallen on me from above―&* *I could have died along with them...* Takuji: D-Did they really... fall? *They fell in an instant.&* *And then they just laid on the ground.* Takuji: Um... *I walked a little closer.* Takuji: Ah... *As I got closer, I stepped on something.* Takuji: This... *It was a cell phone.* Takuji: This is... *The case was split down the middle, but... when I opened it, the display still worked.* Takuji: I-I should call someone... *That's right.&* *I should call for an ambulance.* *I scrambled to call someone on the phone I picked up.* Takuji: Umm... please, please send an ambulance! Takuji: Um, this is an apartment building near Suginomiya station... It's a tall building, the white one, uh... Takuji: Anyway, please, please send an ambulance. Takuji: Haa, haa... *I called for the ambulance, but... I didn't know what else I could do.* Takuji: First aid...? *But they'll investigate the scene later, so maybe I shouldn't move them?* *Um, then... maybe I should take a picture?"* Takuji: Um... Takuji: Now I can show them what it looked like, so... I can try to help them. *I looked at the three girls on the ground.* *And all I could think of was―&* *Just what kind of first aid do they need?* Takuji: Umm... Takuji: Um, Takashima-san... *I called out to Takashima-san, who was lying limp on the ground and facing away from me.&* *She didn't move at all.* Takuji: Um, Takashima-san... Takuji: Takashima-san! Takuji: Ah?! *I saw her face for an instant.* *It simply wasn't the same face I knew.&* *It was like...* *"Ahh!"* *"Suicide?!"* Takuji: Ah... *Some other people finally came.* *I slowly backed away...* *And then I ran.* *I fled from that place.* *What?* *What just happened?* *I couldn't comprehend it.* *The same Takashima-san who I talked to days before suddenly fell from the sky... and hit the pavement, and had her bones broken... and she was now covered in blood...* *Lots of people came, and I ran... I could hardly breathe...* Takuji: Haa, haa, haa, haa, haa... Takuji: Haa, haa, wh-why am I running... *Of course I would run.* *From that...* *Of course I would run from that!* *I didn't go back to my house. I just went to my hideout at school.* *It's more comfortable than my house, but honestly, I just came because this is where I usually hang out.* *If I really think about it... this place...&* *Isn't this place kind of scary?* *....&* *No, this is my hideout... There's nothing scary about it.* *There's...&* *Nothing scary...* Takuji: Ugh! Takuji: Th-There's nothing scary... *It was probably just something dripping. It just echoed in the silence.* Takuji: I'm sure it's nothing, but... have I ever heard something dripping in here before? *The sound was kind of... unsettling...* Takuji: Ahahaha... I-I'm just imagining it. *I've always stayed here, and... there's never been anything scary.* Takuji: That's right... Takuji: Th-That's right. I should read a manga or something, yeah. Takuji: Uh... *I pulled a manga from the bookshelf.* *It was one that had just been made into an anime, Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *It's kind of a perverted manga...* Takuji: Oh, right. I should watch the anime I downloaded. *I turned on my computer and played the video.* Takuji: Y-Yeah... This should be alright. *The walls of this underground space absorbed the sound of the anime.* *And yet the sound of a single drop echoed throughout the entire space. Why would that happen?* *Maybe some sounds just echo more than others...* Riruru: I won't let you go! *Riruru-chan's voice at least pierced through the air.* Takuji: Maybe higher pitches echo more... Riruru: I-It's not like I'm doing this for you! *Good... There's nothing to be scared of if all I can hear is Riruru-chan's voice.* *Ahahaha... The voice actor has such a cute voice.* *It's so soothing...* *Riruru: "I heard about a ritual to return our powers from the * *previous world, but... what exactly is it?"* *Riruru: "Eh? A near-death experience?"* *Riruru: "That's scary..."* *Huh?* *Did her voice always sound like this?* Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: What? What's this? Takuji: This doesn't look like Riruru-chan... *Her hair definitely looks like Riruru-chan's, but...* *Riruru: "I can't see it... I can't see any* *great disaster!"* *Riruru: "Open your eyes!"* *Riruru: "Nooo, no!"* *Riruru: "Riruru!"* *Riruru: "Eek!"* *Riruru: "Riruru-chan, listen to me!"* *Riruru: "Fear is a shapeless monster! It clouds the mind* *and beckons the worst possible outcome!"* *Riruru: "If we falter here... the world* *will be destroyed!"* *Riruru: "Could you let that happen?"* *Riruru: "Riruru-chan!"* *Riruru: "I could!"* *Riruru: "What?"* *Riruru: "I don't care if the world is destroyed!"* *Riruru: "I don't want to die! Why don't you just* *die and leave us alone?!"* *Riruru: "Ah..."* *Riruru: "What's wrong with you two?!"* *What's this...* *These three... are all calling each other Riruru...* *These three...* *They have to be...* Takuji: The three from earlier... *Riruru: "To the sky!"* *Riruru: "Nooooooo!"* *Riruru: "Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!!"* *A sound that split the air in twain.* Takuji: N-No... Th-This... *"..."* Takuji: Eh? Takuji: I-I just... *"..."* Takuji: Wh-What was that? *...* Takuji: Is someone there? *...* Takuji: N-No one's there? *...* *I guess it was just my imagination.* *But that anime...* Riruru: I'm not doing it for you! Takuji: ... *Huh... It's the same as always.* *It's the usual voice actor... It's the usual Riruru-chan.* Riruru: I'm not doing it for you! Takuji: O-Oh, good... Riruru: I-I-I-I'm not doing for you!I-I-I-I'm not doing it for you! Takuji: Huh? Riruru: I-I-I-I'm not doing it for you!I-I-I-I'm not doing it for you!I-I-I-I'm not doing it for you!I-I-I-I'm not doing it for you! Takuji: Oh, crap... It's not playing right... I have to shut it off! Takuji: Haa... Takuji: Eh? *What happened to the lights?* Takuji: What... *I couldn't hear the sound of the generator anymore... It stopped...* Takuji: Th-Then... that's why the video was playing funny, because the generator was messing up and the power supply was unstable... A-Ahahaha... That's what it was... Takuji: I-I got a bit scared there... Takuji: H-How stupid... It's not a big deal at all... A-Ahahaha... *"..."* Takuji: Eek! Takuji: Is someone there?! *......* Takuji: Th-This is someone's prank, right?! *......* Takuji: Wh-Who the hell are you?! *A prank?* *But no one else knows about this place. The only other person who knows about it is...* Takuji: Th-The only other person who knows... Takuji: Wha―?! *"I-It hurts... It hurts..."* *"M-My... body is... failing... It hurts..."* Takuji: Wh-Why? Takuji: Eek! *What's this?* *Why?* *I tried to run, but my body wouldn't move...* *But I still tried to force my body to move.* *My body moved slowly, as if I was submerged in a viscous liquid.* Takuji: N-No way... This is... *This can't actually be happening.* *A dead person... can't be here.* *I tried to run from Takashima Zakuro, but... I couldn't put any distance between us.* *This feeling... That's right, this feeling...* *A feeling ingrained in my body... My body grew heavy when I tried to run, as if I were moving in slow motion.* *This is a dream...* *This can't be anything... other than a dream...* *This can't...* *Something like this...* *I closed my eyes.* *That's right.* *This is a dream.* *I don't know how long I've been asleep, but... this is a dream.* *So it must have an end.* *It will all be over soon...* *This can't be reality.* Takuji: Ugh!

Takuji: H-Huh? Takuji: This is... *This isn't my secret base. It's my room, in my house.* *This is my bed... I slept here.* Takuji: And... I'm wearing my pajamas. Takuji: This is... Takuji: Well, of course... Hahahaha... *That's why I thought it wasn't real.* *And I thought I had witnessed Takashima-san's suicide. I even imagined her ghost chasing me when I ran away to the school.* Takuji: Ahahaha... That's ridiculous... *There are plenty of things that seem scary when they happen, but once some time passes, you calm down and realize just how ridiculous they were.* *This is one of those situations.* Takuji: I-It really was... a dream... right? Takuji: Ahahahaha, o-of course. I had a strange dream, didn't I... Takuji: Ah! Takuji: ...Th-That... really was a scary dream... Takuji: A-Aha... Maybe I'm not getting enough sleep... Maybe I'm stressed out... *That's right... There's no way that was real...* Takuji: Come on, that's no good at all. I can't believe I was so tired that I couldn't even tell the difference between fact and fiction... Ahaha... *A dream...* *It was awfully realistic for a dream, but... I still think it was a dream.* *After all... there's no way that could be real...* *Right.* *That was a dream...* *Dreams can't affect reality.* *Dreams can't permeate into reality.* *Something terrifying like that...* *That couldn't ever happen in reality.* *I looked at the clock. It was still too early to head to school.* Takuji: Crap... I woke up early because of that dream... *There's nothing good about getting up early.* *I crawled back into bed.* *I went to class.* *I was a few hours late.* *There were plenty of reasons why I didn't want to go, but I still needed to get enough credits to graduate.* *After getting to school, the first thing I did was take a nap in the usual place.* *Then I entered my classroom during the break period.* *I always feel like there's a weight on my shoulders when I'm in class.* *Especially on the day after a day off, like today, my pain is immeasurable.* Takuji: Haa... *My pulse was racing.* *Why do I feel so awful every time I come to class...* *I stood in the hall, in front of the classroom door...&* *It was noisy inside, since it was the break period...* *My palms were already covered in sweat.* *...* *I went into the classroom.&* *I entered from the back so I wouldn't stand out.* *I felt my heart palpitating the instant I went into the classroom.&* *I was sweating, too.* Takuji: Don't worry... *Yeah, I'm fine... Don't worry about it.* *I had to give myself some encouragement to make it to my desk.* *I'm fine.* *I'm just going to sit through this pointless class in the same room with all these other pointless people...* *It's not like I'm going to talk to them. It's not like I need to get along with them.* *I just need to do my best to ignore them... No matter what they say... No matter what they do... None of it matters to me.* *That's right... It doesn't matter to me.* Takuji: That's right... It doesn't matter to me... *My quiet words were erased by the tumult of the classroom.* *The words travelled through my skull and reached my ears alone.* *It doesn't matter.* *It's fine.* *Don't worry...* *Yes... Don't worry about anything.* *.........* *......* *...* *Huh?* *What?* *Somehow... The tumult caught my attention...* *Somehow, the words they were saying got stuck in my ears.* *I wasn't supposed to be paying any attention to them, but... for some reason, pieces of their words remained.* *Th-They're always noisy during the break period...* *It's just the usual noise...* *That's right...* *...* *But...* *But something's different.* *Pieces of the words stayed in my ears.* *Strange pieces.* *Suginomiya station... street... apartment building...* *I heard words like that here and there.* Takuji: They're... Takuji: Ah... *I met the gaze of several other people.* *There were also several people glancing at me.* *Why are they looking at me?* *I tried not to stand out when I came in.* *Normally, no one would give me a second look.* *And yet...* Takuji: What is it... *There, they did it again.* *For some reason, people were looking at me since I came in.* Takuji: This is... *Something happened... Did something happen?* *...Did something happen again?* Female Student: It seems really was... . Female Student: That's kind of , but it definitely was . Female Student: Rea y? It ally happened? Male Student: Who's th ? I don't kn . Male Student: You n't? you know... She was . Male Student: She black and weird loo . Male Student: t's n ue! Male Student: e seemed li a total ... Male Student: was in the clas we had a with . Long hair, and a ... Female Student: I don't really ow anything about ... Female Student: But it ... Female Student: But still... Right after -kun , you know? *I couldn't hear what they were talking about.* *It's always like this... My ears stop working at the most important times.* *Shit...* *It sounded like there was some hot new rumor.* *My hands were soaked with sweat.* *I don't have any positive memories of this classroom... I can't remember anything good happening here.* *And when those memories come up, my whole body gets itchy.* *I get so angry that my hair stands on end.* *I get too nervous and on edge.* *I don't know why, but I get irritated, and... I can't even tell what's happening around me.* *Right... it's my old memories.* *My old memories...* *When I was a freshman... I was bullied by a wider range of people than now.* *It might be strange to say 'a wide range,' but that's the best way to describe the sheer number of people that would play pranks on me.* *They would all follow me around and pull pranks on me wherever I went.* *It happened in the classroom of course, in the hallway, between classes, in the street, and sometimes even on the train.* *They would trail me almost twenty-four hours a day and pull pranks on me no matter where I was.* *That's right. I wasn't always the kind of person who would skip classes...* *The worst prank was when someone put a rock on the train tracks and stopped the train I was riding.* *That was the first time I was late. And then I got into the habit of skipping classes...* *It was horrible back then... They would even hide in the closet at my house and watch me.* *Lately, that's stopped happening.* *All the bullying that used to be done by a group... is now done by just one person.* *Yuuki Tomosane.* *He's so brutal that the others started backing off, and then in the end left me entirely to him.* *Speaking of which... is Yuuki not here today?* *I couldn't see him when I looked around the classroom...* *Probably skipping class.* *Is that why?* *Since Yuuki isn't here... they want to do something awful to me, for old times' sake...* *Tch...* *These people... They're the lowest of the low.* *I carefully surveyed the classroom.* *To figure out what they're thinking...* Takuji: Huh... *What...* *Something is different...* *Something is strange...* *I snuck glances at their faces... I don't know what kind of pretext they would concoct if I looked straight at them.* *So I observed them without ever meeting their eyes.* *Female Student: "It really 's... Apparently."* *Female Student: "I heard was with * * ther school."* *Female Student: "Re ly? It ac ll hap 's 's 's 's?"* *Female Student: "Who's th 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's?"* *Female Student: "You don ? 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's* *...had... really 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's"* *Female Student: "No 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's's 's 's 's 's 's 's* *'s 's 's "* *Female Student: " 's?"* *Female Student: "s eemed li 's 's 's 's 's?"* *Female Student: " was had along long 's 's 's 's * *hair 's 's 's 's..."* *I couldn't understand what they were saying.* *It was like,* *They were saying something, but...* *All I heard was "'s..."* Takuji: Shit... *This time I looked directly at them.* *...* *What's wrong with them?* *They were acting completely different from usual.* *Different, different from usual.* *What is it?* *Think...* *What could it be...* *Almost like they're laughing... Almost like they're crying... Or rather, like they're afraid... The classroom was filled with unsettling expressions.* *Their expressions were different from usual.* *No, they were expressions I'd never seen before.* *I can't understand these... eerie expressions.* *Why would they make these faces if they were going to pull a prank on me?* *What's with those faces...* *What the hell's happening here...* *These faces... This crowd of faces...* *I started to feel uncomfortable.* *I couldn't understand their expressions, but I felt hatred.* *I couldn't understand what they were thinking.* *Maybe that's why I felt uncomfortable...?* *Or maybe...* *These unpleasant expressions... laughing, crying... fear...* *And the people watching from afar.* *The way they all flock together... It feels like I've seen this in the past.* *That kind of discomfort...* Takuji: Ah... *What is this feeling...* *Their faces...* *I don't understand...* *I don't understand, I don't understand...* *My clenched fist grew hot... My hand was slimy with sweat.* *My face grew hot.* *My mouth hardened and my cheeks stung.* *My pores became incredibly itchy.* *An itch as if... something were leaking from my scalp.* *Ah...* *What is this feeling...* *Their faces...* *I don't understand...* *I don't understand, I don't understand...* *I don't understand...* *I don't understand... I don't understand... I don't understand. I don't understand! I don't understand. I don't understand, I don't understand, I don't understand. I don't understand, I don't understand.* *I don't...* Takuji: Haa... Haa... *No...* *If I think too hard... my heart... my heart starts throbbing...* *No... If I get too stressed out... my heart starts throbbing too hard and... then there's nothing to do...* *Maybe... I'm overthinking it...* *But... the atmosphere in the classroom...* *It's definitely not normal...* *There has to be something wrong.* *But what?* *No, stop, stop! You're thinking too hard again. Your heart's just going crazy.* *Huh?* *They're actually... not looking at me at all anymore.* *Was I just imagining it?* *Anyway, I sat in my seat.* *But still, this chatter... I wonder what's wrong.* *Male Student: " 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's?"* *Male Student: "You don 's? om that 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's* *'s 's 's."* *Male Student: "'s 's 's 's 's 's 's 's is 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's* *'s 's 's "* *Male Student: " 's?"* *Male Student: "'s 's 's ac 's 's 's 's d?"* *Male Student: " 's 's 's 's, 's 's 's 's, long hair* *'s 's..."* *Male Student: "'s 's 's 's 's 's death."* Takuji: Huh?! *Just now I heard... "death"...* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *'s death?* *That's wrong...* *They said "someone's death".* *Whose death?* *What does that mean?* *Maybe they really are talking about me?* *Maybe they'd be glad if they could drive me to suicide...* *Is that it?* *Is their chatter really about me?* *That's it. That has to be it!* *That's why they're looking at me like that...* *Those bastards.* *They're the lowest of the low!* *Shit.* *Shit.* *Argh, my head is itchy.* *My pores hurt.* *Crap, why does it feel like this?!* *Them, it's their fault.* *Yeah, it's all their fault.* *Argh, it itches.* *I scratched at my head and arms.* *I couldn't help it. It was so painful and itchy.* *Damn it, those bastards...* *That's it!* *If I were the prime minister―* *If I were the prime minister!* *I would...* *Kill you all...* *That's right.* *I'd sentence you all to death.* Takuji: *The loser* *'s death."* Takuji: *The whore* *'s death."* Takuji: *The idiot* *'s death."* Takuji: *The slut* *'s death."* Takuji: *The student* *'s death."* Takuji: *Your* * death."* Takuji: *The ignorant* *'s death."* Takuji: *A happy* * death."* *The death sentence...* *That's right, the death sentence.* *I won't let you have a normal death.* *Something more degrading... and more painful.* *Right, right, even if you scream, I won't forgive you.* *First, I'll tie you up naked in public.* *No matter if you're a man or woman, of course.* *Then I'll take red hot pliers and cut into your calf, then your thigh, then your right arm... and finally, I'll gouge out your chest.* *For the women, I'll carve into your breasts until I see the bone under your flesh.* *And then I'll use a ladle to pour molten lead into all the holes I've carved into your flesh.* *In the calf... the thigh... the arm... and of course, the hole I've cut into your chest...* *And then the air will be filled with a smell almost like a barbecue.* *The lead will cook you all from the inside.* *Drip,* * drip...* *Huh?* *What is this? Rain?* *No, wait.* *It's tears.* *Your eyes are wet with tears.* *Ehehehehehe,* *In my life, I've cried far more tears than you.* *Pathetic.* *No one is going to sympathize with you.* *Just like how no one has ever sympathized with me... no one will sympathize with you.* *The death penalty will still continue.* *Next, I'll take the rope from a harness and wrap it around a horse... and your thighs, your legs, your arms, and all your limbs.* *I'll make it pull...* *But from what I've heard, even with a horse's strength, it's not easy to sever the joints.* *I'll make the horse pull over and over.* *And you will scream with indescribable pain every single time.* *If four horses aren't enough, I'll make it six.* *Even then I won't be able to sever them...* *For four and a half hours... the horses will try to rip you in two, but they won't be able to remove your limbs.* *It's not their fault. I'll order the executioner to cut into the flesh of your limbs with a knife.* *Those cuts will go all the way to the bone.* *They say a horse can't sever limbs unless I do that.* *Then the horses will pull with all their strength and...* *Everyone will hear the sound of your flesh ripping apart.* *Everyone will hear the sound of your bones being crushed.* *Finally, your limbs will be severed.* *But you know...* *Even when that happens, a human doesn't die.* *Even in that state, you will writhe in pain.* *Your jaw will move up and down, almost as if you were talking.* *As the Prime Minister, I would watch the spectacle, and then I would give the final command.* Takuji: Throw him into the fire! *Your severed limbs... and then finally, your torso.* *Even after being cut into pieces, you won't die.* *You'll be burned alive.* *Slowly.* *Slowly.* *That will be the last thing you experience on this earth.* *This was the method of execution for regicides under France's absolute monarchy.* *A man named Damiens actually experienced it in 1754.* *So all of you will end up the same way.* *Ehehehe, of course.* *Because you bullied me, the ruler of time.* *This is just the right kind of punishment...* *There was no more sweat on my palms.* *I'd punished them all.* *I'd disciplined them all.* *There's nothing to be afraid of.* *There's nothing to fear.* *These people aren't scary.* *They're as good as dead.* *You losers, you s, you sluts, you students, you bastards.* *You fools, you whores, you politicians, you s, you sluts, you idiots, you whores, you students, you bastards.* *You fools, you whores, you politicians, you losers, you sluts, you idiots, you whores, you students, you s.* *You fools, you whores, you s, you losers, you s, you idiots, you sluts, you students, you bastards.* *You fools, you whores, you politicians.* Takuji: It's fine... It's fine... Takuji: Calm... Calm... Calm... Takuji: That's right... I'm too calm... I was too calm... Takuji: No problem... Takuji: That's right... There's no problem... *Now then... These people shall meet their ignominious end soon enough, but... just what slander are they speaking of me?* *I'll listen so that I may use it as evidence in the trial I shall one day hold for them.* Female Student: That's right. That's why I was so surprised... *It's fine.* *If I calm down, I can hear.* *I can hear their voices.* *I can hear everything they're saying.* *What are they saying?* *Female Student: "I heard there was a suicide."* *S-Suicide?* *Wh-Who?* Female Student: Yesterday, at an apartment building by the station... there really was a suicide... Male Student: A suicide? Are you serious? Takuji: ... *They really are saying something...* Female Student: It was a big mess, since there were so many police cars there. My mom said the street in front of the station was totally jammed up. *Eh...* *What did they just say?* *In front of the station?* *An apartment building...* *Eh?* *That's...* *That's―!* Male Student: Were they really from our school? Female Student: There was a girl named Takashima in the other class, right? Male Student: Yeah, she was kind of gloomy. Wait, you don't mean... Female Student: ...Takashima was the one that committed suicide. Takuji: ... *Takashima...* *Takashima... Zakuro...* Takuji: Wha―?! *N-No way...* *That's not possible...* *That was a dream...* *That was a dream. It was just in my head...* *There's no way that was... real.* *There's no way... that was...* *If that was real...* *Takashima-san is...* *Takashima-san is...* Takuji: Ough. Tomosane: ...Ar ou ig g m ? Takuji: Eh? Tomosane: I was ing to you. Takuji: Eh? Tomosane: me... That's pret . Takuji: This voice. Takuji: 's voice! Tomosane: ...Are you ignoring me? Takuji: Ah... Tomosane: I was talking to you. Takuji: Y-Yuuki... kun? Tomosane: Ignoring me, huh? That's pretty gutsy. Takuji: Wh-Why is Yuuki-kun here? He wasn't here earlier... Tomosane: What'd you say? Is there a problem with me being here? Takuji: N-Not at all... Tomosane: Takashima Zakuro... She committed suicide. Tomosane: Why don't you follow her example? Takuji: Huh? Wh-What? Tomosane: Why do you sound so surprised? Can't you just go die too? Tomosane: Is there anyone at all who wants you to keep on living? Takuji: ... Takuji: Eek! Tomosane: You sound like a girl. Pathetic. Tomosane: Well, whatever... Tomosane: Takashima Zakuro... She died, huh? Takuji: ... *What's he doing...* *Why's he grinning?* Tomosane: I didn't think she would die. Takuji: Huh? *Yuuki grinned as he looked at me.* Tomosane: Please don't die, got it? If you die, the police will come after me, you see. Takuji: Huh? You mean... Takuji: Agh! Tomosane: Want another one? Takuji: Eek! Tomosane: Here goes. Takuji: Ahh, f-forgive me. Forgive me... Tomosane: Hehehe... You won't die, right? *I won't die...* *I won't die...* *Does he want me to die?* *Damn it...* *He looked at me and laughed.* *He looked at me...* *Just like...* *The way they looked at me...* *When I came into the classroom...* *Their eyes... looked just like Yuuki's now.* *What does that mean?* *It's not that hard to understand. It just means... they were wondering why I was still alive.* *Their eyes wanted to ask... She killed herself, so why don't you?* *That's how they looked at me...* Takuji: Ah... The bell... *Class started... The next class was physics.* *Physics...* *What kind... of physics...* *Physics...* *Um...* *I was confused.* *I was confused... I couldn't tell what was happening.* *The teacher stood at the podium.* *Then he opened the textbook.* *Um... Textbook... My textbooks were...* *They were all in my desk.* *So that textbook should be there too...* *Textbook?* *Um...* *What... Um...* *That's right, what I need right now is my textbook.* *The class is... Um...* *It's physics...* *Physics...* *Um...* Teacher: Let's assume a large man who weighs 200kg that can pick up 200kg and a young man who weighs 50kg that can pick up 50kg are both trying to push the other over. *He's already talking...* *So far away...* *Come to think of it... occasionally, time seems to skip ahead just for me.* *Sometimes, time skips ahead by... a few minutes, or even a few hours.* *That's fine... That doesn't matter.* *It's because I never pay attention... Um... What page in the textbook was it?* *Wait, where is my physics textbook... Oh, here...* *Is this my physics textbook?* Teacher: Then what would happen? Yokoyama, do you know? Kiyoshi: The big guy would push him over, of course. *It's always like this. I can't stand this classroom.* *But normally it's not nearly this bad...* *Weightless space... Absolute void... Or perhaps the pressure at the bottom of the ocean... Complete darkness...* *I don't know what that would be like, but... the classroom right now can't be much different from that.* *Something wet flowed out of all the pores on my body.* *Flowed out...* *From inside my body...* *Flowed out from inside my body?* *Oozed out...* *A red... viscous liquid...* *It pooled on the asphalt...* *Blood.* *Takashima-san.* *What about Takashima-san?* *They're excited about what happened to her?* *Everyone is spreading rumors about her?* *Why?* *Why Takashima-san?* *She was quiet... That's right! She's not the kind of lascivious girl that people would spread rumors about.* *She was kind... When she talked to me, she was modest and proper... And, and... Um...* Teacher: That's right. The large man would push him over. Teacher: And at the time when the large man pushes the young man over, what is the ratio between the force being exerted on the large man's hands and the force being exerted on the young man's hands? *Oh, this is physics class.* *Calm down... For now, just calm down.* *I was definitely shocked about Takashima-san, but... it's hard enough just going to class.* *If I get too confused... I don't know what will happen...* *What will happen?* *What will end up happening?* Teacher: What will happen? Teacher: The large man is four times as heavy and four times as strong, so maybe you would multiple 4x4 to get 1:16? Or add 4+4 to get 1:8? What do you think, Yokoyama? Kiyoshi: Hmm, 1:16, I guess. Teacher: Why did you multiply? Kiyoshi: I don't know... It just seemed like that was right. Teacher: Don't make up equations just because they seem right, dumbass. Teacher: That's why you can't solve this problem. Teacher: The numbers don't matter, and it doesn't matter which one falls over. They both receive the same force. Come on, you learned that in middle school. Action and reaction. Teacher: So in this problem, a 50kg object fell from a height of 20kg... *Oh... so this is physics...* *I figured he would teach a class like this.* *Yeah...* *That's right...* *But is it really?* *If you think about what he just said... the same force would be exerted upon a nose and the fist that punched it.* *Is that right?* *But my nose is the only one that hurts...* *It doesn't hurt his fist at all.* *That's right... That's all physics is...* *Who cares about actions and reactions? That law isn't useful for anything...* *That's right, not useful at all...* *There's no way that could be useful...* *"That's not true, Mamiya..."* *Eh?* *What? I didn't say that, so... why?* *He wasn't looking at me... Was he speaking directly inside my head?* *"It's not just your nose... The fist is destroyed too..."* *"I heard something like this... There was a certain girl who committed suicide, and when she hit the ground, she broke a manhole cover. Hehehehe, she broke it... Mamiya."* *"Of course, her body was destroyed."* *"But thankfully, so was the steel manhole cover..."* *"Destroyed..."* *That's right!* *Why didn't I realize it before?* *Everyone has been talking about Takashima-san!* *IN-OTHER-WORDS!* *Physics = What happened to Takashima-san.* *This has to be right!* *Oh, good... I was getting confused there for a second.* *It's fine. I'm calm.* *I'm calm, aren't I...* *That's right.* *That's right...* *Takashima-san,* *She jumped from that building...* Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Takashima-san... A-Ahh... Takuji: Sh-She jumped... *"That's right. She jumped."* *"Action and reaction."* *"Even a frail girl's body can break steel by using this law and jumping from a tall building... Hehehe."* *"She wasn't able to destroy anything, but..."* *"That's probably just because the building wasn't tall enough."* *"How many floors did that apartment building have, Mamiya?"* *His voiced echoed inside my head.* *Why would he do something ridiculous like that?* *Speaking directly inside someone's head has to be against the law.* *Talking inside my head like this has to be illegal.* *But maybe this is...* Takuji: Radio stations operating on frequencies between 26 and 27.2 megahertz or broadcasting with a transmitter power output of below 0.5 watts shall be prescribed in Article 38 paragraph 1 of the Ordinances of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (in accordance with Article 38-31 paragraph 4), Article 38-26 (in accordance with Article 38-31 paragraph 6), and Article 38-35. Takuji: Or... Takuji: Broadcasts with a transmitter power output of below 0.01 watts shall be prescribed by the Ordinances of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, shall automatically broadcast their call code as specified in the following article, shall not cause interference with other equipment in compliance with the Ordinances of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and communications, and shall use equipment in compliance with standards. Takuji: So it might not be illegal for him to transmit words directly to my brain. Takuji: This might be a legal action... Takuji: No... He's a teacher, so... I wonder if it's actually illegal... Is there actually a law that says whether it's legal to transmit words directly to my brain? Takuji: Then I'm the one that's wrong? I'm the one that's misunderstanding? *"Mamiya!"* Takuji: Y-Yes! *"You saw it, right? When she fell... her brain splattered all over the sidewalk."* *"That's the problem... You would have to fall down over thirty stories to break a manhole cover."* *"How about it, Yokoyama Kiyoshi? Would you like to try it out?"* *"You're useless."* *"There's no point in you living."* *"Would you like to jump off a building as an experiment?"* *"...I'll think about it."* *"That's right."* *"We'll save that for next time, Yokoyama..."* *"Today..."* Teacher: Mamiya. Takuji: Yes? *"Go die, right now."* Takuji: Wh-Why? *"Shut up. Just die already."* Takuji: Th-That's... Tomosane: Go die... Takuji: Eh? *Suddenly, Yuuki was whispering in my ear...* Tomosane: Go off yourself... Just like Takashima... Takuji: I-I'm... Tomosane: Takashima died... Tomosane: She was bullied, just like you... and she couldn't take it. Tomosane: Why are you still alive when people make you do such disgraceful things every day? Tomosane: Look, over there... Their eyes... *The way they looked at me...* *When I came into the classroom...* *Their eyes... looked just like Yuuki's now.* *What does that mean?* *It's not that hard to understand. It just means... they were wondering why I was still alive.* *Their eyes wanted to ask... She killed herself, so why don't you?* *That's how they looked at me...* *"Huh? Mamiya-kun, why are you still around?"* *―Why?! Is there a problem with that?!* *"Would you hurry up and go to the same place where Takashima-san is?"* *―Why?!* *"You don't want to keep Takashima-san waiting."* *―I'm not going!* *"She's gonna get lonely, you know."* *―What are you talking about?!* *"She's in the ground now."* *―Her funeral hasn't even been held yet!* *"She's getting lonely waiting for you."* *―She's not in the ground yet!* *"I hope you two get along."* *―Why shouldn't I keep on living?!* *"In the afterlife..."* *Why don't you all go keep her company?!* *All of you!* * die die die die die die die die die die die die* *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die die * *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die die* *die d　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ie die * *die d　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ie die * *die d　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ie die * *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die di* *e die die die d　　　　　ie die die die die die * *die die die die die die die die die die die die * * die die die die die die die die die die die die* *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die die * *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die die* *die d　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ie die * *die d　　　　　　 die　　　　　　　 ie die * *die d　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　ie die * *die die die die　　　　　die die die die die di* *e die die die d　　　　　ie die die die die die * *die die die die die die die die die die die die * *"Mamiya, go die, right now."* *―No.* *"Right now... Go jump off the school roof..."* *―I can't do that.* *"Come on... Right now..."* *―Why?* *"Come on... Answer me..."* Teacher: Answer me! Takuji: Eh... Ahh... Teacher: Wh-Why are you talking to yourself...?! Teacher: Come on, answer the question! Takuji: Y-Yes! Takuji: I-I can't! Teacher: You can't? Takuji: Y-Yes Teacher: Oh, you can't? Teacher: Too bad, then. Teacher: It's the same as the problem I just explained. Teacher: You weren't listening, were you? Takuji: N-No. Teacher: ...Mamiya, are you feeling all right? Do you need to use the restroom? Takuji: Eh? Oh, no... Teacher: You're covered in sweat... You're not a kid anymore, so use the restroom before class next time. *The class laughed at me...* *They weren't saying anything, but... they were making fun of me... They were laughing.* *The teacher just told me to die...* *Why are they laughing...* Teacher: Let's assume a large man who weighs 200kg that can pick up 200kg and a young man who weighs 50kg that can pick up 50kg are both trying to push the other over. Teacher: Then what would happen? Yokoyama, do you know? Kiyoshi: The big guy would push him over, of course. Teacher: That's right. The large man would push him over. Teacher: And at the time when the large man pushes the young man over, what is the ratio between the force being exerted on the large man's hands and the force being exerted on the young man's hands? Teacher: The large man is four times as heavy and four times as strong, so maybe you would multiple 4x4 to get 1:16? Or add 4+4 to get 1:8? What do you think, Yokoyama? Kiyoshi: Hmm, 1:16, I guess. Teacher: Why did you multiply? Kiyoshi: I don't know... It just seemed like that was right. Teacher: Don't make up equations just because they seem right, dumbass. Teacher: That's why you can't solve this problem. Teacher: The numbers don't matter, and it doesn't matter which one falls over. They both receive the same force. Come on, you learned that in middle school. Action and reaction. Teacher: So in this problem, a 50kg object fell from a height of 20kg... *That's a lie...* *That would mean... the same force would be exerted upon a nose and the fist that punched it...* *Is that right?* *But my nose is the only one that hurts...* *It doesn't hurt his fist at all.* *That's right... That's all physics is...* *Who cares about actions and reactions? That law isn't useful for anything...* *That's right, not useful at all...* *There's no way that could be useful...* *And to prove it, this is one thing my mother said.* *Free energy... in other words, perpetual motion, has already been created by an inventor from the power minority.* *But perpetual motion would make the oil companies go bankrupt, so the oil companies pressured politicians and government officials to silence the inventor.* *Also, the theory of relativity is wrong, but scholars are afraid to correct it, so they silence people who disagree... And the sun isn't really hot, and the Yorkshire Terrier evolved from pigeons, etc. etc...* *My mother often talked about things like that.* *She was a harsh person, but... she was kind when she talked about important things like that.* *That's right...* *My mother taught me.* *She taught me that everything is a conspiracy...* *That the masses are being lied to...* *Education is the same as brainwashing.* *Education is brainwashing.* *This class, and all the classes before... They were all just brainwashing.* *That's why they keep holding brainwashing classes like nothing happened, even though Takashima-san just committed suicide!* *And now they're trying to kill me with brainwashing.* *Takashima-san was killed...* *She was bullied... and killed...* *That's it!* *She was killed by the bullying.* *By these people...* *By the people in this classroom...* *By the teacher standing at the podium...* *By everything here...* *Just like...* *Just like me...* *Takashima-san was the same as me.* *That's why she came to my secret base.* *That was her final message.* *At the end, she begged me for salvation.* *She tried to become my friend so that she could escape all her enemies here in the classroom.* *That's what my base was made for.* *She knew that.* *Why?* *Probably because she was the same as me.* *We felt the same thing, so she probably picked up on my feelings.* *That's why she spoke to me.* *Now I understand that.* *She was my ally.* Takuji: Th-That's it... Takuji: Th-That's it! Teacher: Wh-What is it, Mamiya? Takuji: Ah... *Physics class ended.* *The strange time we call the 'break period' inevitably comes after physics.* *During this strange period, people move all around the room.* *It's a disgusting thing...* *Even in the confines of the classroom, they move around at random.* *They all move as they please.* *It's disturbing.* *Why are there so many people?* *Why do they move so much?* *It throws me off balance.* *Is it because I'm still in shock about Takashima-san?* *Of course...* *I can't believe that what I saw yesterday actually happened...* *Ah...* *There are people here...* *I get confused when there are lots of people around me.* *Why are there so many people?* *Why do they move so erratically?* *Ah... Calm down...* *Calm down a little...* *Relax a little bit...* *Relax?* *A way to relax...* *I know one.* *I know how to do that.* *I've had social anxiety for a long time, so it's always been like this when I go out in public.* *When I stand in a large group of people, I suddenly become confused for no reason.* *So my mother taught me.* *She taught me how to save myself from the confusion.* *When my heart won't calm down, I put my hand on my chest and say this.* Takuji: Relax... Relax... Relax. *Soon after doing that, I become relaxed.* *Everything becomes relaxed.* *That's right... My mother taught me that because she loved me.* *Relax...* Takuji: Ah. *Her again...* Takuji: ... Tsukasa: ARE YOU OKAY? Takuji: You again? Tsukasa: UM, I... Takuji: What is it with you... *Why do I feel so uncomfortable when she shows up...* *We don't know each other at all...* *We've hardly ever spoken before...* *So why does she...* *Why does she make me so...* Kagami: Do we put you in a bad mood? Takuji: Eh? Kagami: It must be a pain. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean? Kagami: What do I mean? It must be a pain... pretending like you don't know anything. Takuji: Huh? Pretending? What do you mean? Tsukasa: Onee-chan... you can't do that... Kagami: Be quiet, . Tsukasa: Eek! Kagami: Mamiya Takuji. Takuji: Wh-What is it... Kagami: Can't you tell by looking at me? Takuji: Tell what? Kagami: I'm the one asking the question. I asked if you can tell by looking at me. Takuji: What? Takuji: Huh? *No one's here...* *The Wakatsuki sisters... and the other people... They were all just here...* *Why aren't there people here?* *I walked around the school.* *I was trying to do something...* *Those stupid twins stopped me from doing it.* *Then the break period ended.* *They disappeared.* *That's why I'm standing in the hallway, alone.* *There's no mystery.* *There was no mystery, so... I relaxed and opened the neighboring classroom door.* *Relax, relax...* *This is...* *Takashima Zakuro-san's classroom...* *...No one is here...* *I wonder why no one is here.* *Aren't classes still in session?* *Maybe all the people in the world disappeared?* *If so, then...* *The world must be filled with relief.* *Relax... Relax...* *I looked out the classroom window.* *My class and the neighboring class were outside in their gym uniforms.* *Oh, that's right... It's time for PE.* *That's why there's no one in this classroom.* *There's a flower because no one's here.* *A vase of flowers was placed here because no one's here.* *It's not strange.* *It makes perfect sense.* *Because her desk is here, Takashima-san isn't.* *Because these flowers are here, Takashima-san isn't.* *It's not strange.* *Relax.* *Too relaxed.* *This desk is here in place of her.* *Because she's not here, the desk is.* *Because the desk isn't here, she is.* *It's fine.* *I stayed rather calm as I figured it all out.* *I was worried I would get emotional and do something I didn't want to do, but...* *I'm totally relaxed.* *I'm completely calm.* *I'm so calm that my mind is working on pure logic.* *This isn't the time to get emotional.* *This is the time to think calmly and act.* *Calmly think through each problem and solve it logically.* *That's right.* *I've always done things I don't intend when I get emotional.* *So I failed a lot.* *I don't like failing.* *My mother gets sad when I fail, so... So I can't fail...* *So... Calm... Relaxed...* *Then I won't fail.* *I won't make my mother sad.* *Handle everything calmly.* *Calmly.* *Calmly take in the present situation.* *First.* *This is a desk.* *A desk is paired with a chair.* *You can use a desk for all sorts of things once you combine it with a chair.* *The person that used this desk and chair was Takashima Zakuro.* *Takashima Zakuro was a smart and kind girl who committed suicide yesterday.* *And she was the only person I could share my secrets with.* *Why was that?* *I told her my secrets because I knew she was smart.* *I told her about my secret base...* *And in response, she...* *She told me her secrets.* *She opened her heart to me because I made the right choices.* *It was all decided by the choices.* *The world diverges based on choices.* *I perceive those choices because I can calmly analyze the situation.* *That's why she opened her heart to me.* *She told me her most embarrassing secrets.* *I looked at the desk.* *I looked closely.* *After looking very closely...* *I made a calm decision.* Takuji: This! This is the desk she used! Takuji: Ahh... *I touched her desk's legs.* *It made me remember her soft thighs.* *Why is she on her hands and knees?* *Why is she on all fours?* *Her wrist is... so slender.* Takuji: Ahh... Takashima-san... *The feeling of her body came alive in my mind.* *The time we shared our secrets.* *In my mind, sights I had and hadn't seen replayed, replayed, replayed in my mind.* *Replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed. Replay, replay, re* *replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed. Replay, replay, replayed.* *Replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replay, replayed. Replay, replay, replayed* *Replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed. Replay, replay, replayed* *Replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed, replay, replay, replayed. Replay, replay, replayed.* *An onslaught of memories I wasn't sure I had seen before set my heart ablaze.* *The fluttering of the heart is the forerunner of love.* Takuji: Ahh... Ahh... Takuji: Aahh... You're so cute, Takashima-san... You're too cute, Takashima-san... Cute, cute, cute... *I rubbed my cheek on her chair.* *This is the place where her butt always rested.* *Takashima-san's butt... was soft...* Takuji: Aahh... *I glanced to the side... The desk drawer... The part that forms a large hole...* *A hole?* *That desk, down on its hands and knees, looked like it had a lewd hole facing me.* Takuji: If Takashima-san got down on her hands and knees... how would she look...? *I saw letters on the desk.* *Letters that were different from before...* *"I love you, Mamiya Takuji...* *"* Takuji: Yeah, I know. I know you loved me... Takuji: And it's not just you. Takashima-san, who used you everyday, loved me too. Takuji: Ahh... Takashima-san, Takashima-san... *Takashima-san's desk confessed its love to me.* *But I couldn't accept.* *I had to erase the words 'I love you.'* *I erased them every time they came up.* *She said...* *I love you, I love you.* *I love you, I love you.* *I kept erasing them.* *I erased the words that came up.* *Unfortunately, my lover is Takashima-san, not her desk...* *Then the desk tried to tempt me not with words, but with flesh.* *She tempted me with her form, down on all fours.* *Even I was swayed by this.* *After all, it looked...* *Just like Takashima-san...* Takuji: Ah, I can't... You're a desk, and I'm human... We can't be together. Zakuro: Make love to me... *I can't believe it... Even her voice sounds like Takashima-san...* *This is bad... This is really bad...* Zakuro: Make love to me... Make sweet love to me... I love you, so make love to me... Make love... Come on, Takuji-kun, I love you... Come on, Takuji-kun... Takuji: Aah... Ooaaaah...??? *My head was spinning.* *Her soft, lovely voice swirled around my crotch.* *Ah, ah, ah...* *My true feelings burst from my dark heart like a fountain.* *I love you... I love you, too.* *But you're... Ooahhh... But...* Zakuro: I'll give you... my virginity... *She closed her eyes in embarrassment and laughed sweetly.* Takuji: Ahh... You shouldn't say something as important as that so casually... *Virginity...* *Virginity―Virgin. Virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin.* *The purity of a woman who hasn't been defiled by another man!* Zakuro: After all, I've kept it all this time, just for you. No one has ever put their penis inside me before. Zakuro: It's true... Occasionally she put textbooks, papers, pencils, and things like that inside me, but... But still, you'll be my first and last! *Ah, I can't do this...* *She was on all fours, exposing her drawer... A woman's most important place...* Zakuro: Do you hate me? Takuji: No, not at all! That's not it!! *No, that could never be true.* *All the other girls are self-centered, calculating, lying, thieving sluts.* *And they think it's natural for a man to spend all his money on a girl, and they look down on people with those thin, fake smiles. It's really disgusting.* *But Takashima-san, you're different...* *Even in this rotten world, you've lived a wholesome life so that you could give me your virginity.* *But... yesterday, you...* *So, that means... the you smiling at me now...* Takuji: A-Ahh... *That's right... Don't lose sight of it... I can't lose sight of it.* *Accept reality.* *Reality is what I can see right here, right now.* *Reality is what's happening in front of my eyes... Therefore, this desk has to be...* *This desk...* *Who is it?* *Just who it looks like?* *Takashima-san?* *Is that right?* *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. * *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. * *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right―* *Congratulations!* *That's right!* *The announcer in my head announced that I was right.* *That's right... Reality is what I can see with my own two eyes.* *I can't allow myself to be deceived by my fantasies.* *Fantasy isn't reality.* Zakuro: What's wrong? Takuji: Oh, no... It's nothing... Takuji: No, don't worry. You're the only woman suitable for me. Zakuro: Thank you, Takuji-kun. I always knew you would say that. *Her lovely eyes, rapt with attention as she gazed upon me, seemed to be swimming in a sea of ecstasy.* *Surely, no other slovenly woman... could ever match her beauty and purity.* Zakuro: I'm sorry about yesterday... Did I scare you? Takuji: Huh? Oh, yeah... Just a little bit... Zakuro: But now I'm just fine. *Fine? She's already recovered?* Zakuro: I love you from the bottom of my heart, so... I'm completely fine. *Completely fine... because she loves me...* Zakuro: Yes. I love you more than anyone else... I love you, and that's why... I won't die. *She won't die... because she loves me...* Zakuro: A girl can do anything for the man she loves... Takuji: Can do... anything... Zakuro: Yes! *That's amazing... You're amazing, Takashima-san. Coming back to life through the power of love after your brain splattered all over the pavement, and your arms and legs broke into twenty pieces... You're a wonderful woman.* Zakuro: Now take me... Make me yours... Zakuro: I want you to love me... I want to be your slave forever, from morning until dusk... Takuji: I w-want that too... *She bent over in that sensual pose, and looked at me with such voluptuous eyes that I couldn't imagine her being any other girl in my class.* Zakuro: It's embarrassing, but... look... *She laughed and extended her hands toward her hips―* Takuji: Gulp... *I stared in awe as she spread open her drawer and showed me...* Takuji: Gulp... *It was the first time I had ever seen a woman's genitals in person.* *And she was a virgin, just as I had so long desired...* Takuji: Y-You're amazing, Takashima-san... Zakuro: Takuji-kun... how does my most embarrassing spot look to you? Takuji: Ahhh, ahhh―Eek?! Zakuro: Heh... You can't get so excited just yet... *But that's... that's impossible. I'm already so excited that I can't tell what's going on.* Takuji: Aahhh, uh... You're beautiful, but... I can't really see in the dark... Zakuro: Then... why don't you try spreading it open with your fingers... Takuji: Eh? Really?! Zakuro: You're the only one I want to show... Zakuro: So... go ahead and spread it open... Takuji: Ahh, Takashima-san. You're such a pure maiden! *I moved my nervous, shaking hand closer to her large, white butt so that I could fulfill her wish.* *Her butt was flat like a board... and cool to the touch...* *But more importantly, I looked lower... at her hole...* Zakuro: Aaah... Aah... I can feel your gaze... Takuji: You're beautiful. You really are beautiful... It should be illegal to be so... *Inside, she was neat and tidy... The only word to describe it is beautiful...* *I thought it would be messier... but she was beautiful...* *This is almost like...* Takuji: It's almost like a work of art... Zakuro: No, that's embarrassing... Ha, haa... I'm getting turned on just listening to you... *As I watched her, she got excited, and love juice started pouring out from inside her...* Zakuro: Um... you can touch me more if you want... *I started exploring with my finger.* Zakuro: Aah... Having you touch my pussy... is like a dream. I'm so happy... *Her seductive voice was wonderful. Every time I touched her, her juices covered my hands...* Zakuro: Ahhh! Ah, try to be gentler there... Takuji: Ah, I'm sorry! *My voice cracked in surprise after she suddenly jumped.* *My finger was soaked with her juices. I pressed it hard up against her screw-shaped clitoris.* Zakuro: That's really sensitive... Please, don't press on it so hard... Takuji: A-Alright... Carefully, carefully... *I got some more of her juices on my finger and started carefully rubbing around her swelling clitoris.* *This was the first time I had ever seen a clitoris, and it really was like a freshly made screw, captivating me as its wet surface reflected the light.* Zakuro: Hm, hmmmm... It feels good... Haaa, it feels really good... *She let out a sweet moan and waved her smooth board back and forth in the air.* *Aah... My lovely Takashima-san felt pleasure because of my caressing touches... It made me as happy as being loved myself.* *So I wanted to... love her, and make her show me her hidden side that she wouldn't show anyone else.* Takuji: Um... should I rub this part like this? *Of course, it was the first time I had touched a woman's genitals, since I was a virgin and all, so I didn't know what I was doing with my fingers.* *I didn't want to get carried away by my curiosity and accidentally make her cry, so I was careful as I continued...* Zakuro: Ahh... Ah, ahhh... *Hmm... It doesn't sound like it hurts, but...* Takuji: ...That's it! *Unfortunately, I had no experience, so I couldn't move my fingers in the same way she did when she was masturbating.* *So I just had to use something softer instead of my fingers!* *Perfect! Love can do anything.* Takuji: Hey, can I lick it? Please, let me lick it. Zakuro: Haa, of course, it's fine... Do as you like, Takuji-kun... *She kindly consented to my request without a moment's hesitation.* *Ahh, she's so cute and pure...* *She's always so selfless and proper, but in front of her confessed lover, she's so erotic and dirty...* Takuji: Pch... Hspch... Zakuro: Ahhh! Ah, aaaahh, your tongue is so good... Aaah! *Even the feeling of my cheeks rubbing up against the soft flesh of her buttocks felt good.* Takuji: Pch... Aah, pssch. Zakuro: Aahhh... You're such a pervert, Takuji-kun... Takuji: Ahaha... You're too cute, Takashima-san... Zakuro: Ahh... There, right there... Put your dick in, right there... Takuji: This is my first time seeing it, but... this is the place, right... Zakuro: Ahhmm―Don't lick me there! I can't believe this... Amazing, amazing～～ *I moved my face, soaked with juice, away as she shook her hips.* Zakuro: I'm sorry I'm such a nasty girl... But... But I can't hold it back... *I glanced over toward her cute face. Tears were forming in her eyes as she called out to me plaintively.* Takuji: There's nothing to be embarrassed about. I thought it was about time too... *As she started crying, I grabbed her forcefully from behind.* *I won't let you go... I want to be in you forever...* Zakuro: Ah... Now I can be your first... I'm really happy... *Her figure was perfect... She was cold and flat... And perfectly smooth...* *―Pshhck...* Zakuro: Hmmgh, ha, haaaa～～～ *I've heard the moment of defloration is pretty painful.* *But Takashima-san's face distorted for just a moment, and she let out a cry of pain right before the entirety of my dick slid smoothly in.* Takuji: Are you alright? Should we stop here? *I calmed down a little after looking down at the red liquid that proved her virginity, and then I hesitantly asked.* Zakuro: Yeah, I'm fine... I'm feeling more happiness than pain right now, so... I'm fine. *She whispered that and then giggled.* *As I heard her words and felt the warmth from the place where we were connected, I relaxed and smiled.* Zakuro: Please, move... It's time for us to feel good together... Takuji: Yeah. Here goes... Ahh... *Just like she said, I moved my hips back. I let out a moan as I felt her tight pussy smoothly sliding around my dick.* Takuji: Your vagina is incredibly hot... and it's so wet that I can slide in just like this... Zakuro: Haaa, oohh... Yes, Takuji-kun, I can... feel you moving... *And the tightness I felt on my penis differed based on the depth, so every time I moved my hips I felt a new kind of pleasure shoot up my spine.* *It was beyond amazing―It was a wonderfully wonderful ecstasy.* Zakuro: Haaa, hmmm... Ahhhh... Takuji: Does it hurt? Should I do it a little slower? Zakuro: No, I'm fine... Do as you like... Haa... *A smile appeared on her flushed face. She would do whatever I wanted her to.* Zakuro: Haa, aahh... I can feel it... It's so big, and hot... *Her insides felt... very warm, and they constricted in rhythmical waves.* *Does a real vagina actually feel this good...?* Zakuro: Haaa, ahh... Haaa, oohh... Aaaah～～ Takuji: Takashima-san... Let me touch your boobs... You don't mind, right? *I couldn't stand it, so I started unbuttoning her blouse and then undid the hook of her bra.* Zakuro: Ah, haaa... It's fine... Love me more... *I undressed her almost violently, without even waiting for her permission, but she still didn't resist at all.* Zakuro: Haaa... It's warm... Your hands are warm... *I constantly moved my hips back and forth as I cupped her large breasts with my hands.* Takuji: Ahaha... Your boobs are huge, but I can still feel your heart racing... Zakuro: You big bully... Of course my heart is racing... You're touching me, after all... Zakuro: Haaa... Ahhh... The thread on my screw is standing on end... Takuji: It's true! You're getting way tighter... Zakuro: Haaa... My breasts... are really sensitive... Please, be gentle... Zakuro: Haaa, ahh. It's so good... It's so good～～ Takuji: Whoa, Takashima-san... Your tight pussy is great, but your huge tits are the best... *I could tell they were huge even when she had her clothes on... I lifted them and rubbed them with both hands.* Zakuro: Haaa, ahh... From above and below... Aaah, nooo! *I could feel the weight in my hands... And they were so soft that they seemed about to escape through the space in between my fingers...* Zakuro: Oohhmmm... Aah, aah, aaah! *The sound of a man and a woman's hips colliding echoed throughout the deserted classroom time and time again.* Takuji: It's so tight... Ahh! I can't hold it... It's so good! Zakuro: Aaah, Taakuji-kuun―I love you, I love you! Takuji: Ahh, I love you too, Takashima-san! Zakuro: Aahh, aah, oooh, ooh... Takuji: Aah, I'm going to come... Do you care? *I could feel the pressure building. Soon, I wouldn't be able to hold it.* Zakuro: Yes... it's fine... Come inside me... I want you to come inside me. Please... Zakuro: Aaah, I'm going to come too～～ Takuji: Let's come together. Aaaah! Zakuro: Haaa, aah, aah, aaaah― Takuji: Mmgh... Mmm, aah, aaaah... *I exploded within her writhing body.* *Within her... Inside the desk drawer.* *Semen gushed out of the tip of my hot penis and pounded relentlessly against her deepest walls.* Zakuro: Nooo... All the books inside me are gonna be covered in semen... Aaah, aah... Takuji: Takashima-san, your desk―! *As she sat there in ecstasy... I kept pumping her insides with semen.* Zakuro: Haaa... Aah... Takkuun～～ *The eruption gradually subsided, but I didn't let up. I kept moving my hips back and forth.* Zakuro: Aahh... It was my first time, but... I came... Takuji: Haa, ha... Zakuro: Takuji-kun, you were amazing... Ehehe... *As I tried to figure out whether I should be embarrassed or happy, I gently stroked Desk Takashima-san's top board.* Zakuro: Hehehe... You came a lot... I'm all sticky inside... Takuji: I guess so... Haa, haa, haa... *I didn't pull out my penis. I embraced her in that same position.* *The cool sensation of the board felt good...* Takuji: Haa, ha, ha... *I let it all go inside her body.* *The semen wasn't just inside her. It was all over her. Even the flower on top of the desk was covered in it.* *There was semen dripping from the flower arrangement.* *The flower drooped from the weight...* Takuji: Crap... *I realized what I was doing.* *I couldn't believe what... I had just done...* *I tried to be calm, but... Takashima-san was so beautiful that I lost control of myself...* *Once I calmed down, I realized how stupid what I had just been doing was...* *That's right... This isn't the time to be doing this...* *It's not the time to be having intercourse with Takashima-san... I need to talk to her.* Takuji: Takashima-san... That's what we should do, right? *Takashima-san's desk silently nodded.* *That's right... Now she wants to talk.* *Words.* *That's what's most important right now.* *Be calm.* *Be calm... use words, and think...* *Logically... put things in order and grasp the situation.* *Not the flesh, but the mind... That's the key.* *First, calm down and grasp the situation.* *This is...* *Takashima Zakuro-san's classroom...* *...No one is here...* *I wonder why no one is here.* *Aren't classes still in session?* *Maybe all the people in the world disappeared?* *If so, then...* *The world must be filled with relief.* *Relax... Relax...* *I looked out the classroom window.* *My class and the neighboring class were outside in their gym uniforms.* *Oh, that's right... It's time for PE.* *That's why there's no one in this classroom.* *There's a flower because no one's here.* *A vase of flowers was placed here because no one's here.* *It's not strange.* *It makes perfect sense.* *Because Takashima-san's semen-covered flowers are here, Takashima-san isn't.* *Because Takashima-san's semen-covered desk and semen-covered flowers are here, Takashima-san isn't.* *It's not strange.* *Relax.* *Too relaxed.* *This semen-covered desk is here in place of her.* *It is covered in semen because she is not here.* *Because it is not covered in semen, she is here.* *It's fine.* *I stayed rather calm as I figured it all out.* *I felt rather stoic, since I had just ejaculated.* *I can do it!* *I remained stoic as I calmly thought through each problem and solved them.* *That's right.* *I've always done things I don't intend to when I get emotional.* *So... Calm... Relaxed...* *This is a desk.* *A desk covered in semen.* *I inserted my genitals into the desk drawer and ejaculated.* *It happened because she came on to me, so she has to take responsibility for it.* *By using the inside wall of the desk, I was able to simulate the feeling pretty well.* *As a result, I ejaculated inside the desk.* *And that's why I'm so stoic now.* *I decided to wipe the semen off the desk...* *I think this should be a pretty good method of contraception.* *Using contraception is just good manners for a man...* *I thought about what my responsibility was as the man in the relationship, since I had finished up.* *First, I wiped the semen off the desk.* *I wiped off the vase, but I couldn't get all of the semen sticking to the flower off... Well, that shouldn't be a problem.* *Then what's the next problem I need to solve?* Takuji: That's right... I have to ask about how she died. *"Ask who?"* Takuji: The desk, of course... *Why?* *Because!* *That's right...* *I'm...* *...* *Riruru: "I can't see it... I can't see any* *great disaster!"* *Riruru: "Look at it!"* *Riruru: "Nooo, no!"* *Riruru: "Riruru!"* *Riruru: "Eek!"* *Riruru: "Riruru-chan, listen to me!"* *Riruru: "Fear is a shapeless monster! It clouds the mind* *and beckons the worst possible outcome!"* *Riruru: "If you falter here... the world* *will be destroyed!"* *Riruru: "Could you let that happen?"* *Riruru: "Riruru-chan!"* *Riruru: "I could!"* *Riruru: "What?"* *Riruru: "I don't care if the world is destroyed!"* *Riruru: "I don't want to die! Why don't you just* *die and leave us alone?!"* *Riruru: "Ah..."* *Riruru: "What's wrong with you two?!"* *Riruru: "To the sky!"* *Riruru: "Nooooooo!"* *Riruru: "Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!!"* *A sound that split the air in twain.* *That's right... I'd seen Takashima-san's final moments on my television.* *I'd seen her final moments in an anime.* *Last night, it was broadcast in an anime.* *But still, that was just a video on the Internet...* *But I did see her final moments in an anime.* *So I must already know it.* *She was a friend, a lover, in an anime, and she was in that video...* *She was a good person.* *Two-dimensional people are good people.* *She was also three-dimensional, but I saw her in the second dimension as well.* *In other words, she was a friend.* *So I asked the desk.* *I didn't know nearly enough about her life in the third dimension.* *But if I ask this desk in her place...* *That's right. This desk has been with her through thick and thin.* *That's what this desk and chair meant to her.* *So they should know anything.* *They should know everything about Takashima-san.* *Such deep analysis.* *Everything is relaxed.* Takuji: Is there anything in the desk? *There was nothing in Takashima-san's desk.* *Though, now that I think of it, I did check earlier, before I stuck my penis in...* *If anything was still there, it would be covered in semen at this point...* *Well, thinking calmly, there's no way that would happen...* *If anything was left, it would have been collected as the articles of the deceased...* *But she sure is shy.* *She was so talkative earlier, but... now she isn't talking at all. She won't tell me anything.* *I read in a book that... after sex, the man is supposed to be kind to the woman... Is that it?* *I have to put in the effort here.* *I'm used to this from my games.* *I know plenty of ways... to make a tsundere like this open up her heart.* *That's right.* *It's perfect.* *I know what to do.* *The desk will open its heart... and then it'll certainly tell me the truth about Takashima-san.* Takuji: Now... tell me about it. *The desk gradually opened its heart to me.* *I can tell by this feeling that she's... very kind...* *The texture of the desk is kind.* *She's a good girl.* *Various words appeared on the surface of the desk.* Takuji: This is Takashima-san's heart... These scribblings... *A bunch of stuff appeared...* *Her truth appeared.* *The words of truth made me hold my breath.* Takuji: Spiral... Matai? *Her desk was... covered in words that she probably carved into it herself.* Takuji: Head... reverse... Har megiddo... Nebula cloud... Elhimuro. Takuji: What is this? *They only gave me more questions.* *With one exception.* *The world will end... on July 20th, 2012.* *Noise.* *The noise that had suddenly appeared in the front of my head passed through my hippocampus and then tumbled down my spine.* *Calm down...* *You've been calm up until now.* *You were calm no matter what.* *But still.* *But still, what is this?* *Why is this here?* Takuji: ... Takuji: Why... Why? *Something like this...* *This is...* *It's that, isn't it...* *Mother―* *This...* *The world will end on July 20th...* *Why is this prediction...* *Mother: "July 20th, 2012..."* *Mother: "That is the day the world will return to the sky."* Takuji: Just... one more week... Takuji: Until July 20th, 2012... *The day the world will return to the sky.* *The day the world will become the sky.* *The day that everything will be dyed with the sky.* *My mother always talked about that day.* *So I remember it.* *I truly wanted to forget it.* *I always pretended that I had forgotten it.* *But still, I was afraid of that day approaching.* *That was one of the delusions born of my mother's sick mind.* *There's no such thing as a day when we'll return to the sky.* *I believed that.* *And I forgot those words.* *No.* *I had acted as if I had forgotten them.* *But as the day approached, my depression grew.* *The delusion invaded and tortured my mind as well.* *I always repeated, "it's just a delusion" in my head to try to convince myself that it was.* *I'd tried to convince myself with words.* *That day doesn't exist.* *Nothing like that exists.* *My mother was crazy.* *My mother was weak.* *My mother loved me, but she was crazy.* *She went crazy because she loved me too much.* *She went crazy for my sake.* *I loved my mother, but everything she said was delusional.* *Her mind was completely broken.* *So I can't believe what she says.* *She loved me, but I can't believe her.* *My older brother knew that well.* *So he resisted.* *Then...* *Then what is this?* *The prediction was written in front of my eyes.* *The prediction had been written by Takashima-san.* *So what is this?* *The day it will return to the sky.* *The world must return.* *That―* *I know... about the day all will return to the sky.* *Mother: "On the day that the world returns to the sky... everything will end..."* *The limit of the world.* *The edge of the world.* *The end of the world.* *―She called it "the day the world will return to the sky"―* *Why would Takashima-san... know about that?* *Why is my mother's prediction written on Takashima-san's desk...* *I instinctively defaced the words.* *This can't be here.* *But...* Takuji: Wh-Why is this here? Takuji: Hey! *I shook the desk and asked.* *The desk that had opened its heart to me before now stood silent.* Takuji: Why won't you tell me?! Takuji: You're Takashima-san's desk, aren't you?! Takuji: You've always been with her, right?! Takuji: You know everything about her, don't you?! Takuji: Hey! Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: Ah... *The reason why the desk closed its heart.* *The reason why the desk stopped talking to me.* *I didn't know at first, but then I understood.* Takuji: Ah! *I heard voices in the hall.* *When I looked at the clock, class was ending.* *The students in this class would be coming back soon...* Takuji: That's what it was... Desk: Please, run. Takuji: Oh, yeah... Desk: I'll take it from here. Takuji: Thanks. *I heard the desk's voice.* *She forced herself to talk for my sake...* *I knew she would...* *That desk always supported Takashima-san...* *I said my thanks to the desk.* *Then I obeyed her words and ran out into the hall.* *The sound of the bell.* *The signal for people to flow out into the halls.* *I have to run.* *Quickly.* *Swiftly.* *As fast as my feet can carry me.* Takuji: Haa, haa, what was that? Takuji: Why were my mother's words there? *Those were...* *The words the desk told me...* *The words that Takashima-san had left for me.* *Those were words I knew very well.* *No, they were words I had already left behind.* *They were words that shouldn't have been there after all this time.* *July 20th, 2012.* *The day all will return to the sky.* *My mother's words.* *My mother's delusions.* *Something that only exists in my mother's head.* *The limit of my mother's world.* *Yes, that is something that is only happening in my mother's head.* *It's a reality that's only in my mother's head.* Takuji: Why was that written on Takashima-san's desk? *Did the inside of my mother's head start leaking into the world?* *Did her delusions start spreading to the world?* Takuji: That's impossible! *There's no way the inside of a person's head could leak into the world.* *There's no way the inside of a person's head could spread into the world.* *That's absolutely impossible!* *I ran with all my might.* *I ran without thinking.* *I was scared of the words that the desk had told me...* Takuji: Haa, haa. *―You don't need to be scared...* Takuji: Haa, haa. *―Even if the end of everything is approaching...* Takuji: Haa, haa... *―Don't worry...* *―I'll protect you...* *I'll return you to the sky―* *You―* *The world―* *I'll return it all―* Takuji: The day the world will be destroyed... My mother said it would return to the sky. Takuji: The day the world will be destroyed... My mother said she would return it to the sky. *Before the world is destroyed―* Takuji: Why... is that prediction... Takuji: Haa, haa... *Erased words.* *Delusions that had already disappeared.* *But still, the desk had spoken.* *Even while it was bent over upon hands and knees―* *That desk―* *Kindly―* *Honestly―* *Spoke of―* *―The end of the world.* *July 20th, 2012.* *My mother died seven years ago.* *Her prediction should've disappeared along with her.* *But still.* *Why did Takashima-san's desk say that?* *Why had the erased words...* *Appeared again?* *Mother.* *My mother.* *My beloved mother.* *My cruel mother who tried to return the other one to the sky.* *I love her.* *I love her.* *But.* *She's gone.* *She's not here anymore.* *She returned to the sky alone.* *She alone is walking in the sky.* *God is in the sky.* *God exists, and he made the world.* *He created countless failed worlds.* *My mother is by his side.* *My mother is laughing at his side.* *She thinks of the day when all of creation will return to the sky.* *And she laughs.* *Because she is at God's side.* *Her flesh has perished...* *A higher spirit covers the world.* *Only my vulgar side remains.* *Only my vulgar side.* *I only try to live diligently at home.* *Otherwise, I am vulgarity itself.* *At home, I listen to classical music.* *In my base, I masturbate to erotic recordings.* *At home, I study.* *In my base, I masturbate to erotic manga.* *At home, I read literature.* *In my base, I masturbate to eroge.* *At home, I watch the stars.* *In my base, I browse the Internet and masturbate.* *I am vulgarity itself.* *I'm only a good child at home.* *An immaculate child.* *But otherwise it's just masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation masturbation.* *My life is masturbation. Total masturbation. I revolve and accelerate, my hand in my pants the whole time. I'm a ballerina dancing through the world.* *It repeats.* *Over and over.* *I rub my dick.* *Repeating, over and over.* *An endless up and down exercise.* *Infinite ejaculation.* *My home is saintly and my base is filthy.* *I go back and forth time and time again.* *Around and around.* *Around and around.* *Around and around.* *That's why those words came back.* *Back to me.* *Those words came back...* *To remind me of the limit where I must return to the sky.* *It means that ejaculation is close at hand.* *It means that the end of this up and down motion is fast approaching.* *Time for some lotion!* *Let's try an onahole instead of my hand!* *Let's try something different!* *Avoid using the same old rotation!* *Add something new to the rotation!* *But the lotion dries up.* *Dries up.* *Even if I try to use saliva to make it last longer, it doesn't help.* *It slowly disappears.* *That symbolizes my slowly disappearing day-to-day life.* *The disappearing pleasure.* *The increasing pain.* *That's right.* *Ejaculation is near!* *The signal that the world must ejaculate!* *The spinning of the eternal masturbating ballerina will come to an end!* *It will end with ejaculation!* *THEREFORE!* *-Those words came back to me-* Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... *It had been... more than 10 years ago...* *Everyone was spreading rumors about an absurd prediction...* *A prediction from a long time ago... Nostradamus' great prediction...* *At that time, my mother was very kind...* *She believed in the end of the world... and became a person who always smiled...* Takuji: Haa, ha, ha... *The ice cream she used to buy me was delicious.* *July 20th, 2012...* *She fed me lots of good food to prepare me for that day.* Takuji: Haa, haa, haa... *Calm down...* *Calm down...* *Be calm.* *Be logical.* *That is what's important.* *There's no other solution.* Takuji: ... *Calm down and think...* *Let's think...* *It's a challenge!* Takuji: Because... it's... so Takuji: What if ? wouldn't Takuji: 's 's Takuji: 's *"...'s 's"* *"...Is 's... 's therefore "* *"What if ? It "* *" 's 's"* *" 's"* *"..."* *"Because it's... if... 's"* *"Wh if ? ld be 's 's"* *" 's 's"* *" 's"* *"..."* *"...Then 's 's 's 's 's... 's... then 's "* *"And if then ? That can't "* *" 's 's"* *" 's"* *Male Student: " 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's?"* *Male Student: "You don't 's 's? 's 's you know 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's"* *Male Student: "'s 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's was 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's 's"* *Male Student: " 's?"* *Male Student: "'s 's 's ac 's 's 's 's?"* *Male Student: " 's 's 's 's, 's 's 's 's, long hair 's 's..."* *Male Student: "'s 's 's 's 's 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* *Male Student: " 's death."* Takuji: ...No, stop. Takuji: You're getting a bit confused. Takuji: Just a little bit... Takuji: No matter what I do, it doesn't line up. There are parts that don't make any sense. Takuji: ...I should cool down for a bit... Takuji: I'm getting too excited... *Something to divert my attention...* *My attention...* Takuji: Th-That's right... I should read some manga... Takuji: Uh... *I pulled a manga from the bookshelf.* *It was one that had just been made into an anime, Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *It's kind of a perverted manga...* Takuji: Oh, right... I should watch the anime I downloaded... *I turned on my computer and played the video.* Takuji: Ah! *...* *This is... just like yesterday, isn't it...* *I did this yesterday...* *And then...* Takuji: Ah! *I ran out of my base in a hurry.* *I saw Takashima-san's ghost down there last night.* Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... *T-Takashima-san... She really committed suicide...* *Everything that happened yesterday was real...* *Then...* *Takashima-san's ghost... that I'd seen yesterday...* Takuji: Th-That's impossible! *Th-That's right... I only saw that because I was worked up after seeing her suicide...* *Maybe that's it. Just that one part was a dream...* Takuji: But... from the time I saw her suicide... until that memory... feels connected. *It doesn't feel like... only that one part was a dream...* Takuji: That's why... I thought... *...That her suicide was a dream too...* *Seeing a ghost is itself impossible, so...* *But still, doesn't that make it impossible that I witnessed her suicide?* Takuji: Wh-What... the hell is going on... *What was a dream... and what wasn't...* Takuji: No, calm down... Her suicide was real... And her ghost was just a dream... Takuji: And... *And?* *Then why was that prediction written on her desk?* *That prediction... That prediction that my mother believed...* *Those words she had only told me.* *Why were they written on Takashima-san's desk?* *What was that?* *My mother's love for me...* *Her love was her verbal abuse and her predictions.* *Takashima-san also made those predictions and insulted me every day.* *She insulted me in various ways.* *She's yet another person who insulted me behind my back.* *That's because she loved me.* *All the people who love me insult me.* *The reason the cashier had a bad attitude.* *The reason the girls in my class were cold to me.* *It was all because of their love.* *They were all just flirting with me.* *Even now, Takashima-san's desk is telling me that.* *Telling me about the end of the world.* *Then Takashima-san... Takashima-san was...* Takuji: Ow! *Wh-What? A headache?* *Crap... I thought they were going away...* *Why is it...* Takuji: Gah... *It's like my head is going to split open...* *My head was cloudy...* Yuki: Oh... if n't Mamiya -kun. Takuji: Ah... I can't see... *The person in front of me is... Uh...* Yuki: Oh... if it isn't Mamiya Takuji-kun. *What's... this voice...* *Where is it coming from?* *From... inside my head again?* *Just like before... someone I don't know, inside my head...* *...* *No... It's not...* *This... isn't a voice inside my head...* *This is... something else...* *This is...* Takuji: Y-You're... that girl from my class... Yuki: I'm Minakami.. * I can't believe you don't even remember the people in your own class..."* *Agh...* *I'm kind of dizzy...* *Why's that...* *Um... She's...* *The girl who has great grades even though she skips class... who's supposedly even stronger than the guys at our school...* *She's a match for Yuuki... and everyone loves her... and... and...* Takuji: Minakami... Yuki-san? Yuki: That's right. But beside that, why are you in a place like this? Yuki: Actually, where did you crawl out of? You weren't here a moment ago. *Where?* *Where did I appear from?* *The place where I came into the world.* *Well, that would be my mother's , of course.* *What a lewd woman!* *Don't ask me something like that!* *Does she want me to yell out, "I came out of my mother's "?* *What nerve.* *What a scary woman.* *Scary.* *This woman is scary.* Takuji: Eh... Ah... Eh... Ah... Yuki: Why... do you act like that when you see me? Takuji: No, ah, eh... Yuki: And why would you come out of there? *Out of there?* *You were born from your mother's , too, you know!* *How rude!* *Is she insulting my mother?* *A-Anyway, I should try to make something up to fool her.* *My mother would be upset if she heard I was talking to such a nasty woman!* Takuji: Well, it was my wallet. Takuji: I dropped my wallet in the pool. Yuki: Your wallet? Takuji: Yeah, that's right. I dropped my wallet. Ah, I have to hurry. I'll be going, then. Yuki: Ah... *I ran, and then...* Takuji: Ha, ha. Takuji: That was close... She almost found out about my secret base. Takuji: But still... *That woman...* *I haven't really talked to her, but... she really is nasty.* *Wandering around a place like that... She's nastier than I could have imagined...* *I thought... only Shiroyama, Numada, and Yuuki ever came around there...* Takuji: Anyway... I guess I shouldn't just stand here... Takuji: I guess I'll head back to my base. Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Wh-What... *Someone was there, in the darkness.&* *A black shadow slowly moved toward me, matching my steps as I walked down the hall.* Takuji: Wh-Who the hell are you?! *"You shouldn't talk to me like that..."* Takuji: Eh? *A girl's voice?* *Not a monster?* *Th-That's...* Ayana: Hehehe... You are Mamiya Takuji-kun. *This face... Her name is Otonashi Ayana, I think?* *Why is she here...* *This isn't actually part of my base, but...* *But still... why would she be in the reservoir tank...* Ayana: What's wrong? You look scared. Takuji: Th-That's not important. Why are you here? Ayana: I might ask the same of you. Takuji: I-I guess so, but... don't answer a question with a question! Ayana: Why are you raising your voice? Takuji: Th-That's because... meeting someone in a place like this is... Ayana: Scary? Takuji: Eh? Ayana: Are you... scared of me? Takuji: N-No way! Th-There's no way I would be scared of a girl. Ayana: That's right. I'm not scary... You could say I'm as kind as the devil. Ayana: That's what everyone tells me. Takuji: Everyone? *Everyone? I've never seen her talking to anyone else.* Takuji: Who exactly is 'everyone'? Ayana: Who knows? Takuji: I've never heard of anyone named 'who knows?' Ayana: Heh... Then how about Minakami-san? *Minakami...?* *She... and Minakami Yuki know each other?* *I didn't think she was friends with anyone...* *To think that she was talking to that nasty woman...* *That means...* *The girl in front of me is another nasty woman.* Takuji: Who else? Ayana: Minakami-san. Takuji: No, someone else... Ayana: Minakami-san and Minakami-san and Minakami-san and Minakami-san and Minakami-san... Takuji: ... *What's with her... I guess she doesn't know anyone except Minakami-san.* *Which means... she might be another lonely girl without any friends.* Ayana: Heheh, Mamiya-kun... Takuji: Wh-What? Ayana: You really don't need to worry about whether I have any friends. Takuji: Wha―?! *Sh-She just read my mind?* Takuji: Wh-What do you mean?! Ayana: You're overreacting... It's not like I can read your mind. Takuji: Huh Ayana: You just so happen to be stupid and simple-minded. I said the first thing that came to mind... and it ended up being exactly what you were thinking. Takuji: O-Oh... *What's up with her... She's really annoying...* Ayana: I'm not annoying. Takuji: Eh? Ayana: You don't find me annoying. Actually, you rather like me... Heheh. *What's going on? She really is reading my mind...* Ayana: I'm the kind of girl you like. In fact, so is Minakami-san. Other than that... Takuji: I don't like people like you at all! Ayana: Really? Takuji: I-I'm not even interested in anyone who isn't two-dimensional! Ayana: Heheh... In that case, I should be fine, since I'm not limited by anything like that. *Wh-What is she talking about...* Takuji: A-Are you... trying to make a fool out of me? Ayana: Not at all. I'm not trying to make a fool out of you. After all, you're already... Ayana: A fool. Takuji: Wh-What did you say? Ayana: Heheh, that was a bit of humor... It's proof of our friendship, so to speak Takuji: People don't call unpleasant things humorous. Ayana: Oh? Was it unpleasant? Takuji: Of course it was. Ayana: I thought you liked girls like this... Takuji: What are you talking about... Ayana: Girls who are off-putting at first... and then try to be more than friends later. Takuji: S-Stop trying to make a fool out of me! Ayana: Heheh... I'm not... Ayana: The truth is, I absolutely can't make a fool out of you... Takuji: ...? *Almost all of what she's saying... is gibberish. What's with her...* *I shouldn't associate with people like her.* Ayana: Mamiya-kun, are you that scared of death? Takuji: ...What do you mean? Ayana: You're scared of Takashima-san's prediction. Takuji: Eh? Ayana: That prediction... is the same as the prediction that your mother believed in. Takuji: W-Why do you know that? Ayana: Do you remember... talking to your mother? Takuji: Wh-What? Ayana: Takuji... Are you scared of dying? Takuji: Huh? Ayana: I wonder if dying is something to be scared of... Ayana: Naturally... You say it's natural, but it's not natural to be scared of death. *Th-These words...* Ayana: No one can experience death. Ayana: To experience death is impossible. Ayana: People hold death close... and change it into something they can imagine. They change it into something they can experience. *This conversation...* *It's exactly the same.* *Why?* Ayana: Even if you could live forever... first, all the people you love would die... Then, the human race would go extinct... Ayana: All life would disappear. Everyone would disappear... and only you would be left alive. Ayana: Then a boundless time would pass. Space and entropy would become infinite... and you would witness the heat death of the universe. Ayana: In that empty space, you would live for millions, billions, and trillions of years. Ayana: And even then, you wouldn't die, but rather simply look on for eternity. Ayana: The continuity of you being you would continue for eternity, but... Ayana: Your mind would be destroyed. Ayana: Your mind would be destroyed, but your continuity would continue. Ayana: It's an unexpected infinite hell. Ayana: It does seem incredibly fun, but... Ayana: Is that truly what you desire? Takuji: I've heard that before... that living for all of physical time would be hell. Takuji: And I would say... I want my happy life to continue forever. Takuji: Looking at emptiness forever isn't happiness. Ayana: Hehe, that's right. That's not happiness... Ayana: Though it does sound like it would be fun to lose your mind and float through space for all eternity. Ayana: Then you'll live a fantastic life. Ayana: You'll have a wonderful girlfriend, great friends, and a fun life. Ayana: For hundreds of years. Ayana: For thousands of years. Ayana: For tens of thousands of years. Ayana: For hundreds of thousands of years. Ayana: For millions of years. Ayana: For tens of millions of years. Ayana: For hundreds of millions of years. Ayana: For billions of years. Ayana: For tens of billions of years. Ayana: For hundreds of billions of years. Ayana: For trillions of years. Ayana: For tens of trillions of years. Ayana: For hundreds of trillions of years. Ayana: For quadrillions of years. Ayana: And even after all that, it wouldn't end. Ayana: Because it's infinite, all of that would be a mere instant. Ayana: It wouldn't end, after thousands, millions, even billions of times as many years had passed. Ayana: The end would never come. Ayana: A wonderful girlfriend. Ayana: Great friends. Ayana: A fun life. Ayana: Would repeat for eternity... Ayana: After a few hundred years, you'll... Ayana: Begin to hate this happy lifestyle. Ayana: You'll kill your wonderful girlfriend. Ayana: You'll kill your great friends. Ayana: You'll try to end your fun life. Ayana: But on the morning of the next day, once again... Ayana: A wonderful girlfriend. Ayana: Great friends. Ayana: You'll be surrounded by them again. Ayana: Your fun life will begin. Ayana: Mamiya-kun, at first you'll get drunk on the pleasure of killing. Ayana: Every day, you'll kill your wonderful girlfriend and great friends over and over again. Ayana: But you'll soon grow tired of that too after a few hundred years. Ayana: Then you'll try to kill yourself. Ayana: You'll die. Ayana: But in the next instant. Ayana: A wonderful girlfriend. Ayana: Great friends. Ayana: You'll be surrounded by them again. Ayana: Your fun life will begin. Ayana: Then you'll go insane. Ayana: But your mind will be returned to its normal state... Ayana: To force you to be happy. Ayana: And then again. Ayana: A wonderful girlfriend. Ayana: Great friends. Ayana: A fun life. Ayana: It'll continue for eternity. Ayana: For eternity... Takuji: ... *I've had this same conversation... in the past.* *Why does she know this...* Ayana: No one can experience death. Ayana: To experience death is impossible. Ayana: People hold death close... and change it into something they can imagine. They change it into something they can experience. Ayana: But that is still... imagination. Ayana: Death isn't permitted to anyone. Ayana: No one can attain death. Ayana: Not a single person... can experience death. Ayana: Death never visits anyone. Death is not something that can be attained. Ayana: Those who can't imagine death live the specie aeterni. Ayana: Just like animals... Ayana: But humans imagine death. Ayana: They live beside death. Ayana: But... even with death at their side, they do not own death. Ayana: Making death one's own is blasphemy. Ayana: The only world permitted to humans is life... Life is next to death. Life is death itself. Life is something people should attain. Takuji: Wh-Why are you saying that... Takuji: W-Was... that written in a book? Is that some religious doctrine? Ayana: Who knows... Ayana: But you've heard all this before. Takuji: Y-You knew that, and that's why you said it, right?! Takuji: My mother used to talk about that. Ayana: Imagining death... is nothing more than imagining pain. Ayana: Other than that... the fear of death is as vulgar... as it is refined... Ayana: The fear of one's own disappearance is... a vulgar human fear... Ayana: But your mother said... Ayana: If you don't call currency vulgar, then neither can you call that vulgar. Ayana: The fear of one's own death is no different from the mystery inherent in the use of currency. Ayana: In the same way that currency is postponed value... death is postponed fear. Ayana: In the same way, even though the fear of death is nonsense... as long as humans live, it will follow them. Ayana: Just like an angel whispering in one's ear. Takuji: Who... are you... Takuji: You're just― Takuji: Eh? *Why?* *She disappeared...* Takuji: Wh-What... *I-Is this a dream?* *No... It's not a dream... So this is reality?* *In reality, people don't disappear like that... So then, what is this?* *A hallucination?* *Was that a hallucination?* Takuji: How much of that was a hallucination? *"I won't let you go!"* Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Wh-Why is the TV on? *"I won't let you go!"* *I remember... I found this TV and put it in my base before bringing my computer here.* *But it couldn't get a signal. I haven't turned it on since...* *"I won't let you go!"* Takuji: Why... is the TV... *"I heard about a ritual to regain our powers from the previous world, but... what exactly is it?"* *"Eh? A near-death experience?"* *"That's scary..."* *This voice... again...* *This voice is...* Takuji: This... isn't Riruru-chan's voice... Takuji: This is... Takashima-san's voice... Riruru: I can't see it... I can't see any great disaster! Riruru: Open your eyes! Riruru: Nooo, no! Riruru: Riruru! Riruru: Eek! Riruru: Riruru-chan, listen to me! Riruru: Fear is a shapeless monster! It clouds the mind and beckons the worst possible outcome! Riruru: If we falter here... the world will be destroyed! Riruru: Could you let that happen? Riruru: Riruru-chan! Riruru: I could! Riruru: What? Riruru: I don't care if the world is destroyed! Riruru: I don't want to die! Why don't you just die and leave us alone?! Riruru: Ah... Riruru: What's wrong with you two?! *It's the same... as the video that played on my computer last night...* *This is... These three... They're all calling each other Riruru, but...* *These three...* Riruru: To the sky! Riruru: Nooooooo! Riruru: Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!! *A sound that split the air in twain...* Takuji: Wh-What's happening... h-here... Takuji: ... *Calm down... This is a dream...* *Is this a dream?* *What part of this is a dream?* *And just when... did I start dreaming?* Takuji: C-Calm down... Th-Think... *If this is a dream... then there's a point where I started dreaming... And eventually, I'll wake up...* *I'll wake up... from this nightmare...* *This dream...* Takuji: Ah... Takuji: Wh-What... is this... *It was a different pitch... Not the pitch of a human voice... That's how it felt... It was an incredibly, incredibly high pitch...* *" "* Takuji: Ngh? *"It's not a dream."* Takuji: Eh? Takuji: J-Just now... *I looked at the pillar.* *It was covered in scribbles.* Takuji: The scribbles on the wall... *Something I drew...* *I drew pictures of anime and manga... Sometimes even light novels...* *Just now... that picture...* *"It's not a dream."* Takuji: Huh?! *"Just like your mother... you can't escape your fate either..."* Takuji: Wha― *This is just a dream.* *This could never happen...* *This is just a dream...* *It doesn't matter when it started.* *This can't be reality!* *"That's wrong... This is reality."* Takuji: Sh-Shut up! *"Takuji-kun..."* Takuji: S-Something ridiculous like this couldn't be real! This is ridiculous! Takuji: Ha, ha, ha, ha... *Wh-What's going on...* *Wh-What the hell's happening?* Takuji: Ha, ha... Why is this... Takuji: What is this... Just what is... What should I do... Takuji: Why was that prediction... Takuji: Why was that stupid prediction... Takuji: The end of the world? Takuji: That's impossible... Impossible... Takuji: But... why did Takashima-san... Takuji: Why did she know about that prediction?! Takuji: Why? Takuji: Why... Just like my mother... Takuji: Why... Takuji: Is this... reality? Takuji: Or did I end up in a dream at some point? Takuji: If this isn't reality, then when did I start dreaming? Takuji: Why is this happening... Why... Takuji: Agh! Takuji: Why did the scribbles... Why did they talk to me... Takuji: Is this... punishment? Takuji: Punishment... for what I've done. Takuji: Punishment... for what I couldn't do. Takuji: Or... Takuji: A curse... *"What?"* *Some kind of sound?* *Like a voice...* Takuji: Wh-What? Takuji: Huh... *What's that...?* *Someone is... looking at me...* *"That's..."* *"What... is that?"* *"...Who is that?"* *Or rather... is that a person?* *A person or...* *"Ah!"* *"Wha―?"* *"It's not a... human."* *"What... is that..."* *"What are you?!"* *"Aaaaaaahhhhhh!"* *"Don't come near me!!"* *"Get away from me!!"* *"Aaahh, Aah!"* *...* *...The voice...* *Disappeared?* *...* *I don't hear a voice...* *Did I wake up... from my dream?* *Because the nightmare...* *Is over?* * "Eek!"* *Anxiety: "..."* *Anxiety: "Te..."* * "Te?"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *Anxiety: "Tekeli-li"* *li-li-li-li-li-li-li-Tekeli* *li-li-li-li　　　　　　li-li-li-liTekeli* *li-li-li　li-li-li　li-li-li-Tekeli* *li-li-li　li-li-　li-li　li-li-li-Tekeli* *li　　　li-li　　　li-li　　　li-Tekeli* *li-li-li　li-li　li-li　li-li-li-Tekeli* *Tekeli-li　li-li-li　li-li-li-li-li* *li-li-li-li　　　　　　li-li-li-li-Tekeli* *li-li-li-li-li-li-li-li-li-li-Tekeli* Takuji: AAAAAAaaaaaahhh! Takuji: What is this?! Takuji: L-Let me go!! Takuji: What is this?! Takuji: AAAAaaaaaaaahh! Takuji: Haa, haa... What was that... *A monster?* *No... Something like that can't exist...* Takuji: E-Either way... I should be safe here... Takuji: That's right. There are a lot of people here. Takuji: I can hide in the crowd. Takuji: I won't stand out from everyone else. Takuji: If I move like a normal member of the crowd. Takuji: If I walk like everyone else. Takuji: If I go with the flow and walk. Takuji: If I just match up with them. Takuji: Before, I just wasn't able to blend in... Takuji: Because I stood out... Takuji: I was bullied by everyone, but... Takuji: This time, I should be fine. Takuji: I won't make the same mistake twice. Takuji: I won't. Takuji: Alright. Takuji: This is good. Takuji: You're doing well. Takuji: I'm not standing out. Takuji: That's right. You can be relieved. Takuji: Relief. Takuji: Just walk like this. Takuji: Then you can be calm for eternity. Takuji: That's what my father always said... Takuji: Go along with this stream... Takuji: This stream continues on for eternity. Takuji: There's no end. Takuji: There's no... Takuji: So you have to do your best here. Takuji: Do your best. Takuji: If you don't. Takuji: If you don't. Takuji: The end will... Takuji: The end that... Takuji: My mother feared... Takuji: To me too... Takuji: Just like Takashima-san... Takuji: The end. Takuji: From the roof... Takuji: I'll end it... Takuji: What I can see from the roof is... Takuji: What I can see is... Takuji: The sky... Takuji: The sky? Takuji: Ah! Takuji: Why is it that color... Takuji: That's not the color of sunset... Takuji: That's just like... Takuji: That's just like―! Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Eek! Takuji: I'm being watched. Takuji: I'm being watched! Takuji: Even here! Takuji: Even here, I've been exposed! Takuji: The same mistake! Takuji: Aaaaahhhh! Takuji: They're watching me. Takuji: They're watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching me watching meeeeeee! Takuji: They're watching meeeeeee! Takuji: AAAAAAAAAaaaaaaghhhh!! Takuji: Why?! Takuji: Why?! Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: I'm. Takuji: Always. Takuji: Always... Takuji: But now I'm calm. Takuji: Haa, haa, haa... Takuji: Now that I've run this far... Takuji: This far... Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Wh-Why am I here? Takuji: This is... *The place Takashima-san died...* *Why am I here...* Takuji: J-Just now... *"..."* Takuji: Wh-What was that? *...* Takuji: Who is it? *...* Takuji: I-Is someone there? *...* *I just heard a voice...* *"..."* Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: Wh-Who is it?! *...* Takuji: S-Someone's playing a prank on me, right? *...* Takuji: Wh-Who the hell is it?! *A prank?* *All of the stuff I've been seeing? Even that huge monster?* *How?* *How would they make me see something like that?* Takuji: Wh-Who is it?! Takuji: Wha―?! *"Th-The world..."* *"The world... will end on... the... twentieth..."* Takuji: T-Takashima-san? *"I have to... save the world..."* *"Just like Mother said..."* Takuji: Wh-What? *Why is Takashima-san...* *Why does she know about that prediction...* *Why does she know about my mother...* Takuji: Agh... *I tried to run from that spot... and yet...* *My body wouldn't move...* *But I still tried to force my body to move.* *My body moved slowly, like I was submerged in a viscous liquid.* Takuji: Wh-Why is this happening... This... *This can't be reality...* *A dead person can't... come after me...* *I tried to run from Takashima Zakuro, but... I couldn't put any distance between us.* *This feeling... That's right, this feeling...* *A feeling ingrained in my body... My body grew heavy when I tried to run, as if I was moving in slow motion.* *This is a dream...* *This can't be anything... other than a dream...* *This can't...* *Something like this...* Riruru: ...up. Takuji: ... Riruru: W... up. Takuji: ...... Riruru: Wake up... Takuji: Mm... This is... Takuji: Wha―?! Riruru: Hello. Takuji: Eh? Riruru: Hello, Takuji-kun. Takuji: Aaaaaaaaaaaaggghhh!! Takuji: The picture on the wall! Takuji: The picture on the wall is talkiiiing! Riruru: Don't be afraid. Takuji: Aaaaaaaaaaaaggghhh!! Riruru: Don't be afraid! Takuji: ... Riruru: Eheh, you made me yell. Takuji: ... Riruru: Takuji-kun. Takuji: Y-Yes... Riruru: ...I guess you've calmed down, huh? Takuji: Wh-What do you mean, calm... Um... Riruru: Takuji-kun... do you know who I am? Takuji: R-Riruru-chan? Riruru: Bingo, bingo. Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: Huh? But Riruru-chan is... Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: An anime... Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: This is a picture I drew... Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: It's just fiction... Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: Fiction? Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: fiction? Riruru: yes, i'm the mahou shoujo riruru. Takuji: FICTION? Riruru: YES, I'M THE MAHOU SHOUJO RIRURU. Takuji: FIC/TION/? Riruru: YES/I/'M/THE/MA/HO/U/SHO/U/JO/RI/RU/RU/. Takuji: ?/NOIT/CIF Riruru: ./RU/RU/RI/JO/U/SHO/U/HO/MA/THE/'M/I/YES Takuji: CIF/?/NOIT Riruru: RU/MA/U/RU/YES/'M/./RI/JO/SHO/U/I/THE Takuji: CIF/NOIT/? Riruru: Y//ｏｏ/RRS/RHJYI//SOO/UUU/HU/S/M/OAI/W/TAA/U Takuji: ╋ｋ／ｓ・・？／ Riruru: ｙ┨ｏ・ｒｒｓ／ｒｈｊｙｉ┨ｓｏ・・╋ｈｕ／ｓ／ｍ／ｏａｉ／ｗ／ｔａａ／ｕ Takuji: ― Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Riruru: I'm gathering God's dreams that have been scattered throughout the world. Riruru: I actually haven't gathered them all yet, heheh. Riruru: Though on TV, I've collected them all and returned to the country of magic. Riruru: I'm a bit of a dunce, so I'm working overtime. Takuji: Ah... Riruru: Are you all right? Takuji: Ah... I-I'm fine... Yeah... Riruru: I can only appear here because you always talked to me. Takuji: Because I talked to you? Riruru: That's right. That's why I'm here. Takuji: You're... here? Takuji: Here... Riruru: Here is here... Takuji: P→P? Riruru: There is there... Takuji: Q→Q? Takuji: ￢P? Riruru: Then, over there? Takuji: ￢Q? Riruru: Then, right here? Takuji: P∨Q? Riruru: Really? Takuji: ￢（P∨Q）＝￢P∧￢Q? Riruru: (not (P or Q)) == ((not P) and (not Q)) Takuji: ￢（P∧Q）＝￢P∨￢Q? Riruru: (not (P and Q)) == ((not P) or (not Q)) Takuji: ￢∀x A（x)⇔∃x ￢A(x) Takuji: ￢∃x A（x)⇔∀x ￢A(x) Riruru: Hehehe... Riruru: x=∞ Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Yes, I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. *"But..."* Riruru: yes, i'm the mahou shoujo riruru. *"Where are you..."* Riruru: YES, I'M THE MAHOU SHOUJO RIRURU. *"Where am I..."* Riruru: YES/I/'M/THE/MA/HO/U/SHO/U/JO/RI/RU/RU/. *"Where are we..."* Riruru: ./RU/RU/RI/JO/U/SHO/U/HO/MA/THE/'M/I/YES *"We..."* Riruru: RU/MA/U/RU/YES/'M/./RI/JO/SHO/U/I/THE *"Where?"* Riruru: Y//ｏｏ/RRS/RHJYI//SOO/UUU/HU/S/M/OAI/W/TAA/U Takuji: --? Riruru: ｙ┨ｏ・ｒｒｓ／ｒｈｊｙｉ┨ｓｏ・・╋ｈｕ／ｓ／ｍ／ｏａｉ／ｗ／ｔａａ／ｕ Takuji: ―? Riruru: ...What do you mean? Isn't that obvious? *She looked at me, intrigued.* Riruru: Here is here. Takuji: ...That's right. Riruru: By the way, there is there. *Riruru-chan pointed toward the room next to us.* Riruru: Its alias is The New School Building's Foundation * Ahahahahaha."* Riruru: So this is the foundation, too. Ehehe. Riruru: You're strange, Takuji-kun. Riruru: Why are you saying things I don't understand... It's not like I know what you're talking about when you suddenly use foreign words like that... *Foreign words?* *Did I just say something to Riruru in a foreign language?* Riruru: I can't understand hard stuff like that. Riruru: Just talk normally. Takuji: S-Sorry. *That wasn't a foreign language...* *I feel like I might have just talked using some kind of symbols...* *Using strange symbols that both seemed and didn't seem to have some logic behind them...* *Symbols with some logic behind them...?* *Were those some kind of words?* *And...* *Before that, I spoke some language...* *I talked to her in some language for a few seconds after I met her.* *What kind of words were those...* *What kind of...* *Ah...* *That was Japanese.* *Then what are we speaking now...?* *It's Japanese. We're speaking Japanese now.* *There's no problem.* *Riruru-chan and I are speaking in Japanese!* *That's totally normal.* *I'm getting confused...* *There's nothing strange happening!* *The world is completely relaxed.* *That's right. The world is relaxed...* *There's nothing scary...* *There's nothing special...* *The world is just completely relaxed...* Riruru: Are you all right? Takuji: Oh, sure... There's no problem... *Riruru-chan looked at me with concern...* Takuji: I-I'm sorry to make you worry... but I'm fine now. Riruru: Really? Takuji: Yeah, really. I'm fine. *That's right...* *There's nothing strange...* *There's nothing suspicious...* *Relax... Relax... Relax.* Riruru: Relax... Relax... Relax. Riruru: A charm of relaxation... Your mother taught you that. Takuji: Why do you know that? Riruru: Of course I do. I'm a specialist in magic, after all. I know about that charm. Takuji: That makes sense... Riruru: That's right. That's what it is. It's completely natural. It's nothing to be surprised about. *Something normal...* *I guess so... When she says it like that... it sounds right...* Takuji: Yeah, I was confused. Takuji: But now I'm fine. Riruru: I'm glad to hear that. Takuji: Yeah... Ahahaha... Riruru: Takuji-kun, you look down. Takuji: Eh? I'm not really feeling down, but... Riruru: You're confused? Takuji: Oh, well... Yeah. Riruru: Because your mother's prediction is taking shape? Takuji: Eh? Riruru: The end of the world and the arrival of the savior on July 20th, 2012. You heard that story over and over from your mother, right? Takuji: I did, but... that was just her delusion. Riruru: You don't believe your mother. Takuji: O-Of course not. There's no way her prediction will come true. If it did come true, then wouldn't have died. Riruru: Don't you just... want to believe it won't come true? Takuji: Wh-What do you mean? Riruru: Because you feel like you've been betrayed? Takuji: Th-That's not it... Riruru: That is it. You resent your mother. Takuji: ... *Resent...* *Yes... I resent my mother.* *Who would be able to forgive that kind of mother.* *She abused me so much... and then abandoned me in the end.* *Maybe she didn't abandon me, but... ultimately, she did die of ...* Riruru: But... try to remember. Takuji: Remember? Riruru: The reason you exist right now... The reason Mamiya Takuji is here. Takuji: The reason I exist... Riruru: Or rather, the cause of your existence. Takuji: The cause of my existence... Riruru: That's right. After all, you're... Takuji: I'm? Riruru: A . Riruru: You're already a . Riruru: And yet... you exist, right here. What is the reason for your existence as Mamiya Takuji? Takuji: The reason I exist? Riruru: It's because... you're the savior, isn't it? Takuji: The savior? Riruru: Have you forgotten... the reason your mother was so harsh? Takuji: The reason my mother was so harsh? Riruru: Yes... Why was your mother so tough on you? Riruru: Have you... forgotten that reason? Takuji: I-I haven't forgotten, but... But that's... Riruru: That's a delusion? Riruru: So then, why were you able to continue being Mamiya Takuji after that happened? Takuji: Th-That's... Riruru: For what reason were you born? Takuji: Th-That's... I'm... Riruru: The savior! Riruru: Weren't you born so that you could become the savior? Takuji: I-I don't care about any of that. My mother is dead! She's gone! She has nothing to do with me! Riruru: She has nothing to do with you? Even though you exist? Riruru: As long as you continue to exist, there is no contradiction in your mother's prediction. Riruru: The very reason for your existence... is to return the world to the sky, is it not? Takuji: ... *Return the world to the sky...* *A savior born for that purpose.* *Those words... How many hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, tens of millions, tens of billions of times... did I hear those words?* *How many times... did I hear about the reason for my existence?* Takuji: B-But... Riruru: Then what do you want to do? What do you have to look forward to in life? Takuji: Eh? Riruru: Do you think a meaningful life is waiting for you? Can you find meaning in your life? Takuji: Th-That's rude! E-Even I might have a meaningful life! Riruru: Alright.. * Then what would make your life meaningful?"* Takuji: Eh? Takuji: W-Well... I'll hit it big. I probably have some hidden talent. Riruru: So that's a meaningful life? Takuji: Yeah, then I would have a bunch of money, and I could do whatever I wanted... If you have money, you can do anything. Riruru: Can you buy love with money? Takuji: Of course! All women date men just for their money! Riruru: I wonder... So then, what about pimps? Takuji: Only good-looking men can do that! Riruru: So then, a meaningful life is about having money and looking good? Takuji: Th-That's right. If you're rich and beautiful, your life is meaningful. Riruru: If you're rich and beautiful for just one day, can you say that there was meaning to your life? Takuji: O-One day isn't enough. It should be for longer than that. Riruru: Why does it need to be for longer than that? Takuji: B-Because if those wonderful days ended after just one day, it wouldn't be worth anything. Those days should go on forever! Riruru: Forever? Takuji: ... *Happiness that continues for eternity...* *That's... what Otonashi Ayana was talking about.* *Eternal happiness is no different from hell... because it lasts for eternity.* *No matter how meaningful one's life is... without a proper end, it's more like horror.* *So... living forever is no good.* Takuji: N-No... It doesn't have to be forever. It would be fine if it was just a moderately long life. Riruru: How long? Takuji: Until you start getting tired of it. Riruru: How long is that? Takuji: You can't know until you're there. Riruru: Is that the meaning in your life? *Meaning in life... That's kind of strange...* *Isn't living a happy life... meaning enough?* *Something else...* *That's it!* Takuji: A meaningful life also means having offspring! Riruru: Offspring? Takuji: Yeah, passing on your genes. Riruru: Your genes, huh... Takuji: That's the meaning of life. Lifeforms have meaning because they can pass on their genes. Riruru: In other words... there's no meaning to your life if you're poor, ugly, and have no children? Takuji: Th-That's right! That kind of life is pointless! Takuji: There's no meaning in a life where you don't pass on your genes! Riruru: I see... Life has meaning because you can pass on your genes... Takuji: Yeah, that's right. That's obvious, isn't it? Riruru: ...Even though it will all disappear regardless? Takuji: Eh? Riruru: You said there was meaning to a lifeform if it passed on its genes. Is that true even if the end of the universe comes and everything disappears? Takuji: Eh? Riruru: Won't it? Once the end of the universe comes, it will all disappear... And even if there is no end to the universe, entropy will reach a maximum state, and the universe will meet its death. Takuji: Maximum entropy? Riruru: The entire universe will reach thermodynamic equilibrium... Either way, it's impossible for lifeforms to continue passing on their genes for eternity... Someday, there will be an end... Takuji: B-But if it's long enough... Isn't that good enough? Riruru: In the infinity of time, any number of years is just an instant because it is limited. Riruru: Since the descendants of humanity can't live on forever, they live on for just an instant. Riruru: From what you're saying... a meaningful existence just sounds like putting off the inevitable... Riruru: The meaning to human life. Riruru: The reason life exists. Riruru: It's like you're just stretching out your happiness for as long as possible and then proclaiming life to be meaningful... Riruru: The length of happiness... Is that the meaning to your life? Takuji: Th-That's... I don't know anything about infinity! I'm not talking about all that hard stuff! Takuji: There might not be any meaning to human life, but... But still, I want to live... I can't believe in the end of the world! Takuji: I can't stand the thought that I'll soon die. Takuji: I don't care about the reasoning, I just don't want to die... That's all. Takuji: To me, ten thousand years and an instant can't be the same... Takuji: S-So... I... I really am scared. *Of course I'm scared of dying.* *That would mean losing everything.* Takuji: B-But... Riruru: Still... when you were a child, you believed what your mother told you up until that moment, right? Riruru: Until that moment... Takuji: ... *What was that image... I just saw something flash by...* Riruru: The prediction written on Takashima-san's desk... Riruru: There were... lots of other strange things too, right? Takuji: Th-Then it's all true... My mother's prediction, and Takashima-san's prediction... The world will end... Riruru: Yeah, but don't worry. Takuji: O-Of course I'm going to worry! How could I not worry?! Riruru: Why? Riruru: You're the savior... Why would the world's savior be afraid of the end of the world? Takuji: B-But... *Riruru-chan put her hand on my forehead...* Riruru: Anyway, please take a journey of a hundred million years. Takuji: What do you mean, a hundred million years? Takuji: Eek? Takuji: ... Riruru: Hehehehe... Riruru: How was it... Takuji: ... Riruru: Oh, shoot... He might not have regained his memories as Takuji-kun... Riruru: I guess he forgot who he was after experiencing a hundred million years of evolution. Riruru: Well then... Riruru: Ei! Takuji: AAAAAAAAAAAaaAAAAAAAaAAaaAAAaaAAAAAAAAAAaaaaAAAAAAAaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH... Takuji: Agh... Oohghhaaa, haaa, oogh. Riruru: A-Are you all right? Takuji: Aaaghh. Riruru: Ahahahahaha, sooorrrry about that. Takuji: I just... I just? Riruru: Just? Takuji: No, not just now... Takuji: Until now, I was... Riruru: You just saw your genetic memory. Takuji: My genetic memory? Riruru: Yeah. This isn't one of my powers. Your body had that function, and I just hit the switch. Takuji: The switch? Riruru: That's right. Before humans are born, they see the memories of all life in their mother's womb, from the beginning to their own parents. They remember the shapes... from plankton to fish, from fish to reptiles, from reptiles to... And it keeps going like that. *I've heard of this. I've read this somewhere... That's...* Takuji: That's... the fetal dream? Riruru: Hmm, so that's what they call it. *No, there isn't really a scientific term for it... That theory isn't accepted by science, after all...* Riruru: Hehehe, how did it feel to experience a hundred million years? Takuji: Feel... *It feels like it was an incredibly long time... But once it ended...* *Like reality, and yet like a dream...* *And like there was some meaning, and yet like there wasn't...* *Just, after my hundred million years ended, I felt some kind of presentiment...* *Presentiment...?* *Like another... omen...* *Omen...?* Riruru: How was it? Takuji: O-Ohh, sorry. That's right. Takuji: Once it ended, there was no trace left of the hundred million years. Takuji: It wasn't just an instant, but looking at it now, it feels like you could say it was just an instant. Takuji: That's how it feels. Riruru: Hehehe, that's a great answer. Takuji: A great answer? Riruru: Neither a philosopher nor a religious man could say something like that. Takuji: But still... Takuji: I'm neither a philosopher nor a religious man. Riruru: That's right. They can't say it, but you can. Takuji: I guess so. Riruru: Yeah, you're a part of God. Takuji: A part of God? Takuji: I'm a... Takuji: Part of God? Riruru: Hmm * you're all of him!"* Takuji: All of him? Takuji: Not just a part? Takuji: Which is it? Riruru: Hmm * both!"* Takuji: I'm a part of and the entirety of God? Riruru: Yeah, you're one and all. Takuji: Hmm, I see. Riruru: Are you convinced? Takuji: I'm not convinced. I'm still human. Takuji: I can't follow that logic. It's like it has superseded normal reasoning. Takuji: If there's something I do have... Takuji: They're all... Takuji: Just omens... Riruru: Amazing! Takuji-kun, that's a perfect answer! Riruru: I can't believe you understand the omens already! Takuji: Actually, you're gathering God's dreams, aren't you... And you came to explain the end of the world to me. Takuji: Which means... The world really is going to... Riruru: Like I said... there are only six days until the end. Are you scared, Takuji-kun? Takuji: A single instant for me can become a hundred million years. Takuji: If I wanted, I could live for 51,008,400,000,000 years. Takuji: And... either way, the length of time doesn't matter. Takuji: Even if I were to die at this very moment... I wouldn't be afraid. Riruru: Why? Takuji: Because I'm already within the omen. Riruru: Hehehe, but you can't die. The beginning and end are inseparable, like the two faces of a coin. Riruru: Remember the words your mother said to you... Takuji: My mother's words? Takuji: The day the world will return to the sky... Riruru: Yeah, that's it. Riruru: You must return everything to the sky before the world is destroyed. Takuji: Return everything to the sky... I wonder if I can actually do that... Riruru: God won't save the world... Angels won't save the world... If God doesn't do it, humans will... Riruru: It won't be God that saves people... It will be the savior, human himself, who will save people. Takuji: In other words, that's... me. *I knew that... My mother always told me that from the time I was an infant...* Takuji: Why are you here, Riruru-chan? Riruru: To make your omen... Takuji: Omen? Riruru: To make it come to fruition. Takuji: Fruition? Riruru: Yeah. I can't explain it very well in human words. Riruru: If I were to put it in words... Riruru: It's a kind of infinity. Takuji: A kind of infinity? Riruru: Aleph ∞. Takuji: Wh-What's that? Riruru: Hmm, like I said, I can't explain it very well... Riruru: To put it another way... Riruru: The end. Takuji: The end? Riruru: No, The End. Takuji: The End? *I know about that.* Takuji: That's... Riruru: The End... Takuji: Sky! Riruru: Yes, that's what you will bring to fruition. Takuji: End Sky! Takuji: Fruition... Riruru: You must bring it to fruition, and then end it. Takuji: Bring it to fruition, and then end it? Takuji: But isn't that basically death for a human? Riruru: It's not death. Riruru: Maybe I should call it the ultimate goal of existence. Riruru: It's neither life nor death. Riruru: It's neither existence nor nonexistence. Riruru: That's... Takuji: That's? Riruru: That's... the time when the world will return to the sky. Riruru: End Sky. Takuji: ... Takuji: ...... Takuji: .........

Takuji: Yeah, I know. I know you loved me... Takuji: And it's not just you. Takashima-san, who used you everyday, loved me too. Takuji: Ahh... Takashima-san, Takashima-san... *Takashima-san's desk confessed its love to me.* *But I couldn't accept.* *I had to erase the words 'I love you.'* *I erased them every time they came up.* *She said...* *I love you, I love you.* *I love you, I love you.* *I kept erasing them.* *I erased the words that came up.* *Unfortunately, my lover is Takashima-san, not her desk...* *Then the desk tried to tempt me not with words, but with flesh.* *She tempted me with her form, down on all fours.* *Even I was swayed by this.* *After all, it looked...* *Just like Takashima-san...* Takuji: Ah, I can't... You're a desk, and I'm human... We can't be together. Zakuro: Make love to me... *I can't believe it... Even her voice sounds like Takashima-san...* *This is bad... This is really bad...* Zakuro: Make love to me... Make sweet love to me... I love you, so make love to me... Make love... Come on, Takuji-kun, I love you... Come on, Takuji-kun... Takuji: Aah... Ooaaaah...??? *My head was spinning.* *Her soft, lovely voice swirled around my crotch.* *Ah, ah, ah...* *My true feelings burst from my dark heart like a fountain.* *I love you... I love you, too.* *But you're... Ooahhh... But...* Zakuro: I'll give you... my virginity... *She closed her eyes in embarrassment and laughed sweetly.* Takuji: Ahh... You shouldn't say something as important as that so casually... *Virginity...* *Virginity―Virgin. Virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin virgin.* *The purity of a woman who hasn't been defiled by another man!* Zakuro: After all, I've kept it all this time, just for you. No one has ever put their penis inside me before. Zakuro: It's true... Occasionally she put textbooks, papers, pencils, and things like that inside me, but... But still, you'll be my first and last! *Ah, I can't do this...* *She was on all fours, exposing her drawer... A woman's most important place...* Zakuro: Do you hate me? Takuji: No, not at all! That's not it!! *No, that could never be true.* *All the other girls are self-centered, calculating, lying, thieving sluts.* *And they think it's natural for a man to spend all his money on a girl, and they look down on people with those thin, fake smiles. It's really disgusting.* *But Takashima-san, you're different...* *Even in this rotten world, you've lived a wholesome life so that you could give me your virginity.* *But... yesterday, you...* *So, that means... the you smiling at me now...* Takuji: A-Ahh... *That's right... Don't lose sight of it... I can't lose sight of it.* *Accept reality.* *Reality is what I can see right here, right now.* *Reality is what's happening in front of my eyes... Therefore, this desk has to be...* *This desk...* *Who is it?* *Just who it looks like?* *Takashima-san?* *Is that right?* *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. * *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. * *That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. That's right―* *Congratulations!* *That's right!* *The announcer in my head announced that I was right.* *That's right... Reality is what I can see with my own two eyes.* *I can't allow myself to be deceived by my fantasies.* *Fantasy isn't reality.* Zakuro: What's wrong? Takuji: Oh, no... It's nothing... Takuji: No, don't worry. You're the only woman suitable for me. Zakuro: Thank you, Takuji-kun. I always knew you would say that. *Her lovely eyes, rapt with attention as she gazed upon me, seemed to be swimming in a sea of ecstasy.* *Surely, no other slovenly woman... could ever match her beauty and purity.* Zakuro: I'm sorry about yesterday... Did I scare you? Takuji: Huh? Oh, yeah... Just a little bit... Zakuro: But now I'm just fine. *Fine? She's already recovered?* Zakuro: I love you from the bottom of my heart, so... I'm completely fine. *Completely fine... because she loves me...* Zakuro: Yes. I love you more than anyone else... I love you, and that's why... I won't die. *She won't die... because she loves me...* Zakuro: A girl can do anything for the man she loves... Takuji: Can do... anything... Zakuro: Yes! *That's amazing... You're amazing, Takashima-san. Coming back to life through the power of love after your brain splattered all over the pavement, and your arms and legs broke into twenty pieces... You're a wonderful woman.* Zakuro: Now take me... Make me yours... Zakuro: I want you to love me... I want to be your slave forever, from morning until dusk... Takuji: I w-want that too... *She bent over in that sensual pose, and looked at me with such voluptuous eyes that I couldn't imagine her being any other girl in my class.* Zakuro: It's embarrassing, but... look... *She laughed and extended her hands toward her hips―* Takuji: Gulp... *I stared in awe as she spread open her drawer and showed me...* Takuji: Gulp... *It was the first time I had ever seen a woman's genitals in person.* *And she was a virgin, just as I had so long desired...* Takuji: Y-You're amazing, Takashima-san... Zakuro: Takuji-kun... how does my most embarrassing spot look to you? Takuji: Ahhh, ahhh―Eek?! Zakuro: Heh... You can't get so excited just yet... *But that's... that's impossible. I'm already so excited that I can't tell what's going on.* Takuji: Aahhh, uh... You're beautiful, but... I can't really see in the dark... Zakuro: Then... why don't you try spreading it open with your fingers... Takuji: Eh? Really?! Zakuro: You're the only one I want to show... Zakuro: So... go ahead and spread it open... Takuji: Ahh, Takashima-san. You're such a pure maiden! *I moved my nervous, shaking hand closer to her large, white butt so that I could fulfill her wish.* *Her butt was flat like a board... and cool to the touch...* *But more importantly, I looked lower... at her hole...* Zakuro: Aaah... Aah... I can feel your gaze... Takuji: You're beautiful. You really are beautiful... It should be illegal to be so... *Inside, she was neat and tidy... The only word to describe it is beautiful...* *I thought it would be messier... but she was beautiful...* *This is almost like...* Takuji: It's almost like a work of art... Zakuro: No, that's embarrassing... Ha, haa... I'm getting turned on just listening to you... *As I watched her, she got excited, and love juice started pouring out from inside her...* Zakuro: Um... you can touch me more if you want... *I started exploring with my finger.* Zakuro: Aah... Having you touch my pussy... is like a dream. I'm so happy... *Her seductive voice was wonderful. Every time I touched her, her juices covered my hands...* Zakuro: Ahhh! Ah, try to be gentler there... Takuji: Ah, I'm sorry! *My voice cracked in surprise after she suddenly jumped.* *My finger was soaked with her juices. I pressed it hard up against her screw-shaped clitoris.* Zakuro: That's really sensitive... Please, don't press on it so hard... Takuji: A-Alright... Carefully, carefully... *I got some more of her juices on my finger and started carefully rubbing around her swelling clitoris.* *This was the first time I had ever seen a clitoris, and it really was like a freshly made screw, captivating me as its wet surface reflected the light.* Zakuro: Hm, hmmmm... It feels good... Haaa, it feels really good... *She let out a sweet moan and waved her smooth board back and forth in the air.* *Aah... My lovely Takashima-san felt pleasure because of my caressing touches... It made me as happy as being loved myself.* *So I wanted to... love her, and make her show me her hidden side that she wouldn't show anyone else.* Takuji: Um... should I rub this part like this? *Of course, it was the first time I had touched a woman's genitals, since I was a virgin and all, so I didn't know what I was doing with my fingers.* *I didn't want to get carried away by my curiosity and accidentally make her cry, so I was careful as I continued...* Zakuro: Ahh... Ah, ahhh... *Hmm... It doesn't sound like it hurts, but...* Takuji: ...That's it! *Unfortunately, I had no experience, so I couldn't move my fingers in the same way she did when she was masturbating.* *So I just had to use something softer instead of my fingers!* *Perfect! Love can do anything.* Takuji: Hey, can I lick it? Please, let me lick it. Zakuro: Haa, of course, it's fine... Do as you like, Takuji-kun... *She kindly consented to my request without a moment's hesitation.* *Ahh, she's so cute and pure...* *She's always so selfless and proper, but in front of her confessed lover, she's so erotic and dirty...* Takuji: Pch... Hspch... Zakuro: Ahhh! Ah, aaaahh, your tongue is so good... Aaah! *Even the feeling of my cheeks rubbing up against the soft flesh of her buttocks felt good.* Takuji: Pch... Aah, pssch. Zakuro: Aahhh... You're such a pervert, Takuji-kun... Takuji: Ahaha... You're too cute, Takashima-san... Zakuro: Ahh... There, right there... Put your dick in, right there... Takuji: This is my first time seeing it, but... this is the place, right... Zakuro: Ahhmm―Don't lick me there! I can't believe this... Amazing, amazing～～ *I moved my face, soaked with juice, away as she shook her hips.* Zakuro: I'm sorry I'm such a nasty girl... But... But I can't hold it back... *I glanced over toward her cute face. Tears were forming in her eyes as she called out to me plaintively.* Takuji: There's nothing to be embarrassed about. I thought it was about time too... *As she started crying, I grabbed her forcefully from behind.* *I won't let you go... I want to be in you forever...* Zakuro: Ah... Now I can be your first... I'm really happy... *Her figure was perfect... She was cold and flat... And perfectly smooth...* *―Pshhck...* Zakuro: Hmmgh, ha, haaaa～～～ *I've heard the moment of defloration is pretty painful.* *But Takashima-san's face distorted for just a moment, and she let out a cry of pain right before the entirety of my dick slid smoothly in.* Takuji: Are you alright? Should we stop here? *I calmed down a little after looking down at the red liquid that proved her virginity, and then I hesitantly asked.* Zakuro: Yeah, I'm fine... I'm feeling more happiness than pain right now, so... I'm fine. *She whispered that and then giggled.* *As I heard her words and felt the warmth from the place where we were connected, I relaxed and smiled.* Zakuro: Please, move... It's time for us to feel good together... Takuji: Yeah. Here goes... Ahh... *Just like she said, I moved my hips back. I let out a moan as I felt her tight pussy smoothly sliding around my dick.* Takuji: Your vagina is incredibly hot... and it's so wet that I can slide in just like this... Zakuro: Haaa, oohh... Yes, Takuji-kun, I can... feel you moving... *And the tightness I felt on my penis differed based on the depth, so every time I moved my hips I felt a new kind of pleasure shoot up my spine.* *It was beyond amazing―It was a wonderfully wonderful ecstasy.* Zakuro: Haaa, hmmm... Ahhhh... Takuji: Does it hurt? Should I do it a little slower? Zakuro: No, I'm fine... Do as you like... Haa... *A smile appeared on her flushed face. She would do whatever I wanted her to.* Zakuro: Haa, aahh... I can feel it... It's so big, and hot... *Her insides felt... very warm, and they constricted in rhythmical waves.* *Does a real vagina actually feel this good...?* Zakuro: Haaa, ahh... Haaa, oohh... Aaaah～～ Takuji: Takashima-san... Let me touch your boobs... You don't mind, right? *I couldn't stand it, so I started unbuttoning her blouse and then undid the hook of her bra.* Zakuro: Ah, haaa... It's fine... Love me more... *I undressed her almost violently, without even waiting for her permission, but she still didn't resist at all.* Zakuro: Haaa... It's warm... Your hands are warm... *I constantly moved my hips back and forth as I cupped her large breasts with my hands.* Takuji: Ahaha... Your boobs are huge, but I can still feel your heart racing... Zakuro: You big bully... Of course my heart is racing... You're touching me, after all... Zakuro: Haaa... Ahhh... The thread on my screw is standing on end... Takuji: It's true! You're getting way tighter... Zakuro: Haaa... My breasts... are really sensitive... Please, be gentle... Zakuro: Haaa, ahh. It's so good... It's so good～～ Takuji: Whoa, Takashima-san... Your tight pussy is great, but your huge tits are the best... *I could tell they were huge even when she had her clothes on... I lifted them and rubbed them with both hands.* Zakuro: Haaa, ahh... From above and below... Aaah, nooo! *I could feel the weight in my hands... And they were so soft that they seemed about to escape through the space in between my fingers...* Zakuro: Oohhmmm... Aah, aah, aaah! *The sound of a man and a woman's hips colliding echoed throughout the deserted classroom time and time again.* Takuji: It's so tight... Ahh! I can't hold it... It's so good! Zakuro: Aaah, Taakuji-kuun―I love you, I love you! Takuji: Ahh, I love you too, Takashima-san! Zakuro: Aahh, aah, oooh, ooh... Takuji: Aah, I'm going to come... Do you care? *I could feel the pressure building. Soon, I wouldn't be able to hold it.* Zakuro: Yes... it's fine... Come inside me... I want you to come inside me. Please... Zakuro: Aaah, I'm going to come too～～ Takuji: Let's come together. Aaaah! Zakuro: Haaa, aah, aah, aaaah― Takuji: Mmgh... Mmm, aah, aaaah... *I exploded within her writhing body.* *Within her... Inside the desk drawer.* *Semen gushed out of the tip of my hot penis and pounded relentlessly against her deepest walls.* Zakuro: Nooo... All the books inside me are gonna be covered in semen... Aaah, aah... Takuji: Takashima-san, your desk―! *As she sat there in ecstasy... I kept pumping her insides with semen.* Zakuro: Haaa... Aah... Takkuun～～ *The eruption gradually subsided, but I didn't let up. I kept moving my hips back and forth.* Zakuro: Aahh... It was my first time, but... I came... Takuji: Haa, ha... Zakuro: Takuji-kun, you were amazing... Ehehe... *As I tried to figure out whether I should be embarrassed or happy, I gently stroked Desk Takashima-san's top board.* Zakuro: Hehehe... You came a lot... I'm all sticky inside... Takuji: I guess so... Haa, haa, haa... *I didn't pull out my penis. I embraced her in that same position.* *The cool sensation of the board felt good...* Takuji: Haa, ha, ha...

Takuji: ... Takuji: Mm. Takuji: ... Takuji: Ah! Takuji: ... Takuji: This is... Takuji: Why did I... Takuji: Why did I sleep in a place like this? Takuji: ... Takuji: Ah! Takuji: That's right. I saw that thing at the school gate. Takuji: Then I ran into town... Takuji: But he found me. Takuji: Then I ran here... Takuji: Oh, Riruru-chan! Takuji: ... Takuji: Riruru-chan! Takuji: ... Takuji: ... *Riruru-chan was still just a picture...* *Was all that stuff yesterday... a dream?* Takuji: ... Takuji: A dream... Takuji: Ow... *I'd been sleeping on the concrete.&* *My whole body hurt...* Takuji: Ow... *Especially the harder parts of my body... The places where my bones stick out really hurt...* Takuji: ...Huh? *The most painful part of my body wasn't bony at all... It was around the base of my thigh...* Takuji: What's this... *There was a bulge in my pocket... Something was in there...* Takuji: Huh? *A broken cell phone...&* *It was pretty small, so I'd forgotten all about it.* *Which means... I accidentally took her cell phone...* Takuji: Takashima... Zakuro's cell phone... Takuji: A dream... Takuji: That was all... a dream... not reality... Takuji: Hehehe... *How many times had I thought that...* *I'd thought... 'This is a dream, not reality'...* Takuji: Hehehehehe... Hahahahahahaha... *I turned her cell phone on.* Takuji: Hehehehe... A dream? Reality? *Ridiculous. What meaning do those words hold after I had seen that overwhelming world?* Takuji: Takashima Zakuro is dead. *After falling from that height, the outer case was almost entirely cracked.* *I slowly opened it.* *The hinge made a small cracking sound as I opened it, but there wasn't anything stopping me from using it.* Takuji: Dream and reality, huh... Takuji: At the very least, now that this has come out of my pocket... Takashima-san's suicide was reality... Takuji: But only if this is reality... right now... Takuji: ... *I started using her phone.* *The outside was broken, but the inside was fine.* *It was probably in her pocket when she jumped. It must have fallen out when she hit the ground... That's why it's not completely broken.* Takuji: There's no password on this phone. *I don't know...* *Anything about her.* *No, I probably hadn't wanted to know.* *What was happening to her.* *Her feelings.* *Her despair.* *Her...* *Pain was...* *Continuing within me.* *It was connected to me...* *So I hadn't looked.* *I acted like I didn't see...* *Because I knew,* *I hadn't looked at her.* *I never...* *Tried to understand her.* *My relationship with her.* *We'd met in my secret base.* *Takashima Zakuro.* *The time after our first meeting.* *But...* *What I'd wanted was something normal.* *Not a bumpy relationship.* *What I wanted was...* *I didn't want to know her... I just wanted to have the relationship.* *Without any of the bumps...* *Just a flat, even relationship.* *That's right.* *That's what I wanted.* *That would be a world with no depth.* *No bumps, no limits, just... the shallowest of worlds, melding together.* *...That's what it means for one human to get close to another.* *Holding hands...* *Kissing...* *Having sex...* *That's what I desired.* *I desired something completely natural.* *Starting as friends.* *Then becoming lovers.* *Then having a physical relationship...* *I wanted something completely natural, with no bumps...* *Until yesterday, I...* *I had never wanted to know her.* *I had never wanted to know what would happen to her.* *What would happen...* *Beyond the pain she held...* *Beyond the pain that fills the world...* *Takashima-san's limit.* *And my limit.* *And...* *The world's limit.* *But now I'm different.* *I understand what lies beyond her pain.* *I understand everything beyond it.* *Because...* *Now I am... the savior.* *Because that is my fate.* Takuji: Right, Riruru-chan? *I spoke to the scribble of her on the wall.* *There was no response.* Takuji: ...And Mother. *What she desired.* *Now her desires are waiting to be fulfilled.* *The date she always spoke of, July 20th, 2012, is right before my eyes.* *I took a deep breath, then looked at Takashima-san's e-mail.* *What's written of her in here?* *The email here is... a fragment of her.* *I started with her fragments.* *I started picking up the pieces of her... just as if they were pieces of flesh strewn across the sidewalk―* *―To know her―* *And then I'll walk... to the place of her pain. That is how this journey must begin.* *What Takashima-san saw...* *And... what my mother saw...* *The first thing that appeared was an email from immediately before her suicide.* *It said...* Takuji: Usami... I don't know her. *She had been sending messages to this person... until right before her suicide.* *She'd frequently sent messages to her, the most recent being just one hour before her death.* *Starting from the morning of that day...* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/12 08:01* *from: Usami* *subject: Good Morning* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *It's today.* *Spiral Matai!* *Let's do our best. The world's fate is resting* *upon our shoulders!* ** *I'll be waiting at the western ticket gate in Suginomiya station at 6:30.* Takuji: Spiral... Matai... Takuji: She talks about it like it's nothing, but that must mean jumping off the building. *The message almost makes it sound like they're going out to the movies or something.* Takuji: But still, Spiral Matai is... *One of the things scratched into her desk...* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/12 00:01* *from: Usami* *subject: re: Thank you for everything today.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *That's cold. I'm your ally from the previous world!* ** *That aside, according to Ayumi's prediction, tomorrow's ritual must happen at 6:42, on the 14th floor of apartment building 35 in Suginomiya.* *So we should meet at the western ticket gate in Suginomiya station at 6:30.* *Please don't be late.* *The fate of the world is at stake.* Takuji: Cold? Were they discussing something? *Takashima-san was bullied, so... maybe they met when she tried to talk to someone about it.* *But more importantly...* Takuji: An apartment building in Suginomiya... I don't know building 35 very well, but that's right around the station. Takuji: I suppose the last place I saw Takashima-san was that place... Takuji: Which means they really were talking about jumping off that building when they said Spiral Matai... Takuji: And Ayumi must be the other girl who committed suicide with them... *There had been three corpses there.* *The simplest explanation was that the girls who were messaging her, Usami and Ayumi, were the girls who had committed suicide with her.* Takuji: Hmm... *I went further back in the messages... The day before they committed suicide, they'd agreed to meet up near Suginomiya station.* *I went further back and found the first message she'd received from Usami.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/03 22:01* *from: Usami* *Subject: I've finally made contact with you.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *I'm not sure if I should say... Nice to meet you?* ** *"The battle at the stone tower."* ** *Please respond when you remember the significance of these words.* ** *Also, you will probably experience a large change.* *It will probably be a good thing.* *The first email from Usami.* *It had come at 10:00 at night, on the third day of this month.* *Which means they only met recently.* *Takashima-san's response to this message was curt.* *Or rather, she didn't reply at all for quite a while.* *Looking at this message, it's just someone called Usami trying to make contact with her out of the blue.* *Takashima-san had suddenly gotten a message from a crazy person who she didn't know.* *Something like that...* Takuji: Anyone would be reluctant to answer a message like this. Takuji: And yet... *For some reason, Takashima-san seemed to have some interest when she wrote her reply.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/08 23:10* *to: Usami* *subject: re: I've finally made contact with you.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *Nice to meet you. I'm the Cheshire Cat.* *I read your message, but I have never heard those words.* ** *I'm sorry.* ** *Though I am a bit curious... What is this large change that's going to happen to me?* *It looks like Cheshire Cat is Takashima-san's username... This name shows up a lot.* *I guess she was blogging or using a social networking site...* *Well, that's not important...* *But I wonder why Takashima-san didn't keep ignoring Usami's creepy message...* *Maybe that sentence, 'you will probably experience a large change,' caught her attention?* Takuji: Girls really do have a weak spot for fortune telling, huh... *This was Usami's response to Takashima-san's message.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/09 23:01* *from: Usami* *subject: Thank you for your response.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *Thank you for your response.* *Now that I've received your message, I can confirm it. You are certainly our ally.* ** *"The battle at the stone tower"* ** *You say you don't remember these words, but that's not a problem.* ** *And the large change we predicted would happen to you is a change to your cognizance.* ** *The 'good thing' is a person's death.* ** *Soon, one of your problems will disappear.* *An even creepier message.* *It's even clearer than in the last message that she's not normal.* *And yet, after receiving this message, Takashima-san started exchanging messages with her frequently.* *She didn't hold back.* *She started to get along with this creepy girl.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/10 12:52* *from: Usami* *subject: PS* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *You've probably suffered for a long time.* ** *But the only reason you're suffering is because your existence is correct.* *You suffer because you're correct.* ** *But the incorrect person who is tormenting you will die.* *Soon, one of your problems will disappear.* *They took advantage of her weakness.* *If I had reacted more quickly back then... Takashima-san wouldn't have gotten involved with them.* *That made me regret my actions.* Takuji: But still... who are these people? Takuji: Is it one of those fad suicide groups? *There used to be a lot of people looking to make suicide pacts on the Internet.* *They would gather people like this and all die together.* *Why don't they just die alone?* *Why do they try to drag other people down with them?* *"But the incorrect person who is tormenting you will die."* *These hypocritical words made Takashima-san trust that crazy girl.* *After she got this message from that person called Usami, Takashima-san decided to meet her in person.* *It's not clear what they talked about, what Takashima-san thought about it, or why they decided to commit suicide...* *Either way, it's clear that she was driven into a corner before she did it.* Takuji: The person who drove her into a corner... *The reason for her suicide.* *Something immediately came to mind.* *I turned on the generator and sat in front of my computer.* Takuji: Now then... the message board... *The message board I administrate.* *The message board where all the school's secrets are written.* *15: Megu and Satoko's friendship thread.* *680: Satoko: 2012/07/10(F) 01:21:25 ID:satoko* *couldnt we get in trouble for that?* *it seemed like she was broken* *681: Megu: 2012/07/10(F) 01:22:16 ID:megu* *i hope shes totally broken* *then she wont be able to tell anyone lol* *682: Satoko: 2012/07/10(F) 01:25:25 ID:satoko* *we might have overdone it.* *if they find out, they wont just let us off with a suspension* *Anyone could figure out what they were talking about now.* *Takashima-san had died...* *She jumped off an apartment building...* *No, the truth is that she was murdered.* Takuji: If I report them to the police... they'll probably be arrested... *These two bullied and murdered Takashima Zakuro.* *They bullied her, tortured her, and murdered her.* *BULLIED HER TO DEATH.* *BULLIED HER TO DEATH.* *That's plenty of reason for the police to arrest them.* *I don't know what they would be charged with, though... Extortion, assault... Anything would work.* *This is all the evidence they would need.* Takuji: But... I'm not interested in any of that. *It's not like I want to be the hero and get revenge for Takashima-san...* *I indifferently looked into their relationship... Takashima Zakuro, Akasaka Megu, and Kitami Satoko.* *I looked at the past posts.* *1: Satoko: 2011/08/15(F) 01:21:25 ID:satoko* *anyway, i made this thread* *2: Megu: 2011/08/15(F) 22:24:05 ID:megu* *you sure did.* *are you sure no one else can see this board?* *3: Satoko: 2011/08/15(F) 23:21:22 ID:satoko* *apparently.* *They started this thread about a year ago.* *They'd written these thoughtless sentences because they didn't feel human pain...* *They described their fun lifestyle here in this thread.* *They eased their pain by inflicting it on others... They bleached their days white with pain and turned them into something wonderful.* *The pain of others bleaches their own pain, turning it into something new.* *They knew that instinctively.* Megu: The weather was nice today, so I went up to the roof... Megu: And then I noticed, there's actually a way to get up to the Building C rooftop. Satoko: That won't work. You can only get up there by going through the Fine Arts Club's tool room. Megu: Which means? Satoko: We can't get in there, of course. Megu: That's not what I'm getting at. It means that no one would come, right? Satoko: Well, of course not. Megu: Let's join the Fine Arts Club! Satoko: Huh? Satoko: What are you talking about? There is no Fine Arts Club anymore. That club got nixed, didn't it? Megu: That's the best part! Satoko: You mean... just to use the roof? Megu: Hehe. Satoko: Are you really going to join a club just to use the Building C rooftop? Megu: No, I'm actually super creative. I might not look like it, but I'm an artist. Satoko: You've only reached the second level in art class. Megu: The teachers just don't understand my art. Anyway, who cares about that * Let's remake the club!"* Satoko: Don't you just want to go up there with your boyfriend? Megu: Agh. Satoko: Bullseye, huh... Megu: Ahahahaha... That might be part of it. Satoko: You said you couldn't pay for a hotel, but... would you really do it up there? Megu: No, that's not what I mean. It could just b * a place for us to hang out."* Satoko: I doubt you'd just be hanging out. Megu: Who's the Fine Arts Club's advisor? Satoko: Wouldn't it be the art teacher? There's not really any advisor anymore, since the club is gone. Megu: I guess... Senagawa: I guess I have to... though I really don't want to. Megu: Come on, Mrs. Senagawa. Don't say that. Senagawa: Haa... Satoko: Mrs. Kobayashi, the art teacher, retired last year, so she can't be the advisor this year. You're the only one who can do it, Mrs. Senagawa. Senagawa: Yes, yes, I heard from Mrs. Kobayashi. Senagawa: She said she wanted me to be the advisor until next year. Satoko: Yeah, I'm sure we'll have a new art teacher next year. Senagawa: That's not the problem... Senagawa: But... Mrs. Kobayashi did ask me to do it. Satoko: Now that you mention it, Mrs. Kobayashi was your mentor, right? Senagawa: Yes... Though I have no talent for art at all. Megu: That's fine. I have no talent either. Senagawa: Haa... Even if I'm the advisor, I'm not going to do much for you. Actually, I'd rather have you guys do all the work yourself. I like to take a hands-off approach to teaching. Satoko: Of course! Megu: We'd prefer it that way! Megu: Agh! Satoko: You don't need to say that much... Dumbass. Megu: Ehehehe... Senagawa: Putting that aside, do you have the required four members? Megu: Oh, we'll find enough members soon. Senagawa: You haven't already gotten enough members? Satoko: I have an idea who I want to ask, so it should be fine. Senagawa: Haa... Well, okay * Try not to cause any trouble."* Satoko: Sure thing. We'll be fine. *A Fine Arts Club formed just to use the rooftop.* *It existed only so they would have a place for themselves, where no one else would come.* *These two found that place.* Kimika: But I'm already in the Track and Field Club and the Science Club... Satoko: That's fine. We just want to use your name. You don't have to come to any club activities. Kimika: ... Megu: What, Tachibana, are you gonna say no? Kimika: Um... how many members do you need? Satoko: Huh? Four people. Why? Kimika: Which means the last person would be... Zakuro... Megu: Exactly. Kimika: Hmm... And Zakuro can't refuse, can she? Kimika: If Zakuro joins, then so will I... Satoko: Huh? Do you think you have the right to refuse? Megu: That's right... You seem to be misunderstanding something lately, Tachibana... We've mostly been bullying Takashima-san, but that's your fault. Kimika: That's right... I'm glad Zakuro is here now... Satoko: You're fucked up... Kimika: I stopped getting bullied because Zakuro's here, right? What's wrong with recognizing that fact? Megu: Yeah, whatever. Anyway, once Takashima joins, you're joining too! Kimika: Yeah... If Zakuro refuses, I'm not joining. Satoko: If you do that, you're dead. *Takashima-san really didn't want to join that hellish club.* *They only wanted to secure that space so they could bully people away from watchful eyes... How awful.* *But...* *She couldn't make any other choice. She had no free will.* *This was the point when the bullying grew most severe...* *There was no way she could refuse.* *Their hidden lair was atop Building C. Other students wouldn't come there, and even the teachers' attention wouldn't fall on that deserted island.* *Every day after school, Takashima-san was locked up there and tormented.* *Torment that they called 'a game.'* *The repeated whitewashing of their relationship.* *A ritual that they called 'playing.'* *56: Satoko: 2011/09/15(Th) 19:22:13 ID:satoko* *that was awesome. takashima's face was great.* *57: Megu: 2011/09/15(Th) 21:11:05 ID:megu* *yeah, her face was fucking great.* *i guess putting wasabi on someone's face really does hurt.* *62: Satoko: 2011/09/23(W) 22:45:23 ID:satoko* *what was up with that doll she had?* *63: Megu: 2011/09/23(W) 23:23:05 ID:megu* *yeah, she had some black doll, didn't she?* *64: Megu: 2011/09/24(Th) 00:15:11 ID:megu* *i think kimika gave that to her.* *65: Satoko: 2011/09/24(Th) 00:18:05 ID:satoko* *seriously?* *That endlessly repeating game.* *Neither killing her outright nor letting her live.* *Just like a child playing with a bug...* *But that ended.* *...Completely out of the blue.* *Neither killing her outright nor letting her live.* *As that game continued, they stopped holding back.* *At first they were careful not to kill her.* *Carefully, carefully... They didn't want to kill her...* *But... they grew accustomed to their role as tormentors over time.* *As they grew accustomed to it, they started to make mistakes.* *In one moment, it all ended.* *A child's game.* *The game was ended by the death of their toy.* *It ended when they broke their toy.* *And thus their fun game came to an end.* Megu: Hey, Takashima. Zakuro: A-Akasaka-san... Megu: Let's go up to the roof. Satoko: Shut up. We're just going to do some club activities. Megu: Oh, yeah. That's right. Let's go to our club. You too, Tachibana. Kimika: Eh? I have to go to Track Club today... Satoko: It'll be fine * Just come for today."* Kimika: Is Zakuro coming? Satoko: You always ask that. You really like Takashima, huh... Is it that fun to bully someone? Megu: Of course we're bringing Takashima. You and Takashima are the main cast today. Kimika: I see... Megu: Well then, what should our club do today? Satoko: Probably nothing to do with Fine Arts. Megu: Hehehe, it'll be fine. We'll have fun today. Let's go. Senagawa: Oh... Megu: Ah... Senagawa: Haa... Don't cause any problems. Satoko: Got it. Senagawa: Well, whatever... Kimika: Um... Senagawa: What? Kimika: U-Um... Ow! Senagawa: What is it? Kimika: ... Senagawa: Haa... Senagawa: Seriously, don't cause any problems. I'm just covering until we get a new art teacher, all right? Megu: Yes, ma'am. Satoko: Hey... Tachibana... Kimika: What? Kimika: Agh... Satoko: You just tried to say something to Senagawa, didn't you? Kimika: ... Satoko: Don't do anything suspicious like that... Next time you're dead. Kimika: ... Zakuro: U-Um, Kimika... Kimika: ... *Takashima Zakuro tried to reach out to Kimika, but Kimika coldly slapped her hand away.* Zakuro: Kimika... *Kimika laughed.* Kimika: You're so kind. Maybe you should worry about yourself before thinking of other people. Kimika: Honestly, having someone like you sympathize with me kind of pisses me off. Zakuro: Kimika... Megu: The weather's great. Satoko: It's getting nice and cool, since fall is coming. Kimika: Winter is too cold, so... we might not be able to play up here anymore. Megu: Huh? Well, maybe. I didn't really think of that. Megu: So we should have a whole lot of fun while we can. Kimika: Sure... Satoko: What kind of game do you want to play? Megu: ...Hey. Zakuro: Y-Yes? *Megu pointed toward Takashima's skirt pocket.* Megu: I've been kind of curious for a while. What's up with that doll? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Oh... that. *A strangely shaped, black, stuffed doll was hanging out of Takashima's pocket. It looked like it was hanging from a cell phone strap.* *The doll was a bit too big to fit in her pocket.* Megu: That stuff used to be popular years ago, didn't it? Satoko: What is it? I thought that was a panda. Megu: It's black because Tachibana painted it and cast a spell on it. What a bad girl. Kimika: Yeah, I painted it... Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: I did that. I was the one who did it... Right, Zakuro? Zakuro: Eh? U-Uh... That's... Satoko: But now that you mention it, Tachibana had one just like it. Kimika: ...Yeah. Satoko: I do remember that. You had one just like it. Megu: That was... back when everyone in the class used to ignore Tachibana. Satoko: Oh, that's right. I remember that. Megu: Back then, they used to have the exact same thing on their phones... Do you know what that means, Satoko? Satoko: What? Megu: Tachibana wanted to cheer up the stupid girl, so she bought her a matching panda doll. Kimika: We gave them to each other. Though I threw mine away right after that... Right, Zakuro? Zakuro: Eh? U-Uh.. * Why... would you say that..."* Megu: Tachibana threw hers away once she stopped getting bullied, but Takashima held onto hers forever and ever. Megu: What an idiot. Kimika: That's not true. She's not an idiot. She's just stupid and kind... Megu: That's the exact same thing. Your backtalk is starting to get on my nerves * Tachibana!"* Megu: Tachibana... you're clearly not understanding us... Kimika: That's right. I was always bullied until you started bullying Zakuro in my place, so... I don't understand you at all. Satoko: You're a pain in the ass, just like always... And why did you try to be friends with someone like Takashima anyway? Satoko: That doll is like a symbol of your betrayal, isn't it? Satoko: Why are you still carrying around that weird doll Tachibana painted for you? Zakuro: Ah, b-but... it looks cute this way. Kimika: It's cute because it's pure black like that... You're always super kind like that. Megu: Look, this is what I think. Megu: I don't really dislike Takashima all that much. She's a bit empty-headed, but she's nice enough. Megu: But why would you keep believing someone who stabbed you in the back? Isn't that just psychological dependence? Satoko: You sounded pretty smart there. Megu: Of course I did! Zakuro: That's not it. I just like this doll... Look, it's all black, and it's so cute. Megu: Haa... She's so pure. Kimika: She's pure, and kind. Yeah... Zakuro is kind. Megu: And then once Takashima is the one getting bullied, Tachibana is the first in line to bully her. Kimika: Maybe so... That's all I'm good for, right, Zakuro? Zakuro: Th-That's... That's not true, Kimika... Kimika, you've... Kimika: Am I different? That's just your imagination. I'm not your ally. I'm the worst person on the planet. I'm a traitor. Zakuro: B-But, Kimika! Megu: Let's play a game. Zakuro: Eh? Satoko: Huh? Kimika: A game? Megu: Yeah, the rules are simple. Zakuro: Eh * Ah, s-stop!"* *Akasaka Megu forcefully yanked the protruding doll out of Takashima's pocket.* *It was old and worn, so it broke off from the phone easily.* Zakuro: G-Give it back! Megu: Hey Satoko, catch! Satoko: Whoa, I don't want this nasty doll * Here!"* Kimika: Ah... Zakuro: Kimika, give it back! Kimika: Catch... Megu: Hurry up, hurry up. Never know what could happen to this doll if you don't hurry up. Here! Satoko: Here it goes! Kimika: Here it goes. Zakuro: N-No, give it back! Megu: Hahahaha. Why? Why is this doll so important? Satoko: You know, Tachibana threw hers away! Zakuro: But Kimika bought this for me! Kimika: Huh?! Kimika: Why would you say that?! Zakuro: K-Kimika... Megu: Ah... Satoko: Ah... Kimika: Ah! *When Tachibana chucked the doll, it flew over the fence.* *Even Tachibana Kimika herself was too surprised to move...* Zakuro: Ah! Megu: Wha―?! Satoko: D-Dumbass! *The two of them grew pale as well.* *Takashima tried to go after it. She climbed the fence and then...* *A sound cut through the air.* *Immediately after...* *The sound of impact.* Megu: T-Takashima! Satoko: D-Dumbass... Kimika: ...Zakuro. *Takashima-san fell from a four story building, but luckily she only hit the eaves of the third story before landing on the roof of the neighboring gymnasium.* *It wasn't a very long fall, so she didn't suffer any major injuries.* *Though maybe it's not accurate to say she was lucky...* *This is what I can gather from what they posted in their thread...* *It seems reliable, since it was written by people who were there, the bullies themselves.* *The details were probably exaggerated, but most of it was probably accurate.* Takuji: I see. So that's what happened... Takuji: I heard that there was an accident, but... *It seems like...* *The school tried to cover up the incident.* *It was the school that said it was just an accident.* *They were actually talking about it in the other threads on the message board.* *Several students who were playing on the Building C rooftop fell and hurt themselves.* *The fence is especially low, so they closed the rooftop after that.* *There were actually places where the Building C rooftop had no fence at all (though that changed after the incident).* *But was that the reason?* *Akasaka and Kitami claimed it was just an accident that happened while they were playing up there.* *Takashima Zakuro herself didn't deny it.* *At that time, lots of teachers decided that it must have been an accident.* *Especially after the Fine Arts Club advisor's testimony...* Takuji: Even though Senagawa had almost nothing to do with the club and wasn't there when it happened... *Since they couldn't use the rooftop after that, the Fine Arts Club was disbanded.* *The bullying directed toward Takashima-san was reduced.* *Naturally, no one wanted to be seen bullying her in public after that happened.* *But still, Senagawa's attitude...* *She probably knew about the bullying when they tried to make the Fine Arts Club.* *Apparently she told them repeatedly, "Don't cause any problems," and "I'm a hands-off teacher."* *The cause of Takashima-san's death wasn't just Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and Tachibana Kimika. Senagawa was responsible as well.* *An accident during club activities...* *The four people who caused it weren't blamed at all.* *Takashima-san got out of the hospital after a few days, and that was the end of it...* *But apparently Takashima-san had kept looking for her lost doll.* *A panda doll, painted black.* *She'd kept searching for it.* Takuji: Hmm... Takuji: So she was looking for a black doll. *I looked away from my computer and checked her cell phone.* *It would've been attached to the phone in place of a strap, so it couldn't've been all that big...* *Now the phone only has a few thin straps attached to it...* Takuji: ...Wh-What's this? *I'd thought the black strings were just a frayed cell phone strap, but...* Takuji: This has to be... *I didn't notice it before, but the phone kind of smelled.* *It smelled like a butchery... Or rather, a slaughterhouse.* Takuji: Th-This is... *I pulled on the strap... and...* *And...* *It changed into something completely unlike a cell phone strap.* *I pulled it out and...* *It was a lock of hair...* *No.* *It wasn't... just a lock of hair.* *AA lock of hair... growing out of a fragment of her skull* *slowly...* *came out...* Takuji: Th-Th-This, is the reason it smells. *A piece of a human's dead body.* *It should be* *scary enough to make a person jump in fear when they... see it.* *And, and, and* *and yet...* Takuji: Th-This is what h-happened to her... *I'm c-c-completely calm.* *Completely ca calm.* *Completely calm.* Takuji: P-Poor thing... Did it h-hurt? *L-Look how calm I am...* *My voice isn't shaking at all...* *I'm not getting emotional at all...* *Just analytical* *words...* *Just like an onlooker...* Takuji: Don't worry... I'm here for you... *I I calmly spoke* *to that piece of Takashima-san.* *Normal people* *would be so scared and emotional* *that they couldn't* *even t-t-talk...* *And yet...* *Completely calm, very calm, totally calm, absolutely calm, diving calm, ridiculously calm, rather calm, kind of calm, frightened calm, clearly calm, kind of calm, rather calm, happy and calm, just calm, very calm, precisely calm, peachy calm, quite calm, suicide calm, lonely calm, Buddha calm, analog calm, Nianfo calm, Antarctic calm,* * raw calm, calm, samurai calm, super calm, calm as ever, calm all day, always calm, running calm, sitting calm, as calm as can be, everything's calm, calm all my life, getting calmer, already calm, calmer than I thought,* * calmer than I thought possible, even calmer, calm at heart, utterly calm, Superman calm, calm at last, suddenly calm, almost as if I'm calm, almost as if I'm calm, almost as if I'm calm, am I not calm?* *After all.* *I am a piece of God.* *Because my existence is beyond human.* *Because I've surpassed humanity...* *Yes, thanks to the archangel Riruru, I've begun to climb the stairway that leads beyond humanity.* *I am the person who ascends the stairs to God.* *I am the person within the omen.* *I am the person who ascends to divinity.* *I am the person walking toward that omen.* *I am the person walking toward July 20th.* *I am the person who will return it to the sky.* *Yes, my mother said that.* *Yes, Riruru said that.* *I will return* *the people and the world* *to the place where Takashima-san* *and the place where my mother* *have already returned.* *To the End Sky.* *Yes, that is...* *The End Sky.* *That will come to fruition, and bring it all to an end.* *That is not death.* *Neither is it life.* *It is neither heaven nor hell.* *It will just* *come to fruition, and then bring it all to an end.* Takuji: That's how it is... Takuji: That's how it is... Takuji: I am not human... My existence has surpassed humanity. Takuji: Just like my mother did... Takuji: I too have surpassed humanity... Takuji: Humans call me the savior. Takuji: They call me the person who will save the world. Takuji: That's why... *I wasn't swayed when I saw a fragment of Takashima-san's skull.* *Rather, I felt pity.* Takuji: Takashima-san... it must have been painful. *The day before, Takashima-san's ghost had come to visit me.* *She kept saying 'it hurts, it hurts' over and over.* *It must have been painful...* *It must have been extremely painful.* *That's why she came to me...* *And yet...* *I was still immature, so I ran from her.* *I ran from her, even when she came to me looking for relief from her pain.* Takuji: I'm sorry... Please come visit me again soon. Takuji: Next time, I'll embrace you, like I should have from the start. *No matter how she looks, I'll embrace her.* *Because she is my lover.* *We shared our secrets.* *And we were fated to be married.* *Even our entry into the same school was decided so that we could be together in the future. It was all decided ahead of time.* *She loved me.* *I don't really remember it, but... I'm sure she always loved me.* *Now I can understand that...* *So it's fine.* *I can meet her any time.* *Just look...* *If I just play the video on my computer...* *She will appear before me.* *Her two-dimensional form.* *She is so cute.* Riruru: I can't see it... I can't see any great disaster! Riruru: Open your eyes! Riruru: Nooo, no! Riruru: Riruru! Riruru: Eek! Riruru: Riruru-chan, listen to me! Riruru: Fear is a shapeless monster! It clouds the mind and beckons the worst possible outcome! Riruru: If we falter here... the world will be destroyed! Riruru: Could you let that happen? Riruru: Riruru-chan! Riruru: I could! Riruru: What? Riruru: I don't care if the world is destroyed! Riruru: I don't want to die! Why don't you just die and leave us alone?! Riruru: Ah... Riruru: What's wrong with you two?! Riruru: To the sky! Riruru: Nooooooo! Riruru: Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!! *Look...* *I can see her any time I want...* *On my computer...* *I can see her any time I want.* Takuji: It's a rather convenient age we live in... Takuji: Since we can use computers to talk to the dead. *Well, it's not like just anyone could do that...* Takuji: Well, whatever... More importantly... *After I removed the piece of flesh from the cell phone, I started investigating the information on it.* Takuji: Um... *I wasn't used to this phone, but as the savior, I could easily make use of any device.* *While looking through the past threads on the message board, I opened up Takashima-san's sent messages.* Takuji: I wonder what she was talking about, and who she was talking to... *I looked at her sent items.* Takuji: ...What's this? *Suspicious... It was definitely suspicious.* *Because that message was...* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/12 22:44* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *through death i have been reborn as a warrior* *or so they said but* *it hurts* *i have no body but it still hurts* *it hurts because i've been broken* *therefore* *everyone must die* *you will die in 8 days* *all of you will die* Takuji: Hmm... Takuji: What is this... *I stayed calm and soon realized what was suspicious.* Takuji: What? This was sent at... *This is strange...* *Takashima-san committed suicide on the evening of July 12th... This message was sent at 10:44 p.m.* *This message... was definitely sent after her death.* Takuji: What does that mean? *I stayed calm and quickly figured it out.* *That means Takashima-san has been sending these messages after her death.* Takuji: I see... So that's why Takashima-san came to me last night. *An analytical mind.* *A normal human would never notice this.* Takuji: So she came to me in order to send this message. Takuji: Because I accidentally stole her phone... Sorry about that. Takuji: Huh? *I was a little shocked when I saw who she was sending it to.* Takuji: Why are there so many recipients? *The recipients were still in the history.* *It was simultaneously sent to 158 people.* *What is this?* *This number is...* Takuji: Hahaha... You're awfully mischievous, Takashima-san. *The number of people she sent the message to was the exact same as the number of people registered on the underground message board.* *Which means Takashima-san looked at the register on my computer and used that to send a message to all these people.* Takuji: Hahahaha, oh wow... You know this is a violation of their privacy? *Though she is a ghost. I guess she doesn't care about anyone's privacy.* Takuji: But I'm no longer a normal human, so you can't do stuff like that anymore. *I'm the savior.* *Even if she is a ghost, I can't let her do something like that to me.* Takuji: Next time we meet, I'll have to scold her. She can come talk to me if there's something she wants to do... Takuji: Anyway, maybe I should send this message again. *I sent the same message to all the same addresses simultaneously.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/14 15:33* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *through death i have been reborn as a warrior* *or so they said but* *it hurts* *i have no body but it still hurts* *it hurts because i've been broken* *therefore* *everyone must die* *you will die in 6 days* *all of you will die* *I changed it to say six days instead of eight.* *It's important for the savior to pay attention to detail.* Takuji: Um, and then... Akasaka, Kitami, and Tachibana... *Tachibana, huh...* *In a way, Tachibana is the guiltiest of them all, but... you could also say she's a victim.* *Only those who have been bullied themselves can understand, but it can get bad enough to make someone sell out their own friends in order to escape.* Takuji: I wonder if I should drive her into a corner too... I guess I can ask Takashima-san. More importantly... *The one who definitely can't be forgiven...* Takuji: Senagawa... As a teacher, she had the responsibility to help Takashima-san. *I have to give these three a different punishment from the rest.* *A punishment called fear.* *That's what I will give them.* *Luckily, I have all of their email addresses.* *They're all registered on the underground message board.* Takuji: Now then... what message shall I send to them... Takuji: I probably shouldn't overthink it. Something simple will be scarier. Takuji: That's right... *I gave it a few minutes thought.* *Probably just a few minutes.* *I don't know how long I spent thinking of it, but anyway, this is what I sent to those three...* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/14 18:01* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *it hurts it hurts* *it hurts* *it hurts* *it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts* *it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts* *it hurts it hurts* *it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts* *it hurts it hurts it hurts* *it hurts* *That's what I sent them.* *But just sending it would be boring.* *I set up my computer to automatically send them the same message every hour.* *My computer would use Takashima-san's email address to send them that scary message once an hour.* Takuji: Hehehehe... It would be pretty scary seeing this in your inbox every hour... Hehehe... *This is the first game.* *The game those dumb bitches played with Takashima-san.* *It's the same game, but better.* Takuji: Hope you guys have fun. Takuji: Now it's your turn to be played with. *After that, I looked at the message board.* *I guess her death and the ensuing messages from her had quite the impact, since the message board was full of posts about it.* *Now that I think of it...* Takuji: Shiroyama died, too... And he even fell from the roof... *I hadn't noticed at all.* *The date was... July 10th.* Takuji: Oh, that's right. He was doing drugs on the roof... *They were talking about whether they were gonna do LSD or some hallucinogen like that.* Takuji: Did he jump while he was high on that stuff? *Well, I guess it doesn't really matter all that much now.* Takuji: But... *It's probably just a coincidence, but Shiroyama and Takashima-san both died.* *To the ignorant masses, it must have looked like the deaths were related.* *Coupled with the messages from Takashima, it seemed even more ominous to the people on the message board.* Takuji: Hahahaha... *As I read more... I realized something.* Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Actually, I forgot... Takashima-san was registered on this message board too. *After registering, she never posted until just before her death.* *I guess that's hardly surprising considering her personality.* *And yet...* *74: Bick Hazard is coming.* *1: Takashima Zakuro: 2012/07/11(Sat) 22:02:13 ID:zakuro* *The sealed nevus uses a Specialized Physics Bug (i.e. an Outer Magic Dark Summons Bug) to plant negative thoughts in the human race.* *That is the true nature of the battle between the dictators and tyrants of the world (Hitler, Genghis Khan, Marie Antoinette, etc.) and us (the peasants, the revolutionaries, the proletariat).* *Shiroyama Tsubasa was infected by the Specialized Physics Bug.* *The nevus used him to degrade me (the phenomenon of inducing a low energy state with a negative energy blast).* *And the reason is because the nevus will soon awaken. Bick Hazard is coming.* *A great disaster will occur!* *She'd suddenly started a thread on July 11th...* *The date was... the day before she committed suicide.* *After that, she'd posted several more times...* *That thread was full of trolls up until the day of her suicide.* *Was it all a coincidence?* *Shiroyama's death.* *Takashima-san's thread.* *Takashima-san's suicide.* *And then the messages from Takashima-san.* *They're all pointing in the same direction.* *That direction is toward...&* : ul *July 20th.* *My mother believed.* *Takashima-san believed.* *The world's last day.* Takuji: Though, there was... *There was a reason my mother started to believe that prediction.* *At the time, my mother had joined a new wave religion.* *The religion's founder said that the world would be destroyed on July 20th, 2012.* *Apparently there are lots of people in Mexico, India, and other places in the world that believe that.* *Mexico's prophecy in the Piedra del Sol.* *The prophecy of India's high priest.* *The year we will supposedly crash into the photon belt.* *By the way, the photon belt is just what it sounds like. It's a field of energy made up of photons that's thought to be in our galaxy.* *Our solar system rotates around Alcyone, the largest star in the Pleiades star cluster, once every 26,000 years.* *Supposedly, every 11,000 years, there is a 2,000 year period where the Earth passes through the photon belt.* *Because of the strong magnetic fields in the photon belt, many great disasters happen on Earth, and the genes of many organisms undergo a large change.* *During these 2,000 years, the entire world changes.* *The changes would mean the extinction of the human race and the appearance of a new form of humanity.* *The beginning of that 2,000 year period is supposed to be July 20th, 2012.* *That's not the only prophecy for 2012.* *There's a more important prediction... or rather, a calculation.* *That is...* *The Web Bot Project.* *My mother believed in it. When I was a child, she told me over and over that the collective human unconscious could show us the world's ultimate fate.* *She often described it as the sky being full of anxious words.* Takuji: My mother believed in the Web Bot Project, and she believed in that prediction... *The Web Bot Project is a program that reads the unconscious thoughts of the people on the Internet.* *Why would people's unconscious thoughts be important?* *There's a famous concept underlying this program.* *Carl Gustav Jung pioneered analytical psychology.* *He saw a strange commonality between the mental images all his patients held.* *It also matched up with the legends and myths from all different parts of the world.* *The conclusion he came to was...* *There exists a collective unconscious that unites all of humanity.* *Humanity shares the same unconscious.* *His theory led to several other supernatural theories.* *For instance, synchronicity.* *The coincidence of multiple related events occurring simultaneously in the world.* *Normally, someone would assume that the events occurring simultaneously are just a coincidence.* *But are they?* *To give an example.* *For instance,* *How do we know that causality is a result of the external forces that we can see and not something beyond explanation hidden within the objects?* *If humanity has a collective unconscious, it must be shared in some form. What if all of humanity is actually acting as one organism?* *Humanity is a group of individuals and one whole. One whole and yet a group of individuals.* *Both part and whole. Whole and part.* *Just like the individual living cells of a human being create a larger organism.* *Just like a single pawn obeys the rules of the entire game of chess, and the entire game of chess obeys the rules of a single pawn.* *An individual is the entirety, and the entirety is an individual.* *On an unconscious level, humanity is a single organism.* *Therefore, if one could understand the collective unconscious of the people on the Internet, they would be able to understand the will of humanity as a whole.* *No, they would know the will of God himself.* *Some people believed that.* *That is the Web Bot Project.* *The Web Bot Project predicted that the world would be destroyed on July 20th, 2012.* *The 'Bick Hazard' that Takashima-san spoke of.* *The Web Bot Project also made one other important prediction.* *In 2012, the savior will appear.* *It actually wasn't just the Web Bot Project that made this prediction. One of the Indian farseers predicted the same thing.* *But they say he will appear from the sky...* *Who is the savior?* *There are still arguments about it.* *My mother knew it long before my birth, since she was a prophet.* *She knew that her son would save the world.* *That's why she always punished me so severely.* *Not as a mother.* *But as the person who had given birth to the savior.* *Those memories are full of nothing but pain.* *That's why I used to hate my mother.* *But now I understand.* *Now I can say it with confidence.* *My mother truly loved me.* *She probably wanted to love me as a human mother.* *She probably wanted to embrace me.* *And yet...* *Actually...* *The day the world will return to the sky.* *She was kind when she was telling me about that day.* *Any other time, she put me through hell.* *My earliest memories, from the moment I was born, are of pain.* *The bullying I received at school was actually one of the trials my mother set before me.* *She programmed my life so that others would torment me even after her death.* *The reason she could do that was because she was a prophet.* *She knew everything.* *That's the only explanation.* *My analytical mind has revealed her plans.* *I have to solve this grand, inscrutable puzzle in order to save the world.* *I put the pieces together one by one.* *The will of the world.* *I understood my mother's will.* *I am the savior.* *I've attained unfathomable knowledge and wisdom.* *My mother could see the past and the future of this world.* *She created this program that stretches from the past into the future.* *Now I can see the whole picture.* *That's not all...* *I can feel the pain she must have gone through, being forced to live as a prophet rather than a mother.* *It must have been difficult.* *It must have been sad.* *She must have wanted to live a normal life with me.* *But she chose.* *She chose to be a prophet.* *She chose to save the world.* *Rather than be a mother...* *Maybe it was my mother's will that killed my lover as well.* *Maybe Takashima-san was killed by my mother's program.* *She was powerful enough to make it happen.* *Now I understand.* *Now that I've gained my powers as the savior.* *I understand that my mother was almost omnipotent.* *I was born to save the world.* *I was born from that almighty existence.* *What does that mean?* *That's right... She was obsessed with the Web Bot Project.* *She knew the importance of the collective unconscious.* *Jung called the harmonization of conscious thoughts and actions 'individuation.'* *That's not a metaphor. It means that humanity's unconscious is a single organism.* *Then what is that single organism?* *That is what the savior's mother was.* *Humanity needed a savior.* *Therefore, humanity gave birth to a savior.* *On this Earth...* *So just...* *What is that single unconscious that humanity has?* *What is the collective unconscious?* *That was none other than my mother.* *She was able to give birth to me because she was the embodiment of the human unconscious itself.* *She gave birth to the savior, who would save humanity.* Takuji: I guess that's why... *At first, the Web Bot Project didn't work properly.* *It wasn't just defective. It wouldn't start at all.* *Then, one day, it started working all on its own...* *And it was perfectly accurate.* *Since the time the Web Bot Project started working... I've never forgotten to check it.* *Every time a major event has happened, I've checked the predictions, and... it's always there.* *I overlooked most predictions because there were so many, but every time I checked after a major event, it was always on the list.* *Why did the Web Bot Project start working after my mother's death...* *At first, I didn't understand it.* *But now I do.* *My mother died...* *To prepare for the world's death.* *Because my mother was...* *The will of the world itself.* *I cried when I realized it.* *My mother's love...* *Humanity's wonder...* *I couldn't stop my overflowing tears.* Takuji: There are six days until the world will be destroyed... Until the world will return to the sky... Takuji: I'll save it... *I cried as I declared that.* *God made the world in six days... and then he rested of the final day.* *What can the savior do in six days?* Takuji: I'll return as many people to the sky as I can... before the world is destroyed. Takuji: That is the will of the world. Takuji: That is my mother's will. Takuji: That's just how it is... *The day that the world will return to the sky is not the day that the world will be destroyed.* *Someone must return the world to the sky before it is destroyed.* *That is the day when the world will return to the sky.* Takuji: The world's destruction will occur on July 20th... which means the world must return to the sky on the day before. Takuji: How many will I be able to return to the sky? Takuji: That is... my mission as the savior. *But is that possible?* *A single person returning the world to the sky...* *The answer is...* Takuji: It's possible. Takuji: The savior is the person who knows the truth. Takuji: The person who holds all knowledge of life on this planet, not just human history. Takuji: With Riruru-chan's guidance, I've experienced the unconscious of life itself... That was a journey of millions, even billions of years... Takuji: All knowledge and wisdom, all skill and experience. The person who has obtained all is the savior. Takuji: I have grasped the truth! Takuji: Now that I know the truth, a week is the same as millions, billions, trillions, or even quadrillions of years to me. Takuji: With the truth I've grasped, the impossible becomes possible! Takuji: That truth is...! Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: ... *...* *My clear, analytical thoughts were suddenly interrupted.* *My clarity suddenly disappeared.* Takuji: Agh... What is it... *I should have all knowledge.* *I should have all wisdom.* *I should have all experience.* *And yet...* Takuji: What's happening... *I can't remember the millions of years I experienced last night.* Takuji: Why... Takuji: Damn it... *I calmly analyzed it.* *The human brain only has a capacity of 1350 to 1500 cc.* *They say that a human brain can have up to a trillion neurons.* *That number doesn't change very much until old age...* *I can assume that, as the savior, my brain should have several hundred times as many neurons.* *But still... it's not enough to remember all of the memories and experiences from several billion years of life.* Takuji: So then I can conclude that, even though I'm the savior, I still have certain physical limitations. Takuji: Then why was I able to see it last night? Takuji: Why was I able to see the unconscious of all life? Takuji: It was just a few seconds... In those seconds, I was able to absorb all the memories and experiences of life throughout the past several billion years. Takuji: Why? *A normal person could never understand the logic and genius of my thoughts.* *My genius pursued an as of yet hidden truth.* Takuji: That means... Takuji: I need an external processor... Takuji: An external information processor... Not a mathematical processor, but rather something closer to a neural network. No, it should be a brain itself, I suppose. Takuji: Ah! That's what it was! Takuji: That's it... She was acting as a receiver... Takuji: She connected me, the savior, to all of humanity. No, to all of life. Takuji: At that time, I had power rivaling that of God. Takuji: Hehehehe... I see... *I've started to understand what it means to be the savior...* *The savior isn't God.* *I'm still closer to being human.* *No, my body's structure actually is nothing more than human.* *So I can't escape the basic limitations of humanity.* *But the savior isn't human.* *Why is that?* *Yes. Through the angels, he becomes a god.* *It is with the aid of an angel that the savior is able to become a god.* *So, when I'm with Riruru-chan, I become a living god.* *She is the connection between me and God.* Takuji: That's the answer... Takuji: That's the answer... Hehehehe... Takuji: Hehehehe. *I've solved all the riddles.* *I've found all the answers.* *What the savior must do.* *What the child of God must do.* *What the savior can do.* *What the savior can't do.* *What God can do.* *What God can't do.* *It has all been revealed.* Takuji: That which God cannot do is that which I must do... Takuji: The things I can do that God can't... The things I can do because I am human. Takuji: First, I must descend upon the world of the commoners. Takuji: I must enter the world of the commoners. Takuji: And I must be polluted by the human world. Takuji: God can't allow himself to be polluted by the human world. Therefore, he can never interact with humans. Takuji: The person who can be polluted is able to enter the world of humans. Takuji: A perfectly holy existence isn't able to delve into the human world. Takuji: The Sun can't come to Earth for the same reason. Takuji: His holiness would incinerate the polluted humans. Takuji: That's why I must do this. Takuji: I can act as the savior because I can allow myself to be polluted. Takuji: So I must go to the humans and be polluted! Takuji: I must be polluted by the filthy humans! Takuji: To the world of the commoners! Takuji: I must accomplish those great works that God may not. Female Student: So that's... isn't it? Female Student: But that's just a rumor, isn't it? All that stuff is. They're just rumors. Female Student: Yeah, they've been saying that for ages, you know? Female Student: A prediction? Something like that, right? Female Student: My dad said they used to be really popular. Something about Nostradamus' prophecies. Female Student: Like I said, they're not prophecies. Female Student: If they're not prophecies, then how do they tell the future? Female Student: I don't know the details. Female Student: But they say it's scientific. Female Student: They call it the web bot. Male Student: You mean the Web Bot Project? Female Student: Yeah, that. You know about it? Female Student: What is it? Male Student: It's software that gathers all the conversations on the Internet. It can apparently predict the future. Takuji: Oh, look... *The commoners have already started to pick up on the Web Bot Project...* *People are mysterious. Each individual one is so stupid, but sometimes they show a spark of brilliance in groups.* *Is that the effect of synchronicity?* Takuji: Hehehehe... *Then that synchronicity should lead them to the other predictions.* *It should make them realize that a prophet is among them.* *The time of the world's destruction.* *It should make them recognize the person who must return the world to the sky before its destruction.* *Female Student: "Hey..."* *Female Student: "That idiot Takuji is looking at us..."* *Female Student: "Eww... You're right."* *Female Student: "Nasty."* *They're slandering me in their hearts, even if they aren't saying it out loud.* *I can see into people's minds.* *Even if they try to look away, it's too late.* Takuji: Hehehe... These peasants can go ahead and laugh at me... Takuji: All those who don't accept my salvation will fall into the depths of hell. Takuji: Hehehehehehe... *Female Student: "Now he's laughing..."* *Female Student: "No way! That's creepy!"* *Female Student: "Let's go."* *Female Student: "Yeah."* *The foolish women disappeared.* *Hehehe, they must have been scared of me.* *That's the reason why they avoid me.* *They would try to deny it, of course.* *But that is the truth.* *My existence is far too holy for them to behold.* *My existence is too brilliant for their mortal eyes.* *Just like humans can't look directly at the sun.* *They can't look directly at me.* Tomosane: Takuji: ...You're... Tomosane: You look like you're about to , -kun. Takuji: Oh... it's you... *He's nothing more than another person programmed to test me.* *He's been sent to train my mind by inflicting pain upon me.* *I suppose I should be grateful to him.* Takuji: Yuuki Tomosane-kun... Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Takuji, you're kind of... Iida: Huh? What's wrong, Yuuki-kun? Tomosane: ...Takuji. Nishimura: Yuuki-kun? Tomosane: Hey, you dumb piece of shit, what's up with that goofy grin? Takuji: My grin? Hahaha... Am I grinning, now? Tomosane: Are you talking back to me? Takuji: I'll apologize if I offended you... Sorry. Tomosane: Apologize? What the fuck are you talking about? Didn't I teach you a better way to apologize to me, you little shit? Takuji: A better way? Tomosane: Show me you're sorry with money. Bring me 200,000 yen. That includes what you were short last time. Takuji: Money, huh... So, when do you want it by? Tomosane: What, you don't care about the deadline? Takuji: Not really. Either way... I don't really care, I guess? Tomosane: What? Do you have a way of getting the money? Takuji: Maybe I do. So why do you want 200,000 yen? Tomosane: What'd you say? Takuji: While I'm at it, why don't I give 200,000 yen to Numada and Nishimura too? Tomosane: What? Iida: Huh? Seriously? You're gonna give us money? Nishimura: Did you win the lottery? Takuji: Hehehehe, maybe I did. Iida: Really? Seriously? You don't mind? Tomosane: Shut up! Iida: Huh? Tomosane: Forget about it. Iida: Huh? But he just... Tomosane: That's not what we're talking about. Nishimura: But he won the lottery... Tomosane: Either way, you bastards need to disappear. He's my property. Iida: Huh? Tomosane: Don't make me say it again. Disappear. All of his money is mine. Nishimura: Eek! *Yuuki glared at them fiercely.* *Their faces instantly turned pure white.* Takuji: Impressive. Tomosane: Huh? Takuji: It really is impressive how you can make people submit to you out of fear. Tomosane: You little... *It seemed like he was about to jump on me at that very instant.* *I quietly said...* Takuji: Do you want to talk? Should we go somewhere else? Tomosane: What'd you say? Takuji: Let's go to the roof. Tomosane: ... *A blue vein popped out on his forehead, emphasizing the anger on his pale face.* *It looked like he was about to attack me here and now rather than wait until later.* *But other people would get in the way here... And besides...* Tomosane: ALRIGHT, Mamiya-kun! You know, Takuji, what you said today REALLY hurt my feelings! Takuji: ... Tomosane: You were so well trained, and now you've gotten REBELLIOUS. Takuji: ... Tomosane: This is the rooftop. Tomosane: And... Tomosane: Class just started. Tomosane: No one will come here. Tomosane: No-one-will-come-to-save-you. Tomosane: Even if you die, no-one-will-notice. *He talked as if he was just playing around, but I could see the blood rushing to his head.* *He must have been preparing himself for the "catharsis" he thought he was about to go through...* *What a roundabout man...* Tomosane: Takuji-kun? Is there something you want to say to me? Tomosane: You must've gotten the wrong idea after watching some dumb anime. Are you starting to understand the situation you're in right now? *Yuuki punched me in the face.* *He was just as quick as I had expected.* *Blood flew from my nostrils.* Takuji: Ugh! Tomosane: Has that pain reminded you of anything? Tomosane: In the end, that's all you are. That's all you're good for. Tomosane: You'll live your life being bullied by people who are stronger than you. Tomosane: There's nowhere for you to run. Tomosane: The only place you can run to is the grave. Tomosane: Go on, cry. Tomosane: Just like you always do. Tomosane: Cry... Takuji: ... Takuji: Hehehehehe... Tomosane: The hell?! Takuji: Hehehe, it hurts... Tomosane: ...Takuji. Takuji: It hurts... You gave me another nosebleed. Takuji: Ever since you broke my nose, I've started getting nosebleeds all the time. Tomosane: ... Takuji: Do you want to end up like Shiroyama? Takuji: I'll make your death gruesome enough to repay you for every punch. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Hmph... I wondered what you were gonna say. Tomosane: What are you on about? Did you cast some curse you read about in some occult magazine on Shiroyama? Tomosane: Hehehehe... What's with that crap? You really are stupid, huh? Tomosane: You really think I'm scared of that shit? Takuji: A curse? Takuji: It wasn't a curse. It was inevitable. Tomosane: Huh? What are you talking about? Takuji: He died, Takashima-san died, and now you're tormenting me. Takuji: It was all set up by my mother. Tomosane: H-Huh? What * What the hell are you going on about now?"* *The rage written large on his face changed into a smile.* *Is something funny?* Tomosane: Your mommy? Your mommy killed Shiroyama and Takashima? And you think she asked me to bully you? Takuji: Hehehe... You wouldn't understand, even were I to explain it. But I shall tell you this much. Tomosane: What? Takuji: Your role has ended. Tomosane: My role has ended? Takuji: That's right... It's over. *Yuuki froze for a moment when he heard those words.* *Not just his movement, but his face, and probably his mind too.* Tomosane: Wh-What do you mean? Takuji: You existed only to discipline my mind. Today, your role has ended. Tomosane: Huh? What are you talking about? Tomosane: Discipline your mind * Hahahahaha! You're such a dumbass."* Tomosane: Do you still have a brain left in that head of yours? Tomosane: I've always thought you had a screw loose, but I didn't know you'd gone off the deep end already. Tomosane: I was wondering what you were gonna say. Tomosane: Well then... Guess I'll just have to beat you harder than ever before. Tomosane: After I've given you the normal beatdown, I'll stick pencils in your ear and punch them. It'll be beyond painful. Tomosane: I'm gonna hurt you so bad you'll wish you could kill yourself. Tomosane: Here goes... Tomosane: Wha―?! *At first, even Yuuki himself probably didn't know what happened.* *He put all his weight into the punch...* *But I was waiting for it.* Tomosane: Agh! *I wondered if he had actually been trained in martial arts.* *I threw him to the ground in such a way that he shouldn't have been able to catch himself, but he twisted and avoided the worst of the impact.* *Well, I wouldn't say 'avoided.'* *Instead of hitting his head, he dislocated his shoulder.* Tomosane: Ugh... Takuji: Oh, look... *Impressive... Even after taking that hit, he used the momentum to get right back on his feet.* *So that he could prepare himself for the next blow.* Tomosane: Y-You... Takuji: Hehehehe... You're rather impressive. *He probably hadn't noticed.* *He hadn't realized that the person he was facing was stronger than any other person in the world.* *I've attained the knowledge and experience of all of humanity, and all of life.* *All knowledge, wisdom, experience, and skill.* *Of course, that includes the kind of hand to hand fighting that he specialized in.* *All of humanity. From the weakest human to the greatest martial artists. All of their experience and skill has been distilled in my body.* *A single person like Yuuki Tomosane could never hope to match me.* *Or so I thought, but...* Takuji: I thought the battle would be over in an instant, but you really are strong. Tomosane: Wh-What'd you say?! Takuji: After all, I am the strongest person in the world. Tomosane: ...What are you on about? Takuji: Right now, I'm stronger than any person in human history. That's all. Tomosane: Y-You're crazy... Did you really lose your marbles? *Yuuki glared at me.* *I didn't feel the same pressure as before.* Takuji: Now it's my turn. Takuji: Huh? Takuji: ... *Wh-What's this...* *I punched him, but for some reason it was my leg that hurt.* Takuji: Chkh... *I managed to catch myself before I crashed into the ground.* *But still, he must have hit me pretty hard, since my vision was blurry.* Tomosane: Ridiculous. You act like you're a black belt just because you learned a few tricks. Tomosane: You're gonna need another million years of training to match me. Takuji: This is... *Apparently, he turned his entire body to dodge my attack and then hit me with a backfist.* *I can't believe he would stand before the strongest man in the world and, rather than flinch, attack.* Tomosane: Come on... I'll show you just how strong you really are. Takuji: Ugh! *Pain... or rather, fatigue.* *The fatigue is greater than the pain.* *I'm just tired...* Takuji: I can't believe he could do that. Takuji: Even after I was reborn... *Last night, I had obtained all knowledge and skill.* *There's no doubt about that.* *I had none of the knowledge I do now.* *Including the martial arts I just used.* *Until yesterday, I couldn't have beaten Yuuki even if I ganged up on him with several other people. I even got beat up by Numada, Shiroyama, Nishimura, and Iinuma.* *I couldn't stop them from bullying me.* *I was useless and powerless.* *And then I was reborn as the savior.* *That's when I obtained everything.* *Including these martial arts...* *And yet...* Tomosane: You haven't beaten me... until you've broken every bone in my body... Takuji: Ah! *I kicked the fallen Yuuki in the face as he laid on the ground.* *My shoes were stained with blood.* Tomosane: ...Psh! *His expression didn't change as he spit out a bloody tooth.* *This man...* Tomosane: Like hell you're the strongest. Knock it off with your delusions... You're gonna need to kick harder than that if you want to kill me. Takuji: ... *He had fallen, slumped against the fence.* *He wasn't fazed at all, even after being subjected to this level of violence.* *What the hell is he...* Tomosane: Mamiya... remember this... Tomosane: If you don't kill me now... I'll end you next time... Tomosane: That's what it means to fight me... Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji! *Yuuki shouted.* *Blood flew from his lips.* *He roared.* *Why is he still...* Takuji: ...Yuuki. *This is definitely... strange.* *This man was prepared by my mother so that I could be reborn as the savior.* *My mother set it up so he would drive me to the depths of despair.* *So then...* *He should have no value anymore.* *And yet he neither bows to my glory, nor runs in fear.* *Now that I've become the savior, those should be the only two options left for him.* *And yet, even after he's been reduced to this, he still resists me.* *Why?* Tomosane: I'm done playing along with your delusions. Takuji: My delusions? Tomosane: That's right... Your delusional world... No, your world itself will end. Takuji: My world itself? Tomosane: That's right... *This bastard...* *He knows that the world is about to be destroyed?* *Is that why he still defies me?* *Why does he know that?* *My breathing slowed and calmed.* *The pain was clouding my thoughts, but...* *As the fatigue faded away, my thoughts started to organize themselves.* *That's it.* *I have my calm, my wisdom, and my knowledge.* *Think.* *About the man in front of me.* *Shiroyama's death.* *Takashima-san's death.* *And then Yuuki Tomosane.* *It's all connected.* *Through my mother's will.* *It's all part of her design.* *So then, what about him?* *I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me?* *Why has he been given this much power?* *Repeat.* *So then, what about him?* *I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me?* *Why has he been given this much power?* *So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power?* *So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power?* *So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power?* *So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power? So then, what about him? I have obtained the greatest power in this world, so why is he as strong as me? Why has he been given this much power?* Takuji: I see... Takuji: I understand now. Tomosane: ... Takuji: I see... I understand now. Tomosane: Understand what? Takuji: My preparation to become the savior is still not complete. Tomosane: You're still going on about that? Takuji: That's the reason you're so strong. Tomosane: Huh? What the hell does that mean? Takuji: You can come challenge me any time you like. Takuji: I'll make you bow to me every time. Takuji: Eventually, I'll make you bow down in spirit too. Takuji: I'll make you bow down before my glory. Tomosane: Y-You crazy bastard... Takuji: Hehehehehe... Keep on barking. You can challenge me any time you like. Takuji: Your existence is nothing more than a challenge for me to overcome on my path. Takuji: My battle with you is just training. Takuji: That's the reason my mother gave you such exceptional power. Tomosane: Your mother? Just how crazy are you? Takuji: Hehehehe... Well, go rest for today. You can't challenge me to a rematch with those wounds. Takuji: Hahahahahaha... Female Student: I saw it earlier, but now everyone's talking about it. Female Student: They were linking to it on other sites. Female Student: Yeah, the posts were all about the Web Bot Project. Male Student: It's just like I said. Female Student: I wonder if it's real. Male Student: What? Female Student: The Web Bot Project says the world will be destroyed on the 20th. Male Student: You saw the link, right? It said that's what the data actually means. Female Student: Yeah, but... that's scary... *I instantly healed my wounds with the power of the savior.* *In the classroom, there were even more people talking about the world's destruction.* *July 20th, 2012.* *Takashima Zakuro's prediction.* *Shiroyama's death.* *All the prophecies from all the corners of the world match up.* *The words of those prophecies echoed throughout the world, as if the world's destruction were upon this very day.* *But still... this is just the beginning.* *The vulgar peasantry are far from comprehending what it truly means.* *Far.* *" know..."* Male Student: Huh? Male Student: Oh, it's . Yuki: And you're . *That's...* *That woman is...* *That's...* *That woman is...* *That woman... She's...* *Minakami Yuki...* *A girl from the same class as me...* *But still...* *―What is she doing...* *Is she looking for something?* *It looks like she's asking about something.* *She's talking to... Yokoyama Kiyoshi.* *He's... Well, who cares about him.* *Average looks. Average grades. Not anyone I care about.* *But still.* *That Minakami Yuki... For some reason, she grabs my attention.* *Minakami Yuki.* *They say she's so strong that even Yuuki avoids her... She's also a genius who placed near the top in the country on the trial examination, though I heard her grades have been awful lately.* *Before, she was so different from me that I would never even approach her, but... now I've been reborn as the savior.* *Now I'm surprisingly similar to her.* *We're similar.* *As elevated existences, we have much in common.* *Yuki, at the apex of human achievement, is very close to me, since I still haven't completed my transformation into the savior.* *Now I can understand that.* *Minakami Yuki...* *There's something else about her...* *I can't shake that thought.* Kiyoshi: It's awfully rare for you to talk to me. Yuki: I actually don't want to talk to you at all, but... I have something I need to ask you, so whatever. Kiyoshi: Something you want to ask me? Wow, I'm honored. Yuki: That Web Bot Project you were talking about. Is there really a site like that, where they predict the future? Kiyoshi: Of course there is! Yuki: That's one of those Web Bots that automatically goes around the Internet and collects information to store in a searchable database, right? Kiyoshi: Umm... Yuki: Then it's simply a bot that generates HTTP requests, retrieves some HTML documents, searches for keywords within it, and saves them in the database. Then it can analyze the document's anchor tags and use the first file's links to retrieve additional HTML files. Kiyoshi: I don't get it... Yuki: To put it simply, the Web Bot is a search engine with spiders and web crawlers. Kiyoshi: Umm... Yuki: What's this Web Bot Project that's supposedly making those predictions, though? What's the website? Kiyoshi: Um, I don't really know myself. It's just a topic on the message board. Yuki: The underground message board... Kiyoshi: You know about it, then? Yuki: No, not really, but I've heard rumors. Actually, have you ever been to the site? Kiyoshi: Yeah, of course I have. Yuki: Then could you give me the URL? Kiyoshi: Sure, but you have to register to get past the front page, and you can't even register without a referral. Yuki: Registration? I thought it was anonymous? Kiyoshi: Yeah, but what would be the point if it were open to the public? Yuki: So that's how it works. Kiyoshi: Yeah. Yuki: Well that's fine. Anyway, send me the URL, and then give me a referral. Kiyoshi: What's your phone's email address? I can send it right now. Yuki: I don't have one. Kiyoshi: Huh? You don't have a cell phone? Yuki: It ticks me off that you think everyone has one. Don't go around assuming everyone has a phone. Kiyoshi: R-Really? Umm... you don't, huh... Yuki: What's your problem? I don't have one. It doesn't exist. Kiyoshi: But still * everyone browses that site with their cell phones. I don't think I've ever seen anyone go there from a computer."* Yuki: Just send it to my computer. I always get on the Internet from a desktop computer. Kiyoshi: Sure... Tell me your email address, then. Yuki: Here. *She wrote down her email address and passed it to him.* Kiyoshi: ... Kiyoshi: This is a free mail account... Yuki: That's right. Is there a problem with that? Kiyoshi: No, but don't you have a real email address Yuki: I do, but I'm not giving it to you. Kiyoshi: Oh... Kiyoshi: Um, I have a favor to ask. Yuki: What? Kiyoshi: If I become your referrer, that means we're friends, right? Kiyoshi: Ow... Yuki: You shouldn't say such nasty things with a grin on your face.. * So then, what are you trying to say?"* Kiyoshi: There's this party pretty soon... If you'd like to come, I could get you in. Kiyoshi: Oogh. Yuki: You remember what happened the last time you guys tried hitting on me, don't you? Yuki: I hate men. If you start talking like that again, I'll do to you what I did to them, but otherwise I don't mind. Kiyoshi: Um, we actually might need you to do something like that. We need someone strong. There are gonna be some people around who don't like us all that much. Yuki: I don't really know what you mean, but I don't mind participating. Kiyoshi: Hell yeah * They've been dissing us ever since Shiroyama went and died..."* *She really is investigating the incident. Or rather, something hidden behind the incident.* *She's investigating... my mother's great plan for this world.* *I don't know what reason she has.* *Anyway, that woman is trying to investigate the underground message board.* *What is she investigating? And how is she planning to do it...* *That's something worth paying attention to...* *Maybe I should keep an eye on her...* Takuji: Hmm? *She stopped... It looks like she's talking to someone, but...* *That's...* *Those two creepy flickering shadows...* *Only one thing comes to mind when I see shadows like that.* *The Wakatsuki sisters...* *Actually, Minakami Yuki is friends with the Wakatsuki sisters.* *Apparently they're childhood friends, and they walk to school together sometimes.* *The Wakatsuki sisters...* *They're definitely not good people...* *And... those two have read my mind a couple times before.* *As the savior, I can't allow them to do that anymore.* *Still, it's strange that they even have that power at all. Normal humans can't do anything like that.* *Why are there so many people with special powers in this school...* *Yuuki Tomosane, who has as much strength as me.* *Minakami Yuki, who has as much knowledge as me.* *The Wakatsuki sisters, who can read minds.* *Takashima Zakuro, who predicted the world's destruction before her death.* *And me, the person who will save the world from destruction.* *This can't be a coincidence.* *All of it must be part of a greater design.* Takuji: Did my mother send... the Wakatsuki sisters too? *...* *No... That doesn't sound right...* *Something different is responsible for them... Something evil...* *I don't know why, but they're somehow unpleasant to be around.* *It's not just their ability to read minds. I feel something evil within them...* Takuji: They might be different. *I don't have any proof, but that's how it feels.* *Even Yuuki, who bullied me for so long, isn't nearly as unpleasant as they are.* *And of course, neither is Takashima-san.* *It bothers me...* *Why would something evil try to get close to Minakami Yuki, the girl who has so much knowledge...* *The Wakatsuki sisters...* *I have to find out what you two really are...* *Hehehehe...* *After that, Minakami Yuki made small talk with an underclassman.* *That was Yokoyama Kiyoshi's little sister. I think her name was Yasuko... Well, she's not important.* *After that, she went to Takashima Zakuro's empty classroom and investigated her seat.* *She's a day late, but that's still a good idea.* *Yesterday, I too investigated that desk.* *She must be pretty interested in finding out the truth behind the incident.* *But still...* *She has a detective kit... That makes me feel a little nostalgic.* *When I was little, my mother bought me a detective kit like that.* *Occasionally my mother would be kind to me and buy me things like that.* *But I was too young, so I didn't know what I was supposed to do with it.* *She must have wanted me to grow into a smart child like Minakami Yuki.* *All right... I know what she's capable of.* *All she's doing is playing detective...* *She looked promising, but I guess I expected too much of her.* Takuji: Hmm... *I probably don't need to follow her anymore...* *I guess I can just leave her alone now, but...* *But...* Takuji: It might be interesting to see her reaction... *I've come into contact with Yuuki quite a few times, but I've hardly ever talked to her.* *She's probably not a threat to me, but... she might be another part of my mother's program.* *If she is, she might have some special power that even I can't overcome.* *That's right... It wouldn't be a bad decision to talk to her directly.* *Let's try it.* *I waited for her by the old pool.* *This is the entrance to my base.* *She should notice me here if she really does have any special powers.* *Yesterday, she was loitering around here.* *Maybe she's already realized my base is here.* *Though it's not the kind of thing someone could easily find.* *After all, it was the savior who created this base.* *A mere human like her couldn't find a base constructed by the son of God so easily...* Yuki: ...Taku ... *I saw her come into view.* *I spoke to her.* Takuji: What's wrong, Minakami-san? Takuji: Were you looking for me? Yuki: Yeah, I have something to ask you... Takuji: You don't look so good. Yuki: D-Don't worry about me... Takuji: I'm feeling great, though. *She's clearly suspicious of me.* *I can read her expression and see into her mind.* *Before, I wasn't able to read people's minds.* *But now I can.* *As the savior, it's no more difficult to read a person's mind than it is to look at the contents of a clear glass bottle.* *Just by squinting a little, I can see everything they're thinking about.* *I can hear the words in her heart.* *Just as if she were speaking them...* Yuki: What? He's changed so much... He's not usually like this... Yuki: Why does he look so divine? Yuki: It's like his personality completely changed... Yuki: A change in personality? Yuki: There's no way that could happen so quickly... So then what else could it be? Yuki: Maybe drugs? Yuki: Every time I meet him, I start to feel sick... and his personality has completely changed. *Hehehehe... She's slower than I thought.* *I will compliment her on noticing my divinity, but I hate how she assumes it's caused by drugs.* *She doesn't know what's really going on. She doesn't understand.* *She looks suspicious.* *She must be thinking that I use a vaporizer, since I don't smell like drugs.* *Her conclusion is completely incorrect, though.* *Poor thing... She's not that smart at all...* Takuji: Smoking with a vaporizer, you say? Nope. Yuki: Huh?! *She's surprised... Hehehe, she's definitely shocked at having her mind read.* *I should tease her some more...* *I'll show her just how easy it is to read her mind...* Takuji: Wouldn't that have to be something tasteless and odorless? That would be crazy expensive. Yuki: What are you talking about? Takuji: What's wrong? You look shocked, as if someone just read your mind. Yuki: ... Takuji: Didn't you have a question for me? That's why you came. Yuki: ... Yuki: Wh-What are you so cheerful for? You're a creepy guy. *She really did come looking for me.* *Well, since she came all the way out here to the old pool, that was obvious.* *For what reason?* *Hmm...* *I see... I did my best to erase those letters, but vitally, my name was still there on the desk.* *And so she realized that Takashima-san and I had a relationship... Your powers of reasoning are quite impressive, Minakami-san.* *Perhaps I should apologize for insulting her intelligence earlier.* Takuji: I see. My name was on Takashima-san's desk, huh? You did a good job finding that. Yuki: Wha―! *Hehehehehehe! Her face is great!* *I love seeing her shocked expression. It's too funny...* Yuki: M-Mamiya, you! Oww... *She put her hand on her head.* *Now that I think of it, before she came here, I had a light headache that made it feel like my ears were full of white noise.* *I see. So she really is connected to me in some way.* Takuji: A headache again? Maybe you can't bear to look at someone who's grasped the truth? Yuki: What? That's ridiculous. Takuji: Quite. I thought maybe you would understand. I can't write you off as a complete stranger. Yuki: That's gross. We are complete strangers. The only thing we have in common is our class. Takuji: Of course. That's the relation between you and I. Takuji: That's why you deserve no greeting from me. Yuki: Huh? Takuji: Because I have to confirm whether or not the person in front of me is a superior human being. Yuki: What are you... Ouch... Takuji: I'll say it again. Takuji: That's why you deserve no greeting from me! Yuki: ... *I presented her with a metaphysical riddle.* *It must be too complicated for her to comprehend, like a Zen dialogue.* *But...* *I'm talking to her about the dream of life I saw last night... The dream of higher dimensions.* Takuji: That's right. To put it in words, you're still confined to the second dimension. Yuki: The second dimension? Takuji: Yes! That's right. Here, right now, is the two-dimensional world. Your existence is like that of an ant. Yuki: What are you talking about? Takuji: How would a two-dimensional ant comprehend the third dimension? Yuki: I don't know what you're saying at all! You're not making any sense. Takuji: ne way is for the ant to observe a three-dimensional object passing through the plane of the second dimension. It would observe the object as a square flickering in place. Takuji: The only part of the third dimension the ant's imagination can conjure is its shadow. Takuji: The only thing those living in two dimensions are permitted to watch is the shadow changing from moment to moment. Takuji: Then how would we three-dimensional humans comprehend the fourth dimension? How would we comprehend the fifth? The sixth? How would we comprehend the dimensions beyond that? Takuji: hat's right. In the same way a two-dimensional being can only imagine us as square shadows, we must imagine the higher dimensions as shadows. *She was confused by the complicated explanation.* *I watched her closely.* *Her expression, the way her body moved, what she thought... all of it.* *Her head must still hurt.* *She frowned and brought her hand to her head again.* *That's to be expected, since she's standing before a divine existence like myself and listening to my words of truth...* *It's amazing that she hasn't fainted.* *Oh? She's thinking of something different.* *She's so confused that she's going to resort to the most vulgar and primitive form of communication.* *The most vulgar and primitive form of communication... What we usually call 'violence.'* *I'm so divine that she wants to use violence to subdue me.* *I see. What a banal choice.* *Just like the Roman Empire used violence when it crucified Jesus Christ, she wants to use violence to force me to submit.* *She's no better than Yuuki... I'm disappointed.* Yuki: Mamiya, come a bit closer... Takuji: I'll be going now! Yuki: Hey, I'm talking to you! Takuji: I'm not too fond of getting punched. Yuki: Huh?! *She's convinced now.* *She knows that I can see directly into her mind. Now she's truly shocked.* Takuji: Can I really read your mind? Takuji: Heheh. I'll let you chase that particular answer yourself. Takuji: But if you can't catch it, you'll never know. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: Well then, I'll be taking my leave. Takuji: ... Takuji: Again... Ayana: Mamiya-kun. Takuji: Hello... Otonashi-san. Takuji: ... Ayana: Have you found the truth? Takuji: ... *I'd forgotten about her.* *She has a different aura than the rest.* *Different than Yuuki or Minakami.* *A little different from the Wakatsuki sisters...* *Of course, completely different from Takashima-san.* *When I see her... I'm assaulted by a different feeling that's not quite the same kind of unpleasantness.* *What is it?* *What is this feeling?* *Am I afraid?* *N-No way.* *What am I thinking...* *Calm down.* *Just calm down.* *Why would I fear her?* *There's no reason for me to fear her!* *I'm the savior... I'm not a normal human.* *There's no reason for me to be afraid of her.* *That's right.* *I have gathered all the world's knowledge and wisdom.* *Of all the beings on earth, I am the one closest to truth itself.* Takuji: N-No, the road to truth is steep. Ayana: I see. Ayana: Is truth to be found in the school? Takuji: It's not just in the school. It's everywhere. Takuji: A person who can see the truth will be able to see it within everything his gaze rests on. Ayana: I see. Ayana: Isn't that... Takuji: Isn't it what? Ayana: Isn't that scary? Takuji: ... *What's with her?* *Her words were sharp like a blade, and cold...* *But I...* Takuji: Hehehehe... Scary? Why would I be? You say that as if I were cowering in the corner. *I'm the savior... I'm not scared of someone like this.* *Calm down.* Ayana: Am I wrong? Takuji: Of course you are. There's nothing I'm afraid of. Rather, shouldn't you be the one afraid of me? Ayana: ...Afraid of you? Why do you think that? Takuji: Because we're completely alone in this underground container. No one will come to rescue you, no matter what happens. Ayana: Rescue? Ayana: Do you need someone to rescue you, Mamiya-kun? Takuji: You really don't understand what I'm saying, do you? They would be coming to rescue you. Ayana: Hehehe, I see. Takuji: ... Ayana: That's a relief. Takuji: What are you talking about?! What should I be afraid of?! There's nothing I'm afraid of! Takuji: Y-You're the one who doesn't know anything! Takuji: Right now, you and I are alone in a closed room, where no one will come! You're the one in danger! Ayana: Hehehe... Maybe you should bite instead of just barking, then. Especially since we're all alone in a closed room. Takuji: What did you say?! *She still thinks I'm as powerless as I was before.* *She doesn't know I'm the strongest person in recorded history.* *That's why she isn't afraid of me.* *Then I should...* Ayana: Do you want to try raping me? Takuji: What? Ayana: Or... would you rather murder me? Takuji: ... *I really should.* *...* *No... It's a meaningless challenge.* *There's no need to do that.* Ayana: It should be easy for the strongest person in recorded history, right? Takuji: Wha―! *Calm down.* *Don't let her affect you.* *Anyway, I shouldn't rise to her challenge.* Takuji: Haa... Could you stop it with the pointless challenges? Ayana: Really? I was having fun. Takuji: More importantly, would you answer one of my questions? Ayana: What you're afraid of? Hehehe... Ayana: I could tell you that. Takuji: Th-There's nothing to tell. I'm not afraid of anything. I know everything, and I see everything. I'm the person who will save the world. Ayana: Hmm... You're going to save the world? Ayana: Save the world... *This person... her eyes...* *I felt like I was being sucked into a bottomless pit when I stared into them.* *No, this feeling...* *I'd never felt this sensation before.* *Even Tomosane Yuuki... Even Minakami Yuki... didn't make me feel like this.* *Just what is this feeling?* Takuji: Otonashi... Ayana... Ayana: Yes? Takuji: Just what are you? Ayana: Sweat. Takuji: ... Ayana: You're sweating. Takuji: That's just because it's summer. *No, that's a lie.* *That was definitely just a bluff.* *I understand that.* *I've started to fear her.* *It's definitely cold sweat running down my cheek right now.* *The problem is, why?* *Why am I afraid of this woman?* Ayana: What you're afraid of... Ayana: Your mother? Takuji: ... Ayana: Death. Takuji: ... Ayana: But that's nothing more than an excuse. Ayana: Mamiya-kun, do you want to see the truth? Takuji: H-Huh? Wh-What... I don't care what a human like you thinks the truth is. I-I'm... Ayana: The person who knows the truth. Takuji: Th-That's right! Ayana: It must be blissful. Takuji: What? Ayana: Hehehe... It's the best way to avoid looking at that which has been hidden. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean? What are you trying to say?! Ayana: What do I mean? Hehehe... You're the one who knows that best. Takuji: Wh-What do you... Ayana: You were the one who hid it, after all. Takuji: I hid it? Ayana: Yes. You hid it from everyone. Takuji: Everyone? *"Yes... From your ... and ."* Takuji: Wh-What did you say?! Ayana: Look... you hide it just like that. Takuji: Wh-What? I'm not hiding anything! Ayana: Your mother... always goes to visit your mother. Takuji: Ah! Takuji: Y-You're the one hiding the words! Ayana: Hehehe... You really are amusing. Too amusing, in fact. Humans are quite amusing. Ayana: Why do humans try to hide things? Ayana: Even though they know something, they act as if they don't, and then one day they truly do forget. Ayana: They still want to know it, even after they've forgotten it. Takuji: What are you? Ayana: People have hidden death... The world has hidden death. Takuji: Hidden death? Ayana: Yes... People have banished death from the world. Ayana: And then they try to dig it up after they've gone through all the trouble of hiding it. Ayana: Why are people captivated by death once they've finally managed to hide it out of sight? Ayana: They put so much effort into hiding it, and yet they dig it up again. Ayana: Mamiya-kun, you too are trying to unearth something which you've hidden. Takuji: Wh-What are you... *A quiet voice...* *Lucid eyes...* *She seemed to know, seemed to see everything. She...* *...gave me goosebumps.* *But...* Ayana: The next world. Takuji: The next world? Ayana: You won't be the one to reach it. Takuji: Wh-What? Ayana: This is the boundary. Not the , but the boundary line. Takuji: Boundary line? Ayana: So it's okay if you pretend like you don't know. Ayana: You can just act like you haven't noticed. Ayana: But then, why are you trying to uncover that which you've hidden? Ayana: Why don't you just pretend like you don't know? Takuji: You think I hid it? You think I'm just pretending like I don't know? Takuji: What are you saying?! What have I hidden?! Ayana: Look... Takuji: Look? Ayana: Look at the sky. Takuji: The sky? This is an underground reservoir tank― Takuji: Wha―?! Takuji: Wh-Why is the sky there? Takuji: Th-This is the reservoir tank, and... and... Ayana: That is the truth you were looking for. Takuji: What is that? Ayana: End Sky. Takuji: Wh-What? Ayana: Humans are amusing. Ayana: I can see humans when I stand on the boundary line. That's why I can't stop playing this game. Takuji: Y-You're... not a normal human? Ayana: Hehehe... What do I look like to you? Takuji: Y-You're... Ayana: After all, I... *"I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru."* Takuji: Wha―?! Takuji: AAAAAAAAaaAaaaAAaaAaAaaAAAAAaAaAaaaAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaAAAAAAaaAaaaaaAAAaaaaAaaaaaAAAaaaaAaaaaaAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAaaAAAAAaaaaaaaAaaAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAaaAAAAAAAaaAAaaaaaaAAAAAAaaaaaAAAAaAAAaaAaaAaaaAAAAAAAaaAAaAAAaaAaaAAAAAaaAAaAAAaaAaaAaaaAAAaAAAaaAaaAaaaAAAaAAAaaAaaAaaaAAAaAAAaaAaaAaaaAaAAAAAGGGGGGhhhHHhhhGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH! Riruru: ...up. Takuji: ... Riruru: W... up. Takuji: ...... Riruru: Wake up... Takuji: Mm... This is... Takuji: Huh?! Riruru: Are you awake, Takuji-kun? Takuji: Riruru-chan... Riruru: The Holy Surge has been perfectly tuned. Takuji: Holy Surge? Riruru: Yeah, the hotline that connects the two of us. Riruru: Any time you think you want to talk to me, I'll be summoned. Takuji: I see. So... Riruru: Was there something you wanted to talk to me about? Takuji: ... Riruru: Hmm? Riruru: What's wrong Takuji: Oh, n-nothing. *It was kind of hard to talk to Riruru-chan about Otonashi-san.* *Or rather, I didn't want to talk about her.* Takuji: Oh, right. Today... I saw the End Sky. Riruru: I know that. After all, I'm― Riruru: The Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Takuji: ...I guess so. Takuji: You know everything, huh? Riruru: Yeah. Riruru: How many millions of years of knowledge did you gather today? Takuji: W-Well, I haven't reached the peak of existence yet. Takuji: But the day hasn't ended. Riruru: That's right. *I wonder why she doesn't say anything about Otonashi-san. She should know I talked to her.* *Why...* Takuji: Um, Riruru-chan. Riruru: Oh, understood. Understood, understood. I'll explain it for you! Takuji: Eh, what? Riruru: About Otonashi Ayana. Takuji: Oh, yeah. *I kind of want to hear... and don't want to hear at the same time.* *Why am I afraid of her?* *Why am I afraid?* Riruru: Is she scary? Takuji: ...Yeah. Riruru: That's because... Takuji: Because? Riruru: Because she's not human. Takuji: Not human... Then what is she? Riruru: Hmm, how should I put it... She's... Riruru: My dregs. Takuji: Dregs? Riruru: Kind of like sediment. Takuji: Sediment? Riruru: It's like when stuff builds up in your sink drain. Riruru: You can think of her as something like that. Riruru: She's nothing, so― Riruru: Don't worry― Riruru: She's harmless― Riruru: Really―? Riruru: Yeah― Riruru: She's not scary― Riruru: I-I see― Riruru: That's right, of course she's not― Riruru: Maybe so, but... she makes me feel a little anxious― Riruru: Like I said, believe in me― Riruru: Yeah, that's right. If you say so, I'll believe you― Riruru: Thank you, Takuji-kun. I love you― Riruru: Oh, ehehe... That's kind of embarrassing― Riruru: Why's that? You're mean― Riruru: No, that's not what I mean. Thank you, Riruru-chan― Riruru: Yeah. From now on, you should believe what I say― Riruru: Of course― Riruru: If you believe what I say, you won't have to worry about anything― Riruru: Yeah! Riruru: Ehe! Right, Takuji-kun? Takuji: ... Takuji: Eh? Riruru: Come on, no worries, no worries. Takuji: Oh, uh, yeah. No worries... *...* *I really was convinced of it, just now.* *It almost felt like I was forcibly convinced, actually.* *What's going on?* Riruru: She's just not human. Since you're human, you instinctively fear her. Riruru: But she won't do anything. She can't do anything, so don't worry. Takuji: A-All right. Takuji: Thank you. Riruru: You understand, right? Takuji: Oh, yeah. *Of course I do.* *If that's what Riruru-chan says...* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *"Yeah, thank you."* *I understood perfectly.* *After that...* *I spotted Minakami-san outside my house.* *I lectured her on the dialectical staircase and the possibility of higher consciousness.* * held a doll as watched us.* * just watched me.* *The in her hands in rut all year long.* *What a pain.* * hates me because I don't give sexual satisfaction.* * are that kind of animal.* * is probably the same as Otonashi Ayana.* *In other words, my enemy.* *Maybe I should rape and kill both of them.* *That's what the Riruru-chan that aired today told me.* *Anime is what's right.* *Anime is a good thing.*

*I decided to check the SAWAYAKA message board from the computer at my house.* *Until now, I always felt like doing this went against my mother's will.* *So I never did anything like this in my house.* *But now it's different.* *This doesn't go against my mother's will... It was all planned by my mother before she died.* *Everything is pre-established harmony.* *All events appear to be independent and mutually unrelated to each other.* *And they truly are.* *My mother's will is materialized in this world as both the force and the effect.* *It is an infinitely small, simple, indivisible substance, and... an infinite number of them make up the world.* *The effect of my mother's will is representation, and there is both a dark side and a light side to that representation.* *Those things that are represented by the dark side of my mother's will are physical.* *The light side of the representation of my mother's will is mental or spiritual.* *The transition between the light and dark sides of my mother's will is continuous.* *That's the important part.* *Each piece of my mother's will is a windowless monad that doesn't interact with any of the others, but the clarity of each one illuminates the universe.* *Just like two synchronized clocks...* *It's pre-established harmony, established by my mother at the time of the world's creation.* *The world advances in accordance with my mother's program.* *Therefore, my mother knows everything in the world.* *My mother knew everything.* *Of course, she also knew everything about me.* *That I only pretended to be diligent while I was at the house.* *That I was disgusting when I wasn't at home.* *Even though she knew, she acted as if she didn't.* *I was a diligent child at home.* *That's how I acted.* *I didn't think she noticed.* *I never brought anything vulgar into the house.* *I didn't bring anything perverted into the house.* *I didn't masturbate in the house.* *But when I wasn't at home, I was vulgarity itself.* *I did nothing but masturbate in my secret base.* *Sleeping or masturbating.* *In my newest base, I even had Internet.* *I would browse the Internet, masturbate, get tired, sleep, browse the Internet, masturbate, get tired, sleep, eat, browse the Internet, masturbate, get tired, and sleep. That's all I would ever do in a day.* *My mother knew.* *She knew everything.* *That every time I was on the Internet I was downloading pornographic movies or pictures.* *I used P2P software to illegally download pornography, then I masturbated over and over, every single day.* *I was filth.* *It was all predetermined.* *While I masturbated, I loved to imagine myself dressed as a girl and raping beautiful women, or sometimes myself dressed as a girl being raped by a futanari (though I would never want to do it with a guy).* *That I had a notebook where I drew pictures like that myself.* *My mother knew everything.* *That too was predetermined.* *In a way, it was even my mother's will that I masturbated all day long.* *Now I understand.* *That wasn't even my will.* *So then...* *What was it all for?* *The reason why I masturbated so much...* *The reason I can't stop masturbating...* *There should be a reason for that.* Takuji: ... Takuji: There are still many things I don't understand. There are still many riddles to solve. Takuji: It looks like it will take a little longer for me to comprehend my mother's will, to completely comprehend God's will. *I checked my computer.* *Whether it was sending the curse mail to those three every hour.* *Whether the countdown messages were being sent to all the others.* *And what they were talking about on the underground message board.* Takuji: Hmm? *There was a new registration awaiting approval in the SAWAYAKA message board secretariat's email.* Takuji: ...What is this name? *The registration had a rather ridiculous name.* Takuji: The name is Shibata Katsuie. The login ID is... 'YA!KI!U!CHI!,' and the password is 'SI!ZU!GA!TA!KE!Suicide!'... Takuji: Haa... What a vulgar woman. The only one who would do something so ridiculous is... Minakami Yuki. *She doesn't have any fear at all.* *Earlier, she seemed really interested when she was asking Yokoyama Kiyoshi about this site.* Takuji: Hehehe... Go ahead, then. But registering on this site means... Takuji: You too will receive Takashima-san's curse mail... Hehehe, can you endure it? Takuji: Hehehehehe... Look, the rest of the board is already panicking. Takuji: They're all shaking in fear. *1: Anonymous Kita High Student: 2012/07/13(M) 18:52:25 ID:MARUKOME* *This is a thread for everyone to discuss the mail they're getting from Takashima Zakuro.* *Previous thread* *I got something weird (||||▽￣)」 scary* *http:::15515743.net/~5425596548565645657676* *The thread kept on getting longer.* *There were still a lot of people trolling, but the truth is, even they were starting to get scared.* *Hehehe... You can't fool me. I can see your fear as clear as day.* *I know much better than any of you what fear is.* *After all, I've lived my life in fear.* *I know better than anyone that they're just making jokes to hide their fear.* Takuji: Even though the events are all separate... they look as if they're connected. Takuji: Hehehehe... Fear overtakes them. Takuji: These two look especially delicious. *Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko.* *They were using their real names even though it's an anonymous site, and they both insisted that the messages were being sent from Takashima-san's phone.* *They insisted that the messages were Takashima Zakuro's curse.* *Don't tell me you're losing your heads already.* *And Tachibana Kimika... She's doing great.* *She wasn't posting with her real name, but she had been fanning the flames ever since the incident.* *She insisted that this was Takashima's curse... That all humans will die from Takashima's curse.* Takuji: Though... *When I investigated, I realized that she really was the one doing almost all the work scaring people.* *She started the thread too.* *She could post as much as she wanted for all I cared, since it's all anonymous, but...* Takuji: Why's that? *I felt a bit uneasy about Tachibana Kimika.* *Why is she riling people up?* *Is it because of her own fear?* *That was the most logical explanation.* *But something seemed amiss.* Takuji: Well, whatever. I might as well leave her alone, since she's helping me. *Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.* *And forthwith Jesus gave them leave.* *And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.* *Hehehehe... They're just like pigs. They'll run down a steep place into the sea and be choked by the water.* *Just like that... They grow fearful as they head toward destruction.* Takuji: But still... *Maybe I should've expected this, since she's a teacher, but Senagawa doesn't seem upset so far, and she hasn't posted on the message board at all.* *Or maybe it has nothing to do with her being a teacher and she's just that strong-willed.* *Admitting her fear would be the same as admitting her crime.* *So she tells herself...* *"That was just an accident."* *"It's not like I had a hand in Takashima Zakuro's bullying."* *She must be silently enduring her fear, since she wants to believe herself innocent.* Takuji: Hehehehe... I hate her attitude. Takuji: You can't mature as a human being unless you admit your faults. Takuji: I should punish this woman. *Maybe I should make her a sacrifice...* *In my first ritual to become the savior.* Takuji: Soon, the world will require a savior. Takuji: A sacrifice is necessary for the birth of the savior. Takuji: No, I suppose I should call it an accident. Takuji: Or perhaps proof that I am the son of God. Takuji: And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country... Takuji: And they went out to see what it was that was done. And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid... Takuji: And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed with the devil, and also concerning the swine... *That's right. Christ became their savior by showing the people several miracles. In order for me to become the true savior, I too must show the people several miracles.* *For that, a sacrifice is necessary.* *A sacrifice in order to cause a miracle.* *Just like the pigs jumping into the ocean...* *A sacrifice is necessary.* Takuji: Hehehehe... Another day begins for the savior. It begins... Hahahahaha. *I composed a new message on Takashima-san's cell phone.* *It was a prophecy from Takashima-san.* *No, for them, it would surely be a curse.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* ** *blood will pour from the head* *blood will pour from another head* *blood will flow* *blood will flow again today* *their head will be covered in blood* *A prophecy from Takashima-san.* *For them, a curse.* *But to me, it was something different.* *It was the first step in securing Senagawa as a sacrifice.* *I have to do it myself.* *That woman will bleed.* *She will bleed as... a symbol, so that they will know she was a sacrifice.* *That will be the moment of the savior's birth.* Takuji: Now then, I should go to school. *I entered the classroom.* *Not silently through the back door, but boldly...* *Huh...?* *Numada and Nishimura were looking at me.* *Huh?* *Hehehe... They both looked away when we met eyes.* *Are they afraid of me?* *Am I that scary now?* *...* *I looked for Yuuki.* Takuji: That bastard Yuuki... I guess he didn't come to school today. Well, I can't blame him after yesterday. *That's probably the reason those two are afraid of me too.* *I can understand why they would be afraid of me after I beat up Yuuki that badly.* *But...* *For some reason, there are other people who look like they're afraid of me. Why?* *Do the rest of them know what happened to Yuuki too?* *Well... Who cares?* *I sat at my desk.* *It was in the back row.* *From here, I could see everyone else in the class.* Takuji: Oh, that's right. *Why didn't I notice before?* *There's no one behind me.* *I'm hardly ever in the classroom, and I'm always sweating in fear when I am, so I never noticed before.* Takuji: But still... *Unlike yesterday, no one was talking about Takashima-san or the end of the world.* *It sounded like they were just casually chatting.* *Of course, it only looked like that on the outside.* *When I looked more closely, a lot of the people in the classroom were acting differently.* *Strange conversations, strange smiles...* *Most of them were the people registered on the underground message board.* *The people who aren't registered thought of that as old news.* *They were talking about celebrities, stuff on TV... Pointless stuff like that.* *But Takashima-san was the only thing on the minds of people registered on the message board.* *The curse mail came from Takashima-san every morning.* *The countdown until the end of the world.* *Just look, he's as pale as a ghost.* *A girl hid her phone under her desk as she pounded away at the buttons.* *Normally, she would be smiling and sending messages to her friends or maybe her boyfriend.* *But look at her expression.* *Her face is drained of color, and she's intently focused on her phone. What a tragedy.* *Why would someone be looking at their phone so intently with such a pale face?* *Hehehehe... It's not hard to figure any of them out.* *As I watched them, they kept checking their phones, one after the other.* Takuji: Oh, right, it should arrive pretty soon. *The time is set to... just before class starts.* *Silence reigned throughout the classroom.* *The sound of vibrating phones echoed in the room.* *The sound increased as more and more phones started vibrating.* *The owner's face grew pale every time.* Female Student: Oh, sorry... I-I got a message. Female Student: Oh, me too... Uh... Female Student: Eh? Why? Are you guys on a mailing list or something? Female Student: No, that's not it... Sorry. *Hehehehe... There are quite a few registered people in this class.* *It was sent from my computer via Takashima-san's phone to all of them simultaneously.* *The color drained from the faces of all the people who knew what that sound meant, and all the rest were just confused.* *What a contrast.* Female Student: Oh, no... Th-That's... But I already got one this morning. Female Student: Eh? What is it? Why are you all getting messages at the same time? Female Student: Oh, it's nothing. No way, this is... Female Student: No! I can't take it! Female Student: Wh-What's wrong?! Female Student: Shut up! It has nothing to do with you! Female Student: Eh? Female Student: Oh, uh... Well... Sorry... Female Student: No, it's fine, but... *How pitiful.* *You're overreacting, surely.* *Nothing has happened just yet.* Female Student: What does this mean... Male Student: What is this? This is different from the ones before. Female Student: I hate this. I had nothing to do with her... I had nothing to do with her... Male Student: Th-This is just a prank, right? It has to be... Male Student: Who would do that? Female Student: This has to be one of Takashima-san's pictures. And one of the girls from the other class said that this was Takashima-san's email address. Female Student: The girls in the other class... Are you talking about Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko? Female Student: I can't stand this. Why am I getting these messages? Why would she send this message to me? Male Student: I heard that they stop if you change your email address. Male Student: No, I heard they start coming again after a few days. *Changing their email, huh...* *It's true. If they changed that, the messages would stop.* *It was that easy to stop the curse mail.* *But if they changed their email address on their registration, it would be completely pointless.* *Some idiot changed his registration after getting a new email address.* *They took the time to tell the SAWAYAKA message board secretariat about the change.* *And of course, once they did that, their new email address started getting the curse mail too.* *That idiot posted about it on the underground message board.* *"Even if you change your email address, the curse mail will follow you."* *Of course, there were people who stayed calm and denied it, but there were so many more people in a panic that the reasonable opinions were ignored.* *Now they're saying, "Apparently, once you get the curse mail, it will follow you forever."* *As the person sending the messages, it was kind of pathetic how they prefaced that statement with "apparently"... The rumors seemed to change every day.* *I couldn't even keep track of all the rumors anymore.* *Soon they were saying that the curse mail would follow you even if you change your email address, and if you throw your phone away, she'll leave the messages on your home phone's answering machine instead.* *That's impossible...* Takuji: Hehehehe... They've been blinded by their fear. Takuji: This feeling... *This sound again... Echoing in my brain...* *I had a bad feeling.* *From the hallway...* Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: What's this? *When I went out into the hallway... no one was there.* *Class hadn't started, and yet... no one was there...* Takuji: Ah! Takuji: What was that? *What just happened? It was like I crossed a barrier into a... closed space?* *Has this area been altered by someone?* *The only person with that kind of power would be...* *I returned to the classroom.* Takuji: I knew it. Kagami: Knew what? Takuji: Are you the one who just did that? Kagami: Of course I was. You were planning on doing something awful to Tsukasa, weren't you? Takuji: Tsukasa? Oh, your sister, huh? Kagami: That's right. You've got it in your head that she's evil too. Takuji: The way you say that makes it sound like you're admitting you're evil. Kagami: That's right. If the creator is evil, then the creation must be evil too. Takuji: The person who created you? Takuji: Hehehehe... Was that a human? Kagami: Who knows? They might be lower than human. Takuji: What are you? Kagami: ... Kagami: Why don't you just put your hand on your chest? Takuji: What did you... Kagami: You don't know anything. Takuji: What? Kagami: You don't know anything, but you act like you know it all. You're just running away! Takuji: I don't know anything? Huh? Do you think you can say that to me? Takuji: Ah! Takuji: A-Aagh... Ayana: Hehehe... It's the best way to avoid looking at that which has been hidden. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean? What are you trying to say?! Ayana: What do I mean? Hehehe... You're the one who knows that best. Takuji: Wh-What did you... Ayana: You were the one who hid it, after all. Takuji: I hid it? Ayana: Yes. You hid it from everyone. Kagami: You're hiding everything! Takuji: Be quiet! Kagami: No, I won't be quiet! Takuji: What did you say, you monster?! Kagami: Monster? You're the monster. No, the monster is what you've created! Ayana: That's wrong. Kagami: Eh? Takuji: Y-You... Ayana: Wakatsuki Kagami-san... Kagami: W-Wait, you're... Kagami: Ayana: Hehe, is there any point to giving me a name? Kagami: ... *For some reason, Wakatsuki Kagami was silent after Otonashi said that.* *It's almost like she's... afraid of Otonashi.* Ayana: Anything can be explained. Ayana: Even a sheer coincidence has a reason. Ayana: We can clearly explain anything which we can speak of. Ayana: But Wakatsuki... Kagami-san. Ayana: Your existence is the best proof that there's no meaning to it. Kagami: That's... Ayana: Once the answer has been found, once it has all been made clear, you won't exist anymore. Ayana: Then what is the Wakatsuki Kagami standing here right now? Ayana: The sun upon the back of a frog in a field of grass still exists regardless of whether I gaze upon it or not... Ayana: Could I say the same of you? Kagami: Ah...! Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? You're going on like you're the only one who knows anything! You're acting like you understand! Th-Then explain it to me! Ayana: Hehehe... Really? You're the savior. You don't need to ask me, since you know everything, right? That's quite a strange question... Heheh. Takuji: Wha―?! Ayana: We can clearly explain anything which we can speak of. Ayana: It's a boring answer once you remove all the mysteries. Ayana: A boring life. Ayana: But that is not everything. Ayana: There are places whereof we must be silent. Ayana: The boundary line is one of those places. Ayana: There, words become worlds, and worlds become words. Ayana: Not only that... Things other than words become words, and things other than worlds become worlds. Kagami: ... Ayana: It's that kind of place. Ayana: If you reach the end, you might be able to see it too, Wakatsuki Kagami-san. Kagami: I can't see it. Kagami: There's no way I could see it... Kagami: What could an existence before existence hope to see? Kagami: What could I hope to feel before existence? Ayana: Hehehe... Ayana: The destination is the day when the world will return to the sky... End Sky. Takuji: Wh-Why are you talking about that?! Kagami: You're not the only one who knows. Kagami: You're not the only person who knows about this point... Takuji: What did you say?! Ayana: Either... the infinite landscape that all souls in existence have seen. Ayana: Or... the one landscape that only my soul has seen. Ayana: It is neither. Ayana: Is it both. Takuji: O-Otonashi! You keep talking as if you know something! Takuji: The truth is you don't know anything! You're just trying to obfuscate my vision with your misleading words! Takuji: Why can't I understand your words with all my knowledge and wisdom?! That's impossible! Takuji: The reason is because you're speaking nonsense! Takuji: That's right! You've always been like that! You use a bunch of confusing words, but you never say anything! Takuji: You're one of them! You're nothing, but you know how to talk big! You just string the words together as they come to mind! Takuji: You don't know anything! You don't understand anything! You're just acting like you're smart! Ayana: That's enough. Ayana: If that is what you want to tell yourself... Takuji: Wha―! Iida: Everyone sit down! Class is starting. Iida: Mamiya, why are you still standing? Takuji: ... Iida: What's wrong? Quit spacing out and sit down. Takuji: Do I look like I'm spacing out? Iida: Come on, Mamiya, your grades have fallen far enough. Would you quit asking stupid questions and sit down already? Takuji: Hehehe. A stupid question, is it? If you say so. Iida: kay, class is starting. Turn to page 67. Today, we're covering the Roman Emp― Takuji: Mr. Iida! Iida: Something wrong? Or would you like to let me start class already? Takuji: ... Iida: What's wrong, Mamiya? Do you need to go to the bathroom? Takuji: ... Takuji: You really are one of the vulgar people. That's why you can't see the big picture. *I froze the classroom with my words of truth.* *Sometimes, the truth is taboo.* *People hate to hear the truth.* *The teacher isn't smiling anymore.* Iida: Did you say something, Mamiya? Takuji: You don't even know that it is all about to end. Iida: It's all about to end? What are you going on about now? Takuji: For instance, if we were on a sinking ship, would you be standing at the bow reciting facts about the Roman Empire? Iida: Mamiya, what are you saying? Takuji: It's a question. A question. Would you be talking about some trivia from thousands of years ago while the ship sank around you? Iida: History isn't just trivia. And this isn't a boat. It's a classroom, and it's not sinking. Takuji: I see. It's not a boat, it's not sinking, and your description of long-dead emperors isn't just trivia. Iida: That's right. Well, Mamiya? Have any more complaints? Takuji: I have no complaints. It's rather obvious that a vulgar peasant such as yourself wouldn't be able to see the truth. Takuji: After all, no one complains that cats and dogs can't do arithmetic, do they? Iida: Mamiya, are you feeling all right? Takuji: Feeling all right? Whatever do you mean? Maybe you should ask that of yourself, the one doing something so meaningless at a time like this. Iida: What do you mean, meaningless? Takuji: Please, consider this. The world may have been created by a demon just ten seconds ago, and everything we call history was planted in our heads by that demon. Iida: That's impossible. There's plenty of historical evidence that contradicts that idea. Takuji: Then maybe the demon made that too. Maybe it planted the historical evidence. Iida: Mamiya, are you sure you're feeling all right? What's wrong? Takuji: Even if it wasn't a demon, this textbook may simply be a collection of humanity's convenient rationalizations. Takuji: The truth may be that there are much greater things in this world, and someone wrote this book in order to conceal them. Iida: Who's the class representative? Female Student: M-Me, sir. Iida: Please go to the staff room and ask them to send Ms. Kiyokawa. Female Student: Y-Yes. Understood. *The moment the class representative passed by me...* Female Student: Aah! *As I tried to stop her... my hand happened to touch her.* *She was so shocked that she fell to the ground.* *Poor girl.* Iida: Mamiya, you―! *"Y-You little...!"* *Someone stood defiantly in front of me.* *To stand in the face of my holy presence... There aren't very many humans who can do that.* *Look, the rest of them are so scared that they've forgotten to breathe.* *The person who so bravely stood before me must be...* Yuki: What's wrong with you?! How dare you hit a girl?! Takuji: It doesn't matter whether she's a boy or a girl. Takuji: That you're doing this at all, sitting here and playing along with this farce, when everything is about to end... It's absurd! Takuji: Every single person here has turned their back on the truth! Iida: Cut it out, Mamiya! Are you okay? Female Student: I-I'm fine. I just fell because he surprised me. Takuji: Hmph... Iida: Mamiya, apologize! Takuji: Why would I do that? Iida: Mamiya, do you understand what you're saying? Iida: What do you mean, the world is ending? I heard a lot of the students have been scared of something lately. Are you the one spreading those rumors? Takuji: It means the world is ending, that's all. Takuji: The end of everything. Takuji: You could call it the final destination. Takuji: It's no rumor. It is merely the truth. Takuji: You are a weak human being, a small human being, and therefore you cannot even lay eyes on me. Iida: Mamiya, come over here! Takuji: Haha, so you intend to use violence because you can't win with logic? Iida: Ah... *No one could understand what had just happened.* *Just that a loud sound echoed through the classroom, and then the teacher fell down, covered in blood.* *They were too confused to understand that I had just struck the teacher with a flower vase.* *Because...* Female Student: Th-That's... Female Student: I-It's just like the email said. Yuki: Email? *It was different than I had planned.* *I was intending on making Senagawa bleed.* *I intended to make her the sacrifice.* *I just went with the flow.* *But now Takashima Zakuro's curse mail had claimed another victim.* *The prediction was...* *blood will pour from the head* *blood will pour from another head* *blood will flow* *blood will flow again today* *their head will be covered in blood* *This too was predetermined.* Female Student: Aaaaahh! *Someone screamed, sending the rest of the class into a panic.* Male Student: Wh-What just... Male Student: Is... Is he dead? *They made a lot of noise over the collapsed teacher, but no one did anything to me except sneak glances from the corners of their eyes.* *They're too afraid to look at the classroom's new ruler.* *Hehehehe... It's diverged quite a lot from my plan.* *Oh well.* *I took the opportunity.* *Now it is time for the savior's sermon.* *The savior's first sermon begins now!* *It begins!* Takuji: What's wrong? You seem awfully scared of something. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji! You son of a... Takuji: Oh, if it isn't Minakami-san. Takuji: It would appear you're no better than the rest of the poor little lambs here. Takuji: Your heart is thick with fear. Takuji: You should just stand back and watch in fear, like you've been doing. Takuji: And then you shall feel the flames of hell licking at your flesh. Yuki: Mamiya... Takuji: What, are you going to hit me? Takuji: You're going to bully me, just like Yuuki Tomosane and the rest of humanity have?! Yuki: Huh? Takuji: Mark my words, all ye who quiver in fear. Takuji: All life shall end on the 20th! That is the absolute truth! Takuji: Both Shiroyama and Takashima died for this truth! Takuji: Death, that is the message of prophecy! Takuji: Death, that is the absolute truth! Takuji: Why is death the message that leads to prophecy? Takuji: Because the foolish attempt to conceal death! Takuji: So we must speak of that which is concealed! Takuji: That which conceals death! The first is education! The second is the media! Takuji: In countries such as this, mandatory education has become commonplace. In our society, the media has swelled and transformed into the highest authority in the world! Takuji: We have a host of taboos implanted into our minds by public education and through the mass media. Takuji: The greatest taboo of all is to think upon death! Takuji: We have put aside any thought of death! We are obliged to act as if our daily lives will continue for eternity! Takuji: And the reason is because everything is powerless, everything is meaningless before the unreasoning specter of death! Takuji: That's why education and the media try to disguise the true meaning of death! Takuji: The death they intimate to us is but a phantasm on the far shores, something with which we have no relation. It has been reduced to a mere toy, something you can enjoy without worrying that it may ever strike you. Takuji: But the reality that everyone knows is that every single day, death creeps ever closer to all the people on the planet. Death is reality itself. Iida: M-Mamiya... You... Female Student: Mr. Iida! Female Student: H-He's okay... Iida: You're wrong... Takuji: What have I said that's wrong? Iida: That religious nonsense... You... Takuji: Did you hear that? Takuji: Just now, this man called my thoughts 'religious nonsense.' Takuji: As if to say I was a 'madman'. Iida: Th-That's wrong... Takuji: Am I wrong? To ponder upon death... Has religion not advanced thought on mortality for the past several thousand years? Has metaphysics not? Takuji: In other words, that which reeks of religion, the action of contemplating death, seems to him the action of a madman. Am I wrong? Iida: You're wrong... You sound like a cultist... Takuji: Oh, really? What a strange thing you've just said. What part of what I'm saying seems crazy to you? Iida: I don't know, but... Takuji: If you ask me, it seems like you have unfounded conviction for that dogma which you call common sense. Iida: What are you talking about? Takuji: You can't resist attaching the label 'crazy' to that which you cannot understand. You declare anything which would overthrow your common sense to be the words of a madman. Iida: Y-You're twisting my words... Mamiya, you... Iida: Please. Someone call the homeroom teacher! Someone! *He desperately appealed to the students, but not a single one moved...* *Every person in that room was dominated by the atmosphere.* Takuji: Modern society has reduced death to an abstraction. It is a society that views death as a taboo! Takuji: The only ones who could speak of that as correct are slaves who have not even the capacity to think! Takuji: In previous generations, death was the most important subject of philosophical thought, was it not?! Takuji: Was death not the matter of utmost concern?! Takuji: And despite that, modern governments and societies have treated it as if it were irrelevant to our lives. Yuki: Shut up! Takuji: ... Yuki: No one cares about that cryptic bullshit! Takuji: ryptic bullshit? Yuki: Yeah, that's right. I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't think I want to, but I will say this. Yuki: You're labeling their deaths with your own selfish reasoning. Takuji: Selfish, you say? Yuki: It's sophistry. It's complete nonsense! Yuki: I've heard that theory about society covering up death before. Let's say you're right about that one. Even then, what you're saying about those two deaths signifying something is nothing but fabrication. Yuki: All you're doing is appealing to cognitive bias. Takuji: Bias? Yuki: We just overestimate the frequency of events that affect us emotionally. Yuki: It's true, it is strange for two people to fall to their deaths in a row, but their deaths aren't related to anything else. Yuki: You're just trying to find meaning where there is none. Takuji: I expect no less from the person who has been gifted with knowledge and wisdom to match my own. Yuki: I don't need your compliments. Takuji: I suppose this is what you're trying to say. You want me to show you proof that the meaning I've claimed for their death is veracious. Yuki: Proof? Are you stupid? There's nothing you could show us that would prove that. After all, no matter how you look at it, you're just spouting nonsense! Takuji: Hmm... Do you know how we differentiate between science and charlatanry? Yuki: Science and charlatanry? That's... Takuji: Yes. How would one differentiate science from pseudoscience? Yuki: ... *She was silent.* *Of course.* *The problem of differentiating between science and pseudoscience still hasn't been completely solved.* *It's still a fuzzy line, even to the experts.* *Since she knows that, she has no choice but to be silent.* *She's in a dilemma because she has as much knowledge and wisdom as I do.* *It's annoying how idiots tend to make flippant remarks in situations like this.* Takuji: The difference between science and pseudoscience lies in whether or not the theory makes novel predictions. Yuki: Novel predictions... I didn't think an idiot like you would know that phrase. Takuji: It's a principle proposed by Imre Lakatos. It can be used to determine whether a theory is scientific or pseudoscientific. Yuki: Kuhn's paradigm theory and Popper's Falsificationism. Lakatos built upon those to create his methodology of research, and then he derived his principle of novel predictions from that. Takuji: The word prediction sounds almost religious, doesn't it? To put it simply, a novel prediction is a truthful prediction that may appear strange to the layman, but can be derived from the theory. Takuji: In other words, if the predictions I make based on my theory, if those predictions come true, then my theory is correct. Takuji: The theory of relativity predicted many phenomena that were later demonstrated through experimentation. Therefore, the theory of relativity is correct. Yuki: I see. So then, you're going to make some predictions? Takuji: Yes. Takuji: I shall now make several novel predictions. Takuji: And as they bear fruit, one by one, you will all quiver with fear. Takuji: My verity... Yuki: Th-That's ridiculous... *She spit those words at me and then looked away.* *Utter defeat.* *This is the difference between the savior and a perfect human.* *Minakami Yuki and Tomosane Yuuki could never match me.* *Both of them are just hurdles created by my mother. Even if they think themselves perfect, they can't hope to match me.* *And the reason is because... I am the savior.* Takuji: God sacrificed these two so that I could be reborn! Takuji: The first was Shiroyama Tsubasa, and the second was Takashima Zakuro. God sacrificed them so that I could be reborn! Takuji: I have been reborn! Takuji: As what? Takuji: The savior. Takuji: Yes, as the savior! Takuji: The world will end in five days. Takuji: But that is an omen of greater things. Takuji: An omen that the world will be reborn. Takuji: Those not saved, along with the old world, will fall into the depths of hell to suffer for eternity. Takuji: An eternity of torment! Takuji: Everyone knows... Takuji: That the world is pervaded by lies! That the truth is hidden! Takuji: The foolish speak of equality! Takuji: But everyone knows that the world is not equal! Takuji: The foolish speak of freedom! Takuji: But everyone knows that there is no freedom in the world! Takuji: The foolish speak of love! Takuji: But everyone knows that love is traitorous! Takuji: The foolish say that you must not kill! Takuji: But everyone knows that the world is brimming with murderers! Takuji: The foolish say that you must not lie! Takuji: But everyone knows that the foolish themselves are lying! Takuji: Those who swallow the lies of the foolish make fools of themselves! Takuji: Yes, their lies! Takuji: They were all lies! Takuji: That the world has always existed... Takuji: And that the world will continue to exist forevermore! Takuji: They are all lies! Takuji: The path we walk leads to... Takuji: The abyss! Takuji: The world will end! Takuji: It will surely end! Takuji: This is the truth! Takuji: As proof, I shall make three predictions. Takuji: Firstly! The thickness of death in the air will be affirmed with yet another death! Takuji: Secondly! A large number of people will witness the death! Takuji: Thirdly! The deceased will speak of... Takuji: The ultimate demise! *I dashed from the room.* Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... *Hehehe, their faces. What wonderful faces.* *Numada's face, Nishimura's face...* *The teacher's face...* *The rest of the people in the class...* *And Minakami Yuki's face...* Takuji: Hahahahaha... *Are those the faces of those who I once feared?* *Hehehehehe, they're worthless.* *They're truly worthless!* Takuji: Ahahahahahahahaha! Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: That's... Takuji: Otonashi Ayana! Ayana: Yes. Takuji: I'll wipe that cool expression off your face soon enough! Ayana: It's summer. It's not cool at all. Takuji: I can see through your bluff! Takuji: Otonashi Ayana! You are nothing but Riruru-chan's dregs! Takuji: You're just a shadow! Takuji: I'm not afraid of you! Ayana: Like I said, I'm not scary. Actually, I'm super nice. I'm even famous for being nice to everyone. Takuji: Don't make fun of me! Takuji: I am within the omen! Takuji: And after the omen... I will reach fruition! Ayana: That so? Keep at it, then. Takuji: Shut up! Don't make fun of me! Ayana: I'm not making fun of you. Ayana: Mamiya-kun... Goodbye. Takuji: Wha―?! Ayana: You're going to return the world to the sky, right? Takuji: Ugh! Takuji: Aaaaagh... Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: I am the omen. Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: I am the presentiment. Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: I am the apex of life... I am the apex... Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: I... I am... the End Sky! Takuji: Ha, ha, ha... Takuji: Open sesame. Takuji: Who is it?! Kimika: ... Takuji: What are you doing? *She was looking at me weird.* *Her name is... Tachibana Kimika, I think?* *The person who betrayed Takashima Zakuro.* *Why is she here?* Takuji: Are you looking for me, Tachibana Kimika-san? Kimika: So you... know my name... *I didn't really know her well.* *Her face was in one of Takashima-san's pictures. That's all.* Takuji: Yeah, you're the one who betrayed Takashima-san, right? Kimika: ... *I thought she would flinch when I said that, but her expression didn't change at all.* Kimika: Yeah, that's right. I betrayed Takashima Zakuro. I chased her to her death. Takuji: ... *What is she holding?* *She was hiding something in her right hand.* Takuji: Why are you here? Kimika: Well, you're the savior, right? Takuji: Yeah, and? Kimika: I'm in the class next door, so I heard you shouting. Takuji: I see. And you couldn't help listening when you heard Takashima Zakuro's name? Kimika: Something like that. I ran into the hall and listened. You're awfully popular. I wasn't the only one in the hall listening either. There were even a few teachers out there hanging on your every word. Takuji: What? Teachers? Kimika: Yeah... *So the teacher next door heard me hit Iida with a vase...* *Why didn't he come stop me?* Takuji: And? What were they doing? Kimika: They were quivering. I could hear their teeth chattering. Takuji: They were quivering? *Oh, I see.* *So that teacher was...* Takuji: That teacher must have been Senagawa. Kimika: Ah! *From her surprised expression, I must have been right.* Kimika: Hmm... Takuji: What is it? Kimika: For all your confidence, you do still make mistakes. Takuji: What? Kimika: It was Kiyokawa... Kiyokawa Asumi. She's your homeroom teacher, isn't she? Takuji: It was Kiyokawa? *Why would she be so scared? She's our homeroom teacher. I would've expected her to come stop me.* *No, wait.* *There was someone who registered with a referral from Senagawa.* *I thought it was likely that the registration was from a teacher. If that was Kiyokawa, then it all makes sense.* *Kiyokawa has been receiving the curse mail too. She was so scared that she didn't stop me.* Takuji: Kiyokawa Asumi, huh? Did she do anything else? Kimika: I couldn't hear her very well, but she was muttering something like, 'Y-Yui, is that true?' Takuji: Oh really? *And Yui is Senagawa's first name.* *Those two are close enough to call each other by their first names.* *Well, there aren't very many teachers around their age at this school. Most of the others are closing in on retirement.* Kimika: Ah... Kimika: B-But why did you think it was Senagawa? *...* *Just now...* *Her voice cracked for a second.* *She's upset.* *There's no mistake... She's bluffing.* *She's been acting confident this whole time, but she's quivering on the inside.* *She definitely reacted when I said Senagawa's name.* *Well, of course... She's the one who was posting so much about Takashima on the underground message board. She was clearly distraught about the curse.* *"It really is a curse."* *"At this rate, we're all going to die."* *"These messages are really bizarre."* *And so on... She sounded awfully upset in those posts...* *Hehehe... She doesn't know I read all those posts she made. What a stupid girl.* *Her bluffing is truly impertinent.* Takuji: Do you want to know why I thought it was Senagawa? Kimika: Yes... Why Mrs. Senagawa? *Her speech grew a little more polite.* *I could see straight through her.* *She must have been expecting me to say it was because Senagawa was in hot water for being the advisor to the Fine Arts Club where Takashima-san used to get bullied.* *Almost everyone had heard that rumor.* *She must have been expecting me to say something simple like that.* *Hehehe... My next words...* *I'll make you quiver in fear...* *I'll expose your bluff, Tachibana Kimika.* Kimika: Wh-Why are you acting so high and mighty? Takuji: High and mighty? Oh, I'm just worried you might be shocked to hear it. Kimika: Sh-Shocked...? *What a face. Where did all your confidence go, Tachibana?* Takuji: eah... I was just wondering how you'd react when you heard Senagawa was going to die. Kimika: ... *For some reason... her expression went blank for an instant.* *Why? Why isn't she surprised?* *Then, in the next instant...* Kimika: ...Eh? *Her expression froze for a second, then changed into a forced smile.* *They say that when faced with true fear, a human's expression almost looks like they're laughing.* *This unnatural laugh must mean that she's more scared than she's ever been in her life.* Kimika: Wh-Wh-Why will she die? When will she die? Takuji: When? Pretty soon, I suppose. Kimika: D-D-Do you mean, like... today or tomorrow? *Hold on... How scared are you? Where did your courage go?* Takuji: Yeah, something like that. Kimika: Wh-Why Mrs. Senagawa? Why is she going to die... Takuji: The reason? There's only one reason, isn't there? Kimika: Eh? D-Do you mean... Takashima Zakuro's curse? Takuji: Yeah, that's it. Kimika: Th-Then is anyone else going to die? Takuji: At this rate, yeah... Kimika: Oh, I-I see. Others are going to die... Others are going to be killed. *Hehehehe... She's so scared. I can hear her voice shaking.* Kimika: U-Um, I have another question... Why is Mrs. Senagawa going to die first? Takuji: Because she was especially hated. Kimika: Ah! *Her face distorted in a way I'd never seen before. This was almost a death sentence for her.* *The four people most deserving of Takashima-san's hate would be Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, Senagawa Yui... and Tachibana Kimika herself.* Kimika: A-Ahaha... Mrs. Senagawa was especially hated. *What a smile. The fear is practically written on her face.* *Is it that scary? Hehehehe...* Takuji: Yeah, and some others, like Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko. Kimika: Th-That's... Takuji: Yeah... The people who were involved in her bullying. Kimika: Th-Then I― Takuji: Who knows... But you're not getting them, are you? Kimika: Not getting them... You mean... Takuji: There are two kinds of curse mail. One is the kind that is sent to everyone once a day to pronounce their deaths. Takuji: And the other is... messages full of hate that come every hour. Kimika: I haven't gotten any of those. Takuji: Well, I guess not. Kimika: What does that mean? Takuji: I don't know whether any of you are getting the messages or not, but I can see the curse. Kimika: Y-You can see the curse? Takuji: Yeah, I can see the hate swirling around people's bodies... Kimika: Th-Then... what about me? Takuji: I wish I could say there's nothing, but your curse is as strong as Kitami and Satoko's. Kimika: Th-Then why am I not getting the other kind of curse mail? Takuji: Maybe she sympathizes with you. Kimika: S-Sympathizes? Takuji: You were bullied for a long time, just like her... Kimika: ... *For some reason, her expression went blank again.* *She doesn't react like most people.* Kimika: So... will Akasaka and Kitami die too? Takuji: At this rate... Kimika: What do you mean? Can you stop the curse? Takuji: Who knows... I'm not sure. Kimika: Can you stop it? *...* *Her tone changed again.* *She doesn't react normally at all.* Takuji: Yeah, of course. Kimika: Then you can stop Mrs. Senagawa's curse too. Takuji: I could, but... Kimika: But? Takuji: I won't. Kimika: ... Kimika: Why would that be? Takuji: That's what the world has determined. It's been determined that Senagawa Yui will die. Kimika: Oh, really. She's fated to die? Then what about Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko? Kimika: And... what about me? Takuji: Hehehe... Who knows? I can't tell you that. Kimika: ... Kimika: Hmm... Oh really? Now that you mention it, I do remember you saying that you would only save those who came to pray at your feet. Takuji: That's right. I don't have any obligation to save everyone, and I would be going against God's plan if I did. Kimika: Hmm, I see. But to put it another way, anyone who bowed to you could be saved? Takuji: That's right. Kimika: Will you save me? *Just a moment. For some reason, her face changed back into its original expression for just a moment.* *Rather than fear, it looked more like...* *Intent to kill?* Takuji: ... Kimika: ... Kimika: Hehehehe... my savior. Takuji: Wh-What? Kimika: Would you take me as your humble servant? Takuji: You mean you want to join me? Kimika: Yes. I'm scared that I might be killed by Takashima-san's curse... I don't want to die. Takuji: Hmm. *Oh, is that it...* *I mistook it for intent to kill, but it was the expression of a hunter that's found its prey.* *She was hunting for a way to save herself, and she found it.* *I guess she's just an animal looking to save itself.* *She acted like she knew something important, but she was just motivated by self-preservation.* *She's the embodiment of a simple, predictable woman.* Kimika: I-I'll do anything to be saved. Please save me! *Her attitude changed completely. Now she's begging me for salvation... How pathetic.* Takuji: Do you want to be saved that badly? Kimika: Y-Yes. Please save me, my savior! Y-You're the only one who can stop Takashima Zakuro's curse. Takuji: Yeah, of course. Kimika: Please, allow me to be your servant. I'll do anything. I'll do anything, so please... Takuji: Did you just come here to escape the curse? Kimika: U-Uh... I... I'll do anything. My faith may still be lacking, but I'll listen to whatever you say! Takuji: Alright. You're welcome at my side. Kimika: Eh? R-Really? Takuji: Yeah... It's pre-established harmony. It's because of the fate my mother has determined for me that you are here. Kimika: Pre-established harmony? Kimika: Wh-What's that? Takuji: Everything is inevitable. Takashima didn't kill you because she needed you to do something. Kimika: She needed me to do something? Takuji: That's right. She needs you to spread her predictions to more people. Kimika: Predictions? The prediction that the world will end on the 20th? Takuji: Exactly... The 20th is the world's last day. Kimika: Wh-Why me? Takuji: Love and hate are two sides of the same coin. Takashima resented you, but she also loved you. She wanted you to save everyone. Kimika: Wanted me to save... Kimika: Zakuro wanted me to... Takuji: She was that kind of person. She was honest, kind, and pure. Takuji: She died in your place! Kimika: In my place? Takuji: Yes... She died so that she could warn everyone of the world's destruction on the 20th. Takuji: And why? Takuji: Why did Takashima Zakuro die?! Kimika: Wh...y? Takuji: BECAUSE IT WAS NECESSARY! Kimika: Necessary? Takuji: That's right. She needed to become a ghost in order to save you. Takuji: She needed to become a spirit so she could know the future. Takuji: And the reason you are still alive is so you can tell the people! You need to tell the people what Takashima knew! Kimika: I need to... tell the people what Zakuro knew... Takuji: That's right. Takashima Zakuro entrusted it to you. Kimika: Entrusted... it? Takuji: Yes, she trusted that you would come to me and save the world. Kimika: That I would... Takuji: One must know pain themselves before they can understand the pain of others. Kimika: The pain of others... Takuji: That's why people who haven't known pain themselves can so easily hurt the people around them. Kimika: Th-That's... Takuji: Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko are perfect examples of that, but you're different. You know pain. Takuji: Right now, you're the person who understands Takashima Zakuro's pain more than any other! Kimika: Ah... I-I'm... Takuji: Is there anyone who understands Takashima Zakuro's pain better than you do? Is there anyone who understands Takashima Zakuro's feelings better than you do? Kimika: No... There's no one. I was her friend, and she saved me. Then, despite my love for her, I betrayed her... and, and... Takuji: I understand. I understand what you're saying. Kimika: Aah... Takuji: Don't say anything more. Takashima understands... Kimika: Mamiya... sama... Takuji: Until now, you thought you were worth less than the worms underfoot. Takuji: You thought your existence had no value. Takuji: You associated with the bitches, the whores, and the worms, and you were scorned. Takuji: You thought you had no value. Takuji: And after you betrayed the friend who saved you, what value did your existence have? Takuji: But you were wrong! Takuji: You have value! You have a reason to exist! That's why Takashima died in your place! Kimika: Ah, my savior... Takuji: There is a reason for your existence. Takuji: Be relieved, Tachibana Kimika. You were right to come to me. This too was a result of Takashima-san's guidance. Kimika: Zakuro's? Takuji: Before her death, she was my servant. She was of great use to me. Kimika: Zakuro was? Takuji: Well, I wasn't yet the savior at the time, so I guess you could say we were dating. *Though I guess it was just her unrequited love for me... I never really realized the truth at the time.* Takuji: She died so that I could be awakened as the savior. Takuji: The truth is, she died for me. Takuji: She knew everything. That's why she kept it a secret from me, her lover, that she was going to die. Takuji: So that I could awaken as the savior... Kimika: My savior, you were dating Zakuro? Takuji: Yeah, it seems she loved me... though I wasn't able to respond to her feelings very well. Kimika: The person Zakuro loved. You're... Zakuro's savior. Takuji: Yes. I was a savior to Takashima Zakuro as well. Kimika: I-I, um... Takuji: Senagawa Yui... You know who she is. Kimika: Yes! Takuji: Takashima Zakuro resents Senagawa Yui more than Akasaka Megu or Kitami Satoko. Kimika: Yes... Takuji: Oh, right... Takashima Zakuro might make peace with those two. I could help them. Kimika: Help them? Takuji: I intend to help them attain Takashima-san's forgiveness. Kimika: ... Kimika: C-Can you really do that? Takuji: Of course I can. Who do you think I am? Kimika: Oh, s-sorry. Takuji: Anyway, they may make peace with Takashima. Takuji: But Senagawa is different. Kimika: Mrs. Senagawa is... different? Takuji: Yes. Takashima resents the fact that a teacher allowed the bullying to happen. Kimika: I guess she did. Kimika: She knew, but she didn't want to bother with it. Takuji: That's right. Takuji: Watch her movements. Kimika: Movements? Takuji: She will die tomorrow. Kimika: Eh? Takuji: She will die from Takashima Zakuro's curse. Kimika: Mrs. Senagawa will die from Zakuro's curse. Kimika: Die from... Zakuro's curse... Kimika: Die... Kimika: Hehehehe... Die, die, die. Senagawa is going to die! Kimika: Killed by Zakuro... Kimika: Killed... *Maybe I scared her too much... Her emotions are a wreck. Her face looks like she's lost in ecstasy.* *I have to be careful. If I scare humans too much, they might break.* Takuji: Tachibana... Are you all right? Kimika: Eh * Yes."* Takuji: She will die tomorrow. Kimika: Tomorrow. Got it. Takuji: Yes, and I need you to watch her movements until then. Kimika: Surveillance until she dies? Takuji: No, you can stop at the end. It would be hard on you to watch a person die. Kimika: Not at all... I'm fine. Takuji: ... *She was so emotional before, but then she accepted that someone was going to die without even blinking.* *Does this girl have a screw loose?* *Or...* Kimika: I'll do anything... if it helps you, my savior. *I see. So that's why...* *The reason she accepts it so easily. She's like a well trained soldier, or a cultist.* *Tachibana Kimika... She could be useful.* Takuji: All right, then. I'll entrust you with this mission. Kimika: Understood. I won't let you down. Takuji: From now on, message me and tell me about all her movements. No matter how irrelevant it may seem, report everything you notice to me. Kimika: Understood! Takuji: Hehehe... I'm putting my trust in you. Takuji: My... servant. Kimika: I will perform my duty! *She could be a useful tool.* *Suddenly obtaining a loyal servant like this must have been predetermined.* *Hehehe... This is great.* *My mother was so kind.* *I didn't expect her to arrange this.* *Jesus Christ's meeting with the apostles could only be called fate.* *It could be called a necessary coincidence for the savior.* *The first disciple...* *Tachibana Kimika.* *The woman who betrayed Takashima Zakuro.* *Though I thought she was hiding something in her right hand at first... I guess it was just my imagination.* *Hehehe... I was too suspicious of her.* *Something like this...* *I convinced myself as I sat in front of my computer.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *you definitely saw it* *but you didn't do anything* *you knew* *but you pretended like you didn't* *This would be the first message.* *One hour later, this would be sent.* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* ** *you knew they were always bullying me* *on the roof of building c* *they borrowed the key from you after all* *Hehehe... Isn't this a masterpiece?* *This one doesn't just say 'it hurts, it hurts'.* *This one is only being sent to Senagawa.* *I won't send this one to Akasaka Megu or Kitami Satoko.* *It's curse mail just for that teacher.* *Hehehehe... She'll know fear like she's never known before.* *I've already written all the curse mail I'll need to make her into a sacrifice.* *But I'll need to do some fine tuning to corner her.* *I have a person reporting her every move.* *In that way, Tachibana Kimika became my loyal servant at the perfect time.* *I made her watch Senagawa and report her every move... I'll use every message from her to fine tune the contents of the curse mail.* *I'll lead her to her demise.* *A sacrifice so that I may become the savior.* Takuji: Now then... *Next is the question of what to do with Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko.* *I'll give them the opposite of what I gave Senagawa.* *For Senagawa, death. For those two, salvation.* *That should be an appropriate miracle for me to show the masses.* Takuji: And for that... *First, I have to fish them out.* *If I don't cast my line, I won't be able to catch any fish.* *I would've never done this before.* *I started a thread on the SAWAYAKA message board with my own name.* *1: Who shall be saved and who shall not* *1: Mamiya Takuji: 2012/07/15(W) 11:23:12 ID:mamiya* *Many of you have confirmed it.* *Many of you have seen it.* *Takashima's message predicted my awakening.* *I am standing here now.* *As the savior.* *Now it is time to determine who will be saved and who will not.* *People started replying right after I posted the thread.* *Of course... Their hearts are thick with fear.* Takuji: Hehehe... They're mocking me. Are you all that scared? *The thread grew incredibly quickly.* *Now I just had to wait for the most fearful person of all to post.* *They'll definitely fall into this thread's trap.* *They're the ones who most desire to be saved from this situation.* Takuji: Hehehehe... Let the game begin. Takuji: You can only dance in the palm of my hand. *I don't feel the passage of time when I'm in my underground base.* *Like the concept of time doesn't even exist.* *Here, only my phone and my computer clock remember the time.* Takuji: Just before nine o'clock, huh? *Quite a lot of time has passed since sunset. I haven't talked to Riruru-chan today.* Takuji: Because there's no need. *If it's all been predetermined, there's a reason why my angel hasn't come to talk to me.* *Some reason...* Takuji: A reason, huh? *I gazed at the icon drawn on the wall.* *It was a sacred image of an angel drawn by the savior.* *So that picture had power beyond comprehension.* Takuji: Riruru... chan... *I held her in mind...* *And sent her a Holy Surge.* *Yes, this is the line of communication that connects the savior to the angels...* Takuji: ... Riruru: ... Takuji: Huh? Takuji: R-Riruru-chan? Riruru: ... Takuji: What did you say? Riruru: ... Takuji: ... Takuji: What... It feels like... *What is this? Riruru-chan feels different somehow...* *This feeling is...* *Unease?* *No...* *This is...* *Fear.* *Why?* *Why would I fear Riruru-chan?* *That's strange.* *This is definitely strange.* Takuji: But still... *This feeling reminds me of something.* *This feeling reminds me of... That's it!* Takuji: Otonashi Ayana! *That' it. It reminds me of the feeling when I'm talking to Otonashi.* *It's close to that feeling. Even after becoming the savior, I still loathe it.* *But...* *This is Riruru-chan...* *I'm not sure, but...* *This isn't Otonashi.* *Why?* *Why do I feel like this?* *And...* *Something feels different.* Takuji: What? Riruru: ... Takuji: Save you? Takuji: Save you from what? Takuji: Eh? The roof... Takuji: Go to the roof? Riruru: ... Takuji: Something outside? Takuji: What's outside? Takuji: The world? Takuji: What about the world? Takuji: Eh? Riruru: ......... Takuji: What is this... *There was no doubt.* *Something about her was different from normal.* *Riruru-chan felt different somehow. No, I could still feel the old Riruru-chan.* Takuji: An impurity? *A foreign substance... like white and black were mixing.* *Like the white and black were trying to devour each other.* Takuji: What's happening? Takuji: Haa... I guess it's futile trying to figure it out. *It's all been predetermined.* *There's always some important meaning behind my actions.* Takuji: Go to the roof... *There must be something important there.* *That's what God whispered to me.* *So I headed to the roof.* Takuji: ... *What's that?* *Something was looking at me from the bottom of the pool.* Takuji: Why are you looking at me *A pool without water.* *I should have been able to see the bottom of the pool, but it had transformed into an abyss.* *Something was sticking its long neck out of the abyss and looking at me.* *Looking at the world from within the abyss.* Takuji: What is it, people of the abyss? Is it that rare to see a human savior? *"..."* Takuji: Oh, you can't talk? *"......"* Takuji: Hehehehe... *The people with long necks opened their mouths.* *Within their mouths, there was neither tongue nor tooth.* *There was just another abyss.* *A long neck that stretched into the endless abyss.* Takuji: Why are you looking at me? *Because the end of the world is fast approaching.* *No, there's something else.* *I looked up at the school roof.* *The air above the school was distorted.* Takuji: This is the feeling of... a shadow? Takuji: The shadow when something passes through. *Just like when a three dimensional object passes through a two dimensional plane... Something from a higher dimension is passing above the school.* *It was revolving and changing shape like a polychoron... Like a four dimensional cube.* Takuji: Something is coming. *Something was coming to the rooftop.* *It was... a strange shadow.* *It looked like a warped statue.* *Some unknown existence was pointing at the school building.* Takuji: I know what this is. *It was indicating a route to the rooftop.* *Like a road sign.* *But I knew the way even without it.* *The way I must go.* Takuji: Oh, look at this. Takuji: Thank you for your attention. Takuji: ... Takuji: What? Takuji: Ahahahahaha, of course not. Takuji: ... Takuji: A corpse? Takuji: Whose? Takuji: Oh, Shiroyama's. Takuji: What about it? Takuji: Hmm? Takuji: Give you his corpse? Takuji: What are you going to do with it? Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Ahahahaha, what's up with that? Takuji: For the record, you're one of those, right? Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Hahahaha, yeah, but you guys really are low dimensionals. Takuji: You're no better than any of the people who go to this school. Takuji: Eh? Takuji: What? Takuji: His corpse is? Takuji: Oh, really... I see. Takuji: But still, even if he's dead, I don't know if he'll listen to me. Takuji: Well, I'll tell him if I see him. Takuji: That you guys wanted him. Takuji: ... Takuji: No, no, you don't need to thank me. Takuji: Ahahaha, you can't have my body. Takuji: Besides, the savior's body is too big for you. It's so big you would just get lost inside it. Takuji: Yeah, that's right. For all eternity... Takuji: Hehehe... You're pretty funny. I like you. Takuji: Ahahahaha, well then, I'll see you later. Takuji: Oh, someone's there. Takuji: Not a human, huh... Takuji: They're coming toward me. Takuji: Oh, look, if it isn't Shiroyama-kun... Takuji: The guys I met earlier said you were walking around, but I didn't believe them. Takuji: I thought you were already cremated and in the ground. Takuji: Where did you wander in from? Takuji: Or did no one clean up your body? Takuji: The janitor is awfully lazy, then... Takuji: Well, the school lets bullying happen, so I shouldn't be surprised they would forget to clean up a corpse. *If they would let a person be bullied to death, it's not surprising that they'd leave a dead body laying around.* Takuji: But doesn't a walking corpse pose a hygiene problem? Takuji: Hehehehe... You smell awful. Takuji: I hated you when you were alive, but you're even worse when you're dead. Takuji: They say even death can't cure an idiot, but in your case I guess it would be that death can't cure an asshole. *"..."* Takuji: Hmm? *"..."* Takuji: Yeah, it is. Takuji: Look, it's about time. Takuji: They were looking for you. Takuji: Look, over there. *"..."* Takuji: What? Takuji: Yeah, you'll be eaten. *"..."* Takuji: I don't know. I don't hang out with them. *"..."* Takuji: No way... I can't do that... Takuji: Well then, I'll be going... Takuji: Have fun. The people from the abyss were looking for you. You're a popular guy. *"..."* Takuji: Hehehehe... Are you scared? Takuji: Your head jiggles when you're scared? That's a funny way of expressing yourself. *I went up the stairs.* *The stairs to the roof.* *The road to the sky.* *I ascended.* Takuji: ... Takuji: This is the roof... Takuji: Directly beneath the sky... *The sky was lit up for a moment.* *Light shone out from in between the thick, dark clouds.* Takuji: Lightning... Takuji: Thunder... *The dark sky was bathed in a blue light.* *The pitch black world was dyed blue for an instant.* *The lightning was coming closer. The time between the lightning and the thunder was shorter that time.* Takuji: Oh, it's going to rain. Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: ...What was that? *I saw countless shapes in the sky illuminated by the lightning, but I couldn't tell what they were.* *They were like...* Takuji: A flock of birds at a time like this? Takuji: That's... *This time, the lightning illuminated far more flying shadows than before.* *They looked just like...* Takuji: ...A massive swarm of locusts. *I'd seen them on TV before.* *The sky was covered with flying shadows.* *More shadow than sky...* *It was a picture of a massive swarm of locusts that had mutated from solitary to gregarious locusts, forming a terrifying mass of insects.* Takuji: Ah... This is bad. *This is bad.* *That thought instantly filled my mind.* *Because I realized that the next peal of thunder would be the seventh. The seventh peal of thunder is the signal.* *The signal for the final battle in the Book of Revelation... The seven bowls are poured out and disaster flows into the world.* Takuji: This is― *The flying shadows covered the sky.* *With their great wings, they looked like a massive swarm of locusts. No, a massive army of...* Takuji: Riruru-chan... Takuji: What's happening? Takuji: What is this? This is bad... Takuji: This is... far beyond the comprehension of humans. Takuji: This is... the final battle of the gods. Takuji: Ah! Takuji: Aagh! Riruru: ......... Riruru: ...... Riruru: ... Takuji: What is this... Takuji: ... Riruru: 　　・　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Riruru: 　　・　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Riruru: 　　・　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 *A sound like locusts flapping their wings.* *No, is this the sound of their voices?* *Riruru-chan's howling voice?* *Tekeli-li-li... That strange sound echoed through the sky.* *A mental counter-current.* *Inversion of information.* *The shadow of a higher dimension.* *Shadow, shadow, shadow.* *The light of a higher dimension.* *Light, light, light.* *Mother.* *Mother train.* *My mother's bundle.* *My mother pitching a second game.* Takuji: What... What is this? Takuji: What... What's happening? *My head...* *I was terribly confused.* *The final battle of the gods was happening right above my head.* *It was a battle between mirrored existences.* *Opposite aspects that can never mix.* *Those aspects were angels and demons.* *Or the light and the darkness.* *Purity and filth.* *Good and evil.* *An instant and all eternity.* *Anode and cathode.* *Benign and harmful.* *Heaven and hell.* *Benevolence and malevolence.* *Abasement and hypocrisy.* *Intelligence and feeblemindedness.* *Expansion and contraction.* *The living and the dead.* *Obligation and resent.* *Order and chaos.* *Humility and pride.* *The previous world and the next.* *Silence and clatter.* *Improvement and deterioration.* *As well as fiction and reality.* *Real and fake.* *Dream and nightmare.* *Order and chaos.* *Concrete and abstract.* *Organized and disorganized.* *A confrontation of all things.* *The end of all things.* *All that is true and all that is fake.* *Words.* *Words.* *Proposition.* *Thousands, millions, billions... An innumerable number of black wings and white wings.* *The sky was covered with their beating wings.* *White and black in stillness.* *An ordered pattern of white and black.* *Then the silence turned into a great tumult.* *It changed into a chaotic mix of white and black.* *Apocalypse.* *The battle between the light and darkness that divide the world finally began.* *Two giant snakes entangled within each other.* *They wrestled in the sky.* *The entrails of angels.* *Feathers flying.* *Crushed wings.* *Falling angels.* *The ground, covered in angels.* *White angels.* *Black angels.* *My mother's words.* *God's menstruation.* *The voice of heaven.* *Impregnation.* *Semen.* Riruru: Save me, Takuji-kun! Takuji: Eh? *A white Riruru begged me for help.* *I didn't know what to do.* Riruru: No! Don't let yourself be taken in! *A white Riruru rebuked me.* *I didn't know what to do.* *The world was drenched with the angels' voices.* *The sky was full of wings.* *The angels fell like rain.* *Limbs.* *Entrails.* *Eyes.* *A white Riruru dragged out a black Riruru's entrails.* Riruru: Aaaaaaaaah! It hurts!! *The black Riruru cried it out in pain.* *Then the white Riruru pulled out her entrails.* *She begged me for help.* *IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS IT HURTS SAVE ME.* *I didn't know what to do.* *A black Riruru used her sword to cut another white Riruru's intestines out.* Riruru: It hurts so bad... *Then the sword was pulled out, pulling the white Riruru's intestines along with it.* Riruru: Ha, haaaaa... Aaaaah... *She groaned in despair as she looked at her own guts strewn out before her.* *Two angels lost their ability to fly.* *The girl with white wings and the girl with black wings...* *They grappled with each other as they fell to the earth.* *Their hands were clasped, and their intestines entwined as they fell to the earth.* *They looked as if they were dancing with each other.* *A beautiful pair of angels.* *Hands clasped, kissing, with entrails entwined as they fell, fell, fell out of the sky.* *They held each other's hands, and then crashed into the ground.* *Clumps of flesh rained down.* *Almost like hail...* *Crashed into the ground.* *Blood rained down.* *Almost like rain...* *They drenched the earth.* *The swarm of Rirurus blotted out the sky... Thousands, millions, billions of dead angels.* *The corpses came down like rain.* *Their bodies burst upon impact with the earth...* Riruru: Why won't you save us?! You're supposed to save the world! Riruru: No! Accept reality! Don't run away! Don't run away! Riruru: You're the savior, aren't you?! Why won't you lend us your power?! Riruru: Leave! You should have never come here! *I stood in the midst of their innumerable voices and did nothing.* *I stood in the rain of corpses and did nothing.* *The swarm of Rirurus filled the sky. No, the universe.* *The sun danced on the tip of White Riruru's tongue.* *The moon kicked in Black Riruru's womb.* *In Scorpius, Antares shined red with blood.* *At a white Riruru's urging... Antares shone dark red and instantly disintegrated millions of black Rirurus.* *Thunder and lightning.* *The awakening of an angel.* *The flapping of a demon's wings.* *The despair of the stars.* *What I must do...* *I hesitated.* *I was frozen in that spot.* *I froze before the battle of the gods.* *I froze.* *What could a human like me do in the final battle?* *Before I realized it, the battle of the angels had ended.* *The final battle of the angels ended in an instant.* *There were puddles of blood on the school rooftop where the angels fell.* *Like a puddle bathed in the red of the setting sun.* *The puddles reflected the sky in shades of red.* *The battle of the angels ended.* *The opposing swarms of white and black angels.* *There was no resolution... It ended with mutual destruction.* *Even after billions of them died, nothing changed. Nothing was accomplished.* *The white angels and the black angels.* *They all just ate away at each other, destroyed each other, and disappeared.* Takuji: Riruru-chan... *There was no answer.* *Of the billions of Riruru-chans that blotted out the sky, not one survived.* Takuji: Ah... That's right. *That's right... I have to think...* Takuji: I... have to do what I can... *The battle of the gods occurred in the heavens.* *A battle that divided the universe.* *As a mere human, there was nothing I could do.* *So now I have to do what I can.* *I should do what I can.* *I gathered up the pieces of Riruru-chan that were strewn around the rooftop.* *I picked up the chunks of flesh that went flying when she collided with the ground.* *I should make her anew.* *I picked up the pieces of her laying around so that I could restore her to normal.* *I have to pick up her pieces.* *The first thing I found was a right hand.* *Now that I think of it, I think she actually was looking for her right hand... But I can't do anything with just a hand.* *I found her right arm and right shoulder.* *I put her right hand in place... She can use her right hand to grasp what she wants.* *Though she probably isn't in the right state of mind to want much of anything right now.* *That's it.* *I need to find her brain so she can think again.* *I walked around the rooftop, gathering pieces of Riruru-chan.* *I don't know the details about all the different pieces of her guts though.* *For instance, I have no idea where to put the pancreas. I don't know the exact details. Nevertheless, I clumsily put her back together.* *It was like putting together a puzzle.* *If there's a place where it fits, a piece has value.* *But if there's nowhere it fits, the piece is worthless... Those are just chunks of flesh.* *I gathered pieces of her that fit.* *I gathered the ones that fit.* *There were a lot of pieces that I didn't need.* *Pieces that didn't go anywhere.* *Pieces that didn't fit.* *There were lots of them.* Takuji: This is hard... *It made me appreciate the work God did when he first made humans.* *It's really hard to make life... and I already had all the pieces.* *...That's what I thought about while I gathered the pieces of Riruru-chan.* *I looked for an eyeball.* *No, I already have a right eye.* *A left eyeball... They look the same, but there's a difference between the left and right eyeballs.* *An asymmetrical body.* *I tried to adjust it until it looked right...* Takuji: It looks really grotesque. *I created a single Riruru-chan from the pieces of several others.* *The parts should have been the same, but I couldn't quite make it look right.* *The lump of flesh started to look stranger and stranger as I put her together.* *Why...* *It hardly looked like my cute Riruru-chan at all.* *I knew what it should look like in my head, but I couldn't seem to put it together right.* *How did it turn into such a strange, warped thing?* *I had the perfect image of a beautiful girl in my head, but what my hands actually made didn't look like her at all. It looked like a creepy statue.* Takuji: This is wrong... Wrong... This isn't how it's supposed to look. Riruru-chan was more like... this. Aah, that's wrong, wrong, wrong! *Every time I touched her, she got uglier.* *She diverged more and more from the picture in my head.* *Aagh... It's all wrong...* *She almost looked like...* *The scribble on the wall...* *The kind of childish picture some teenager would post on the Internet.* *No one would think... this lump of flesh is cute.* Takuji: I have to try harder. *I did what I could.* *What I can do... What I need to do right now.* Takuji: Wha―?! Takuji: Oh, this is bad... It's getting late. *I looked at the clock... It was past 11.* *I had to hurry up.* *The day was about to end.* Takuji: I have to... I have to do what I can. *I descended the stairs... holding the grotesquely completed Riruru-chan.* *Her warped body seemed to be moving ever so slightly, but I ignored it.* *There were lots of things I had to do.* *I quickly went to my base... There are a lot of things I still have to do on Earth.* *The roof is the domain of the gods.* *That's not a place for humans.* *So I descended to the earth... I went to the world of humans...* *I slipped into the human world.* *Words.* *Human words.* *I slipped into the sea of words.* *The world is everything that is the case.* *The world is the totality of facts, not of things.* *That which is the case... That which is not the case...* *The world is determined by the facts, and by these being all the facts.* *I descended into that world.* *I returned to my room in my secret base.* *I turned on my computer and dived into the sea of human words. Human words, words, words...* *I entered that sea.* Takuji: Ah... Oh right... *I had to check the SAWAYAKA message board.* *That was the first thing I had to do.* *Since I'm the administrator of this site, I had to check that group of words first.* *I had to administrate that group of words where everyone wears the same expression.* *Anxiety.* *And...* *Anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety anxiety.* *There is no such thing as creative anxiety.* *Anxiety always looks the same.* *No originality.* *Anxiety wears a banal guise.* Takuji: You're all just repeating the same words... You disappoint me. *I watched this group of words that did nothing but copy each other and thought of what I could do.* *What can I do to this group of words?* *I can't participate in a battle that divides the universe.* *I can't call the thunder or the lightning. I can't devour the sun, and I can't plead with the star Antares.* *I can't do anything to a swarm of angels.* *But here...* *The words here are a group of people.* *There's something I must do to this group of people.* *There's something I must do.* *Because I am the savior.* Takuji: Something I can do as the savior... Takuji: I'll tell you all a fairy tale. *What I can do is lead this poor flock of sheep.* *Out of the dangerous forest... into the safe plains.* *That's what I can do.* Takuji: I'll heal your wounds. Takuji: What I can do... is save you all. *I am the human's savior.* *I was born into this world so that I could save people.* *1: Who shall be saved and who shall not* *356: Satoko: 2012/07/15(W) 23:13:12 ID:satokon* *Can you prove you're the savior?* *If you're the savior, then you should be able to stop Takashima's curse.* *357: Akasaka Megu: 2012/07/15(W) 23:15:40 ID:megu* *It's not hard to say all these things.* *Stop Takashima's messages.* Takuji: Hook, line, and sinker... *The trap I set a few hours before had caught something.* *But I couldn't relax just yet.* *Game that has been caught in a trap may be weaker, but its mind is as alert as it can be.* *If I'm not careful when I open the trap, I might be the one that gets eaten.* *Calm down... Chase your desperate prey...* *Accurately, perfectly, logically, analytically.* *430: Mamiya Takuji: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:33:32 ID:mamiya* *Stop Takashima's curse?* *What do you mean?* *I think her future messages will prove useful, don't you?* *432: Akasaka Megu: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:36:20 ID:megu* *The ones that are just coming to me and Satoko.* *Those messages are nothing but scary. Stop those.* *We're getting those messages every hour.* *How selfish...* *Though I don't care to say that anymore.* *Why would I be annoyed that the lowest of lifeforms is the lowest of lifeforms?* *People hate cockroaches, but no one is surprised that a cockroach is detestable.* *I pulled out the piece of Takashima-san's skull that had been in her phone.* *For an exorcism... this piece of skull would be the perfect way to summon a ghost.* Takuji: And the location of the exorcism... would of course be that place. The building where Takashima-san jumped to her death. *444: Mamiya Takuji: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:37:32 ID:mamiya* *Do exactly what I'm about to say.* *First, go to Newtown Street in Suginomiya, and walk five meters to the left of the entrance to the apartment building.* *447: Akasaka Megu: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:40:40 ID:megu* *Don't screw with me. There's no way I can go there.* *448: Satoko: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:41:12 ID:satokon* *I'm too scared to go to the place where Takashima died.* *Her curse will kill me.* *453: Mamiya Takuji: 2012/07/16(Th) 01:43:32 ID:mamiya* *In the end, you are the ones who will have to decide if you want to go.* *If you're right about being killed, won't the same thing eventually happen if you don't go?* *There is a lock of hair at the place where she died.* *Pick it up and bring it home.* Takuji: Hehehehe... I'll show you a miracle. I can stop her curse. *I got ready to go to Suginomiya.* *I should be able to get there in a few minutes with my bicycle.* *I have to place this before Akasaka or Kitami get there.* *Then a miracle will occur.* Takuji: That's right. *I'll do what I can...* *I'll heal their wounds...* *I'll lead the sheep out of the forest...* *That's the job given to the savior of humans.* *It's what I can do.*

*I heard a drop in the distance.* *Somewhere far away...* *Where am I?* *That's what I always think when I wake up.* *I heard a bell in the distance.* *In some far off city.* *No, that wasn't the sound of a bell. It was the sound of an insect flapping its wings.* *The sound of a winged insect...* *Hundreds, thousands, millions, billions... of winged insects.* *At school, the only sound I hear is the sound of the bell...* *Not the sound of winged insects.* *Or maybe that too is just an auditory hallucination.* *An illusion that doesn't really exist.* *I couldn't hear that sound anymore.* *A faint landscape.* *This is... my room.* *When did I come home? I don't remember that at all.* *But it's always like that when I wake up.* *I can never remember what I was doing before I went to sleep, or where I was, or even what time I went to sleep.* *My heart is just relaxed... and everything feels distant.* *Everything feels nice and even.* Takuji: Now then... *First, I turned on my computer.* *I organized my thoughts as I watched my computer start up.* Takuji: Oh, right. Last night, I rode my bicycle from the school to Suginomiya and put Takashima-san's hair in that spot... Then I came home... *I connected to the Internet, looked at the posts since last night, and posted on the message board as the savior.* Takuji: Phone... *I got a message on my cell phone.* *It was from Tachibana Kimika.* *She was watching Senagawa Yui's movements for me.* *I checked the message she had sent me.* Takuji: Hmm... Senagawa went to the school at six in the morning, huh... *Though I guess I did write in one of the automated messages that Takashima-san would be going to her house at about this time.* *She wanted to run away somewhere and she chose the school, huh... What a dull choice.* *I looked at Takashima-san's phone.* *The inbox was full of messages from Senagawa Yui.* Takuji: Hehehe... She's actually responding to a ghost. *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/16 06:06* *to: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: Re:* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *Don't come to my room.* *Please.* *Please don't come.* *I'll go find your doll.* Takuji: So she went to the school to look for that doll? There's no way she's going to be able to find it after this long, though. *Senagawa doesn't even know what kind of doll it is. How is she going to look for something she won't recognize?* Takuji: Well, whatever... Takuji: But still, that was easier than I expected. *Senagawa was nicknamed the steel lady by the students, so I thought it would take a bit longer than that to peel away her psychological defenses.* *Even if she acts tough, she's still a woman. They're born in a position favored by society.* *Now I just have to decide how I'm going to lead her to suicide.* Takuji: It might be better to stop the automated messages and send them by hand. Takuji: By hand... There we go. Takuji: Something like this... *i came to your room but* * why aren't you here?* * when i touched the cute dolls in your room* * all their heads came off* Takuji: The time right now is... *I still had to wait about twenty minutes until I could send the message.* *From here on, I would have to send the curse mail to Senagawa by hand.* *I had to make sure I didn't forget the time.* Takuji: Uh... *I set a timer so that my cell phone would vibrate once an hour.* *I set it to remind me five minutes before every hour. Though, since I'm sending it manually, there will still be some discrepancy in the time.* *No one would notice something like that, though.* Takuji: I'll chase her into a corner, once every hour... And then... I'll kill her. *I won't dirty my own hands. I'll kill her with my miracle.* *A perfect crime that only the savior could commit.* *I'd already thought of several ways I could ultimately kill her.* *I prepared for every possible scenario. Different methods of killing filled my brain.* *There are four possible choices in one turn... and the route diverges in thirty-two places before the end.* *Even with just four possible choices at each divergence, thirty-two points of divergence means there are over eighteen quintillion possibilities.* *Of those, 18,446,744,073,709,551,798 are bad ends... In other words, failure.* *Most of the 202 remaining endings couldn't be called success, though in all of them I would at least succeed in killing Senagawa.* *There are only twelve endings where everything goes according to plan.* *But I want the best possible route. I want one of two endings.* *The first of the two optimal endings would be Senagawa committing suicide by jumping off the apartment building.* *Of course, I'm talking about the same apartment building where Takashima Zakuro committed suicide.* *This would be the most impressive death, and the most revelatory...* *If she committed suicide there, a great number of people would witness it. It would be the most beautiful miracle. It's definitely a favorable outcome.* *But there are several problems with this route.* *The first problem is that since Takashima-san just committed suicide there a few days ago, the rooftop is off limits except for authorized personnel.* *When I checked, all the entrances to the roof were locked, including the elevator and the fire escape.* *The problem is how to get the key.* *If I could get the key, it would be simple, but I haven't found any way to get the key so far.* *I did consider the possibility of associating myself with one of the employees, but...* *I probably already missed the flag to get on this route... I should assume it's impossible to start this route now.* *The most realistic option is the second of the optimal outcomes, in which Senagawa would commit suicide by jumping off the top of Building C.* *The Building C rooftop is locked, just like the apartment building rooftop in the first route.* *So there's no way a normal student would be able to go up there.* *It's off limits except for authorized personnel.* *It's the same problem as in the first route.* *But one variable is completely different in the second route.* *Senagawa is authorized personnel.* *Senagawa used to be the advisor of the Fine Arts Club, which has access to the Building C rooftop.* *It wouldn't be hard for her to get the key and go up there.* *After that, I just need to figure out how to drive her to suicide.* *Either way...* Takuji: It would be easiest to aim for the second route and make Senagawa commit suicide on Building C. *There are still plenty of difficulties with this plan, but it should be easy for the savior.* *If I use the information from Tachibana to keep leading her on... I should hit the flag naturally.* Takuji: Hehehe... I won't let the true ending hide from me. *School should've been starting soon, but...* *There were hardly any other students.* Takuji: Hehehehe... What's happening here? *Yesterday, the school was perfectly normal... This change happened overnight. It almost looked like school was cancelled.* *I didn't go into the school building. I walked toward my secret base instead.* *I don't have very much time until the day when I must return the world to the sky. I still have a great many things I must accomplish.* Takuji: ...What's this? *For some reason, there were a bunch of students gathered by the entrance to my secret base.* *What are they all doing so close to my secret base?* Kimika: I'm sorry, my savior... Takuji: What's going on, Tachibana? You were supposed to be watching Senagawa. Kimika: Oh, don't worry about that. I'm watching her.. * Could you spare some of your time?"* Takuji: Time? Haa... I suppose... Megu: U-Um... Takuji: You're... Megu: I-I'm Akasaka Megu. You dispelled Takashima's curse for me. Takuji: Oh, which means you're... Satoko: Y-Yes, I'm Kitami Satoko. Takuji: Hmm... And? What about the others? Kimika: Right... They wanted to meet the savior... Takuji: And? Why are they here? Kimika: Excuse me... I didn't mean to trouble you. Takuji: Yes, this is the site of my base. Don't allow anyone but my followers to come here. Kimika: In that case, there should be no problem. All of them want to follow you. Takuji: Oh, really... Megu: Um, you said Mrs. Senagawa's name earlier, but is she really going to die today? Takuji: Why? Megu: There's a rumor about it... Takuji: Oh, really... Aren't there plenty of other people who could die? Megu: Ah! Satoko: Y-You mean... Kimika: That's right... If Senagawa dies, there's a good chance that I would be next. Though it might be someone else, too. Megu: Eh? Satoko: Um, you mean... Takuji: The two of you, Senagawa, and Tachibana... Do you understand me? Female Student: Wh-What do you mean? Did Akasaka, Kitami, Tachibana, and Mrs. Senagawa do something? Takuji: Yeah, they did... They definitely did. Female Student: I-I knew it. It's Akasaka and Kitami's fault! Female Student: And Tachibana! You too! Kimika: Yes, it's my fault. Female Student: Th-Then we'll be saved, right? Those four are the ones who were cursed, right? Takuji: Haa... Why didn't you explain this before you brought them along, Tachibana? Kimika: I'm sorry.. * I thought it would be more persuasive if they heard it from you."* Takuji: Hmm... *So she's pushing the work onto me?* Takuji: The end of the world on July 20th isn't related to Takashima Zakuro's curse. I shouldn't need to say this, but one vengeful spirit doesn't have enough power to destroy the world. Female Student: Th-Then what are those messages? Those creepy messages from Takashima-san? Takuji: Those are her messages of love to all of you. She wants to save you all. Female Student: S-Save us? Takuji: Yes... Allow me to ask a question. Why is she telling you the world is going to end over and over? Megu: B-Because she resents us... Female Student: Shut up! She only resents you four! Takuji: Would you please not yell? Female Student: Ah, s-sorry... Takuji: Well, it is hard to imagine that Takashima Zakuro hated people she had hardly even knew. *Of course not. Though she must have hated all the people who saw her being bullied and did nothing.* Takuji: If it's not resent, then what is her purpose in sending those messages after her death? Takuji: Why would she keep telling you the world is about to end? Satoko: The purpose of the messages... Kimika: Because there is a way to save oneself? Takuji: Correct. Megu: Eh? Really? We can be saved? Female Student: But she hated you, so there's no way you'll be saved! Takuji: You... How many times do I have to say it? Female Student: Ah, s-sorry... I'm sorry! Takuji: Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and Tachibana Kimika... These three won't be killed by the curse. Female Student: Eh? Why? Aren't they cursed? Takuji: I already dispelled the curse. Female Student: D-Dispelled? Takuji: Yes, therefore Takashima's vengeful spirit won't come for them. Female Student: Do you mean... Mrs. Senagawa is going to be the one to die? Takuji: Exactly... I haven't dispelled her curse. Takashima still loathes her. Megu: W-Will Takashima's curse kill her? Satoko: Th-Then... if you hadn't dispelled our curse... Kimika: Of course. All three of us might have died today. Female Student: Th-Then you won't save Mrs. Senagawa? Takuji: Hehehe... Why would I do something she didn't ask me to? Female Student: B-But... you could at least tell her she's going to be killed by the curse. Takuji: The curse I dispelled from those two has been transferred to Senagawa. Takuji: Do you know what would happen if I dispelled it from her? Female Student: Eh? Takuji: The vengeful spirit wouldn't have a victim anymore. She might take anyone, even you... If you're okay with that, I suppose I could dispel her curse. Female Student: Ah, no, forget what I said. I'm sorry. Female Student: Um... Takuji: What is it? Female Student: Um, I heard from someone that you said the prophecy wouldn't come true. Takuji: Hmm? Takuji: What are you talking about? Female Student: Yokoyama Yasuko is in my class, and... she told me that you said the prophecy could never come true. Takuji: What? *What the hell?* *What does that mean... I don't remember saying that.* Takuji: When was that? Female Student: Eh? Uh, I heard it the day after Takashima-san committed suicide. Takuji: ... *Bizarre... That's impossible.* *I don't remember talking to her at all that day.* *What is this?* Female Student: Um, does that mean you changed your mind? Takuji: Hehehehehe... Takuji: No, not at all... Not at all. Takuji: I would never change my mind... Is that not true? Female Student: Eh? Oh, of course... Kimika: That's right. the savior would never change his mind. Takuji: It's nonsense to say that the prophecy isn't true. The prophecy is already happening. Megu: You mean on the 20th... Takuji: Yeah, that's right. Female Student: Wait, you mean everyone's going to die? Takuji: Maybe so... Kimika: That's right. Everyone will die. Everyone... Female Student: Th-That can't happen. I can't die yet. I still have so much I have to do before I die... And if I die, my mom will be so sad. Takuji: That shouldn't be a problem... Your mother will be dead too. Female Student: Of course that's a problem! Takuji: ...You. Megu: Dumbass! Female Student: Ouch... What are you doing, Akasaka! Megu: Who do you think you are? You need to be a bit more respectful toward the savior! Female Student: Th-The savior? Megu: Just now, Mamiya-kun... No, Mamiya-sama said 'maybe so,' didn't he? Takuji: Yeah... Megu: And he said there was a way we could be saved. Takuji: Yeah, there is. Female Student: Really? Is there a way to be saved?! Answer me! *The female student grabbed my lapels.* *Oh jeez...* Female Student: Agh! Female Student: Wait, ah, agh, ow, w-wait! Takuji: ... *I was surprised...* *After Akasaka knocked her over with a punch, Kitami jumped on top of her and started hitting her.* *What a team... For girls, they're awfully accustomed to using violence.* *I was shocked by their skill.* Kimika: Ahahaha... You two are as amazing as always. *So that's the true nature of the two girls who terrified Tachibana and Takashima-san.* *Anyone would want to commit suicide if they were getting bullied by these two.* Female Student: ... *She groaned quietly... and stopped moving.* *All the girls huddled there frozen in fear.* Megu: The world is going to end! It wouldn't make sense if it didn't! My boyfriend is already dead! Satoko: The world is going to end! But there is a way to be saved! *Oh, wow... Your boyfriend dying has nothing to do with the end of the world. You don't understand at all.* Kimika: A way to be saved... Everyone wants to hear what you have to say, Mamiya-sama. Please, tell us. Takuji: Haa... You guys are a pain. Megu: I'll do anything I need to be saved! I can get you whatever you need! Satoko: I-I'll do anything too. Anything! *Just how desperate are these two?* *Was it that hellish getting the curse mail the past few days?* *One of the basics of brainwashing is to completely destroy a person's individual personality, but destroying someone's personality through fear normally takes quite a bit of work.* *After finally being freed from Takashima's curse, and then immediately being faced with the end of the world, most people would try to follow someone else.* Takuji: This is a story from ancient times... Takuji: God in heaven looked out upon the people on Earth... and he despaired at the wickedness of man. Takuji: He resolved to send a great flood to blot out man from the face of land. Then he told a great prophet of his resolve. Takuji: The great prophet understood God's will, and he and his family constructed a monolithic ark. Takuji: During that time, the prophet tried to warn the people that the world would be flooded, but not a single one of the foolish people lent their ears to his words. Kimika: I know that story... It's Noah's Ark, from the Book of Genesis. Takuji: When Noah completed the ark, his wife, his three sons, and the three wives of his sons entered the ark... as well as two of every animal on the earth. Takuji: The world was covered in torrential rains for forty days and forty nights... And God destroyed all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven. Takuji: Even after the rain stopped and the sky grew clear, the water did not abate for 150 days. Megu: So we have to build an ark... Takuji: Hehehe... This is just an old story. Besides, God made a promise to the people. Takuji: That he will never again bring about a great flood to destroy all living things... Satoko: Eh? It won't happen again? Then the world will be fine? Takuji: Listen to what I said. He only promised he wouldn't cause another flood. Kimika: In other words... Takuji: Constructing an ark won't save us from the world's destruction. Takuji: It would be like using an umbrella in a burning building. An utterly fruitless effort. Megu: Th-Then... Takuji: Hmm... I'll tell you when the time comes. Takuji: But I'm not softhearted enough to save all of humanity. Megu: U-Um... Takuji: Don't worry... I'll save you. Megu: Eh? R-Really? Satoko: U-Um, what about me? Takuji: Don't worry. Takuji: Yeah, there's no problem. No problem. More importantly... Takuji: If you have any friends that wish to be saved, you may bring them to me. Takuji: But only people who believe in my prophecy. Takuji: If you bring a nonbeliever here, I... Takuji: ...won't save any of you. *The group dissolved.* *They could act freely.* *But if they bring a single nonbeliever to me, I won't save any of them.* *If one person betrays me, they will all die.* *I made sure that fact was clear.* Takuji: Now then... *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/16 09:20* *from: Takashima Zakuro* *subject: no subject* *―――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *another one will die* *from the roof into the courtyard* *they will keep dying and you can't stop it* *soon it will all end* *Anyway, I sent out the prediction in one of Takashima-san's messages. I did tell the prediction to some of them directly, but this is still the most effective way.* *Now then...* Takuji: ... *What... What is this feeling?* Takuji: ... Takuji: Wh-What... is this? *" "* Takuji: This is... *Our frequencies don't match?* *This feeling...* *It was the same as the first time.* *Why?* Takuji: Riruru-chan. Takuji: Why don't our frequencies match? *The Holy Surge was already tuned, but this feeling...* Takuji: This is because of last night! *Last night, White Riruru-chan and Black Riruru-chan fought the final battle that stretched across the universe.* *Every single Riruru-chan was turned into chunks of meat.* *But since someone was trying to reach me with the Holy Surge, that meant...* Takuji: Riruru-chan came back to life after I put her back together! *What a miracle.* *Of course, I only did it because there was a possibility of success, but I actually succeeded in reviving an angel!* *Fear the savior, Mamiya Takuji!* Takuji: Riruru-chan! *The first time, she called out to me, but this time was different. I had to call out to her.* *I carefully started tuning... After taking that much damage, she must be desperately sending the Holy Surge out to me.* Takuji: I'm the savior. I can handle a little bit of tuning... *I used my power as the savior.* *I used my fearsome powers of concentration to search for Riruru-chan's Holy Surge within the infinite sea of frequencies.* Takuji: Imagine how she looks! Create her body! And then give it shape! *I slowly adjusted the superdimensional vibrations to match her frequency.* *My Holy Surge rises above dimensions!* *The road illuminated by the M-theory!* *I break through the film of the second dimension!* *I break through the films of...* *...The third, fourth, and fifth dimensional frequencies!* *The sixth, the seventh...* *The eighth, the ninth...* *The frequencies of the tenth and eleventh dimensions!* *The M in M-theory...* *Stands for Magic!* *For Mystery!* *For Membrane (hymen)!* *It is the most important prerequisite to be a goddess!* Takuji: Aaaagh! *The circuit in my mind felt like it was on fire. My quantum mind connected with all dimensional spaces.* *The mind of the savior is the quantum mind!* *It traverses the infinite multiverse and accomplishes this great feat!* Takuji: Agh! Takuji: ... Takuji: The light... The packets of light... *"Take shape."* Takuji: ... Riruru: ... Riruru: Takuji: What... is this... Riruru: Takuji: I just have to reach a little further. Riruru: Takudjii-kuuun... Takuji: ... Takuji: A little further. Riruru: Ii amn Riruru. Riruru: I'm Riruru! Takuji: D-Did I mess up? *Even using the power of the savior, that was my limit.* *I only managed to restore her voice... Her body still looked like a bad scribble.* Takuji: Wh-Why do you look like that? Riruru: Look? Hmm? Riruru: Wait, what? * What happened?!"* Takuji: Why did you end up looking like that? Riruru: Well, because... that's how you made me. Takuji: I-It's my fault? Riruru: Yeah... This body is probably just like that drawing. Takuji: Eh? *Riruru-chan pointed toward the picture I had drawn on the wall.* Riruru: Last time, I materialized myself with my own power, but this time it was with your power. *Oh, so... that's why she ended up looking like a scribbled drawing.* *I was the one who drew that awful scribble that she ended up looking like.* Takuji: I'm sorry. Even as the savior, I didn't have enough power. Riruru: No, it's all right. Riruru: Next time you call me, you should look at a proper icon while you tune the Holy Surge. Takuji: A proper icon? Riruru: Yeah, if you make an icon that you want, it should turn out perfect. Takuji: A proper icon, huh... Riruru: If you draw the icon right, you can call whatever kind of Riruru you want. Takuji: R-Really? Riruru: Of course! I'm the Mahou Shoujo Riruru. Riruru: But more importantly, the battle yesterday... Takuji: Oh, yeah. You were fighting with some kind of black Riruru-chan. Riruru: Yeah... She always gets in my way. Takuji: Gets in your way? Riruru: Yeah, she's a bad person. The color black is a symbol of evil, you know? Takuji: Yeah. Riruru: So she's a demon. Takuji: What does she do that gets in your way? Riruru: Isn't there something that comes to mind, Takuji? A really nasty feeling. Takuji: Them! Riruru: Yeah. The people who put out those weird, nasty frequencies are all demons. Takuji: Weird frequencies? Riruru: Yeah, we call that frequency the Black Surge. Takuji: Black Surge? Riruru: Yeah, my frequency is the Holy Surge... and that pitch black surge that those people put out... That's the Black Surge. Takuji: The pitch black surge... Riruru: Yeah. Be careful about the Black Surge. Although you're the savior, so you shouldn't be able to get infected. Takuji: Infected? Do you mean the Black Surge can infect something? Riruru: Not just something... It can infect anything. The Black Surge turns everything in existence pitch black. Takuji: Everything? Riruru: Yes, everything. Riruru: The people on the Black Surge are trying to destroy the world. That's why they're trying to stop us from returning the world to the sky. Riruru: Originally, they were just like a shadow... They were my dregs, but they keep growing stronger. Takuji: Why is that happening? Riruru: Black Riruru multiplies by devouring human anxiety, and the anxiety in the world has suddenly increased in the past few days. Takuji: The anxiety in the world? Riruru: That's right. Humanity is connected by their unconscious. It's not just the people around you that are growing anxious. Riruru: The entire world is full of anxiety. Riruru: The sky is full of anxious words... Takuji: Isn't that really bad? Riruru: Yeah, that's why my father is going to descend upon this world today. Takuji: Eh? Your father... You mean... Riruru: Yes, the omniscient and omnipotent god Yog-Sothoth. Takuji: Yog-Sothoth... That's God's name. And he's going to descend upon the earth today. Riruru: Yeah, he wants to meet the savior. Takuji: I-I'm kind of nervous. Riruru: You'll be fine. You'll just have to match his channel, like you did with me. Takuji: Why? Riruru: An omniscient and omnipotent God is the world itself. To look at the world itself, you would have to elevate yourself to his level, right? Riruru: For instance, if a two dimensional human wanted to look at the entire two dimensional world... Takuji: He would have to look at it from the third dimension! Riruru: Yeah, so you'll have to tune yourself to a higher dimension. But it'll be fine. You're doing it right now! Takuji: Yeah... *Meeting with God. To think I've come that far...* *The savior will meet with God.* *The Father Himself...* Riruru: Also, I was wondering, Takuji-kun, have you noticed the fake Takuji? Takuji: Fake Takuji? Riruru: Yeah. Just like I'm here for you, Takuji-kun... It seems like Black Riruru has a fake Takuji-kun. Takuji: A fake... Takuji: Ah! *Now that I think of it...* Female Student: Um, I heard from someone that you said the prophecy wouldn't come true. Female Student: Yokoyama Yasuko is in my class, and she told me that you said the prophecy could never come true. Female Student: Eh? Uh, I heard it the day after Takashima-san committed suicide. Takuji: In other words, I have a doppelganger. Riruru: I knew you must have noticed something. Takuji: I did... I see. So Black Riruru created an imposter to deny my prophecy. Riruru: Yeah. So here, Takuji-kun. Take this! Takuji: What is this? Riruru: Moe moe item! Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Wh-What is it? Riruru: It's a white coat. Takuji: I know, but I don't understand. Why a white coat? Riruru: I was kidding about the moe part. Seriously speaking, this is made of the same white matter as my clothes. Takuji: White matter? Riruru: Yeah, the matter in it is white. To put it simply, this coat is made of the very concept of whiteness instead of any simple white material. Takuji: Made of the very concept of whiteness? Riruru: Yeah. You could say it actually is White Riruru. Takuji: You mean this is... Riruru: God's cloth. *This is God's cloth...* Riruru: These holy robes were made just for you, Takuji-kun. *I see. Now that I think of it, saints always have holy robes.* *As the savior, my holy robes are the concept of whiteness itself. These robes suit my position.* Riruru: *Eh?* *What is this sound?* *When I looked up... Riruru-chan was gone.* *I was alone in the darkness of my base.* Takuji: Light... *There's a light on... Was it on before?* *Well, that's not important.* Takuji: My phone is ringing! *A message from Tachibana?* *What is it?* *The message only said, "Something big just happened."* *Something big?* Takuji: Ah?! C-Crap! *I checked the clock... it was already 6:00.* Takuji: I forgot to send the curse mail to Senagawa! Takuji: Now the prediction isn't going to... *What a failure. I totally forgot about the curse mail.* Takuji: To think that the savior would... *In the darkness, I nearly fell over.* *And my head was hurting...* Takuji: This isn't good. Anyway, I should go up to the surface. Takuji: Crap... It's already evening. *It was already starting to get dark.* Takuji: How did so much time pass? *I don't know where the time went.* *I'm completely untethered from the progression of time.* Takuji: Huh?! *I heard voices from behind the school.* *The voices were coming toward me.* Takuji: ...This is bad. *A crowd of people surrounded me before I could escape into my secret base.* *They must have been waiting for me to appear.* *Damn it... Did they come to ask me why the prediction didn't come true?* Kimika: U-Um, Mamiya-sama... Takuji: ... *Tachibana's voice is shaking. She's scared... This is bad...* *Even the strongest person in recorded history would have trouble fending off this many people.* *My only choice is to run... But can I?* *When should I dash?* *Crap... Don't rush it. Stay calm and make a logical decision. I'm the savior.* Kimika: I-I saw it... Takuji: N-No... Th-This is... *A-Anyway, I have to say something... I have to come up with an excuse.* Kimika: Mrs. Senagawa really died! I was so moved! Your power did it, my savior! Takuji: U-Um... Takuji: ... *What... did she just say?* Kimika: I was waiting in the courtyard, just like you ordered me to... and Mrs. Senagawa really fell. She splattered all over the ground. Takuji: Wh-What? Kimika: It was the rooftop above the fourth floor, so she fell from five stories up. I didn't think that was high enough to kill someone outright, but she just went splat. *Just like I ordered you to?* Kimika: Yes. You specified the time and location, didn't you? *I even specified the time and location?* Takuji: R-Really? Takuji: Ah... Takuji: That's right. *I remember... Every time my phone vibrated, I sent a message to Senagawa.* *And... I managed to drive her to suicide.* *Why did I forget that?* Takuji: ... Takuji: This is it. *The Black Surge is the cause... That's why my memory gets fuzzy sometimes.* Kimika: U-Um, my savior, are you all right? Takuji: ...I'm fine. *Crap... This has happened before too.* *When time jumps ahead... When I'm missing parts of my memory...* *It's all because of Black Riruru's Black Surge!* Yasuko: S-So this is the savior, Mamiya-sama... Kimika: Yes... From now on, the Mamiya-sama who is the savior will always be wearing his holy robes. Takuji: Why do you say that? Kimika: Eh? You messaged me... and said to beware of your imposter. Yasuko: I saw the fake Mamiya-sama! Takuji: Saw my imposter... Yasuko: Yes, his voice and face are just like yours, but he acts completely different. Kind of, like... Takuji: A nasty feeling. Yasuko: Yes, exactly. Takuji: Be careful... That's the Black Surge. Yasuko: The Black Surge? Takuji: Yeah. The frequency of the demons. Normal humans would just perceive it as a feeling of unease, but if you're exposed to it for a long period of time, you'll be infected. Yasuko: Infected? Takuji: Yeah, with the demon's ideas. Yasuko: The demon's... ideas? Takuji: That's right. Beware the Black Surge. *No, I'm the one who really has to be wary of it.* *The Black Surge is incredibly dangerous because it can interfere with the savior's brain.* *My memory loss earlier... and my headaches... Those must have been irregularities in my Savior Brain caused by the Black Surge's attacks.* *I don't know when the Black Surge will attack again.* *Is there nothing I can do to stop it?* *No... Think.* *I've obtained all knowledge and wisdom.* *There's no world that my Savior Brain can't solve.* *Think.* *Think and choose!* *Find the correct choice within the infinite possibilities!* *Carefully pick just one choice from within the infinite sea.* *I used my infinite wisdom as the savior to pick the correct choice from the vast ocean of possibilities.* *That's it. I just need to suppress the source of the Black Surge.* Takuji: Yokoyama Yasuko... Yasuko: Yes! Yasuko: You truly are the real one! Takuji: ...What do you mean? Yasuko: Oh, nothing. The fake Mamiya-sama couldn't remember my name. Takuji: Hmph, don't compare me to that imposter, you fool. Yasuko: Oh, I-I'm so sorry! Takuji: You know the Wakatsuki sisters, don't you? Yasuko: The Wakatsuki sisters? Eh? Uh, you mean... Takuji: You're in the same club as them. Wakatsuki Kagami and Tsukasa. Yasuko: Eh... Um... Takuji: What is it?! Yasuko: Um... I... don't know them... *"..."* *"I don't...* * know them..."* Takuji: Wh-What? Yasuko: Eh? Um, well... What does Mr. Wakatsuki look like? Takuji: The Wakatsuki sisters! The twins, Kagami and Tsukasa. Yasuko: Eh? They're... twins? Takuji: Yeah. They're twins. The older one is named Kagami... and the younger one is Tsukasa. Yasuko: The older one is Kagami-san... and the younger one is Tsukasa-san... right? *That's ridiculous. She was in the same club as the Wakatsuki sisters.* *And yet she says... she doesn't know them?* *Think.* *Understand the situation.* *Put it into words.* *Extract meaning.* *Case 1.* *Yokoyama Yasuko is lying.* *Her relationship with the Wakatsuki sisters is inconvenient for her, so she's trying to hide the truth.* Takuji: Tachibana! Kimika: Yes? Takuji: You're in the next class. Your class joins up with ours for physical education. You know them, right? Kimika: Uh... Unfortunately, no I don't. Takuji: Wha―! *Akasaka, Kitami... All the other people from Tachibana's class had the same expression.* *They were reacting as if the Wakatsuki sisters had never existed to begin with.* *What's going on?* *Are they all lying?* *No, that's impossible. I can read their minds.* *It's especially easy to read the wavering heart of a liar, but the wavering I feel here is different.* *The wavering here makes it feel like they don't even understand what I'm saying.* *Then what other possibilities are there?* Takuji: Ah! *Classic memory loss.* *Gaps in my memory.* *I know these symptoms... I...* *I've experienced these symptoms many times before.* Takuji: Black Surge... Yasuko: Black Surge? *These symptoms... I'm sure of it.* *Changing memories... Changing actions...* *The Black Surge is trying to dye everything black.* *I see...* *Those Black Surge bastards. They've erased all their memories relating to the Wakatsuki sisters.* *Considering my memory loss earlier, it wouldn't be hard for them to completely erase a normal human's memory.* *The Black Surge is a far greater foe than I originally thought.* Takuji: Agh... *Which means the information about the other Black Surge transmitter, Otonashi Ayana, must have been erased too.* *They've undermined my plan to suppress the source of the Black Surge.* Takuji: Tch... Yasuko: Um, my savior. *This is bad...* *They're getting anxious.* *My expression is making them anxious.* *For some reason, Tachibana is smiling, but the rest are growing anxious.* *No, the savior can't allow this to happen!* *Black Riruru loves anxiety. She multiplies by eating it.* *She devours anxiety then dyes the world with the Black Surge.* *No, I can't make them anxious. I can't allow them to be fearful!* *Calm down.* *Yes... calm.* *Calm... Calm... Calm...* *I chanted it three times.* *And then...* Kimika: There's no problem, right? Takuji: Eh? Takuji: Oh, yeah... No problem. *I did my best to answer with a smile.* Takuji: Okay then, there's no problem. That's enough. *In that moment, all their faces relaxed.* *They were relieved by the savior's smile.* *But still...* *I see. This is the highest level...* *This is the highest level of warfare.* *The Black Surge emitted by Black Riruru can erase people's memories... No, maybe it can even overwrite them.* *I don't know what memories are real. In this battle, I have to doubt even my own memories.* *And I can't make the people anxious. I have to eliminate the anxiety.* *The more anxiety there is in the world, the stronger the Black Surge grows.* *I have to eliminate humanity's anxiety.* *Eliminate the anxiety...* *...* *That's it.* *My savior brain came up with a new idea.* Takuji: First, Akasaka... I have orders for you. Megu: All right. Takuji: Your dead boyfriend was into drugs, right? Megu: Eh? Um... Takuji: You can't lie to me. Megu: I-I'm sorry! Takuji: Drugs debilitate humans... You must purge the world of them. Megu: B-But there's no way I could do that by the 20th. Takuji: Yeah, but you could cleanse this city. Megu: Eh? Takuji: Steal the drugs from all the drug dealers in this city. Megu: S-Steal... But they're... Takuji: There should be no problem. They're all going to die in four days. It doesn't matter who they are, even if they're soldiers or yakuza. Megu: B-But... we're just... Takuji: There should be no problem if everyone here helps. There's strength in numbers. Even a yakuza member couldn't do anything against this many people. Takuji: And... use Nishimura, Numada, and Iinuma. They should know where the drugs are being sold. Megu: Nishimura and Numada? B-But how? Takuji: You said you would do anything, didn't you? Megu: O-Of course! Takuji: Then offer Nishimura your body. Megu: Nishimura? Wh-Why? Takuji: Apparently, Nishimura wants to have sex. He doesn't care if he dies so long as he can have sex. Megu: B-But offering him my body is... Takuji: Do you have a complaint? Megu: Ah, no. It's nothing. I'll do it. Takuji: And Kitami... you do it with him too. Satoko: Eh? Wh-Why me? Takuji: When you guys were taking stimulants, you had a threesome with Shiroyama, didn't you? Satoko: Eh? Megu: H-How do you know that? Takuji: You should stop treating the savior like a normal human. Megu: I-I'm sorry! Takuji: And, Yokoyama Yasuko. Yasuko: Y-Yes? *Her face was stiff with fear.* *Well, unlike the other two, she's young, and I don't think she's had much experience with men, so...* Takuji: Go to the anime shop in Suginomiya and buy a Mahou Shoujo Riruru poster. Yasuko: Huh? Takuji: Don't make that stupid face at me. I won't say it again. I need a Mahou Shoujo Riruru poster in order to save you. Go buy it! Yasuko: U-Um, what does that... Kimika: The character drawn by animation director Horinoguchi Yuuko! We absolutely can't do without that. Takuji: You're pretty quick on the uptake. Kimika: Yes. I am your servant, after all. Yasuko: Um, excuse me, I don't really understand. Takuji: Argh... *She's useless. She doesn't even know that much?* *I didn't think ignorance was such a terrible plight.* *I gave up. I wrote it down and passed it to her.* Takuji: Now then, all of you, carry out your orders! Takuji: If you fail, nothing but death awaits you! *They all ran off in fear.* *They ran desperately... like hares from a hunter.* *Run, run... That's it, run for your lives.* *Death is at your heels.* *You must all run to escape it!* *The name on my phone's display was Yokoyama Yasuko.* Takuji: Yokoyama, huh... That was fast. *An hour hadn't even passed. She must have ridden her bike to Suginomiya and back already.* *That would be pretty fast even if she already knew where to look.* Yasuko: Ha, ha, ha, my savior! Takuji: Yokoyama, huh... Yasuko: I bought them! Takuji: Good. Yasuko: A-And... Takuji: Hmm? What is it? Yasuko: Um, there's someone who says she wants to meet with you. Takuji: Again? Go ahead and bring her along, then. I don't mind. Yasuko: U-Um, there are police at the school right now, so the school grounds are closed off. Takuji: Closed off? Yasuko: Yes, because of Mrs. Senagawa's suicide. They weren't here when we left the school, but... Takuji: I see... After you left, the police and ambulance came, and the school grounds were closed off. *Well, I should've expected that.* Yasuko: Several of my friends were taken in as suspects... Thankfully, all of the people who were gathered by the pool left the school immediately to carry out your orders, so none of them were caught. Takuji: So you can't get onto the school grounds... Yasuko: What should I do? Takuji: Hehehe... That's not a problem. I'll tell you a place where we can rendezvous. Wait for me there. Yasuko: Understood! Takuji: There's an irrigation canal behind the school, near the old pool. Yasuko: An irrigation canal... Oh, right. Takuji: There's a place where the fence is broken. You can enter the sewers from there. Yasuko: The sewers? Takuji: Yes. Go down to the canal entrance and wait for me there. Yasuko: U-Understood! *Of course, the shortest route here is through the manhole by the pool, but that's not the only way to get here.* *Actually, it would be possible to enter the reservoir tank from any manhole, since it's connected to the sewers.* *The entrance to the sewers from the irrigation canal behind the school is especially useful, since the drop isn't that far and an adult can easily fit through. The fence is also broken, and there's no manhole cover to remove like there is here.* Takuji: ...Yokoyama. Yasuko: Y-Yes. Takuji: Hmm... Just as ordered. Kimika: We bought the poster you asked for, too. Look at Horinoguchi's shading... It looks so soft, doesn't it, my savior? Takuji: You mean you went along with her? Yasuko: Ah, I-I'm sorry. I didn't know where the anime shop was... Kimika: I'm the savior's servant, so I know all about anime. Takuji: That has nothing to do with being a servant. Anyway, you said on the phone... Kimika: Yes. Um, the person I brought along was none other than... Takuji: ...Kiyokawa? Takuji: You actually brought a teacher to me? Tachibana, what is this? Kimika: Hahahaha, you don't trust me, huh * It's true, she is a teacher, but she believes in your prediction."* Takuji: She does? Asumi: U-Um... Asumi: Um, I... Takuji: Hmm, your only friend in the school... You changed your mind because she died from Takashima's curse? Asumi: Huh?! Takuji: You didn't think the students knew. It's written all over your face. Kimika: Mamiya-sama is the savior. You shouldn't try to keep secrets from him. Asumi: Ah, all right. Takuji: You two were the same age, and you were friends outside of the workplace. That's why she came to you for advice about the curse mail. Asumi: Ah... *I was right. I felt more than just surprise in her... I felt her fear.* *She became as pale as a ghost.* Asumi: A-At first... she thought it was just a prank. Asumi: So... she insisted she was going to find the culprit and have them arrested. She said there was no such thing as a curse. Takuji: Oh, really... And? Asumi: But... she looked strange yesterday. She was always looking over her shoulder, like she was afraid of something. Takuji: Of something? Asumi: She said she felt like someone was watching her. She looked worse every time I saw her... Takuji: And eventually... she jumped off the roof. Asumi: Y-Yes. Building C was... Takuji: That's right. That's where Takashima's accident happened. Asumi: That accident always bothered her. Takuji: Bothered her? That's ridiculous. She covered up her crime and ran away from the punishment. Asumi: C-Covered it up? Takuji: That accident was a result of excessive bullying. Takuji: Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and Tachibana Kimika were involved in her bullying. Do you know what they had in common? Asumi: Th-The Fine Arts Club... Takuji: Exactly. The Fine Arts Club that only existed for half a year... That club's advisor was none other than Senagawa Yui. Asumi: B-But Yui was... Takuji: There's no way she wouldn't have known! At the very least, that's what Takashima Zakuro thought! Asumi: Ah! Takuji: Senagawa knew about the bullying, but she ignored it. She should have been Takashima's ally as a teacher, but she betrayed her. It's only natural Senagawa would be hated the most. Takuji: After Takashima's death, her hate followed Senagawa as a curse. Asumi: I... was shown the articles of the deceased after she committed suicide. Takuji: Articles of the deceased? Asumi: She was getting curse mail from Takashima up until the moment of her death. Takuji: You saw Senagawa's cell phone? Kimika: I picked it up! Asumi: And... In those messages I saw how Takashima-san's vengeful spirit chased Yui to her death. Takuji: I see. You saw the curse mail from her vengeful spirit. Asumi: Yes. B-Before I saw that, I never thought anything so terrible existed in this world. So then, I... Takuji: Then? Asumi: Um, I heard a rumor about you, Mamiya-ku... No, Mamiya-sama. Asumi: Originally, that curse was supposed to haunt the other people who bullied Takashima-san: Akasaka-san, Kitami-san, and Tachibana-san, too. Asumi: But there's a person who can dispel the curse. That's why those three didn't die. Asumi: That person also predicted the time and place of Yui's death... Takuji: I see. So you came to speak to the prophet? Asumi: No, you're not a prophet... You're something greater. You're going to save people from the great disaster that's going to happen soon. You're the savior. Takuji: I see. Did you come here to be saved? Asumi: Yes! Takuji: Who do you expect to believe that story? Asumi: Eh? Takuji: Could I ask you to leave this place? Asumi: Ah, eh? Asumi: I got so scared watching Yui... Watching her go crazy... Asumi: She was so scared... So scared of something... When I looked at her cell phone, I understood the fear she felt. Then I, I... Takuji: Haa... Takuji: It's no use. Asumi: Wh-Why not? Please save me too! Takuji: You've deceived many people in your life. Asumi: Deceived? Takuji: Yes. So did Senagawa. That's why I didn't save her. Because she was a teacher. Asumi: Because she was a teacher... Takuji: That's right. For years, you've lied to people in the name of education. Asumi: Lied... to people... Takuji: That's right. You teachers have hidden the truth from the people! Asumi: B-But I― Takuji: No, you have hidden many truths from the people! Asumi: Th-That's wrong. That's not true... Takuji: No, it's not wrong! You've willfully spread the lies! You've covered up the truth! Asumi: That's not it... That's not... Takuji: You were listening to my speech from the hallway, weren't you? Asumi: Eh? Takuji: Did you think I didn't notice you listening? Asumi: Ah... Takuji: At that time, you were quivering with fear... You quivered as you heard the truth. Asumi: Yes! It's true. I'm sorry. I'm sorry! Takuji: You were fearful of the fact that you had willfully taught lies! Asumi: N-No, that's not it. Asumi: I-I... I didn't willfully teach lies. That's not true. Forgive me. Please forgive me. Takuji: It wasn't of your own will? Then why did you become a teacher? Why did you choose that profession? Asumi: I-It's just... Both my parents were teachers, and my grandmother and grandfather too, so I became a teacher like them without even thinking about it. Takuji: But it's something you chose. You chose it yourself! It's not your parents' fault! Asumi: Y-Yes! I understand. I understand, but I'm a human before I'm a teacher. I, I... You're the savior, aren't you? Takuji: Yeah, I'm the savior. I'm the person who will save humanity. Asumi: Th-Then... Please. Please save me too. Please, save me! *This woman... How pathetic.* *Even if her friend was killed by the curse, she's still an adult. Why is she so scared?* *Hehehe... So this is the person they revere as a pastor?* Takuji: Hehehehe... Is it really that scary? Asumi: Y-Yes! Takuji: Do you want to be saved even if it means throwing away your life as a teacher? Asumi: Yes! Takuji: So you're prepared to do even that. Asumi: Yes, of course! If you'll save me, I'll throw it away! I'll throw it away! Takuji: So you say, but talk is cheap. Asumi: I'm not just saying it. Please believe me. Please save me. I beg of you! Takuji: Oh, really... So you're prepared to do as I say? Asumi: Yes! I am! Takuji: Then I'll have you show me your devotion. Asumi: Y-Yes... I'll show you my devotion. Takuji: Are you prepared to throw everything away? Asumi: I... am... Takuji: First, your life as a teacher. Asumi: I'll throw it away! Takuji: Do you have any family? Asumi: My family? I have a mother and a father. Takuji: So you're an only child? Asumi: Yes. Takuji: Right now. Go fuck your father. Asumi: Eh? Takuji: I won't say it again. Go have sex with your father. Asumi: Um, you mean... Takuji: Take a picture and send it to me. If you send me that picture, I'll think about it. Asumi: Um... Takuji: First, throw away your life as a teacher, then the reason you became a teacher... Throw away your parents. Asumi: M-My parents? Takuji: Throw away your parents... and throw away your humanity. Asumi: M-My humanity? Takuji: Would you call a person human after they've had sex with their own father? Takuji: If you're prepared to throw away everything, then I'll think about it. I'll only save you if you make yourself into a subhuman existence. Asumi: A s-subhuman existence... Takuji: You don't have much time. Disappear for me, now... Hurry up and go fuck your father! Kimika: Wait a second! Are you going to let her leave after you've told her so much? We can't trust her. We should at least have someone watch her... Takuji: That won't be necessary. Takuji: Remember this. All of you... Takuji: Being able to stop Takashima's curse also means I can do the reverse. Asumi: The reverse...? Takuji: I can curse anyone with the same curse that killed Senagawa... Takuji: Kiyokawa, if you think for even a second about betraying me... In that very instant. Asumi: I-In that instant... Takuji: I'll kill you just like I did Senagawa. Asumi: Ah! Takuji: And the same goes for you, Tachibana... And you too, Yokoyama. Yasuko: I-I absolutely wouldn't betray you, my savior. Kimika: Hahahaha, you don't need to tell me that. If anyone tried to stop you, I would kill them myself. Takuji: Hehehehe... Well, it's your choice whether you want to believe me or not. And you, Kiyokawa. Asumi: Ah... Takuji: Kiyokawa, throw away everything. Being a teacher, being a daughter, and being human. Takuji: Once you've freed yourself from your chains... you may join me. *Hehehe... Fear.* *Fear is the tightest binding.* *Fear is the greatest submission.* *People try to run from their fears.* *From absolute fear.* *And that gives birth to religion.* *People fleeing their fears give birth to religion.* *I'll let her swim... and give her freedom.* *Freedom wasn't given to her.* *Freedom was given to the fear lurking within her.* *Freedom and fear have the greatest synergy.* *By making her free, I will convert her fear into devotion to me.* *Completely...* Yasuko: W-Wow... I didn't know this place existed. Takuji: Yeah... This is the ark. Yasuko: The ark? Kimika: That's a wonderful name, my savior. Takuji: Only the people gathered here will be able to go beyond the world's final day. Yasuko: Go beyond the world's final day... Takuji: That's right. This is a place to gather the people who will live on after the world's destruction. Yasuko: This is... the ark? Takuji: Yeah. This is the ark I constructed. It's larger and more durable than Noah's. Yasuko: A place constructed by the savior... Takuji: Gather the believers here until the final day. Only allow those who are pure of heart within the ark. Yasuko: U-Understood. Kimika: Hehehehe... Leave it to me, my savior. I'll gather a ton of people. Kimika: Ah, it's my phone. It's from Megu. Takuji: I don't mind. Answer her. Kimika: Hello... Eh? What? Kimika: W-Wait, stabbed? Takuji: ... *Stabbed... So one of the people I ordered to attack the drug dealers got injured.* Kimika: Eh? Oh, o-one second. My savior, there's an emergency. It looks like Nishimura-kun was stabbed by one of the yakuza. Takuji: Tell them to meet up with us at the entrance I told you about earlier... and tell them to bring the injured person. Kimika: Megu said he's covered in blood, so they need to bring him to a hospital right away. Takuji: Are you stupid?! Don't you understand? All the medicine in the world is worthless compared to my miraculous power as the savior! Kimika: Oh! my savior, are you saying you'll heal his wounds? Takuji: Of course. Christ miraculously healed the lepers in an instant. With my powers, I can even give life to a human that has been chopped into pieces. Kimika: Ohh, that's amazing. I was right to join you, my savior. Takuji: A prophet could take my place if all I had to do was make prophecies. I am the savior because I can perform miracles like no other. Takuji: Don't forget that. Kimika: Understood. Kimika: Let's go, Yasuko-chan. We have to go, double time. Takuji: Yeah... Bring them to me as soon as possible. Kimika: We've brought them, my savior. Megu: Um, this... Satoko: The drug dealer suddenly stabbed Nishimura. Nishimura: It really hurts! It hurts so bad! *Nishimura was being held up by Akasaka and Kitami. He really was covered in blood.* Takuji: You're bleeding pretty badly. Megu: Y-You have to hurry. Nishimura: H-Help... T-Take me to the hospital... Takuji: Hehehehe... Nishimura-kun, you can't die until you have sex, right? Takuji: You even said you didn't care if you died after having sex. Nishimura: B-But... the hospital... Takuji: Don't worry... I'll make you healthy enough to have sex. Megu: Mamiya-sama, is it true that you can heal his wounds? Takuji: Yeah, it's true. You still haven't let him fuck you, have you? Megu: Eh? Um, you mean sex? Takuji: Yeah, that's what's important. Have you fucked him? Megu: I told him... I would let him once we stole their drugs. Takuji: And that's all it took? Megu: Ah, no... I said we could have a threesome. Nishimura: It fucking huuurts! Takuji: Hehehe... Then once he's healed, let him fuck you as much as he wants. Megu: Eh? Oh, all right... But can you really heal him? Takuji: That's obvious. More importantly, did you manage to steal them? Megu: Oh, that's not a problem. We got the drugs! Takuji: Oh, really... *There were a lot of different kinds in the bag... There were six comparatively large packages. They were big enough to hold about a hundred grams each.* Takuji: You found quite a lot. Megu: I got all my savings out of the bank. I held out all 1,680,000 yen in front of him and told him to sell me as much as he could. Megu: Most of those drug dealers don't have very much on them. Takuji: I see. So you showed them the money... and they brought you to their stashes. That's a pretty good idea. Megu: Thank you! We attacked whatever dealers we found just like that, but we messed up with the very last guy... Takuji: And he got stabbed. *Well, of course he did.* *They have to be desperate to sell this stuff. I think half a gram of stimulants go for close to 10,000 yen.* *This much of it would probably worth sell for over a hundred million.* *People get killed over that kind of money.* Satoko: And this... We got this bottle along with the drugs. Takuji: A two liter bottle... *A third of the two liter bottle was filled with liquid. It was colorless and transparent... This must be some kind of drug too.* *I can figure out what this is later.* Takuji: Carry Nishimura into the back. Megu: The back? Takuji: Yeah, behind that wall. Nishimura: Oww... It hurts so bad... *It looked like he was still alert. His face was pale, but that was probably just anemia.* Takuji: A miracle... *Christ was said to be able to turn stones into bread.* *Of course... I should be able to do the same thing.* *Stone to bread...* Takuji: ...Nngh... *Holy Surge radiated from my right hand.* *The Holy Surge can make anything holy.* *Even the evil drugs that Akasaka and the others stole... I can turn them into holy drugs.* *I changed the arrangement of his molecules to match the picture in my mind.* *Modern science still hasn't discovered this arrangement of molecules.* *It's been called the ultimate material...* *The ultimate material that was said to have been created in medieval Europe by the alchemist Paracelsus.* *He called it elixir.* *If you drink this all-purpose miracle potion, you can be cured of any disease.* *My Holy Surge can change any drug into elixir.* Takuji: Aaaah! *I felt a moment of vertigo... That was the sign that I had succeeded in rearranging the drugs' molecules.* Takuji: Haa... Now these drugs have been transformed into elixir. *I spread it on Nishimura's wound.* Nishimura: Ow! *Just a little should suffice... There wouldn't be any adverse effects if I used a lot, but it's effective even with just a little bit.* *His face warped in pain for a moment.* *I immediately took medical glue out of my toolbox and carefully closed his wound.* *I also sent Holy Surge directly into him, which worked as a second all-purpose miracle drug.* *After a few seconds, I pressed up on his wound, and...* Takuji: Hmm... Success. *The wound was completely healed.* *I watched him for a few minutes.* *Color came back into his face as I watched.* Takuji: Hehehe... His face is changing color by the second. Turning white, the holy color. Takuji: Proof that he's been purified. Nishimura: Agh... Takuji: How is it? Nishimura: ...Huh? Nishimura: It doesn't hurt... Nishimura: Huh? It doesn't hurt at all! Takuji: Hahahaha... It doesn't, does it? Nishimura: Why? Why? It really doesn't hurt! *I washed his wound and lent him a change of clothes.* *No more blood flowed from the healed wound.* *The miracle was complete.* *Chatter...* *Naturally, the people began to stir when they saw Nishimura had been revived.* *Because I completely healed a person who was on the verge of death in the span of a few minutes.* *Not even the newest medicine and finest hospitals could do what I just did.* Nishimura: It doesn't hurt! It doesn't hurt anymore! Megu: S-Seriously? Nishimura: Seriously! It doesn't hurt at all! Not at all! *Chatter...* *Chatter... Chatter... Chatter... Chatter...* *Chatter, chatter... Chatter, chatter, chatter... Chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter...* *The rustling changed into a commotion.* *And then they...* Female Student: It's a miracle! Male Student: It's a miracle! Female Student: He's the savior! *"He's the savior! He's the savior! He's the savior! He's the savior! He's the savior! He's the savior!* * He's our savior! He's our savior! He's our savior! He's our savior! He's our savior!"* *There were a lot of people.* *It was dark... The people in the back probably couldn't see me very well.* *I couldn't tell how many people were gathered there.* *They weren't all wearing school uniforms... There were even some that look too old to be in school.* Takuji: ...... *I opened my mouth.* *But those quiet words were drowned out in the commotion.* *The crowd... didn't know I was trying to speak.* *But...* Takuji: This is a pretty good atmosphere. Takuji: Now then... Kimika: Ah! *When Tachibana noticed that I was trying to say something, she shouted...* Kimika: Be qui― Takuji: ... *I quietly stopped her from yelling and silencing everyone.* Takuji: It'll be fine just like this. Takuji: Just like this... *I started talking in whispers.* *The people in the front row who could see me stopped yelling.* *They were eager to hear what I was saying.* *They stopped yelling.* *I revealed the truth in whispers.* *I slowly, slowly revealed its outline.* Takuji: The world is incomplete. Takuji: That is certain fact. Takuji: The world is filled with lies because it is incomplete. Takuji: Everyone calmly speaks of equality. Takuji: But everyone knows that the world is not equal. Takuji: Everyone calmly speaks of freedom. Takuji: But everyone knows that there is no freedom in the world. Takuji: Everyone calmly speaks of love. Takuji: But everyone knows that love is traitorous. Takuji: Everyone calmly says that you must not kill. Takuji: But everyone knows that the world is brimming with murderers. Takuji: Everyone calmly says that you must not lie. Takuji: But everyone knows that the speaker himself is * liar."* Takuji: Did anyone speak to us of this fact? Takuji: No, no one did. Takuji: No one told us that fact. Takuji: And why? Takuji: Why did no one tell us that fact? Takuji: It's a simple fact. Takuji: Because all their mouths are filthy with lies! Takuji: A filthy mouth can speak nothing but lies! *Almost all of them were silent.* *They just watched me.* *Listened to me.* *Listening to my every word... Watching my every movement...* *My voice gradually grew louder. Its pitch grew more forceful.* *Almost like anger.* *Almost like grief.* *Almost like joy.* *Almost like anticipation.* *My words included all those emotions.* *In other words, truth.* *The words of truth are a blade.* *The words of truth are a bolt of lightning.* *The words of truth split the sky.* *Split the sky that is full of lies.* Takuji: Why? Why?! Why are the mouths of the people filthy with lies?! Takuji: Why are there words filthy with lies?! Takuji: Is it malice? Takuji: Is it the filth of malice? Takuji: Because they hate you all? Takuji: Because they hate the world? Takuji: Is that why the world is filthy with lies? Takuji: No! Takuji: The answer is certainly no! Takuji: Malice doesn't lie. Takuji: Malice isn't filthy. Takuji: Malice has no need for filth. Takuji: How could one dye that which is so black that it need not be dyed? Takuji: Malice can't be dirtied. Takuji: Malice is so black that it can't be dirtied. Takuji: That which should be dirtied is that which can be dyed. Takuji: Yes, it is a pure heart. Takuji: A true heart. Takuji: Yes, people call that good intentions. Takuji: It was with good intentions that people dirtied the world with lies. Takuji: It was with good intentions that people dirtied it with words. Takuji: It's true! Takuji: Good intentions! This most repulsive of emotions gives birth to words of filth! Takuji: The road to hell is paved with good intentions! Takuji: It is with good intentions that people walk the road to damnation! Takuji: Good intentions conceal it! Takuji: Our meaninglessness! Takuji: Our ignorance! Takuji: Our genesis and extinction will happen without us knowing or understanding anything. *My voice reached a fever pitch... Now, no one was talking.* *Everyone intently listened to my words.* *This is a technique that was frequently used by my old friend, Adolf Hitler.* Takuji: Good intentions conceal all things. Takuji: Good intentions conceal all fear. Takuji: Why do they try to conceal it? Takuji: It's simple! Takuji: There is no meaning in the world! Takuji: There is no meaning to any of your lives! Takuji: What would happen if a person who was born into a meaningless life was suddenly sentenced to death? Takuji: Because that person wouldn't recognize that all of human history was meaningless! Takuji: What if a newborn infant was strangled, and his life ended after a mere ten minutes? Takuji: Was there meaning in that infant's life? Takuji: Is there meaning in a life of just ten minutes? Takuji: But it's the same! Takuji: If there's no meaning in that infant's life, the entire history of humanity is meaningless. Takuji: The oldest humans, Australopithecus, lived 5,400,00 years ago. Takuji: The genesis of the first life on Earth was 3.8 billion years ago. Takuji: It feels like an incredibly long, meaningful span of time. Takuji: But that's nothing more than an illusion. Takuji: Within the infinity of time, it's no different from a single instant. Takuji: Within infinity, 3.8 billions years or 5,400,000 years is just as much an instant as a life of ten minutes. Takuji: Time isn't what's important! Takuji: Meaning is what's important! Takuji: If there is no meaning in our lives, then they're no different than a life of ten minutes! Takuji: But if there is meaning in a life, even a life of just ten minutes, then that life is significant. Takuji: So I ask! Takuji: What is the meaning in your lives? Takuji: What is humanity's meaning? Takuji: What is the meaning to this world... this universe? Takuji: What is the meaning to our existence? Takuji: Who can answer that? Takuji: Someone, try to answer it! *"..."* : ul *"......"* : ul *"........"* *Silence.* *Complete silence.* *No one answered... They couldn't answer.* Takuji: An idiot would say this! Takuji: Because of God. Takuji: They would say we have meaning because we were created by God. Takuji: Then I would ask that idiot! Takuji: Why does God exist? Takuji: What is the meaning to God's existence? Takuji: Even God is not free of this question. Takuji: Everything is meaningless! Takuji: There is no meaning in this world. Takuji: We are that newborn infant! Takuji: Humanity is that newborn infant! Takuji: God is that newborn infant! Takuji: That newborn infant is everything that exists in this world! Takuji: We live a short life of ten minutes. Takuji: They don't recognize that. Takuji: No one recognizes that. Takuji: They don't recognize our end, the world's end, the absolute end! Takuji: But they have nothing but weak hearts. Takuji: We must accept the absurd and the irrational... We must understand it. Takuji: We must accept humanity's meaningless existence! *Everyone looked at me anxiously.* *I couldn't blame them... I had just revealed humanity's meaninglessness to them.* *It was the same as a death sentence.* Takuji: But once you recognize it. Takuji: Once you accept your meaningless life. Takuji: If we can't deny your existence. Takuji: As if Takuji: a sunken ship Takuji: in your heart, Takuji: if Takuji: that ship left... Takuji: a ripple Takuji: on the water Takuji: where it sunk, Takuji: like a flicker in the dark. Takuji: If there's a presentiment in your heart. Takuji: If there's a flicker or a ripple. Takuji: That... Takuji: That is... Takuji: The forepath toward the omen. Takuji: You are the forerunners of the omen. Takuji: All ye who hear my words! Takuji: Recognize all that is irrational. Takuji: Accept all that is absurd. Takuji: And then. Takuji: Then search your heart. Takuji: That is where Takuji: The forepath... Takuji: Toward the omen lies. Takuji: Can you feel the forepath? Takuji: Well? Takuji: Can you feel it? Takuji: ... Takuji: I will lend you the power to feel it! Takuji: I will lend you the power of purification! Takuji: Meditate! Takuji: There's no need to think! Takuji: Just meditate so that you may feel it. Takuji: Don't think! Feel! *I sprinkled the water I purified earlier on them.* *The mysterious liquid that Akasaka had brought me...* *I purified it with the Holy Surge.* *I turned it into holy water!* *The people were bewildered.* *They simply gathered here so that they could be saved.* *The truth is too heavy for the weak.* *They were simply bewildered.* *But the words of the savior sink into people with their sound, not their meaning.* *Meditating people...* *People just praying...* *The Holy Surge sank into the weak people.* *The holy sound that entered their ears made their eardrums vibrate, transmitting the surge to their brain.* *The Holy Surge.* *They woke with the surge.* *To the truth...* *The meditation continued.* *The praying continued.* *Until they felt it.* *Until they discovered it...* Female Student: Ah... Aah... Female Student: Ah, ahh, aaah... Male Student: Ooohh. Male Student: I can s-s-see s-something... Female Student: M-Me too. I c-can feel something... Nishimura: I feel it. I can feel it! It's coursing through my veins. Male Student: Me too! I can feel something! Kimika: Hehehe... It's coming. This is the power of Cat's Eye tablets... Also known as Philopon. Megu: Ah, aaah, aaaah... Satoko: This is it! Yasuko: The forepath. Male Student: There's something there... Something... there. Female Student: It's... Male Student: It's theeeere! Female Student: Eeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh! Takuji: We are the forerunners of the omen! Takuji: The world will soon be covered in flames! Takuji: It will be immolated by an incandescent inferno! Takuji: You all must see it too! The world bathed in flames! Female Student: Noooo, I can see it! I can see it! Everyone is burning! Male Student: No, it's so hot, hot! I'm going to die! Female Student: Eeeeaaaaaaaahhhh! Takuji: Can you see it? Can you see everything on earth aflame? Kimika: I can see it! I can see it! I can see it! He can run really fast! That must be cold! That's a nice car you have! Takuji: We must return to the sky before the earth is covered in flames! Megu: Return... to the sky... Takuji: Yes! Return to the sky! We will return to the sky! Satoko: Return to the sky... We're going to return to the sky. Takuji: Yes! The edge of the world... The edge of the sky will come! Takuji: The day before the world is bathed in flames... the edge of the world will come. Takuji: The limit of the world will come. Yasuko: The limit of the world? Takuji: Yes, the sky where everything ceases will come. Takuji: The sky is neither the beginning nor the end. Takuji: The sky's critical point... Takuji: The boundary between the finite and the infinite... Takuji: The place where all duality ends... Takuji: The place where all duality ceases. Takuji: End Sky! *"I can see it, I can see it!"* : ul *"Ooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!"* : ul *"Is this the world's limit?"* : ul *"Aaaahh!"* : ul *"Burning! Burning! Everything is burning!"* : ul *"Everything can burn! It can all just burn!"* : ul *"Oh no, oh no!"* : ul *"What? What is it? What is it?"* : ul *"Our savior! Our savior!"* : ul *"I understand! I understand it!"* *They unceasingly screamed...* *The truth was revealed.* *People crying out.* *People rejoicing.* *People embracing.* *Blissful people.* Takuji: Yes, the honest truth is that the world that's going to end is incomplete. There's nothing to be sad about. There's nothing to grieve for... Takuji: It's inevitable... Therefore it must end. Takuji: And after that... Takuji: A complete world will appear in its place. Takuji: The new world will be created by the people who returned to the sky. Takuji: It will be the world of truth. Takuji: ... Takuji: Enter... Takuji: Repent before me! Takuji: Kiyokawa Asumi! Nishimura: Whoa, Ms. Kiyokawa is totally naked! Takuji: You all remember this woman! Takuji: This is one of the people who spread lies throughout the world with good intentions. Takuji: But she has recognized her sins. Takuji: She has come to me. Takuji: She has come! Takuji: But her sin is too serious. Takuji: Kiyokawa. Asumi: Yes... Takuji: Tell us your story... Asumi: Y-Yes... I'll tell you everything. Please allow me to tell you. Asumi: I-I... was a teacher. I was a teacher until today. Asumi: Th-That's why the savior said he couldn't save me. Asumi: He said I was a sinner... so I couldn't be saved. Asumi: So he told me to throw away my life as a teacher... He told me to throw away my humanity. Asumi: Both my mother and father were teachers, so I too became a teacher without ever thinking about it. Asumi: The savior told me that throwing away my life as a teacher... meant throwing away my mother and father. Asumi: He told me to throw away being a teacher, throw away my parents, and throw away my common sense as a human being. Asumi: When I was told that... I returned to my house, where my retired mother and father live. Asumi: They both had very good intentions. They're the people the savior would call filthy. Asumi: But I wanted to save them both, so I talked to my father. Asumi: I talked to him, all alone. I locked the door to the room... *......* *...* *This world will end, and a new revolution will overtake it.* *That's the immutable truth.* *I have been dirtied, but I still want to live.* *I'll confess...* *I, Kiyokawa Asumi, feel like I am going to be crushed by my fear of death.* *......* *You all must feel it too.* *Always behind me...* *...Takashima-san is watching me with her melancholy eyes.* *She must have come to take me, a teacher, because she's lonely.* *Any time I close my eyes, I feel like she might reach out and take me.* *I'm too scared to even sleep. Even in the shower, I'm terrified beyond all reason.* *I'm such a mess.* *I can't take it any longer.* *And I want to do something to save my loving parents.* *It's the least I can do for them, since they raised me, their only daughter.* *It's all right... I can do this...* *My parents are intelligent people.* *If I talk to them seriously, I'm sure they'll understand.* Asumi: I'm home. *......* Asumi's Dad: Welcome home, Asumi. Another hard day at work? *Oh, what an affectionate smile he had.* *My father has always poured all his love into me without a second's hesitation, even putting aside his own desires.* *I couldn't just stand by and let him die.* *Since the moment I was born, my beloved father has always been there for me...* Asumi's Dad: I got so caught up in my book, I didn't even realize it was so late. Asumi's Dad: Huh? It's not that late... You came home really early today, didn't you? *My father, lying on the sofa and reading a book, took one look at the clock and then looked at me in puzzlement.* Asumi: Y-Yes... *Now that he's retired, he spends all day reading historical fiction. It must have been a shock when I suddenly pulled him back into the present day.* Asumi's Dad: You don't look so good either... What's wrong? If you're feeling sick, I can-- Asumi: No, that's not it. *I interrupted him by grabbing his arm, looking him right in the eyes as I suppressed the burning fear in my chest.* Asumi's Dad: If you're worried about something, you can tell me all about it. I'll do whatever I can to help. Asumi's Dad: But don't ask me if yakitori is better with salt or tare! I like it either way, hahaha! Asumi: ...! *Yes, Daddy... I knew you would try to tell me a silly joke to calm me down.* *I'm sure Mamiya-sama would scold me, but I truly love my father from the bottom of my heart.* *He was always the perfect dad to me, so I always tried to be the perfect daughter for him.* *That's why I want to save him.* Asumi: Thank you, Dad. I have something important to talk to you about today. Asumi's Dad: I guess you're serious about this... All right, tell me everything. *He must have caught a whiff of the fear in my voice, because he stopped playing around and instead motioned kindly for me to sit beside him.* Asumi: Thank you... *I gave him a big smile in response to his warm response, and at the same time I quietly locked the door behind my back.* *......* Asumi's Dad: So what's this important thing you wanted to talk to me about? Asumi: ...Um, well... *I needed to tell him, but I was too nervous. My mouth wouldn't say the words I knew I needed to say. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down.* Asumi's Dad: Is it really that upsetting...? *He sympathized with my plight and looked at me with serious eyes softened by an easygoing smile.* Asumi: Yes, I have something very important to tell you... You and Mom absolutely have to understand. Asumi's Dad: Well, if there's anything I can do for you... *At his encouragement, I steeled myself, looked into his eyes, and began to speak.* Asumi: I know you're an honest person, so I'll be frank... Asumi: The world will end soon, on the twentieth day of this month. Asumi's Dad: ...Huh? Asumi: This is the inmutable truth. *At that moment, my heart was clear, and my words came out with a clarity I never would have expected.* Asumi's Dad: ...Huh? *My father's mouth was agape with shock.* *I wasn't surprised. I knew it would be hard for him to accept such a sudden revelation.* *It was the reaction I expected. I was happy that my father's gentle nature hadn't changed.* Asumi's Dad: Wow, I was sure you were gonna say you had found someone to marry, or something like that... Asumi's Dad: Hehe, what's up with that? The world is going to end? I definitely didn't see that one coming, hahahaha... *I was as serious as could be, but he laughed as if I had told a joke.* *But... I wasn't angry. I already knew that a layperson would react like this.* Asumi: Father, I understand that this is too much for you to accept all at once... Asumi: But this is the immutable truth. You can't run from it. I wouldn't come to you with this news if I wasn't entirely serious. *I locked eyes with him once again and, cutting through the frustration that had begun to build in my heart, continued to talk in a polite voice.* Asumi's Dad: I like horror stories too. I have lots of murder mysteries saved up, you know... Asumi's Dad: I don't know if I'm the reason why, but I know you've always liked scary stories like that too... Ahaha, that's a good one! *He laughed jovially and patted me on the shoulder, thinking I was still telling a joke.* Asumi's Dad: Oh right, it was in 1999... July of that year, I think? There was a prophecy about the world ending. Asumi's Dad: You were still a child, so you took it seriously. I remember you were so scared you said we had to start digging a cellar to take shelter in! Asumi: Yes, I remember... Asumi's Dad: So what happened in July 1999? Hmm? Asumi's Dad: The world didn't end, did it? Thinking back on it now, the only thing we really remember about it is that the summer was really hot. *He said that jokingly and put the book back on the table.* Asumi's Dad: Ever since the beginning of recorded history, not a single one of those prophecies has come true. *He started slowly scolding me.* Asumi's Dad: You're an adult now, you can't be playing pranks like that on me anymore! Asumi's Dad: But I still think it's cute. Asumi: Haa... *My father was occasionally strict, but he was a very gentle person at heart.* *It's ironic that his gentle heart would ultimately result in him trying to lead me away from the truth.* *That's why I had to free him from all the delusions that had accumulated in his brain from the long years he had spent in this filthy world.* Asumi: ...You're running from the truth. Asumi: You can't run... You can't be saved until you accept the truth. Asumi's Dad: ...? *At first, my voice trembled.* Asumi: You can't turn your eyes from the truth and continue believing in those lies. Asumi: You've become complacent in your vocation as a teacher, and now you instinctively shy away from the truth! You know that I'm right! Asumi's Dad: ...What? *As my voice grew harsher, my father's expression changed too.* Asumi: I finally understand... No, I can finally look at the truth no one wants to admit. Asumi: You know, Dad, all a teacher truly does is fill our students with ideas that are convenient for society in order to enslave them and make them obedient, didn't you know? Asumi: So we don't teach the parts we don't like, we deprive the students of their individuality, and we prevent anyone from questioning the society they've been born into, don't you agree? Asumi's Dad: That's going too far! *When his daughter, who always looked up to him, finally confronted him with the truth, he threw away the mask and growled his retort.* Asumi: Calm down and listen! I'm not saying this to upset you! Asumi's Dad: But... You're... Asumi: There was a cute girl called Takashima Zakuro in the school where I teach... Asumi's Dad: ...Is that the girl who committed suicide? Asumi: Yes, that's right. *But once I brought up a concrete example, my father's expression changed from one of anger to one of sadness.* Asumi's Dad: She could've done so much more with her life... It's such a pity. Asumi: That's right... She had a future... *And yet she was forced to throw that future away with her own hands.* Asumi: She was a gentle, smart, and kind girl. The very picture of a lovely young woman. Asumi's Dad: Hmm... And? Asumi: She wasn't in my class, so I didn't speak to her often, but... Asumi: But she was a good girl, the kind I would've liked to read a book with or share a pot of tea with... If possible, I would've taken her for my own sister. Asumi's Dad: Yeah, you always wanted a little sister. I can understand that. *He sympathized with me and nodded, giving me his full attention.* Asumi: Before she died, she told us that the world would end on July 20th. Asumi's Dad: But that's... Asumi: Please, just listen to me for a moment! *I slapped his hand away when he tried to interrupt me, spitting passionate words one by one even as my voice shook.* Asumi: You don't know, do you? After that, Yui, Senagawa Yui jumped off the school building. Asumi's Dad: ...What? Asumi's Dad: Senagawa-san? You mean the woman who came over here a few times before? Asumi: Yes, that's right. She was Takashima-san's teacher... Asumi: Yui jumped from the top of the building. Her body didn't even look human. Asumi's Dad: ... Asumi: Takashima-san was always a good girl, but... all the other students were jealous of her, and that resentment turned into bullying. Asumi: I... I kind of realized what was happening, but I thought it would put Yui in a bad position if I interfered with one of her students. Asumi's Dad: There's no bullying here... That's what the administration always said, right? *He already knew how the school worked. His brow creased as he said those words.* Asumi: Yes, you've been a teacher for a long time, so I knew you would understand. Asumi's Dad: So Takashima-san committed suicide because of the bullying...? Asumi: Yes, that's right! Asumi: But she was a compassionate young girl, so she threw her life away in order to save those of us who were left behind in this crumbling world! Asumi: But it didn't go well. The evil tortured her until the end... I should have done something. Asumi: You understand, don't you? The world rejected her, even though she was such a pure girl... There's no way such a horrible world could continue to exist. Asumi: And now she's trying to destroy her tormentors along with this crumbling world. Asumi: Oh, I have sinned. I know that I won't be left alive. Asumi: I know this may sound cruel, but it was only natural that Yui would die, since she never did anything to stop the bullying. Asumi: And I too simply stood and watched. I didn't save her just because she was in a different class. Asumi: Hehe... Ehehehe... Asumi: But don't worry, there is still a road to salvation. Asumi: If you come to the savior, the one who sees beyond this world, even those of us who have sinned can be saved. We can walk together into the new world. That's our only choice now. Asumi: Do you understand... Daddy? Asumi's Dad: Yeah, I understand perfectly. You've suffered a great shock, and now you're very tired. You just need a bit of rest. Asumi: No! Are you still trying to restrain me with this world's logic? *I brought him the truth, and he just smiled. I truly hated him in that moment.* Asumi: You don't understand the terror of Takashima-san's vengeful spirit, and you still refuse to acknowledge the truth before your eyes! Asumi's Dad: Maybe that's true... Anyway, starting tomorrow, you're taking some time off. Asumi: What are you saying? We don't have much time left. Asumi's Dad: That's right, it's just like you said. Asumi: Daddy... *Those eyes... Those disgusting, pity-filled eyes.* *Those are the kind of eyes that only teachers have, especially veteran teachers. Eyes that might tell an astute observer that he's not listening to a word you say and only pretending to listen sympathetically.* *Daddy... You never laid eyes on Takashima-san, never saw the sad looks she gave me.* Asumi's Dad: Yeah, yeah, if you say so, I'm sure you're right. Asumi: Ah... Ah... *I thought he understood what I was saying, but in the end he betrayed me.* Asumi's Dad: One of my long time friends has a doctor who specializes in this field. We can get you an appointment right away. Asumi's Dad: Then you can talk to him about all your problems... I'm sure that'll make you feel better. Asumi: ...Wait, Dad? Asumi's Dad: I don't know if I've told you this before, but I was a teacher for a long time and I've seen a lot of students and other teachers who had problems like this. Asumi's Dad: Teachers are constantly under psychological stress, so you don't need to be embarrassed about this. Asumi: ...Eh? Asumi's Dad: All right, Asumi? You're just tired... Asumi's Dad: So don't worry, I'll take care of it... I'll make sure nothing happens to my lovely daughter. *He smiled at me again, and I wanted to cry when I realized that the man I had looked up to for so long had rejected me and ignored the truth.* *But it wasn't his fault... I just rushed the explanation, so he didn't understand the important parts of what I was saying.* *He's been an excellent teacher since before I was born. There's no way a young woman like me could convince him.* Asumi's Dad: Wait a second, I'll go to the doctor with you. *He slowly got out of his seat and turned his back on me to get his car keys out of the drawer.* *That moment-- I steeled my heart and made my decision.* *I'm sure you can all understand.* *I had to do it in order to save him.* Asumi: That's right, Daddy... I must be really tired. Asumi's Dad: That's right, so-- Asumi's Dad: Gha?! Uh, ugh... *While he rifled through the desk, I grabbed the flower vase and then smashed him in the jaw as he turned around. He crumpled on the spot.* Asumi: Haa, haa... Thank goodness he's not bleeding. *I remember I used to watch wrestling and martial arts matches on TV with my dad. I tried to recreate one of the moves I saw when I was little to knock him out.* Asumi: You'll have to endure this. I'm doing this for your sake too. *As I looked down on my fallen father, I was conflicted, torn between feelings of regret from hitting the man that raised me and satisfaction because I did it to save his life.* Asumi: I need something to tie him down... Oh, this will work. *I tied his hands and legs to the sofa with the strong, thin cord he used to bind books before shipping them.* *A bystander might think I was evil for hitting him and tying him up.* *But as you all know, this world is fundamentally flawed...* *That's why the world must come to an end.* *It's the height of foolishness for me, one who has awakened to the truth of this world, to ask my father, who believes in the 'common sense' of this world, why he refuses to understand.* Asumi: I love you, Daddy... I'll definitely save you. *I just needed to take away his freedom for a moment so that I could correct him with my own hands.* Asumi: This is the only way... *I was ready for it, shedding my blouse without a moment's hesitation.* *Then I threw away the vile skirt restricting my legs.* *My hands quickly wrapped around behind my back and undid the hook on my bra.* *Then, in admonishment of my own body, I pulled my panties off and started fulfilling the savior's command.* *...* Asumi: This is for our family's sake... *I reached my hand out to my father, still unconscious, and pulled his fly down, exposing his wilted penis.* *It was still soft and small.* *I hadn't seen it directly since... since I was young enough to take baths with my father.* *...It's really moving to think that ten months before I was born, my father's penis ejaculated inside my mother, and I'm the result of that.* Asumi: The savior told me to have sex with my father... *He said I wouldn't be saved if I didn't...* *According to the common sense of this world, it's completely out of the question for a daughter to have sexual relations with her father.* *But that's precisely why I had to do this in order to live in the new world.* *I can now understand the weight of the savior's words.* Asumi: You're the only one I can give my body to, my beloved father. Asumi: My gentle father is the only one fit to be my first. *He's the one who always deserved to receive it.* *So I, completely naked, looked down on my father and smiled.* Asumi: But first I have to wake up this little guy... *I used the knowledge I remembered reading in a magazine I got from (ironically enough) Yui to stimulate my father's penis with my mouth and give him an erection.* *From the rumors I heard... it feels way better when you use your mouth than your hand.* Asumi: Ahmm... Mm, ah... *A daughter with her own father's penis in her mouth... I'll be honest, I was more than a little turned on from the sense of breaking a taboo.* *It's a taboo for a father and daughter to do that, but it's perfectly natural for a man and woman.* Asumi: Mmgh... Mm, mm... *The tip of my tongue played along his soft, warm penis, reveling in the slight taste of salt from his sweat.* Asumi: Mm, mm... Asumi: Ahm, mm... Haa～ *I had to let up for a second when it got hard to breathe.* Asumi: Geez, why won't it stand up? I did everything it said... *I was sad. After using all the knowledge I had to caress it, it didn't get bigger at all.* *It was completely different from the erect penises I saw in dirty manga and pornographic magazines that I confiscated from my male students.* Asumi: Oh no, it has to stand up like a mushroom first. *I hated my previous disinterest in sex and felt a pang of guilt that I couldn't save my still unconscious father.* Asumi: But men still get erections when they're asleep, so there should be some other way. *I tried using my saliva as lubricant and rubbing it with both hands, but...* Asumi: No... It's not reacting at all. *The penis that planted me in my mother's belly still didn't respond, and I started to get frustrated.* *At this rate, I wouldn't be able to have sex with my father.* Asumi: What should I do? I didn't expect this... *If I didn't put his penis inside me and make him cum, the savior wouldn't grant me salvation...* *I couldn't worry about the small things at this point.* *I intently surveyed my father's room.* Asumi: I guess I'll have to use this... *I took my father's favorite fountain pen off his desk and attached it to his penis as a support.* *Then I carefully wrapped rubber bands around the two of them to hold it in place, being sure that it wasn't too tight.* Asumi: If my mouth won't work, I'll have to force it to stand up... *Anyway, my father's penis was finally erect.* *Now I had to give it an even stronger stimulus than my mouth... I had to use my vagina for its original purpose and lead my father to orgasm.* Asumi: I can use this too... *I found the transparent wrap that he must have used to wrap his sandwich in and wrapped it around his penis instead to better hold it and the fountain pen together.* Asumi: Ah, those edges look like they could hurt... *I took the moisturizing cream out of my handbag and put a whole bunch on to lube his penis.* *The corners and edges on the wrap were surprisingly hard and pointy.* *Without the lube, those sharp corners would have made me give up out of pain before my father climaxed.* Asumi: ...This should work. *It was an unnatural construction, but the preparations were complete.* Asumi: If I put it inside and start moving, it should naturally get bigger... *I spread my legs and slowly straddled my father. I grabbed his makeshift erection and put the tip up against my pussy as I tried to calm the fluttering in my heart.* Asumi: I'll give you my virginity, Daddy... *As a mature woman, I wasn't embarrassed or hesitant. Rather, I was proud of myself.* *I let the tension out of my body and took a deep breath...* Asumi: Mmm! Ahh... *I put my body weight into my hips and closed my eyes in pain as my father tore through my hymen.* Asumi: Mm, ahh... It hurts... *Yui told me that it would hurt, but I never thought it would be this bad.* Asumi: Ahh... There's blood too... *When I touched the place where we were connected with my finger, it came away red with my blood.* *I took my father's manhood inside me.* Asumi: Ahh, haa... *I'm not a virgin anymore.* Asumi: Haa, ha, ha... The next part is the important part... *I couldn't just wallow in pain and self-pity like a normal girl.* *I could have just taken a picture at this point, but the savior wouldn't be satisfied with that.* *He wanted to see the 'vile teacher' fuck his own daughter and cum inside her, showing his animal lust.* Asumi: Haaa, mmm... *So I endured the pain, clinging to my father and moving my hips up and down.* Asumi: Mm, ahh... Ahh... *I was definitely right to put the moisturizer on before I started. It went in and out of me smoothly.* Asumi: Aggh... Mmm, ahh, haa... *It's a pity that he wasn't erect, but the male warmth I felt through the wrap still eased my pain a little bit.* Asumi: Ahh... Daddy, thank you for everything... I love you. *He loved me and raised me.* *I did it all for his sake.* *I'd become a woman now.* Asumi's Mom: Hey you two, dinner's ready. Asumi: Ah?! *When the pleasure of being made a woman finally began to seep into me, someone knocked on the door, and a chill ran up my spine.* Asumi's Mom: Asumi, you're in there, aren't you? Could you help me set the table? *She still didn't know what was happening in the room, so her voice was bright and full of affection.* *Yes... My mother was a bit more strict than my father, but she was still an excellent parent.* Asumi: Oh, yes... Wait a second, please... Haa, Ahh... *I tried to chase her away with my quavering voice even as I pistoned my hips up and down to make my father cum.* Asumi's Mom: ...Your voice is a little strange... Is something wrong? Asumi: No! There's... nothing wrong... nothing at all... *Her female instinct must have told her that her husband was being taken from her. She must have faintly realized what was happening.* Asumi's Mom: You came home awfully early today... What's the matter-- Huh? *--Rattle, rattle.* Asumi: Hiaa... Ah, ahh... Asumi's Mom: Hey, why is the door locked? Open the door, Asumi! Asumi: N-No... Haa, mm... Just a second! *--Rattle, rattle.* *My mother noticed something was wrong even through the door. I heard her violently turning the doorknob and making a clatter of metal on metal.* Asumi: Ahh... Mm, ahh, haa... *The pressure to finish spurred me on, causing me to get even wetter and more turned on.* Asumi: Ahh, mm... Ahh... *As the rod wrapped in plastic moved inside my pussy, I felt the juices dripping out from inside me.* Asumi: Uhh... Ahh... *--Rattle, rattle!* Asumi's Mom: Come on, what are you doing in there?! Asumi: Haa, ha... Mom, just wait a little longer... *--Rattle, rattle!* Asumi's Mom: Asumi! Asumi! Asumi's Dad: ...Mm... *My breath grew more and more ragged, and then my father finally opened his eyes.* Asumi's Dad: Ah... What's happen-- Hey?! Asumi: Ahhmm... Daddy, Daddy! Asumi's Dad: Wh-Wh-What are you doing, Asumi! Stop it right now! *When he opened his eyes and took in the situation, my father struggled trying to get me off him, but he couldn't move because I had tied him down.* Asumi: Ahaaa... Daddy, I love you... Asumi's Dad: Do you understand what you're doing?! Asumi: Of course I do... I love you, Daddy. That's why I gave you my virginity. Asumi's Dad: Wha-?! Ah... What have you done... No, no, you can't... *His red, enraged face paled before my eyes, so out of pity I rotated my hips and moved faster to soothe him.* *No, I shouldn't say I 'gave' him my virginity. Rather, I awoke to the pleasure of getting my pussy fucked, and I wanted to taste it more intensely.* *Not as his obedient, level-headed daughter, but as a woman with a normal sex drive.* Asumi's Dad: No, Asumi... This is unforgivable. Asumi: Why? If a man and a woman love each other, isn't it a good thing if they come together? Asumi's Dad: We're father and daughter! You can't do this, so stop right now! Asumi: We're father and daughter, but you're a man, aren't you... Hmm, ahaaa... Asumi's Dad: Stop quibbling and get off m-- Uahh! Asumi: I can tell it feels good for you too. You're moaning already, ehehe. Asumi's Dad: ...Ah! Asumi: You look so cute when you're trying not to moan. I'll make it feel even better for you... Mm, ah. *My father's face was so lovely when it was distorted with distress. I kissed his cheeks over and over as I gyrated my hips.* Asumi's Dad: Ah, ah... Asumii... Asumi: You and Mom made love like this before I was born, right? Asumi: It's wonderful... This is life's mystery... Ahaaamm... Asumi's Dad: Ah... How could this happen... My daughter's virginity... Ah... *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Mom must be getting desperate... Afu... Ha, aah... *When she stopped turning the doorknob, she must have gone into the kitchen and found a kitchen board or some other blunt instrument to break the lock from the outside.* *The door was wooden, so even a woman like my mother could break the lock if she hit it enough times.* Asumi: Ahh, ah, mm, uhmm... *I put aside my own pleasure in fear of my mother and instead passionately ground my hips dutifully to make my father cum.* Asumi: Haaa... Your dick is getting so hard... Asumi's Dad: ...No, no...! *--Bang! Bang!!* *He frowned and shook his head in denial, but I could feel his penis swelling inside me and pushing the fountain pen aside.* *The feeling inside my pussy dulled as the fountain pen was dislodged, but he was still so hard that I could feel every ridge of his dick in the shallow part of my pussy.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Look, Daddy... I'm such an adult... *My poor father's hands were tied of course, so instead, I pushed my breasts against him and rubbed them against his chest. That way, I could teach him how soft my well-grown breasts were.* Asumi: Ehehe... you're a man too, Daddy... I know how you can't help but look at my chest every now and then... *It would've been quite the nuisance to have my mother, her pride as a woman in shambles, barge in during our union, so I wanted to do whatever it took to have my father ejaculate as soon as possible.* Asumi: How is it? They're bigger and softer than Mom's, aren't they? Asumi's Dad: This is... beyond salvation. I'm done for... it's over... Asumi: You've got it all wrong, Daddy. This will pave the way for the savior's acceptance... Nck-ahh... *I lost myself into the act, showering kisses on him and rubbing my ample breasts in his face over and over.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi's Dad: This is wrong... As a human... it's all so wrong... Asumi: That's especially why it's so right...! Asumi: We must discard... this mistaken world's morals... Ngh, ahh! *My insides grew hot from my father's penis, which I could feel twitching inside me.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Ahh-AahAhh, nnngh-ugh!... Asumi: Daddy, cum inside me, okay? You need to. You've gotta... Nnngh Asumi's Dad: ...ah... ugh... *Daddy yielded to me, no longer showing any trace of resistance. The passage of our union was smothered with our genital secretions, allowing for incredibly smooth hip movement.* Asumi: Ha, kch... ugh... ahh... ahhh, ahh, Daddyy-! *At this point, even the pain of my deflowerment made me more and more turned on, because I'm such a filthy whore.* Asumi: Hah... ha... ahh-... feels so goood... *So this is what sex is like.* *I couldn't have even imagined that my first sexual partner would be my father.* *However, since I love him, I was overjoyed.* Asumi's Dad: ...Wrong, wrong... so wrong... Asumi: Ha... Cum, cum!... If you don't, Mother's going to see us... *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Ahhh, nn, nnnh... Aha... You're so big inside me. Asumi's Dad: Stop this... Stop, st- Ahh---! Asumi's Dad: Kch...n... Ahh... Asumi: Ah! You came for me!! *His face contorted as he let out a strained voice, and I squirmed in ecstacy after feeling his hot torrent spray my vaginal walls with semen.* Asumi: Where's the camera?! I need a camera...! *I promptly reached for the cellphone in my pocket* Asumi: Ngh, ahhhhn! *I reflexively let out a rather amorous voice after I dismounted my father's hot dick, removing the fountain pen and wasting no time to enjoy the reverberating ecstacy which followed sex.* Asumi: Ehehe~☆ *I took a picture of my positively beaming face alongside his...* *And then I followed with a shot of his penis smeared with semen and my bloodied vagina side by side.* Asumi: Next is to send these... *After several seconds, I heard a sound ringing from my phone, and with that, I successfully cleared the first order of business.* *I supressed the urge to leap around in joy and embraced my silent father.* *Then I reached out for his semen, the very first pool of it I had ever seen, and entwined some of it around my finger.* Asumi: Waah, it really does smell like a squid. *I licked some of it out of curiosity, and I tasted an incredibly strong and thick flavor.* Asumi: So much came out. You must not have emptied the tank for a long time... *The mental image of my father holding back despite wanting to shoot his load was adorable, so I ended up licking off the rest of the semen on my finger.* *--Bang! Bang!!* *--Bang!* Asumi: Ah, she broke it. *My mother may have finally broke the doorknob, but she failed to stop me. It was this very moment when I tasted a sense of euphoria from the feeling of superiority over my mother as a woman.* Asumi's Mom: My goodness, Asumi--h... h... hyaaah?! *My mother bore witness to her husband with his bare lower half smeared with semen and her daughter next to him, face beaming and stark naked.* Asumi: Ehehe... Mmmngh, nnnch *As if to deliver the final blow, I took my dazed father's lips right in front of my shocked mother, kissing him in a grand display.* Asumi's Mom: Ah-... uu--- Asumi... what have you... Asumi: Nnngh, anngh, hah... I love you, Daddy. Asumi's Mom: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH---!!! *My mother screamed, like a woman screaming bloody murder. She clutched her scalp in an attempted denial of the reality before her.* *I couldn't have been more satisfied.* *Of course I love my mother, but in retrospect, I might have viewed her as a rival for my father's love, ever since the days of adolesence.* Asumi: Aha, ahahaha... *My deed succeeded in crushing the hearts of my mother and father.* Asumi: Hahaha, I've done it... I've done it!! *I lingered on the sense of accomplishment and, still stark naked, left the premises through the garden window.* Asumi: Morals are nothing but junk designed to blind us from the truth. I can't allow myself to be misguided! *There I was, fully naked and out in public.* *I had made my way into the public eye, where anyone could see me.* *The weakness of my heart, misguided from the years raised in deception, was exposed as I reverted back to "normalcy" at an alarming rate.* Asumi: This too is a trial. Bear with it... Asumi: I'm sure that person over there is reasonable enough to understand my plight... *-I shamefully took shelter behind a telephone poll as I started to work my way back to the savior awaiting my return.* Asumi: ...Ugh * Ow..."* *I was surprised by how many pebbles were on an asphalt road. They ate into the sole of my foot with every step I took.* Asumi: You must keep going on, Asumi... *As much as I tried to spur myself on, the discomfort of taking a penis inside me for the first time just moments earlier was undeniable as it took a toll on my pace.* Asumi: Maybe I should have at least brought a coat and bottom with me? *I noticed my hands reflexively covering myself, and my eyes were wary of my surroundings as I proceeded cautiously.* Asumi: The journey back appears to be rather challenging. *A parked car, gray concrete walls, trees sprouting dense greenery, and a red vending machine.* *Everytime I felt someone within eyesight, I fled for safety behind whatever was nearby.* *As I timidly made my journey, the subdued voices of strangers talking around me haunted my every step.* *If they were to see me, perhaps I'd be viewed as a perverted exhibitionist, an object inspiring carnal desire.* *Just entertaining the thought of that gave me goosebumps.* *But the words of the savior challenged me.* *"Do you have the resolve to cast aside everything?"* Asumi: That's right * Yes, that's right... You've already come this far, so what exactly is it that's holding you back now?"* *Behind the telephone pole, I talked to myself until I arrived at a very simple answer.* *As a person with the duty to forsake all that is of this world, I had no reason to hesitate any longer.* *Having destroyed my father's heart and broken free from the shackles of my parents... just what attachment to this world did I have left, really?* *History proves that trials and tribulations are given to those who strive for the road of the righteous.* *And if I am saved, then a path to redeem my parents will open. To save those who fail to recognize their faulty ways, I must first be saved!* *I, Kiyokawa Asumi, am not wrong in any way, shape, or form.* Asumi: I've had enough of this oppressive world!! *I dropped my hands to my side, baring my chest and nether region.* Asumi: I'll live in a bright new world, happily together with the ones I love!! *I declared that thunderously under the madder red sky, dashing out in my most natural form as I fixated on the image of the savior's approving face.* *That was my sacred ritual.* *"No longer have anything to hide!" → "No longer sludged in deception!" = "No longer a teacher!"* *There was nothing for me to hide... There was no reason for me, making a fresh start, to be ashamed.* *All that was left was to make way back toward the ark, reinvigorated with joy.* *It's far easier to do something than fester away worrying about it. What a simple concept.* Asumi: It sure is hard to run with my breasts jiggling. *As it was my first time running without a bra, I couldn't help but smile wryly at my large breasts swaying grandly as I ran.* *But... it didn't feel that bad.* *Rather, I was delighted that I could show off the new me. So I ran on, hands not covering myself, naturally swaying as I ran the distance.* *Behold pitiful denizens, look on as you wallow within the security of your clothes. Look on at the naked body of Kiyokawa Asumi, a body that ran through your perverted thoughts.* *Furthermore, a body freshly deflowered, for I have been made into a real woman!* *If you're going to look, then look as much as you want.* Asumi: Compensation should be directed toward Mamiya-sama. *A gentleman from a distance bore witness to me and my eager declarations.* *Ah, how I wished to be back at the ark at once...* *All I wanted was to run toward the all-knowing savior in my purest form and be wrapped up in his blessings.* Asumi: Please wait for me, I won't falter here! *......* *...* Asumi: Hah, it's about time for the afternoon rush hour... *Naturally, pedestrian traffic was high at that time of day. It was easy to see that passing through in the nude would be no simple task.* *Every path within sight was packed. Released schoolchildren, tired employees, each heading down a different path to home.* *Ah, I must add that I wasn't fearful of judgmental eyes.* *I was simply wary because it would be a great nuisance to be arrested due to my "perversion."* Asumi: ...Ugh. *That being said, the alternative of pitifully hiding and praying for the pedestrian traffic to fade out was not an option.* *Because I, who had cleared the seemingly utmost trial of sexual intercourse with my father, had to return with haste to the school where the saving grace of the savior awaited me.* *It would not do to displease the savior, bless his noble soul, if I were to cower here.* Asumi: How should I go about this.. * Ah!"* *After looking around restlessly, my eyes came upon a middle-aged woman riding a bike and approaching me.* *Yes, a bike!* *A bike would be much faster than travelling on foot, and I would be able to outrun the hands of the fools eager to hinder my return.* *In other words, this woman's timely appearance was not a mere coincidence: This was none other than an act of divine intervention brought about by the miraculous hands of Mamiya-sama.* *I am most grateful to you, Mamiya-sama!* Asumi: Hello, pardon me- *I wore the superficial smile that I had picked up during my tenure as a teacher and jumped resolutely out of hiding and into the sunlit road.* Old Lady: Are you all right?! *I stepped into her line of sight and she stopped cycling in amazement the moment she saw me.* Old Lady: Did something happen to you? Should I call the police?! *It appeared that she was of a kind disposition as she unmounted her bike and headed toward me.* Asumi: Ahaha, I'll kindly decline your offer. Old Lady: But look at you... this isn't normal! *Yes, I'm unlike all the mistaken and foolish women in the world. I'm not "normal."* Old Lady: Um... what should I do... *She started to look puzzled, troubled with how to deal with me, given my calm and composed attitude.* Old Lady: Excuse me, you over there! Call the police- *As she made her way back toward her bike to stand it up, she spotted and called out to someone walking nearby.* *I used this chance to run over to her bike.* Asumi: Silence, you old hag! I'll take it upon myself to borrow this. Old Lady: Ah! Hey, where are you-?! *I stole her bike without a trace of guilt and started cycling away, pedaling hard enough for the surface of the pedals to sink into my bare feet.* * ......* Asumi: La~la~la~ *I cycled on buoyantly with my stolen bicycle, dashing past anyone that noticed me.* Asumi: Ahaha, I called her a hag! Asumi: Is the usage of such vulgar language unbecoming of a teacher? *This would make me a repeat offender, too.* Asumi: La-la-la~ *I was travelling far faster than I could on foot.* *I could practically feel how much I was changing simply by following the word of the savior!* Asumi: If death is the greatest peril, people desire 'life'! Asumi: If present before even greater peril, people desire 'death'! Asumi: If cornered into a despairing situation in which death becomes desirable- Asumi: -then the worst and most unrelenting despair is to be denied death!! *I recalled vividly a passage from a rather difficult book I once read and shouted it out to the twilit sky.* Asumi: Hahahaha~! *Why did I shout such pretentious remarks?* *Perhaps... it's because I, wallowing in ecstacy, had grown conscious of my attained indifference to despair.* Asumi: Hey brats, move it! *I shouted out hysterically to the students blocking the path before me, trying to clear my way forward.* *They, in the midst of puberty, appeared to be dumbfounded as they looked on at me, a young, bare naked woman.* Asumi: Heh, if you want to look, then go right ahead! I'm showing it all off, after all! *Heat flushed over my body as I felt the stares of pedestrians nearby.* *More additions to the sightseeing came as those who hadn't noticed my presence were alerted by people whose attention I had already captured.* Asumi: Whew, how's this? *To speed up, I leaned forward with my bottom protruding outward so that I could exert more weight onto the pedals. As I rode, my posture created a ninety degree angle.* *Through this pose, my genitals and anus were completely exposed, and my breasts dangled in magnificent display.* Male Pedestrian: The hell?! Is that even legal?! Female Pedestrian: Gross, some slut's on the loose! Asumi: Hah... hahaha... *Whether it be lecherous stares or scorn by the foolish, I was pleased with the reception.* Asumi: Hahaha... Ahahaha~~~☆ *It's only natural for the run of the mill person to stop and stare at someone stark naked riding along in the public eye.* *But I found it rather pitiful that there were so many that were seemingly joyous at the sight.* Asumi: Father would faint if he saw me now! *But then again, I suppose he wouldn't be able to even leave the house in his current state.* *...Sorry, Daddy.* *But I gave you my virginity, so I'd like for you to be a bit more happy about the issue.* Asumi: Hehe, today, good ol' Kiyokawa Asumi's done it with her daddy! *Upon the order of The Savior, I, Kiyokawa Asumi, have committed the act of sexual intercourse with my father.* Asumi: I've got my father's seed inside meee~! I wonder how many times he's done it with Mother? *I would be surprised if I were to find out my parents gave birth to me out of wedlock. That probably isn't the case as they were both diligent teachers before marriage.* *I am certain that they've followed the model of the upright: an honest relationship, a proper marriage, sex, then children.* *...Sex is sex, though.* *Although I have to admit... I'm jealous of anyone that can have their first time with a fellow virgin.* Asumi: Gahaha, I bet Mom moaned like a bitch in heat whenever she had father's dick in her! *...When I was a child, I'd come across my parent's room in the middle of the night whenever I was on my way to the toilet or I was unable to sleep. My young mind could not comprehend why my father would be laying on top of my mother.* *They always seemed awkward back then. Thinking back on it now, that was a horrible transgression.* Asumi: But hey, now Mother and I are even! *Wouldn't it be the greatest happiness as a 'man' to be given the virginity of a woman you've raised lovingly as a parent?* *It must be an exclusive and valuable treasure. Something that would be looked down upon by this world's morals.* Asumi: That's right. I can no longer bear to live binded by this hypocritical world! *As the wind caressed my cheeks and ruffled my hair, I realized that I was standing in rebellion against this world itself.* *By the standards of this world, I would be judged as a vulgar being repulsive enough to have sex with her father.* *But I've succeeded as a woman! I've guided my father's aged penis to ejaculation!* *That's something unspeakable within the boundaries of a "sensible human being".* *I've cast away my humanity-* *-In other words, I'm no longer fit to be a perfect model teacher!* Asumi: Looook aaat me nooooow!! *I couldn't restrain the shouts of joy as a sense of accomplishment and superiority boiled within my core.* Asumi: I'm being redeemed! I'm necessary in the new world!! *What do you think? Aren't you jealous of my newfound freedom?* *But you, all of you cowards that simply conform, you can go ahead and rot in this filthy world.* Asumi: To be, or not to be, that is the question!! Asumi: Now is the time to take in hand the wings of fate!!! *There was no deep meaning in what I screamed aloud.* *I was simply spurred on by the excitement that I felt as I pedalled faster and faster, so I shouted whatever random words came to mind.* Asumi: Kuh---hahaha!!! *There's no longer anything to hold me down.* *There's no need to wear boorish articles such as clothing to cover my body.* *The breeze felt incredibly wonderful.* *An ineffable sensation of feeling like I'd become one with the universe overcame every sense of my being.* *My ego, my hatred, and my sadness had all disappeared.* Asumi: I... I never knew I could feel like this. *I cycled on as I smiled unbelievably brightly, drowned within a boundless sense of liberation.* *"Do you have the resolve to cast aside everything?"* Asumi: Yes! Now I can! I can throw away anything! *All my life I felt a great weight upon my shoulders, but today that weight disappeared as if it had never existed.* *Ahh. I'm just like the wind. There's nothing to keep me grounded.* Asumi: Heh... Hahaha... *Everyone I passed by stopped and stared.* *And even those scornful eyes upon me felt wonderful.* *The foolish are unable to admit their own foolishness, and that's why they feel the need to incessantly attack those of us who have risen above.* *Just like the barbaric peers of the sagacious and beautiful Takashima, who tormented her in the throes of their animalistic craze.* *The fact that they looked at me like that is proof enough that they deserve no salvation.* Asumi: Haa, haa! Faster!! *I arrived at a rather steep road and applied more force to the pedals.* Asumi: Whoo! Yes, yes! Faster! *That resulted in the bike reaching an incredible speed, as if an engine materialized and pushed it along with unimaginable force.* *That hill was rather long. Walking down it is an easy task, but the difficulty of ascending it goes without saying.* Asumi: Hahaha! This feels wonderful!! *The further down I went, the more I was spurred on by the pure, childish joy I felt.* *It was unlike travel by car, wherein you're protected by glass and steel. Taking in the wind as you speed by on a bike tickles a human's base animal instinct.* *At that moment I had to wonder, how did I get to this point?* *The scenery around me blurred as I went faster than my eye could perceive.* *The pressure of the wind rushing against my face thickened, making it hard to even breathe.* *But there was nothing but a smile on my face.* Asumi: Wahhh! *The furious speed that I was going seemed to signify the detachment I felt from the world I had once lived in. It was the best feeling.* Asumi: Ahhck... Now, of all tiiimes? *Perhaps due to the cold of wind rushing against my naked body, biological functions implored me to urinate.* *But even if I had pushed on the break at this point, I wouldn't have been able to stop.* *And I was filled with feelings that told me not to hold back.* Asumi: Well, guess I have no choice～～☆ *I might as well let it go!* *I tore my legs off the pedal and opened them to face the onslaught of air coming at me* *The wind hitting my nether region made me want to urinate all the more. Then all I had to do was relax...* Asumi: Ahahaaaa~! *... and let it all go..."* *Warm urine ran across my thighs, soon becoming drops getting blown off behind me by the wind.* *There's nothing better than this!* Asumi: Amazing... Amazing!! *It felt like there was absolutely nothing impossible for me to do.* Asumi: --Hyahh?! *I was thrown off by the pleasant sensation of urinating and lost my grip on the bike.* Asumi: Hah, wahh?! *In an instant, I found myself twirling in the red sky, catapulted off the bike like a person on a swing that had snapped in midair.* Asumi: Ahhh~ *As I tumbled through the air, time felt like it was getting slower... everything around me passed by in slow motion.* *I saw a long tunnel, but did I see the light at the end of it...?* *What is this... It's not too bad.* *Experiencing phenomena like this is simply wonderful.* *...* Asumi: Gyah? *"* *I slammed against the ground and let out a rather stupid voice.* *Following my crash landing was the dull sound of something breaking upon impact a ways ahead of me.* Asumi: Ack... I can see stars... Asumi: Huh? It doesn't hurt as much as I thought it did. *As the world came back into focus a few seconds later, I realized that I didn't feel much physical pain despite my dramatic fall.* *Upon looking around, I found that I had landed on someone's lawn.* *That explained why the ground was so soft.* *And once I looked up, I saw that the old lady's bike was bent in half.* Asumi: Wow, the wheel looks like a heart now. *The damage looked appropriate for a head on clash against a solid wall .* *And yet I, fully naked, came out of that without a scratch.* *I was tossed into the air, far enough that for a moment I thought I could see lands beyond the naked eye's perception.* Asumi: ...Is this a miracle?! *Yes, it was a miracle brought about by Mamiya-sama!* *It was an act of mercy! A miracle formulated after all that was foreseen since the moment I was granted that bike!* *Otherwise, I would not have been in a perfectly unharmed condition like I am now.* Asumi: Ahhh, my savior... Thank you, thank you... *I clapped my hands together and prayed in all sincerity as I headed toward the school.* *This was a phenomenon that reason could not explain. A miracle!* *A flurry of emotions brought out hot uncontrollable tears.* Asumi: How could such a generous being exist... *To live up to such a noble heart,* *to ensure the salvation of I who had suffered.* Asumi: I must abide by the savior's word. *Mamiya-sama is repulsed by teachers, 'evil' beings.* *Yet I, a teacher, was given a trial as a chance to be saved. I was even protected from harm by a miracle brought about by him!!* Asumi: I must be sure to abide by the savior's word from now on. *This is an obligation, something that should be carried out as someone who was saved.* *I cast aside my profession as a teacher as part of his word.* *I even cast aside my livelihood as a teacher, and I cast aside my role as a daughter of two wicked parents.* *Those who desire salvation must cast aside all that they have known before.* *Yet I, unable to fully abandon my lingering sentiment toward this world, was reminded all the more of the truth by the compassion of Mamiya-sama.* Asumi: That's right. I can understand everything now! *So the last thing to do was...* *"Do you have the resolve to cast aside everything?"* *Of course I do.* Asumi: I'll throw my humanity away completely! *Please watch on from the shining perch of the ark.* *Please watch me, my savior!* *......* *...* *"Become lower than a human." This must mean to throw away humanity as I once knew it.* Asumi: Ahh... mmnh... nhh... unh, ah-ahhhh... *Wobbling as I stood up, I made my way to a place where anyone could see me, so that I could satisfy my goal.* Asumi: Ohh... nnnnn... nh, haaaaa~ *I slowly headed toward a roadside and sat down. I opened my legs, reached down with both hands, and started to play with myself.* *It was an obscene act committed despite the watching eyes of the crowd.* *It was something considered criminal and unlawful by this society, and it was something that could provoke irrepressible lust in some.* Asumi: Unhhh, haaa... ah, haaaaaaanngh... *Well then, lets enjoy ourselves.* *Much like wild animals copulating, I was unmindful of any eyes that watched me.* *I tossed away the shell of humanity, showing them that I am a mature and unbridled woman.* *Hehehe...* *"Hey, is that..."* *"Woah! What the hell is this??"* *Foolish men found themselves lured by my captivating voice.* Asumi: Nnngh, ha, haaah, ahhh, hnngh... *I'm sure they thought of 'some poor abused girl' as they saw me, fully naked.* *Or perhaps they thought I was 'some drunk vulgar woman'.* *Tsk, tsk... How about coming for a closer look rather than coming up with arbitrary conclusions?* *Quite the high and mighty attitude for a bunch of hypocrites who really want to gawk all day at a woman's naked figure.* Asumi: Nnnn, ahh, ahhh... haah... *Come on, I bet you want to get a better look by spreading these lips apart yourself.* Asumi: Nnnfh, ha... haaaaaaanngh... *I gently laid my back against the wall and pinched my clitoris.* Asumi: Ahh, haaah... haaah, nghh, nnnn... *"This supposed to be some AV public shoot?"* *"Woah, lucky me!"* *As my fingers did more and more indecent things, I felt the eyes upon my genitals increase.* *There was no turning back, and I had no intention to do so anyway.* *In the past, I wouldn't have been able to bear disgrace and would have pitifully broke.* Asumi: Ha-ahhh, an, ah, ahhh~ *But now, I've grown. Grown to the point where being seen doesn't scare me away. Rather, it excites me.* Asumi: Haaa... it's so warm inside my pussy~ *By this point, I'd completely thrown away everything.* *And that's why... my mind and body were ablaze.* Employee: W-What's wrong with you...? *A pair of two brave... No, that's not right. They were simply perverted men who called out to me with a trace of concern in their voices.* Employee: You, uh, want me to bring you some water? Asumi: Haa... No, thats alright... Ah, ahnnn... *I could hear them gulping as I inserted my fingers in my aroused vagina.* *Ahahaha... Do you really want to look that bad?* Asumi: Hgh... haaaa, annn, khh, yaaangh... *This is something most people are aware of. It's nothing new by now.* Asumi: Nnn, haa... haaa... nnngh... *Ah, then maybe you aren't...* *Then it'd make sense for you all to be so engrossed by all this.* *Pitiful.* *Well then, how about I grace you with my kindness?* Asumi: Haaa... Today... I lost my viriginity... Asumi: I... hnnngh... had sex with my father... Asumi: Hehehe... Can you see it...? Here, I'll spread myself up and show you. Asumi: This pussy right here... hyah... has had Daddy's dick in it ... *I had spread open my lips, with some residue of semen visible here and there... and I began to tell my tale like a person telling tales of the glory days of their youth.* *I had recollected my wholeheartedly delightful experience... nonchalantly, as if the tearing apart of the ties I had with my beloved parents was not worth brooding over.* Asumi: Haaah... Right here... a dick was sliding in and out... Nnngh... Employee: That's... If that's true, it's really bad, huh... Asumi: Haaa... I still... only let in one penis... Haaa... *I had spread open my thighs even more so my genitals would be all the more visible, revealing my rather wet vagina to their lecherous gazes.* *Ahhh... it was as if those fierce gazes were caressing me.* Asumi: Haaa... It was my father's flaccid penis... Nnngh... Asumi: I held it tight with my special place here... ahnnnn, and it got harder... *Sticky liquid spilled out as I played with myself. It was incredibly erotic the way a clear line of love juices would form between my clitoris and fingers.* *It must have been because I now knew the feeling of a penis inside me that I showed off by rapidly fingerfucking myself with my middle finger.* *...That could become a habit for me.* Asumi: To think that... his penis could get so hard... Hyahh... Asumi: Made me... so happy... I'd rock my hips in joy... Employee: You were a virgin, right? Were you in pain? Asumi: It did hurt... a lot... but I love my father... Asumi: So I'd take it... all in... Ahhh, ahhhnnnnnn... *Excitement dominated me as I told of my experience with my father. My hands sought further pleasure as they reached for my chest and grabbed hold of my hardened nipples. I made sure to play with myself in a way that all could see.* Asumi: Nnh, nnn, kuh, fff, yah... *A small pool of liquid had formed where I sat, and yet more and more gushed out.* Asumi: "Haah, aaan... His dick... grew so big... Asumi: And filled me right up... Kyu... uuu, nnn, nnnn~ Employee: Hey, uh, what position did you have your first time in? Asumi: I was on top... his dick kept jamming in me... It made me so happy... *At the peak of his erection, his penis would hit the furthest reaches of my womb. It felt so tight and overwhelming in me that at one point I drooled.* Asumi: Hahhn... That's... Ahhh, yahhh, haaa, haaah! *The sudden insult from that young man tugged at my heart and made me feel really good.* *I'm by nature a timid person, but I'm definitely not a masochist.* *Yet that trembling pleasure there... it must be because of the paradoxical blessings I've received. Yes, now I can understand.* Asumi: Fahh... Nnkh, nnnm, mmm, ahh, hahhh... *What if I were to have some strangers penis inserted into me right there on the spot?* *And it doesn't stop there... What if I had a dick forced into my other hole?!* Asumi: Ahhh! Hahhh, ahh, kuh, hnnngh~ *Just imagining that made me drool from my half-open mouth. My mind was at once dyed by that rosy fantasy.* *Father's semen... it was so warm, so vivid as it gushed out and into me. That was the best...* *Compared to that, how would the semen of these people feel?* *There seems to be different shapes and sizes among penises, so what about these men?* *It was wonderful to have these men lined up with penises whipped out in front of me...* Asumi: Haaaa... Ahhh, anghhhh, aaaahn... Cumming, cummiiiiing. *Heat rose from within me. The trembling began and so did the end of my restraint.* Asumi: Haaan, ahhhn, I can't... I'm cumming, I'm cumming!! Employee: Woah, she's really shaking. Asumi: Ahhh! Ahhh, hahh, mmm, mmmmmmnh! Asumi: I'm cummiiiiiiiiiiing!! Onlookers: ...Wow... *At that moment, something big burst inside me.* *It was the despicable binds restraining my heart that yearned for the heights above since birth.* *And the wave that gushed forward and filled my momentarily empty heart was the greatest refresher.* *This was ecstacy, an experience beyond anything else I'd felt in my life.* *An exhilarating sensation that felt like I was flying higher and higher.* Asumi: Hah.... Haaaah~.... *I've finally become free.* *No longer qualified to be a teacher...* *No longer qualified to be a human...* *Congratulations, Asumi.* Asumi: Hehehehe... *I licked my love juice-dabbed fingers and smiled.* *What do you think, Mamiya-sama?* *Is this to your liking?* Employee: ...Huh?! Wh-Whoa! Employee: I think an ambulance comes first! Something's off with her eyes! Employee: 119's the magic number. Hello! *...Huh?* *...Why is everyone making such a fuss?* Employee: Ah, yes, this is... Hey, what block is this? Asumi: ...? Employee: I'm pretty sure it's the 5th... Damn, I dunno!! Asumi: ...Ah?! *After my daze, the first thing to come into sight was the men in a flurry, moving about as if they themselves woke up and were now responding to a critical situation.* *Maybe I went too far.* *And their attitudes took a sudden shift toward another direction, like they were trying to take me somewhere.* *"Hypocrite"... That word immediately came to mind.* Asumi: Hey, get out of my way! *My mind was still hazy. I stood up, pushed away the man that was blocking my path, and bolted.* *The police would arrest me without question in all my naked glory if they were to show up.* *The cops. The organization put in place to maintain the order of this society.* *Just one of the numerous giant organizations hindering our actions.* *And on top of that, a doctor?! Don't take me for a fool.* *Trying to subdue me with drugs? How vile can you get?!* *It's just as our savior says. This world of depravity is filled with false kindness.* Asumi: This isn't a joke. This isn't a joke at all! Asumi: I don't want to be dragged down along with this world's ruin! This isn't a joke at all! *I was lost within myself and sprinted out of there at full speed, not even aware of what direction I was headed.* *My only thought being to get of there at once.* *This place harbors nothing but a gathering of ill will! It's scary!* *That's why I must hurry, even if the asphalt cuts into my feet,* *I must hurry, back to my beloved Savior.* Asumi: Please save me―Lead me to salvation! *........* Takuji: I see. You've thrown away not just your life as a teacher, but also your right to be a daughter... or even a human. Asumi: Yes... I threw everything away. Takuji: You've thrown away your humanity and become a beast. Next you should... Oh, right, please become an object. Asumi: An object? Takuji: Yes, lower yourself to being a mere object. Takuji: Become my chair... Help me when I want to sit. Asumi: A-All right. Takuji: ... Takuji: No, my chair shouldn't be so filthy. Asumi: Eh? Takuji: That's right... It shouldn't be dirty. This is a dirty thing. Asumi: Um, my savior? Takuji: Savior? Do you think you can address me with that filthy mouth? Asumi: Eh? Huh? Takuji: Nishimura... Nishimura: Yes? Takuji: Make her into a toilet. Nishimura: A toilet? Takuji: Yes. Use her as a toilet. *The believers were rustling.* *It's understandable. After hearing that story... it would be hard to sit still...* *Especially for the male students.* *This filthy woman is well suited to be a tool for their use.* *Walking around outside in the nude is just madness.* *No one told her to do that.* *I told her to throw away her life as a teacher.* *I told her to throw away her father.* *But I didn't tell her to wander around the city naked, steal other people's possessions, and commit lascivious acts in public!* *Those were just sins. Those were just crimes!* *She's a sinner! A criminal!* *The most sinful of people!* *That's how all who call themselves teachers are!* Takuji: Yes... She's your toilet. Nishimura: Our toilet? Takuji: From here on out! Regardless of gender, any time someone must use the bathroom, they must do it in her mouth! Takuji: Not just urine! Even feces! You must use her mouth! Takuji: Understood? Male Student: I... did want to use the bathroom... Male Student: M-Me too... Nishimura: I'm first... Asumi: A-Aah... Takuji: Do it in the corner, where the ventilation is good! *Kiyokawa was dragged along by several men.* *Several female students followed them.* *They must have been holding it in.* *Splash, splash, glub, gulp.* *Splash, splash, glub, gulp...* *It smelled awful... Does it really stink this bad when so many people urinate simultaneously?* *But I wonder how it feels to be a toilet.* *I wonder how it feels to have your hair drenched in piss.* *She can endure what she herself has done to toilets all her life.* *That's it... The things that this woman held dear when she was a teacher.* *The symbols of an educator...* *She must defile them herself.* *The symbols will be defiled just like a toilet.* *Is it not perfectly fitting?* *The roll call, textbooks, notebooks, and other things she would have carried on her person when she was a teacher... I had them gather up anything like that.* *I placed the gathered objects below her.* *Then I ordered her.* *To dirty them with her own urine.* *A great cheer went up.* *She must have been holding it in for a while.* *The smell of piss filled the room again.* *Someone said, "No way she can be a teacher again now."* *Someone replied, "I doubt she can even be human again now."* *Gleefully, "She's covered in piss, and she pissed all over the roll call."* *It doesn't matter... It's not worth getting excited over...* *Does it really make you that happy? Is it such a wonderful event?* *Incomprehensible. Discommunication. I can't understand lower lifeforms at all.* *They're...* *Some of them were pulling down their pants...* *Fuck?* *Are they thinking of fucking it?* *Are you all thinking of fucking a toilet?* *That's not a human being, that's a toilet.* *You can't allow yourself to be aroused by a toilet.* *That's just madness.* *Madness is a sin.* *Insane people aren't pure men and women.* *They're bad people.* *Bad enough to get arrested by the police.* *If you try to fuck a toilet, a police officer will arrest you.* *Aaaah...* *These people are nothing more than shit.* *Do I need to save these people?* *Doubt.* *Doubtdoubtdoubtdoubt.* *Doubtdoubtdoubtdoubtdoubtdoubtdoubtdoubt.* *Save dungbeetles?* *Doubt?* *No.* *Absolutely not!* *Salvation!* *Doubt itself is nonsense!* *Nonsense!* *Haa...* *That's right... That's exactly right.* *In the end, that's all they are.* *That's why I have to save them.* *That's why I have to help them.* *Yes... It is because of their foolishness that I must save them.* *I must save... even Kiyokawa.* *I must help them.* *That's what it means to be the savior.* *The pitiful people.* *The foolish people.* *That is the reason why you all live in bliss.* *That is the reason why you all have been blessed.* *Your cursed lives are* * blessed because of the depth of your sin.* *...* *......* *Maybe I'm getting a bit tired...* *I want to get away from this meaningless party... I feel like I want to be alone.* *I returned to my place, alone.* *To my room...* *I stuck up the poster Tachibana bought.* *The icon of the Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *It was a proper icon drawn by the right illustrator.* Kimika: How is it, my savior? Takuji: Whoa! Takuji: Wh-Why are you standing behind me? Kimika: So that I can make sure I got the right icon... Horinoguchi is pretty good, huh? Takuji: You know about that stuff? Kimika: Yes, I do. I am a disgusting nerd, after all. Takuji: No one would call a girl like you a nerd. Kimika: No, tons of people have. Takuji: You're not fat or ugly... You can't be a nerd. *Though... I guess none of that matters when you're being bullied.* *Rather, the cuter girls are insulted about their looks more often than the ugly ones.* *But that's probably just jealousy...* Kimika: Yeah, it was a good choice, right? Takuji: Well, it is a nice picture. Kimika: Hahahahaha... Well, that's that... Kimika: Oh, right. Should I let them start the orgy? Takuji: Oh, for Nishimura? Kimika: Yes. Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko. Takuji: Yeah, it was a promise, so let them do it as much as they want. Kimika: Hehehehe... Well then, I'll get that threesome started. Kimika: And are others allowed to join in? Takuji: What, do you want to participate? Kimika: Ahahaha, I'll hit you the next time you make a joke like that, my savior. Takuji: You're rather disrespectful to someone you're calling your savior. Kimika: But that was awfully rude of you just now. Takuji: How was that rude? You're about to go make Akasaka and Kitami do it, right? Kimika: Yes, because those are your orders, my savior. Takuji: Oh, really... Then what if I ordered you to join in? Kimika: I would absolutely refuse. Takuji: It's the savior's order. Kimika: ... Kimika: If you ever give me a joke order like that, I won't obey, so please just kill me instead. Takuji: ...What? Kimika: I am the savior's servant. I will obey your orders, but if they're just meaningless jokes like that, I would rather be killed immediately. Takuji: ... *What's up with her...* *I thought I had completely broken her will and turned her into a believer, but what's this she's saying?* Takuji: I see... So you'll help me accomplish my role as the savior, but you won't play along with any jokes? Kimika: Yes, if it's a joke, then please kill me, my savior. *At first, I thought she was just a peasant who ran to me out of fear...* *That's what her actions made me believe...* *But she also did a lot of things that made me feel uneasy.* *Her eyes when we first met...* *Was that really the intent to kill someone that I saw in her eyes?* *Why would she try to kill me?* Takuji: Since the first time we met... you've been hiding something in your right pocket, haven't you? Kimika: Oh? Your eyes are as sharp as ever, my savior. Takuji: Show it to me. Kimika: All right, if that's an order. *Tachibana pulled a knife out of her pocket.* *It was pretty big. It could easily kill someone.* Takuji: What is this? Kimika: Oh, this an Extrema Ratio BF2 Tactical Tanto. Isn't it cool? Takuji: I don't know anything about it, but you'd get arrested for having something like this on you. Kimika: Oh, I'm fine there. They would never imagine a girl like me would be carrying this. Takuji: I wouldn't call that fine... And why are you carrying this around? Kimika: It's a maiden's hobby! Takuji: No maiden has a hobby like that. This is dangerous, so I'm confiscating it. Kimika: Huh?! It took me forever to save up my allowance and buy it! Takuji: Why would you want something like this that badly? Kimika: The main character in my favorite anime used one of these. I wanted one so bad I couldn't stand it, so I saved up my allowance and bought it. Takuji: Hmm... That's commendable. *So this is what she was hiding in her right hand back then... What was she planning on doing with it?* Kimika: Aha... You're kind of scowling at me. Can't you trust me? Takuji: Well, whatever. Do as you please. I'm the savior. Someone like you couldn't hurt me anyway, so I won't confiscate your knife. Kimika: Ahahaha... You don't trust me, huh? Takuji: Whether I trust you isn't the only problem. With this knife, if you had gone along with Nishimura and the others... Kimika: Yes, I would've stabbed the yakuza to death. Takuji: You know... Kimika: But I would try to eliminate anyone that got in the way of your plan, no matter what I had to do. That's my job as your servant. Takuji: You don't need to do that. Takuji: Whatever... Do as you please. More importantly, watch over the people in the ark for me. Kimika: All right, leave it to me. By the way, do you mind if I let them start the orgy? Takuji: I don't mind, but... why? Kimika: Don't you think it's important to maintain an irregular atmosphere so that we can control the believer's hearts? And sleep deprivation... That's important too. Takuji: I see. You have a good point. Kimika: They won't have time to think during an endless orgy. They won't even have time to sleep. We also have your drugs, so we should be able to create a situation like that. Takuji: Well, I guess so. Kimika: Do you mind leaving it to me? Takuji: Watching over the believers, huh... Kimika: Yes. If there's any unrest, or if you start to feel like you don't trust me, then please kill me immediately. I don't mind if you kill me with the curse or with your own hands. Kimika: Oh, wait. If that's what you mean... *Tachibana held the handle of the knife out to me, even though she had so adamantly refused to hand it over before.* Kimika: Please use this. It's very sharp. Takuji: Haa... I'm the savior. I could kill you in an instant without a weapon. Kimika: All right. I understand that, but please hold onto it. You don't know what might happen. Takuji: Hmm... Well, all right. Kimika: I'll be going then. Takuji: Sure. Takuji: ... *Tachibana Kimika... Honestly, I don't understand her.* *I can't completely trust her, but she could still prove to be useful.* *There shouldn't be any problems if I leave it to her.* Takuji: Hmm... *I looked at the poster Tachibana picked out.* *The icon of the Mahou Shoujo Riruru... It really is a nice picture.* *With this, she'll have her normal form the next time we meet.* *Now that I think of it...* *Riruru-chan said her father would descend upon the earth tonight.* *Riruru-chan's father...* *The existence called God.* *An existence far beyond human recognition.* *Tonight, I will meet with God.* *I wonder what God looks like.* *They say God made humans in his image, so maybe he looks like a human?* Takuji: Maybe I should head to the roof? *Last night, I met another metaphysical existence on the roof.* *There might be something there today, too... in the closest place to the sky.* *The Father Himself that Riruru-chan spoke of.* *Will I be able to meet with that existence?* Takuji: Hehehe... I guess I should go see. *A ladder that runs all the way down into the foundation... For some reason, this is connected to a ventilation duct on the Building C rooftop.* *I climbed the ladder directly to the sky.* *What waits for me in today's sky?* Takuji: There's no wind. Takuji: There's nothing... I don't feel anything. *When I came out onto the roof... it felt perfectly normal.* Takuji: ...The bell. Takuji: Eh? The bell? *I was dumbfounded at the sight of the clock.* *The time was... 11:38.* *Why would the bell ring at this time?* *Why?* Takuji: Gagh! Takuji: Wh-What is this? Takuji: M-My head, my head feels like it's going to split in two... What is this... What is it? Takuji: Ah... Takuji: Ah, there's... What am I looking at? On the... On the other side of the door... there's a sea? Takuji: And what's... on the far side of the sea? Takuji: Are those power lines? Takuji: The power lines continue beyond the sea. What are those power lines transmitting? Takuji: Why is the scenery from here... a window? Takuji: Through the window, it's so bright... blue... azure... It's all blue. Takuji: White walls... Totally white... So white there's nothing but anxiety but anxiety but anxiety... There's nothing but... Takuji: The white room is scary. Takuji: The blue sea is scary. Takuji: Here, there's... nothing but relieving fear. Takuji: My heart is relieved and breaks... Beautiful blue, beautiful white... I'm relieved, but the fear I can't take in has a very beautiful scent. Takuji: This is... the boundary. Takuji: I can hear something creaking... between the boundary's waves. Takuji: I can lose myself in the creaks. They resound in my brain like creak-eak-eak-eak-eak... But I don't worry. Takuji: Fear is safety. It's pure. Takuji: It's safety. There's a beautiful blue wall of sky. Takuji: The airtight sky is relieved as it conceals us. Takuji: The concealed blue catches a glimpse of the beautiful scenery through the white window. Takuji: If gods exist, they must be overflowing with this beautiful white wall and blue light. Takuji: Within the white wall, the Virgin Mary spreads her arms. Takuji: Like a holy castle designed by a genius. Takuji: The church of rosaries... The holy place witnessed by the genius Matisse... Takuji: It envelops my everything. *God exists.* *Right here...* *In the entire world...* *I see Him in my mind.* *I looked upon God's visage.* *The form of the holy father.* *The father of the holy kingdom.* *The laws of the universe harmonize order and chaos.* Takuji: Now, God... reveal your form to me. *Packets of white took shape.* *They took the form of the ultimate existence.* *The Father Himself.* *Father.* Takuji: ... God: ... *THE SONG OF GOD'S DESCENT.* *The date changed without regard for the song..* *.* *I returned to my place, alone...* *To my room...* *I stuck up the poster Tachibana bought.* *The icon of the Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *This is a proper icon drawn by the right illustrator.* *With this, she'll have her normal form the next time we meet...* *Now that I think of it...* *Riruru-chan said her father would descend upon the earth tonight...* *Riruru-chan's father...* *The existence called God.* *An existence far beyond human recognition.* *Tonight, I will meet with God.* *I wonder what God looks like.* *They say God made humans in his image, so maybe he looks like a human.* *...* Takuji: Hmm? I just... Takuji: Riruru-chan... Riruru: ... Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: What? Riruru-chan? Takuji: What did you say? The roof? Takuji: God's descent? Riruru: ... Takuji: God's descent will happen tonight... on the roof? *I went outside through the reservoir tank, like always.* *When I went outside, there were strangely shaped people gathered, just like always.* *Humanoid things.* *Non-humanoid things...* *Evidently, the people from yesterday were still here.* Takuji: You guys are still here? *"..."* Takuji: Oh, really? You couldn't get your hands on Shiroyama's corpse? *"..."* Takuji: That's a pity... Takuji: Though it's not like death is your possession. None of you have even been given death yourself. Takuji: So that corpse wasn't yours. Takuji: Unfortunately, you guys will never get Shiroyama's corpse. *"..."* Takuji: Hehehehe, you're awfully persistent... Well, do your best, then. *"..."* Takuji: Who's that? Someone's coming from over there. Takuji: The smell of blood... It must be a corpse. Why is there a corpse here? Takuji: Is Shiroyama still wandering around the school? Takuji: No, this smell is different... Takuji: It's not the smell of a man's blood... This is the unique smell of a woman's blood. Takuji: That's not a man's corpse... That's... Takuji: Takashima-san... Zakuro: Takuji: Your neck is broken, and it looks like it's about to come off. I can't understand you at all. Zakuro: 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Zakuro: 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Takuji: Hello, Takashima-san. Zakuro: Takuji: Um, you don't need to force yourself to talk. Zakuro: Takuji: You're going to save the world, right? Zakuro: Takuji: Do your best, Takashima-san... I'm cheering for you. Zakuro: *I couldn't really tell with all the blood, but it seemed like she was smiling.* Zakuro: Zave... Orld... Zakuro: I'll... zave... Zakuro: So, Dakuji-kun... don'd be avraid... Takuji: Yeah, I understand... Thank you. Zakuro: *...* *Takashima-san went off somewhere else.* Takuji: ... Takuji: Goodbye... I loved you... *I went up the stairs.* *The stairs that lead up to the roof.* *The road to the sky.* *I went up the stairs.* *I saw something strange on the landing.* *Something strange...* *No, it was something incredibly common in this place, but why was it on the landing of the stairs?* Takuji: What are you? You're not a normal desk, are you? Zakuro: Hello, Takuji-kun. Takuji: Oh, you're Takashima-san... Takuji: Takashima-san, what are you doing here? Zakuro: A-Ahahaha, I kind of, kind of... This is embarrassing to say, but I'm looking for my body Takuji: Looking for your body? Zakuro: Yeah... I'm not sure how, but I lost it at some point. Takuji: Did you really? Zakuro: Yes. Takuji: That must be hard. Searching for your corpse even after death... Zakuro: After death? Takuji: Looking for your corpse... even though you died... That has to be rough. Zakuro: Even though I dyed? Course? Rough? Takuji: That's not it... Not a course, your corpse. Zakuro: Naught it? Tit? Tit for tat? Takuji: You know, Takashima-san... Zakuro: I know! I know! My brains are falling out! My brains! They're falling out, aaah! My brains, my brains, they're falling out, they're falling ooouuutt, ehe, ehehehehehe! Takuji: Takashima-san... Zakuro: Brains! Ehe, brains! Ehehehehehehehe, brains, brains! Ehehehehehehehehehehe... Takuji: ... Zakuro: Ahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahia. Takuji: ... Zakuro: Ahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahia. Takuji: Takashima-san... Zakuro: Give, giiive me back my booodyyy! Zakuro: My bodyy, give me back my boooodyyyyy! Takuji: Unfortunately, that's not within my power... Takuji: I'm sorry, but please, don't give up on your search, Takashima-san. Zakuro: Ehiahiahahahaha... Zakuro: Hiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahiahia. *It's like a comedy.* *When her terrible fate is repeated like that... it seems more like a comedy.* *Poor girl...* *My lover...* *The wind was too chilly for summer.* *The sky is near.* *This is the closest place to the sky on Earth.* *There was no one there...* *There was no nasty feeling in the air like yesterday...* *There was no lightning like yesterday.* *It felt like there was never anything here.* Riruru: Takuji-kun. Takuji: Wha―?! *Th-This voice...* Takuji: Riruru-chan? Riruru: That's right. Takuji: Amazing... It's the real Riruru-chan. Takuji: It feels like you're way more realistic than usual Riruru: R-Really? Takuji: Yeah, you always felt far away... Like you were semi-transparent, I guess. Riruru: Hehehehehe. I borrowed a body for a little bit. Riruru: So that I could come meet you, Takuji-kun. Riruru: Ehehehehehe. Were you surprised? Takuji: Whose body did you borrow? Riruru: Does it matter whose it is? Riruru: More importantly, Takuji-kun... Riruru: Have sex with me. Takuji: Eh? Takuji: S-Sex? Riruru: Yeah, sex. Takuji: But... Riruru: Takuji-kun, do you hate me? Takuji: N-No, I don't hate you, but... Takuji: But... Riruru: You need to in order to meet my father. Takuji: To meet your father? Riruru: Yeah, right now, even if you are the savior, physically speaking you're just a normal human. Takuji: Yeah... Riruru: So by coming into physical contact with me, you can overcome a human's limits. Takuji: Physical contact... so I can overcome my limits... Riruru: Yeah. Takuji: B-But... I... Riruru: What's wrong? Takuji: I'm a... virgin, so I might not be very good. Riruru: Don't worry. I'm a virgin, too. Takuji: Eh? Riruru: So it'll be fine! There's no problem. Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: That's... Riruru: ... *When she pulled up her skirt...* *Something like a penis...* *A penis poked out of her panties?* *That's...* Takuji: Riruru-chan... Takuji: Is that a... a penis? Riruru: ...I'm sorry. Riruru: I-I'm... I'm... a hermaphrodite, since I'm an angel. I-It must seem pretty nasty that I have this. Takuji: N-No. Takuji: N-Not at all. That's just what I wanted! I can't believe my favorite character has one just like I do! Takuji: That's great! I love it! You can feel the same things I do! I've always loved you! That's amazing... You can feel the same things I do! Riruru: I-It's embarrassing... Takuji: Don't hide it! Riruru: B-But... it really is embarrassing. A girl with one of these is just... Takuji: That's not true! You're cute! Riruru: Is it... okay? Takuji: Yeah. Takuji: Your penis is cute too, Riruru-chan. Look, the foreskin is like... Riruru: No, don't. It's too embarrassing! Takuji: Don't cover it with your hands! That's no good! Riruru: Y-Yeah... Sorry... Riruru: But it really is embarrassing... Takuji: No, let me see it! Riruru: Y-Your face is scaring me. Takuji: I want to see it! Show it to me! I'm the savior! Riruru: Th-Then I'm an angel! Riruru: Hehehehe... Takuji: Hahahaha... Riruru: All right. It's embarrassing, but I'll show you... I'll show you my penis. *Amazing.* *It's pure white... What a beautiful penis.* *The pink tip was poking out just a little...* *That tip was crying.* *It was wet and shiny.* Riruru: Ah, don't stare at it... If you do that, I-I... I... Takuji: If I stare at it? Riruru: Nooo. Takuji: What's wrong? Riruru: It's getting bigger... Takuji: Isn't that a good thing? Riruru: B-But... If it gets any bigger, the foreskin is going to peel back... *Riruru-chan's penis...* *Reacted to my gaze...* *And got even bigger.* Riruru: Nooo... It's embarrassing... It's so embarrassing! *The tip...* *The pink tip...* *More and more came into view...* Riruru: He's going to see everything... Everything. Takuji: You mean... like this? Riruru: Ah! *I touched it for a moment with my finger and the foreskin suddenly peeled back completely.* *Like a snail leaving its shell, the pink tip suddenly popped into view.* Takuji: Oh, I can see it. I can see the entire thing. Riruru: Nooo! It's embarrassing! It's so embarrassing! Takuji: Don't be embarrassed! Sh-Show me your everything, Riruru-chan! I want to see it all. Riruru: Aah... D-Don't... stare... *She thrust her hips forward so that I could see better.* Takuji: Can I touch it? Riruru: If that's what you want, but I'm sensitive, so please be gentle. Takuji: Yeah. *I gently grabbed her penis.* Riruru: Ah. Takuji: S-Sorry, did it hurt? Riruru: No... It just feels good because you're the one touching me. Takuji: A-Alright... That's good... *It was smooth, wet, and it glinted in the light. It was like pink jelly.* *I carefully rubbed my hand over her penis.* *Carefully, carefully... so as not to hurt her.* Riruru: Ah. *The tip of her penis was split down the middle like a peach.* *Now that the foreskin had come back, that part was exposed.* Takuji: This part is sensitive, huh? I have to be careful with it. *My heart thumped.* *My brain went numb at the thought of what I was going to do soon.* *But then I...* *Slowly extended my tongue toward Riruru-chan's penis.* *But I'm a boy... I'm a boy... What am I doing?* *But her soft penis... The tip of her penis is soaked with precum. It's so slimy... It looks delicious.* *Ah, no... I can't resist.* *A boy shouldn't do this, but... I shouldn't, but I can't stop. I can't stop.* *My tongue touched her glans.* *This is what Riruru-chan tastes like.* *In that instant, something inside me broke.* *I started sucking her penis like crazy.* Riruru: Wh-What are you doing? Th-That's not your finger? Eh? Takuji-kun, you shouldn't suck on that! *I stuck my tongue down into the prepuce and licked around inside.* *Riruru-chan was so flustered that she couldn't even tell what was going on.* *It must have been very pleasurable for her, though.* *I ran my tongue around the rim of her glans over and over. Over and over and over... More liquid came out of the tip every time I did it.* *I licked the gushing tip.* Riruru: Ah, ah, aah... That's, that's, I'm a girl, but a boy is sucking on my penis. Ah, what should I do... Aah. *My mind went blank as I licked all over her penis.* *Honey kept gushing out of the top as I continued my actions.* *Ah... My tongue feels so good. It's so soft and smooth.* Takuji: Amazing... You're so wet. Riruru: It feels good... It feels really, really good. *This time I stroked the shaft with my hand.* *Now that she's lubed up, it should be all right if I stroke her with my hand... And...* Riruru: Ah, ahh. *I licked her balls.* *Her utterly hairless balls were soft, and they felt good in my mouth. They made me want to suck on them forever.* Riruru: N-No, if you stroke me and suck on my balls like that, I'm going to... I'm going to―! *I ignored her pleas as I wrapped my hand around her penis and stroked it.* Riruru: Noooo, I feel strange, I feel really strange! *I stroked her dick until the foreskin retracted all the way...* Riruru: Ah, aah, noo... *Every time I stroked her penis up and down, every time I licked around her balls... precum flowed out of her glans as if she had a minor ejaculation.* *Spurt, spurt...* Takuji: Whoa, it's like you're cumming, Riruru-chan... Riruru: No, no, no. This isn't right! I'm a girl, but the way you're stroking my penis and licking my balls feels good. It feels so good! *The dew of her precum was foaming up where I was stroking.* Takuji: Now that you're getting turned on... *I increased the speed.* *I stroked harder, harder, harder...* Riruru: Eeh, eeh, eeaaahgh, aah! *I've done nothing but masturbate in my life, so I'm an expert when it comes to stroking dicks.* *It doesn't matter that I'm a virgin. I have more experience stroking dicks than anyone.* *My hand sped up.* *The swollen tip of her penis came in and out of view every time I moved my hand up and down.* *And dew spilled out of the tip every time, too.* *Spurt, spurt...* *There was so much dew that it got all over her thighs, making them wet and slimy.* *I rubbed her wet thighs.* Riruru: Aahh. Takuji: Your thighs are so soft... *Her thighs were incredibly soft... Those sexy thighs,* *wet with her dew.* *I could hardly stand it.* *Squelch, squelch, squelch...* *I couldn't even imagine thighs making this sound when I rubbed them.* Riruru: I-I'm so happy you're touching me, Takuji-kun... My penis is so happy! Riruru: Ah, I can't hold it... *Her penis swelled even further.* *It looks like this is her limit.* Riruru: Takuji-kun... Riruru: I-I'm... g-gonnaaa... Riruru: Aaaah, I'm... I'm cuummiiing! *Her penis jerked violently...* *Cloudy semen spurted out of her penis.* Riruru: Nooo, it's coming out. *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* Riruru: It won't stop! *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *There's so much... She just kept cumming.* *Is this what happens when an angel cums?* Riruru: Takuji-kun. Riruru: I'm a strange girl. I'm a girl, but I have a penis... and I can't stop cumming. No, it's going everywhere. Riruru: L-Look, there's so much coming out of my penis. L-Look, Takuji-kun, watch me~ *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Haa, haa...* Riruru: That felt so good... Takuji: O-Oh... Riruru: ... Riruru: Jeez, it's been all me. Riruru: Takuji-kun, show me yours. Takuji: Eh, ah, eeeh? Riruru: Come on, come on. Riruru: Ehehehe. Riruru: Takuji-kun's penis. Takuji: Ah... Riruru: Ehehehe, it's cute. *Riruru-chan looked at my penis intently.* Riruru: This is the first time I've seen one that's not mine. Takuji: Ahahaha, y-you mean... you look at your own a lot? Riruru: Eh? Riruru: Ahahahaha... I guess I dug my own grave, b-but I like to touch my penis when I'm alone. I like my penis... I like both my girl and boy parts. Riruru: Looking at my own penis turns me on. Riruru: Then my boy parts slowly turn into an erection... then my foreskin recedes and my girl parts react and get wet... and then... Takuji: And then? Riruru: Hey, don't make me say that, you big bully! *You were the one that started talking about it.* Riruru: Jeez... *Lick...* Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Hehehehehe. *Wh-What is this feeling... Th-This is the first time I've felt something like this...* *Riruru-chan diligently attended to my penis.* Riruru: Just like you did earlier. Takuji: Ha, haaa. *Riruru-chan traced the underside of my glans with her tongue.* Takuji: Riruru-chan... Riruru: Ehehehe, doesn't it feel good? Takuji: Y-Yeah. *Slurp, slurp, slurp...* *She did the same thing I did to her before.* Riruru: Ehehehe, it tastes good. *She licked around my frenulum.* *Slurp, slurp, slurp...* Takuji: Ah. Takuji: Aaaah, that's― Riruru: Ehehehe. *Riruru-chan tickled my penis with her tongue... and then stuck the entire thing in her mouth.* Takuji: Ah! *She sucked on the entire thing...* *I was taken aback by the sudden warm sensation.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* *She stimulated the tip of my penis with her uvula.* Takuji: Aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: I-It feels so good. *So warm...* *This feeling...* *I've never felt this before...* *Even an onahole isn't as nice and warm as this.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: Aah, i-it's amazing... The inside of your mouth... f-feels so good, aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* *Riruru-chan wrapped her tongue around my penis in her mouth.* Takuji: This is... *It must be because she has one too. That's why she knows exactly what feels good. She's doing everything I want her to.* *I've never done it with a woman, so I have nothing to compare it to, but there's no way it normally feels this good.* *Shlup.* Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Ehehe, how is it? Takuji: I-It's really good... Riruru: How about this? Takuji: Ah... Riruru: Your balls. *She diligently licked away at my sack.* *Then she gradually went lower.* *She moved her tongue even lower still.* Takuji: That's... Riruru: Ehehehehe. *Riruru-chan licked my asshole.* Takuji: Th-That's dirty... Riruru: Yours isn't dirty. *She licked around my anus...* Riruru: How about... Takuji: Ha. *Her tongue went inside me.* *She stuck her tongue out further.* Takuji: Ah... Ooh... *Her tongue stimulated my prostate gland.* Takuji: Aaaaah. *My dick grew even harder as she stimulated my prostate.* Riruru: Oh wow. It got even bigger than before. Takuji: Riruru-chan, I... Riruru: Ehehehe, you want to let it out, right? Takuji: Yeah. Riruru: Do you want to cum in my mouth? Or on my face? Takuji: Either way... Riruru: Jeez! In that case― *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: Aaah. *Shlup. Shlup. Shlup. Shlup.* Takuji: Don't do it so... *Shlup. Shlup. Shlup. Shlup.* Takuji: Aaah. Takuji: W-Wow... Your mouth... f-feels so good... Aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: I-I'm at my limit! *Riruru-chan moved up and down violently.* Takuji: Riruru-chan, I'm going to cum... *Riruru-chan smiled when she heard that.* *She started moving even faster.* Takuji: I-I can't hold it! Ha, haaaaa! *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *I let it out inside Riruru-chan's mouth.* *She happily drank it.* Takuji: Y-You're drinking it? *I kept cumming inside her mouth.* *Her throat moved as she gulped it down.* Takuji: Ah... The inside of your mouth is... warm... and soft... and wet... Riruru: Hehe, how was it? Takuji: Ah... It felt good. Riruru: Ehehehe, you came a lot. That makes me happy. I could feel it in my mouth. Takuji: Y-Yeah... Your mouth felt really good. Riruru: Ehehe... Good. My body can take all of your lust. Riruru: I'll clean you up. Takuji: Ah! *I was still sensitive from cumming just now, so she gently stroked my penis.* Riruru: Hmm? What's this... You've still got some life in you. Takuji: Eh? Sure. Riruru: Then let's go for round two. Takuji: Round two? Riruru: Yeah. Riruru: My girl parts are begging for you. Takuji: Ah, aah... Takuji: H-How am I supposed to put it in? Riruru: Ehehe, don't worry. Riruru: I'll show you... Do you mind if I'm on top? I'll do all the work. Takuji: Oh, yeah... Thank you... *Riruru-chan got on top of me.* *She slowly lowered her hips... Slowly...* Takuji: Ah... *A wet feeling.* Riruru: ... *Her face warped in pain.* Takuji: A-Are you all right? Riruru: I'm fine... I'm totally... fine. You can just relax. I'll do everything. *Riruru-chan guided my penis to her entrance.* Riruru: Here... Right here... There's a depression right here... That's the spot. *As a virgin, her genitals were closer to a depression than a hole... I don't think my penis will go in there very easily...* Riruru: Let's go, then... I'll lower my hips... Takuji: Y-Yeah... *Riruru-chan lowered her hips in that same position. It made a strange sound like schlurp... and then my penis was wrapped in an indescribable warmth...* Riruru: Ahh... Takuji: Ah... Takuji: Y-You're so warm inside... *It felt so good I thought I was going to cum that very second.* *I thought I would've been fine since I just came.* *That warm sensation enveloped my penis...* *Different than the inside of her mouth...* *An indescribable sensation.* Riruru: I-I'm gonna move... Takuji: Y-Yeah. *Riruru-chan started moving her hips a little bit at a time.* Riruru: Hmm. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* Takuji: Aaah... It feels so good... *Her pussy squeezed my penis every time I moved my hips.* *It was so good I couldn't stand it.* Riruru: Aaahm, mmm... *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Riruru-chan's pussy was wet with so much honey that my penis made an amazing sound every time it went in and out.* *Her honey was mixed with blood, making it pink.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: M-My penis, my penis too... *Her penis had grown even bigger than before.* *It seemed like it could explode at any moment.* *I caressed her penis.* Riruru: Aah, aaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Her boy parts were wet with precum.* *When I stroked her penis...* *It made the same sound as the place where we were connected.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: Aaah, aaah. Riruru: Both of them, both of them... Riruru: Amazing... Takuji: ... *She squeezed my penis even harder.* Takuji: It's so tight... *I stroked her penis even quicker.* Riruru: Aaah, ooaah, aaah! *It grew even tighter still.* Takuji: I-I'm... Riruru: I-I'm gonna cum, I'm gonna cum too. Takuji: Aaaah. Riruru: I'm a virgin, but my pussy is going to cum from you stroking my penis. I'm going to cum! *I stroked harder and faster.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup!* *The honey flowed out of her girl parts like a waterfall.* *There was so much honey, and it was so tight...* Riruru: I... I can't hold on... Takuji: I'm cumming. I'm cumming too. Riruru: Please, together... Together. Takuji: But at this rate... I'm going to cum inside... Riruru: It's fine, it's fine. I want your semen. I want your semen! Riruru: I want your semen inside me... Pour your semen into me. Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Noooo. *She grew far tighter than before.* *I couldn't help cumming too.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *A lot of semen spurted out of my penis and flowed into her.* Riruru: Noooo! *Shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: I-I can't stop coming, I can't stop! *A ton of semen shot out of Riruru-chan's boy parts.* Riruru: Ah, it's hot... Your semen is so hot, Takuji-kun. I can feel your semen inside me! *Spurt, spurt...* *She stopped cumming...* *I collapsed in that spot.* Takuji: Haa, haa... Takuji: Riruru-chan... Takuji: That felt great. Riruru: ... Takuji: Riruru-chan? Riruru: Ehgh, eeuehgh... Takuji: Huh?! Zakuro: Ehgh, hiuehgh. Takuji: Wha―?! Takuji: Eek! Takuji: Ah! *Right now...* *The time is... 11:38 p.m.* *Why would the bell ring at this time?* *Why?* Takuji: Gagh! Takuji: Wh-What is this... Takuji: M-My head, my head feels like it's going to split in two... What is this... What is it? Takuji: Ah... Takuji: Ah, there's... What am I looking at? On the... On the other side of the door... there's a sea? Takuji: And what's... on the far side of the sea? Takuji: Are those power lines? Takuji: The power lines continue beyond the sea... What are those power lines transmitting? Takuji: Why... is the scenery from here... a window? Takuji: Through the window, it's so bright... blue... azure... It's all blue... Takuji: White walls... Totally white... So white there's nothing but anxiety but anxiety but anxiety... There's nothing but... Takuji: The white room is scary. Takuji: The blue sea is scary. Takuji: Here, there's... nothing but relieving fear. Takuji: My heart is relieved and breaks. Beautiful blue, beautiful white... I'm relieved, but the fear I can't take in has a very beautiful scent. Takuji: This is... the boundary. Takuji: I can hear something creaking... between the boundary's waves. Takuji: I can lose myself in the creaks. They resound in my brain like creak-eak-eak-eak-eak... But I don't worry. Takuji: Fear is safety. It's pure. Takuji: It's safety. There's a beautiful blue wall of sky. Takuji: The airtight sky is relieved as it conceals us. Takuji: The concealed blue catches a glimpse of the beautiful scenery through the white window. Takuji: If gods exist, they must be overflowing with this beautiful white wall and blue light. Takuji: Within the white wall, the Virgin Mary spreads her arms. Takuji: Like a holy castle designed by a genius. Takuji: The church of rosaries... The holy place witnessed by the genius Matisse... Takuji: It envelops my everything. *God exists.* *Right here...* *In the entire world...* *I see Him in my mind.* *I looked upon God's visage.* *The form of the holy father.* *The father of the holy kingdom.* *The laws of the universe harmonize order and chaos.* Takuji: Now, God... reveal your form to me. *Packets of white took shape.* *They took the form of the ultimate existence.* *The Father Himself.* *Father.* Takuji: ... God: ... *THE SONG OF GOD'S DESCENT.* *The date changed without regard for the song.*

Asumi: La~la~la~ *I cycled on buoyantly with my stolen bicycle, dashing past anyone that noticed me.* Asumi: Ahaha, I called her a hag! Asumi: Is the usage of such vulgar language unbecoming of a teacher? *This would make me a repeat offender, too.* Asumi: La-la-la~ *I was travelling far faster than I could on foot.* *I could practically feel how much I was changing simply by following the word of the savior!* Asumi: If death is the greatest peril, people desire 'life'! Asumi: If present before even greater peril, people desire 'death'! Asumi: If cornered into a despairing situation in which death becomes desirable- Asumi: -then the worst and most unrelenting despair is to be denied death!! *I recalled vividly a passage from a rather difficult book I once read and shouted it out to the twilit sky.* Asumi: Hahahaha~! *Why did I shout such pretentious remarks?* *Perhaps... it's because I, wallowing in ecstacy, had grown conscious of my attained indifference to despair.* Asumi: Hey brats, move it! *I shouted out hysterically to the students blocking the path before me, trying to clear my way forward.* *They, in the midst of puberty, appeared to be dumbfounded as they looked on at me, a young, bare naked woman.* Asumi: Heh, if you want to look, then go right ahead! I'm showing it all off, after all! *Heat flushed over my body as I felt the stares of pedestrians nearby.* *More additions to the sightseeing came as those who hadn't noticed my presence were alerted by people whose attention I had already captured.* Asumi: Whew, how's this? *To speed up, I leaned forward with my bottom protruding outward so that I could exert more weight onto the pedals. As I rode, my posture created a ninety degree angle.* *Through this pose, my genitals and anus were completely exposed, and my breasts dangled in magnificent display.* Male Pedestrian: The hell?! Is that even legal?! Female Pedestrian: Gross, some slut's on the loose! Asumi: Hah... hahaha... *Whether it be lecherous stares or scorn by the foolish, I was pleased with the reception.* Asumi: Hahaha... Ahahaha~~~☆ *It's only natural for the run of the mill person to stop and stare at someone stark naked riding along in the public eye.* *But I found it rather pitiful that there were so many that were seemingly joyous at the sight.* Asumi: Father would faint if he saw me now! *But then again, I suppose he wouldn't be able to even leave the house in his current state.* *...Sorry, Daddy.* *But I gave you my virginity, so I'd like for you to be a bit more happy about the issue.* Asumi: Hehe, today, good ol' Kiyokawa Asumi's done it with her daddy! *Upon the order of The Savior, I, Kiyokawa Asumi, have committed the act of sexual intercourse with my father.* Asumi: I've got my father's seed inside meee~! I wonder how many times he's done it with Mother? *I would be surprised if I were to find out my parents gave birth to me out of wedlock. That probably isn't the case as they were both diligent teachers before marriage.* *I am certain that they've followed the model of the upright: an honest relationship, a proper marriage, sex, then children.* *...Sex is sex, though.* *Although I have to admit... I'm jealous of anyone that can have their first time with a fellow virgin.* Asumi: Gahaha, I bet Mom moaned like a bitch in heat whenever she had father's dick in her! *...When I was a child, I'd come across my parent's room in the middle of the night whenever I was on my way to the toilet or I was unable to sleep. My young mind could not comprehend why my father would be laying on top of my mother.* *They always seemed awkward back then. Thinking back on it now, that was a horrible transgression.* Asumi: But hey, now Mother and I are even! *Wouldn't it be the greatest happiness as a 'man' to be given the virginity of a woman you've raised lovingly as a parent?* *It must be an exclusive and valuable treasure. Something that would be looked down upon by this world's morals.* Asumi: That's right. I can no longer bear to live binded by this hypocritical world! *As the wind caressed my cheeks and ruffled my hair, I realized that I was standing in rebellion against this world itself.* *By the standards of this world, I would be judged as a vulgar being repulsive enough to have sex with her father.* *But I've succeeded as a woman! I've guided my father's aged penis to ejaculation!* *That's something unspeakable within the boundaries of a "sensible human being".* *I've cast away my humanity-* *-In other words, I'm no longer fit to be a perfect model teacher!* Asumi: Looook aaat me nooooow!! *I couldn't restrain the shouts of joy as a sense of accomplishment and superiority boiled within my core.* Asumi: I'm being redeemed! I'm necessary in the new world!! *What do you think? Aren't you jealous of my newfound freedom?* *But you, all of you cowards that simply conform, you can go ahead and rot in this filthy world.* Asumi: To be, or not to be, that is the question!! Asumi: Now is the time to take in hand the wings of fate!!! *There was no deep meaning in what I screamed aloud.* *I was simply spurred on by the excitement that I felt as I pedalled faster and faster, so I shouted whatever random words came to mind.* Asumi: Kuh---hahaha!!! *There's no longer anything to hold me down.* *There's no need to wear boorish articles such as clothing to cover my body.* *The breeze felt incredibly wonderful.* *An ineffable sensation of feeling like I'd become one with the universe overcame every sense of my being.* *My ego, my hatred, and my sadness had all disappeared.* Asumi: I... I never knew I could feel like this. *I cycled on as I smiled unbelievably brightly, drowned within a boundless sense of liberation.* *"Do you have the resolve to cast aside everything?"* Asumi: Yes! Now I can! I can throw away anything! *All my life I felt a great weight upon my shoulders, but today that weight disappeared as if it had never existed.* *Ahh. I'm just like the wind. There's nothing to keep me grounded.* Asumi: Heh... Hahaha... *Everyone I passed by stopped and stared.* *And even those scornful eyes upon me felt wonderful.* *The foolish are unable to admit their own foolishness, and that's why they feel the need to incessantly attack those of us who have risen above.* *Just like the barbaric peers of the sagacious and beautiful Takashima, who tormented her in the throes of their animalistic craze.* *The fact that they looked at me like that is proof enough that they deserve no salvation.* Asumi: Haa, haa! Faster!! *I arrived at a rather steep road and applied more force to the pedals.* Asumi: Whoo! Yes, yes! Faster! *That resulted in the bike reaching an incredible speed, as if an engine materialized and pushed it along with unimaginable force.* *That hill was rather long. Walking down it is an easy task, but the difficulty of ascending it goes without saying.* Asumi: Hahaha! This feels wonderful!! *The further down I went, the more I was spurred on by the pure, childish joy I felt.* *It was unlike travel by car, wherein you're protected by glass and steel. Taking in the wind as you speed by on a bike tickles a human's base animal instinct.* *At that moment I had to wonder, how did I get to this point?* *The scenery around me blurred as I went faster than my eye could perceive.* *The pressure of the wind rushing against my face thickened, making it hard to even breathe.* *But there was nothing but a smile on my face.* Asumi: Wahhh! *The furious speed that I was going seemed to signify the detachment I felt from the world I had once lived in. It was the best feeliing.* Asumi: Ahhck... Now, of all tiiimes? *Perhaps due to the cold of wind rushing against my naked body, biological functions implored me to urinate.* *But even if I had pushed on the break at this point, I wouldn't have been able to stop.* *And I was filled with feelings that told me not to hold back.* Asumi: Well, guess I have no choice～～☆ *I might as well let it go!* *I tore my legs off the pedal and opened them to face the onslaught of air coming at me* *The wind hitting my nether region made me want to urinate all the more. Then all I had to do was relax...* Asumi: Ahahaaaa~! *... and let it all go..."* *Warm urine ran across my thighs, soon becoming drops getting blown off behind me by the wind.* *There's nothing better than this!* Asumi: Amazing... Amazing!! *It felt like there was absolutely nothing impossible for me to do.* Asumi: --Hyahh?! *I was thrown off by the pleasant sensation of urinating and lost my grip on the bike.* Asumi: Hah, wahh?! *In an instant, I found myself twirling in the red sky, catapulted off the bike like a person on a swing that had snapped in midair.* Asumi: Ahhh~ *As I tumbled through the air, time felt like it was getting slower... everything around me passed by in slow motion.* *I saw a long tunnel, but did I see the light at the end of it...?* *What is this... It's not too bad.* *Experiencing phenomena like this is simply wonderful.* *...*

*I was ready for it, shedding my blouse without a moment's hesitation.* *Then I threw away the vile skirt restricting my legs.* *My hands quickly wrapped around behind my back and undid the hook on my bra.* *Then, in admonishment of my own body, I pulled my panties off and started fulfilling the savior's command.* *...* Asumi: This is for our family's sake... *I reached my hand out to my father, still unconscious, and pulled his fly down, exposing his wilted penis.* *It was still soft and small.* *I hadn't seen it directly since... since I was young enough to take baths with my father.* *...It's really moving to think that ten months before I was born, my father's penis ejaculated inside my mother, and I'm the result of that.* Asumi: The savior told me to have sex with my father... *He said I wouldn't be saved if I didn't...* *According to the common sense of this world, it's completely out of the question for a daughter to have sexual relations with her father.* *But that's precisely why I had to do this in order to live in the new world.* *I can now understand the weight of the savior's words.* Asumi: You're the only one I can give my body to, my beloved father. Asumi: My gentle father is the only one fit to be my first. *He's the one who always deserved to receive it.* *So I, completely naked, looked down on my father and smiled.* Asumi: But first I have to wake up this little guy... *I used the knowledge I remembered reading in a magazine I got from (ironically enough) Yui to stimulate my father's penis with my mouth and give him an erection.* *From the rumors I heard... it feels way better when you use your mouth than your hand.* Asumi: Ahmm... Mm, ah... *A daughter with her own father's penis in her mouth... I'll be honest, I was more than a little turned on from the sense of breaking a taboo.* *It's a taboo for a father and daughter to do that, but it's perfectly natural for a man and woman.* Asumi: Mmgh... Mm, mm... *The tip of my tongue played along his soft, warm penis, reveling in the slight taste of salt from his sweat.* Asumi: Mm, mm... Asumi: Ahm, mm... Haa～ *I had to let up for a second when it got hard to breathe.* Asumi: Geez, why won't it stand up? I did everything it said... *I was sad. After using all the knowledge I had to caress it, it didn't get bigger at all.* *It was completely different from the erect penises I saw in dirty manga and pornographic magazines that I confiscated from my male students.* Asumi: Oh no, it has to stand up like a mushroom first. *I hated my previous disinterest in sex and felt a pang of guilt that I couldn't save my still unconscious father.* Asumi: But men still get erections when they're asleep, so there should be some other way. *I tried using my saliva as lubricant and rubbing it with both hands, but...* Asumi: No... It's not reacting at all. *The penis that planted me in my mother's belly still didn't respond, and I started to get frustrated.* *At this rate, I wouldn't be able to have sex with my father.* Asumi: What should I do? I didn't expect this... *If I didn't put his penis inside me and make him cum, the savior wouldn't grant me salvation...* *I couldn't worry about the small things at this point.* *I intently surveyed my father's room.* Asumi: I guess I'll have to use this... *I took my father's favorite fountain pen off his desk and attached it to his penis as a support.* *Then I carefully wrapped rubber bands around the two of them to hold it in place, being sure that it wasn't too tight.* Asumi: If my mouth won't work, I'll have to force it to stand up... *Anyway, my father's penis was finally erect.* *Now I had to give it an even stronger stimulus than my mouth... I had to use my vagina for its original purpose and lead my father to orgasm.* Asumi: I can use this too... *I found the transparent wrap that he must have used to wrap his sandwich in and wrapped it around his penis instead to better hold it and the fountain pen together.* Asumi: Ah, those edges look like they could hurt... *I took the moisturizing cream out of my handbag and put a whole bunch on to lube his penis.* *The corners and edges on the wrap were surprisingly hard and pointy.* *Without the lube, those sharp corners would have made me give up out of pain before my father climaxed.* Asumi: ...This should work. *It was an unnatural construction, but the preparations were complete.* Asumi: If I put it inside and start moving, it should naturally get bigger... *I spread my legs and slowly straddled my father. I grabbed his makeshift erection and put the tip up against my pussy as I tried to calm the fluttering in my heart.* Asumi: I'll give you my virginity, Daddy... *As a mature woman, I wasn't embarrassed or hesitant. Rather, I was proud of myself.* *I let the tension out of my body and took a deep breath...* Asumi: Mmm! Ahh... *I put my body weight into my hips and closed my eyes in pain as my father tore through my hymen.* Asumi: Mm, ahh... It hurts... *Yui told me that it would hurt, but I never thought it would be this bad.* Asumi: Ahh... There's blood too... *When I touched the place where we were connected with my finger, it came away red with my blood.* *I took my father's manhood inside me.* Asumi: Ahh, haa... *I'm not a virgin anymore.* Asumi: Haa, ha, ha... The next part is the important part... *I couldn't just wallow in pain and self-pity like a normal girl.* *I could have just taken a picture at this point, but the savior wouldn't be satisfied with that.* *He wanted to see the 'vile teacher' fuck his own daughter and cum inside her, showing his animal lust.* Asumi: Haaa, mmm... *So I endured the pain, clinging to my father and moving my hips up and down.* Asumi: Mm, ahh... Ahh... *I was definitely right to put the moisturizer on before I started. It went in and out of me smoothly.* Asumi: Aggh... Mmm, ahh, haa... *It's a pity that he wasn't erect, but the male warmth I felt through the wrap still eased my pain a little bit.* Asumi: Ahh... Daddy, thank you for everything... I love you. *He loved me and raised me.* *I did it all for his sake.* *I'd become a woman now.* Asumi's Mom: Hey you two, dinner's ready. Asumi: Ah?! *When the pleasure of being made a woman finally began to seep into me, someone knocked on the door, and a chill ran up my spine.* Asumi's Mom: Asumi, you're in there, aren't you? Could you help me set the table? *She still didn't know what was happening in the room, so her voice was bright and full of affection.* *Yes... My mother was a bit more strict than my father, but she was still an excellent parent.* Asumi: Oh, yes... Wait a second, please... Haa, Ahh... *I tried to chase her away with my quavering voice even as I pistoned my hips up and down to make my father cum.* Asumi's Mom: ...Your voice is a little strange... Is something wrong? Asumi: No! There's... nothing wrong... nothing at all... *Her female instinct must have told her that her husband was being taken from her. She must have faintly realized what was happening.* Asumi's Mom: You came home awfully early today... What's the matter-- Huh? *--Rattle, rattle.* Asumi: Hiaa... Ah, ahh... Asumi's Mom: Hey, why is the door locked? Open the door, Asumi! Asumi: N-No... Haa, mm... Just a second! *--Rattle, rattle.* *My mother noticed something was wrong even through the door. I heard her violently turning the doorknob and making a clatter of metal on metal.* Asumi: Ahh... Mm, ahh, haa... *The pressure to finish spurred me on, causing me to get even wetter and more turned on.* Asumi: Ahh, mm... Ahh... *As the rod wrapped in plastic moved inside my pussy, I felt the juices dripping out from inside me.* Asumi: Uhh... Ahh... *--Rattle, rattle!* Asumi's Mom: Come on, what are you doing in there?! Asumi: Haa, ha... Mom, just wait a little longer... *--Rattle, rattle!* Asumi's Mom: Asumi! Asumi! Asumi's Dad: ...Mm... *My breath grew more and more ragged, and then my father finally opened his eyes.* Asumi's Dad: Ah... What's happen-- Hey?! Asumi: Ahhmm... Daddy, daddy! Asumi's Dad: Wh-Wh-What are you doing, Asumi! Stop it right now! *When he opened his eyes and took in the situation, my father struggled trying to get me off him, but he couldn't move because I had tied him down.* Asumi: Ahaaa... Daddy, I love you... Asumi's Dad: Do you understand what you're doing?! Asumi: Of course I do... I love you, Daddy. That's why I gave you my virginity. Asumi's Dad: Wha-?! Ah... What have you done... No, no, you can't... *His red, enraged face paled before my eyes, so out of pity I rotated my hips and moved faster to soothe him.* *No, I shouldn't say I 'gave' him my virginity. Rather, I awoke to the pleasure of getting my pussy fucked, and I wanted to taste it more intensely.* *Not as his obedient, level-headed daughter, but as a woman with a normal sex drive.* Asumi's Dad: No, Asumi... This is unforgivable. Asumi: Why? If a man and a woman love each other, isn't it a good thing if they come together? Asumi's Dad: We're father and daughter! You can't do this, so stop right now! Asumi: We're father and daughter, but you're a man, aren't you... Hmm, ahaaa... Asumi's Dad: Stop quibbling and get off m-- Uahh! Asumi: I can tell it feels good for you too. You're moaning already, ehehe. Asumi's Dad: ...Ah! Asumi: You look so cute when you're trying not to moan. I'll make it feel even better for you... Mm, ah. *My father's face was so lovely when it was distorted with distress. I kissed his cheeks over and over as I gyrated my hips.* Asumi's Dad: Ah, ah... Asumii... Asumi: You and Mom made love like this before I was born, right? Asumi: It's wonderful... This is life's mystery... Ahaaamm... Asumi's Dad: Ah... How could this happen... My daughter's virginity... Ah... *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Mom must be getting desperate... Afu... Ha, aah... *When she stopped turning the doorknob, she must have gone into the kitchen and found a kitchen board or some other blunt instrument to break the lock from the outside.* *The door was wooden, so even a woman like my mother could break the lock if she hit it enough times.* Asumi: Ahh, ah, mm, uhmm... *I put aside my own pleasure in fear of my mother and instead passionately ground my hips dutifully to make my father cum.* Asumi: Haaa... Your dick is getting so hard... Asumi's Dad: ...No, no...! *--Bang! Bang!!* *He frowned and shook his head in denial, but I could feel his penis swelling inside me and pushing the fountain pen aside.* *The feeling inside my pussy dulled as the fountain pen was dislodged, but he was still so hard that I could feel every ridge of his dick in the shallow part of my pussy.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Look, Daddy... I'm such an adult... *My poor father's hands were tied of course, so instead, I pushed my breasts against him and rubbed them against his chest. That way, I could teach him how soft my well-grown breasts were.* Asumi: Ehehe... you're a man too, Daddy... I know how you can't help but look at my chest every now and then... *It would've been quite the nuisance to have my mother, her pride as a woman in shambles, barge in during our union, so I wanted to do whatever it took to have my father ejaculate as soon as possible.* Asumi: How is it? They're bigger and softer than Mom's, aren't they? Asumi's Dad: This is... beyond salvation. I'm done for... it's over... Asumi: You've got it all wrong, Daddy. This will pave the way for the savior's acceptance... Nck-ahh... *I lost myself into the act, showering kisses on him and rubbing my ample breasts in his face over and over.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi's Dad: This is wrong... As a human... it's all so wrong... Asumi: That's especially why it's so right...! Asumi: We must discard... this mistaken world's morals... Ngh, ahh! *My insides grew hot from my father's penis, which I could feel twitching inside me.* *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Ahh-AahAhh, nnngh-ugh!... Asumi: Daddy, cum inside me, okay? You need to. You've gotta... Nnngh Asumi's Dad: ...ah... ugh... *Daddy yielded to me, no longer showing any trace of resistance. The passage of our union was smothered with our genital secretions, allowing for incredibly smooth hip movement.* Asumi: Ha, kch... ugh... ahh... ahhh, ahh, Daddyy-! *At this point, even the pain of my deflowerment made me more and more turned on, because I'm such a filthy whore.* Asumi: Hah... ha... ahh-... feels so goood... *So this is what sex is like.* *I couldn't have even imagined that my first sexual partner would be my father.* *However, since I love him, I was overjoyed.* Asumi's Dad: ...Wrong, wrong... so wrong... Asumi: Ha... Cum, cum!... If you don't, Mother's going to see us... *--Bang! Bang!!* Asumi: Ahhh, nn, nnnh... Aha... You're so big inside me. Asumi's Dad: Stop this... Stop, st- Ahh---! Asumi's Dad: Kch...n... Ahh... Asumi: Ah! You came for me!! *His face contorted as he let out a strained voice, and I squirmed in ecstacy after feeling his hot torrent spray my vaginal walls with semen.* Asumi: Where's the camera?! I need a camera...! *I promptly reached for the cellphone in my pocket* Asumi: Ngh, ahhhhn! *I reflexively let out a rather amorous voice after I dismounted my father's hot dick, removing the fountain pen and wasting no time to enjoy the reverberating ecstacy which followed sex.* Asumi: Ehehe~☆ *I took a picture of my positively beaming face alongside his...* *And then I followed with a shot of his penis smeared with semen and my bloodied vagina side by side.* Asumi: Next is to send these... *After several seconds, I heard a sound ringing from my phone, and with that, I successfully cleared the first order of business.* *I supressed the urge to leap around in joy and embraced my silent father.* *Then I reached out for his semen, the very first pool of it I had ever seen, and entwined some of it around my finger.* Asumi: Waah, it really does smell like a squid. *I licked some of it out of curiosity, and I tasted an incredibly strong and thick flavor.* Asumi: So much came out. You must not have emptied the tank for a long time... *The mental image of my father holding back despite wanting to shoot his load was adorable, so I ended up licking off the rest of the semen on my finger.* *--Bang! Bang!!* *--Bang!* Asumi: Ah, she broke it. *My mother may have finally broke the doorknob, but she failed to stop me. It was this very moment when I tasted a sense of euphoria from the feeling of superiority over my mother as a woman.* Asumi's Mom: My goodness, Asumi--h... h... hyaaah?! *My mother bore witness to her husband with his bare lower half smeared with semen and her daughter next to him, face beaming and stark naked.* Asumi: Ehehe... Mmmngh, nnnch *As if to deliver the final blow, I took my dazed father's lips right in front of my shocked mother, kissing him in a grand display.* Asumi's Mom: Ah-... uu--- Asumi... what have you... Asumi: Nnngh, anngh, hah... I love you, Daddy. Asumi's Mom: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH---!!! *My mother screamed, like a woman screaming bloody murder. She clutched her scalp in an attempted denial of the reality before her.* *I couldn't have been more satisfied.* *Of course I love my mother, but in retrospect, I might have viewed her as a rival for my father's love, ever since the days of adolesence.* Asumi: Aha, ahahaha... *My deed succeeded in crushing the hearts of my mother and father.* Asumi: Hahaha, I've done it... I've done it!! *I lingered on the sense of accomplishment and, still stark naked, left the premises through the garden window.*

*"Become lower than a human." This must mean to throw away humanity as I once knew it.* Asumi: Ahh... mmnh... nhh... unh, ah-ahhhh... *Wobbling as I stood up, I made my way to a place where anyone could see me, so that I could satisfy my goal.* Asumi: Ohh... nnnnn... nh, haaaaa~ *I slowly headed toward a roadside and sat down. I opened my legs, reached down with both hands, and started to play with myself.* *It was an obscene act committed despite the watching eyes of the crowd.* *It was something considered criminal and unlawful by this society, and it was something that could provoke irrepressible lust in some.* Asumi: Unhhh, haaa... ah, haaaaaaanngh... *Well then, lets enjoy ourselves.* *Much like wild animals copulating, I was unmindful of any eyes that watched me.* *I tossed away the shell of humanity, showing them that I am a mature and unbridled woman.* *Hehehe...* *"Hey, is that..."* *"Woah! What the hell is this??"* *Foolish men found themselves lured by my captivating voice.* Asumi: Nnngh, ha, haaah, ahhh, hnngh... *I'm sure they thought of 'some poor abused girl' as they saw me, fully naked.* *Or perhaps they thought I was 'some drunk vulgar woman'.* *Tsk, tsk... How about coming for a closer look rather than coming up with arbitrary conclusions?* *Quite the high and mighty attitude for a bunch of hypocrites who really want to gawk all day at a woman's naked figure.* Asumi: Nnnn, ahh, ahhh... haah... *Come on, I bet you want to get a better look by spreading these lips apart yourself.* Asumi: Nnnfh, ha... haaaaaaanngh... *I gently laid my back against the wall and pinched my clitoris.* Asumi: Ahh, haaah... haaah, nghh, nnnn... *"This supposed to be some AV public shoot?"* *"Woah, lucky me!"* *As my fingers did more and more indecent things, I felt the eyes upon my genitals increase.* *There was no turning back, and I had no intention to do so anyway.* *In the past, I wouldn't have been able to bear disgrace and would have pitifully broke.* Asumi: Ha-ahhh, an, ah, ahhh~ *But now, I've grown. Grown to the point where being seen doesn't scare me away. Rather, it excites me.* Asumi: Haaa... it's so warm inside my pussy~ *By this point, I'd completely thrown away everything.* *And that's why... my mind and body were ablaze.* Employee: W-What's wrong with you...? *A pair of two brave... No, that's not right. They were simply perverted men who called out to me with a trace of concern in their voices.* Employee: You, uh, want me to bring you some water? Asumi: Haa... No, thats alright... Ah, ahnnn... *I could hear them gulping as I inserted my fingers in my aroused vagina.* *Ahahaha... Do you really want to look that bad?* Asumi: Hgh... haaaa, annn, khh, yaaangh... *This is something most people are aware of. It's nothing new by now.* Asumi: Nnn, haa... haaa... nnngh... *Ah, then maybe you aren't...* *Then it'd make sense for you all to be so engrossed by all this.* *Pitiful.* *Well then, how about I grace you with my kindness?* Asumi: Haaa... Today... I lost my viriginity... Asumi: I... hnnngh... had sex with my father... Asumi: Hehehe... Can you see it...? Here, I'll spread myself up and show you. Asumi: This pussy right here... hyah... has had Daddy's dick in it ... *I had spread open my lips, with some residue of semen visible here and there... and I began to tell my tale like a person telling tales of the glory days of their youth.* *I had recollected my wholeheartedly delightful experience... nonchalantly, as if the tearing apart of the ties I had with my beloved parents was not worth brooding over.* Asumi: Haaah... Right here... a dick was sliding in and out... Nnngh... Employee: That's... If that's true, it's really bad, huh... Asumi: Haaa... I still... only let in one penis... Haaa... *I had spread open my thighs even more so my genitals would be all the more visible, revealing my rather wet vagina to their lecherous gazes.* *Ahhh... it was as if those fierce gazes were caressing me.* Asumi: Haaa... It was my father's flaccid penis... Nnngh... Asumi: I held it tight with my special place here... ahnnnn, and it got harder... *Sticky liquid spilled out as I played with myself. It was incredibly erotic the way a clear line of love juices would form between my clitoris and fingers.* *It must have been because I now knew the feeling of a penis inside me that I showed off by rapidly fingerfucking myself with my middle finger.* *...That could become a habit for me.* Asumi: To think that... his penis could get so hard... Hyahh... Asumi: Made me... so happy... I'd rock my hips in joy... Employee: You were a virgin, right? Were you in pain? Asumi: It did hurt... a lot... but I love my father... Asumi: So I'd take it... all in... Ahhh, ahhhnnnnnn... *Excitement dominated me as I told of my experience with my father. My hands sought further pleasure as they reached for my chest and grabbed hold of my hardened nipples. I made sure to play with myself in a way that all could see.* Asumi: Nnh, nnn, kuh, fff, yah... *A small pool of liquid had formed where I sat, and yet more and more gushed out.* Asumi: Haah, aaan... His dick... grew so big... Asumi: And filled me right up... Kyu... uuu, nnn, nnnn~ Employee: Hey, uh, what position did you have your first time in? Asumi: I was on top... his dick kept jamming in me... It made me so happy... *At the peak of his erection, his penis would hit the furthest reaches of my womb. It felt so tight and overwhelming in me that at one point I drooled.* Asumi: Hahhn... That's... Ahhh, yahhh, haaa, haaah! *The sudden insult from that young man tugged at my heart and made me feel really good.* *I'm by nature a timid person, but I'm definitely not a masochist.* *Yet that trembling pleasure there... it must be because of the paradoxical blessings I've received. Yes, now I can understand.* Asumi: Fahh... Nnkh, nnnm, mmm, ahh, hahhh... *What if I were to have some strangers penis inserted into me right there on the spot?* *And it doesn't stop there... What if I had a dick forced into my other hole?!* Asumi: Ahhh! Hahhh, ahh, kuh, hnnngh~ *Just imagining that made me drool from my half-open mouth. My mind was at once dyed by that rosy fantasy.* *Father's semen... it was so warm, so vivid as it gushed out and into me. That was the best...* *Compared to that, how would the semen of these people feel?* *There seems to be different shapes and sizes among penises, so what about these men?* *It was wonderful to have these men lined up with penises whipped out in front of me...* Asumi: Haaaa... Ahhh, anghhhh, aaaahn... Cumming, cummiiiiing. *Heat rose from within me. The trembling began and so did the end of my restraint.* Asumi: Haaan, ahhhn, I can't... I'm cumming, I'm cumming!! Employee: Woah, she's really shaking. Asumi: Ahhh! Ahhh, hahh, mmm, mmmmmmnh! Asumi: I'm cummiiiiiiiiiiing!! Onlookers: ...Wow... *At that moment, something big burst inside me.* *It was the despicable binds restraining my heart that yearned for the heights above since birth.* *And the wave that gushed forward and filled my momentarily empty heart was the greatest refresher.* *This was ecstacy, an experience beyond anything else I'd felt in my life.* *An exhilarating sensation that felt like I was flying higher and higher.* Asumi: Hah.... Haaaah~.... *I've finally become free.* *No longer qualified to be a teacher...* *No longer qualified to be a human...* *Congratulations, Asumi.* Asumi: Hehehehe... *I licked my love juice-dabbed fingers and smiled.* *What do you think, Mamiya-sama?* *Is this to your liking?*

Riruru: Have sex with me. Takuji: Eh? Takuji: S-Sex? Riruru: Yeah, sex. Takuji: But... Riruru: Takuji-kun, do you hate me? Takuji: N-No, I don't hate you, but... Takuji: But... Riruru: You need to in order to meet my father. Takuji: To meet your father? Riruru: Yeah, right now, even if you are the savior, physically speaking you're just a normal human. Takuji: Yeah... Riruru: So by coming into physical contact with me, you can overcome a human's limits. Takuji: Physical contact... so I can overcome my limits... Riruru: Yeah. Takuji: B-But... I... Riruru: What's wrong? Takuji: I'm a... virgin, so I might not be very good. Riruru: Don't worry. I'm a virgin, too. Takuji: Eh? Riruru: So it'll be fine! There's no problem. Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: That's... Riruru: ... *When she pulled up her skirt...* *Something like a penis...* *A penis poked out of her panties?* *That's...* Takuji: Riruru-chan... Takuji: Is that a... a penis? Riruru: ...I'm sorry. Riruru: I-I'm... I'm... a hermaphrodite, since I'm an angel. I-It must seem pretty nasty that I have this. Takuji: N-No. Takuji: N-Not at all. That's just what I wanted! I can't believe my favorite character has one just like I do! Takuji: That's great! I love it! You can feel the same things I do! I've always loved you! That's amazing... You can feel the same things I do! Riruru: I-It's embarrassing... Takuji: Don't hide it! Riruru: B-But... it really is embarrassing. A girl with one of these is just... Takuji: That's not true! You're cute! Riruru: Is it... okay? Takuji: Yeah. Takuji: Your penis is cute too, Riruru-chan. Look, the foreskin is like... Riruru: No, don't. It's too embarrassing! Takuji: Don't cover it with your hands! That's no good! Riruru: Y-Yeah... Sorry... Riruru: But it really is embarrassing... Takuji: No, let me see it! Riruru: Y-Your face is scaring me. Takuji: I want to see it! Show it to me! I'm the savior! Riruru: Th-Then I'm an angel! Riruru: Hehehehe... Takuji: Hahahaha... Riruru: All right. It's embarrassing, but I'll show you... I'll show you my penis. *Amazing.* *It's pure white... What a beautiful penis.* *The pink tip was poking out just a little...* *That tip was crying.* *It was wet and shiny.* Riruru: Ah, don't stare at it... If you do that, I-I... I... Takuji: If I stare at it? Riruru: Nooo. Takuji: What's wrong? Riruru: It's getting bigger... Takuji: Isn't that a good thing? Riruru: B-But... If it gets any bigger, the foreskin is going to peel back... *Riruru-chan's penis...* *Reacted to my gaze...* *And got even bigger.* Riruru: Nooo... It's embarrassing... It's so embarrassing! *The tip...* *The pink tip...* *More and more came into view...* Riruru: He's going to see everything... Everything. Takuji: You mean... like this? Riruru: Ah! *I touched it for a moment with my finger and the foreskin suddenly peeled back completely.* *Like a snail leaving its shell, the pink tip suddenly popped into view.* Takuji: Oh, I can see it. I can see the entire thing. Riruru: Nooo! It's embarrassing! It's so embarrassing! Takuji: Don't be embarrassed! Sh-Show me your everything, Riruru-chan! I want to see it all. Riruru: Aah... D-Don't... stare... *She thrust her hips forward so that I could see better.* Takuji: Can I touch it? Riruru: If that's what you want, but I'm sensitive, so please be gentle. Takuji: Yeah. *I gently grabbed her penis.* Riruru: Ah. Takuji: S-Sorry, did it hurt? Riruru: No... It just feels good because you're the one touching me. Takuji: A-Alright... That's good... *It was smooth, wet, and it glinted in the light. It was like pink jelly.* *I carefully rubbed my hand over her penis.* *Carefully, carefully... so as not to hurt her.* Riruru: Ah. *The tip of her penis was split down the middle like a peach.* *Now that the foreskin had come back, that part was exposed.* Takuji: This part is sensitive, huh? I have to be careful with it. *My heart thumped.* *My brain went numb at the thought of what I was going to do soon.* *But then I...* *Slowly extended my tongue toward Riruru-chan's penis.* *But I'm a boy... I'm a boy... What am I doing?* *But her soft penis... The tip of her penis is soaked with precum. It's so slimy... It looks delicious.* *Ah, no... I can't resist.* *A boy shouldn't do this, but... I shouldn't, but I can't stop. I can't stop.* *My tongue touched her glans.* *This is what Riruru-chan tastes like.* *In that instant, something inside me broke.* *I started sucking her penis like crazy.* Riruru: Wh-What are you doing? Th-That's not your finger? Eh? Takuji-kun, you shouldn't suck on that! *I stuck my tongue down into the prepuce and licked around inside.* *Riruru-chan was so flustered that she couldn't even tell what was going on.* *It must have been very pleasurable for her, though.* *I ran my tongue around the rim of her glans over and over. Over and over and over... More liquid came out of the tip every time I did it.* *I licked the gushing tip.* Riruru: Ah, ah, aah... That's, that's, I'm a girl, but a boy is sucking on my penis. Ah, what should I do... Aah. *My mind went blank as I licked all over her penis.* *Honey kept gushing out of the top as I continued my actions.* *Ah... My tongue feels so good. It's so soft and smooth.* Takuji: Amazing... You're so wet. Riruru: It feels good... It feels really, really good. *This time I stroked the shaft with my hand.* *Now that she's lubed up, it should be all right if I stroke her with my hand... And...* Riruru: Ah, ahh. *I licked her balls.* *Her utterly hairless balls were soft, and they felt good in my mouth. They made me want to suck on them forever.* Riruru: N-No, if you stroke me and suck on my balls like that, I'm going to... I'm going to―! *I ignored her pleas as I wrapped my hand around her penis and stroked it.* Riruru: Noooo, I feel strange, I feel really strange! *I stroked her dick until the foreskin retracted all the way...* Riruru: Ah, aah, noo... *Every time I stroked her penis up and down, every time I licked around her balls... precum flowed out of her glans as if she had a minor ejaculation.* *Spurt, spurt...* Takuji: Whoa, it's like you're cumming, Riruru-chan... Riruru: No, no, no. This isn't right! I'm a girl, but the way you're stroking my penis and licking my balls feels good. It feels so good! *The dew of her precum was foaming up where I was stroking.* Takuji: Now that you're getting turned on... *I increased the speed.* *I stroked harder, harder, harder...* Riruru: Eeh, eeh, eeaaahgh, aah! *I've done nothing but masturbate in my life, so I'm an expert when it comes to stroking dicks.* *It doesn't matter that I'm a virgin. I have more experience stroking dicks than anyone.* *My hand sped up.* *The swollen tip of her penis came in and out of view every time I moved my hand up and down.* *And dew spilled out of the tip every time, too.* *Spurt, spurt...* *There was so much dew that it got all over her thighs, making them wet and slimy.* *I rubbed her wet thighs.* Riruru: Aahh. Takuji: Your thighs are so soft... *Her thighs were incredibly soft... Those sexy thighs,* *wet with her dew.* *I could hardly stand it.* *Squelch, squelch, squelch...* *I couldn't even imagine thighs making this sound when I rubbed them.* Riruru: I-I'm so happy you're touching me, Takuji-kun... My penis is so happy! Riruru: Ah, I can't hold it... *Her penis swelled even further.* *It looks like this is her limit.* Riruru: Takuji-kun... Riruru: I-I'm... g-gonnaaa... Riruru: Aaaah, I'm... I'm cuummiiing! *Her penis jerked violently...* *Cloudy semen spurted out of her penis.* Riruru: Nooo, it's coming out. *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* Riruru: It won't stop! *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *There's so much... She just kept cumming.* *Is this what happens when an angel cums?* Riruru: Takuji-kun. Riruru: I'm a strange girl. I'm a girl, but I have a penis... and I can't stop cumming. No, it's going everywhere. Riruru: L-Look, there's so much coming out of my penis. L-Look, Takuji-kun, watch me~ *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Haa, haa...* Riruru: That felt so good... Takuji: O-Oh... Riruru: ... Riruru: Jeez, it's been all me. Riruru: Takuji-kun, show me yours. Takuji: Eh, ah, eeeh? Riruru: Come on, come on. Riruru: Ehehehe. Riruru: Takuji-kun's penis. Takuji: Ah... Riruru: Ehehehe, it's cute. *Riruru-chan looked at my penis intently.* Riruru: This is the first time I've seen one that's not mine. Takuji: Ahahaha, y-you mean... you look at your own a lot? Riruru: Eh? Riruru: Ahahahaha... I guess I dug my own grave, b-but I like to touch my penis when I'm alone. I like my penis... I like both my girl and boy parts. Riruru: Looking at my own penis turns me on. Riruru: Then my boy parts slowly turn into an erection... then my foreskin recedes and my girl parts react and get wet... and then... Takuji: And then? Riruru: Hey, don't make me say that, you big bully! *You were the one that started talking about it.* Riruru: Jeez... *Lick...* Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Hehehehehe. *Wh-What is this feeling... Th-This is the first time I've felt something like this...* *Riruru-chan diligently attended to my penis.* Riruru: Just like you did earlier. Takuji: Ha, haaa. *Riruru-chan traced the underside of my glans with her tongue.* Takuji: Riruru-chan... Riruru: Ehehehe, doesn't it feel good? Takuji: Y-Yeah. *Slurp, slurp, slurp...* *She did the same thing I did to her before.* Riruru: Ehehehe, it tastes good. *She licked around my frenulum.* *Slurp, slurp, slurp...* Takuji: Ah. Takuji: Aaaah, that's― Riruru: Ehehehe. *Riruru-chan tickled my penis with her tongue... and then stuck the entire thing in her mouth.* Takuji: Ah! *She sucked on the entire thing...* *I was taken aback by the sudden warm sensation.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* *She stimulated the tip of my penis with her uvula.* Takuji: Aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: I-It feels so good. *So warm...* *This feeling...* *I've never felt this before...* *Even an onahole isn't as nice and warm as this.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: Aah, i-it's amazing... The inside of your mouth... f-feels so good, aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* *Riruru-chan wrapped her tongue around my penis in her mouth.* Takuji: This is... *It must be because she has one too. That's why she knows exactly what feels good. She's doing everything I want her to.* *I've never done it with a woman, so I have nothing to compare it to, but there's no way it normally feels this good.* *Shlup.* Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Ehehe, how is it? Takuji: I-It's really good... Riruru: How about this? Takuji: Ah... Riruru: Your balls. *She diligently licked away at my sack.* *Then she gradually went lower.* *She moved her tongue even lower still.* Takuji: That's... Riruru: Ehehehehe. *Riruru-chan licked my asshole.* Takuji: Th-That's dirty... Riruru: Yours isn't dirty. *She licked around my anus...* Riruru: How about... Takuji: Ha. *Her tongue went inside me.* *She stuck her tongue out further.* Takuji: Ah... Ooh... *Her tongue stimulated my prostate gland.* Takuji: Aaaaah. *My dick grew even harder as she stimulated my prostate.* Riruru: Oh wow. It got even bigger than before. Takuji: Riruru-chan, I... Riruru: Ehehehe, you want to let it out, right? Takuji: Yeah. Riruru: Do you want to cum in my mouth? Or on my face? Takuji: Either way... Riruru: Jeez! In that case― *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: Aaah. *Shlup. Shlup. Shlup. Shlup.* Takuji: Don't do it so... *Shlup. Shlup. Shlup. Shlup.* Takuji: Aaah. Takuji: W-Wow... Your mouth... f-feels so good... Aaaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup.* Takuji: I-I'm at my limit! *Riruru-chan moved up and down violently.* Takuji: Riruru-chan, I'm going to cum... *Riruru-chan smiled when she heard that.* *She started moving even faster.* Takuji: I-I can't hold it! Ha, haaaaa! *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *I let it out inside Riruru-chan's mouth.* *She happily drank it.* Takuji: Y-You're drinking it? *I kept cumming inside her mouth.* *Her throat moved as she gulped it down.* Takuji: Ah... The inside of your mouth is... warm... and soft... and wet... Riruru: Hehe, how was it? Takuji: Ah... It felt good. Riruru: Ehehehe, you came a lot. That makes me happy. I could feel it in my mouth. Takuji: Y-Yeah... Your mouth felt really good. Riruru: Ehehe... Good. My body can take all of your lust. Riruru: I'll clean you up. Takuji: Ah! *I was still sensitive from cumming just now, so she gently stroked my penis.* Riruru: Hmm? What's this... You've still got some life in you. Takuji: Eh? Sure. Riruru: Then let's go for round two. Takuji: Round two? Riruru: Yeah. Riruru: My girl parts are begging for you. Takuji: Ah, aah... Takuji: H-How am I supposed to put it in? Riruru: Ehehe, don't worry. Riruru: I'll show you... Do you mind if I'm on top? I'll do all the work. Takuji: Oh, yeah... Thank you... *Riruru-chan got on top of me.* *She slowly lowered her hips... Slowly...* Takuji: Ah... *A wet feeling.* Riruru: ... *Her face warped in pain.* Takuji: A-Are you all right? Riruru: I'm fine... I'm totally... fine. You can just relax. I'll do everything. *Riruru-chan guided my penis to her entrance.* Riruru: Here... Right here... There's a depression right here... That's the spot. *As a virgin, her genitals were closer to a depression than a hole... I don't think my penis will go in there very easily...* Riruru: Let's go, then... I'll lower my hips... Takuji: Y-Yeah... *Riruru-chan lowered her hips in that same position. It made a strange sound like schlurp... and then my penis was wrapped in an indescribable warmth...* Riruru: Ahh... Takuji: Ah... Takuji: Y-You're so warm inside... *It felt so good I thought I was going to cum that very second.* *I thought I would've been fine since I just came.* *That warm sensation enveloped my penis...* *Different than the inside of her mouth...* *An indescribable sensation.* Riruru: I-I'm gonna move... Takuji: Y-Yeah. *Riruru-chan started moving her hips a little bit at a time.* Riruru: Hmm. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* Takuji: Aaah... It feels so good... *Her pussy squeezed my penis every time I moved my hips.* *It was so good I couldn't stand it.* Riruru: Aaahm, mmm... *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Riruru-chan's pussy was wet with so much honey that my penis made an amazing sound every time it went in and out.* *Her honey was mixed with blood, making it pink.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: M-My penis, my penis too... *Her penis had grown even bigger than before.* *It seemed like it could explode at any moment.* *I caressed her penis.* Riruru: Aah, aaah. *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Her boy parts were wet with precum.* *When I stroked her penis...* *It made the same sound as the place where we were connected.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup...* *Shlup, shlup, shlup, shlup shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: Aaah, aaah. Riruru: Both of them, both of them... Riruru: Amazing... Takuji: ... *She squeezed my penis even harder.* Takuji: It's so tight... *I stroked her penis even quicker.* Riruru: Aaah, ooaah, aaah! *It grew even tighter still.* Takuji: I-I'm... Riruru: I-I'm gonna cum, I'm gonna cum too. Takuji: Aaaah. Riruru: I'm a virgin, but my pussy is going to cum from you stroking my penis. I'm going to cum! *I stroked harder and faster.* *Shlup, shlup, shlup!* *The honey flowed out of her girl parts like a waterfall.* *There was so much honey, and it was so tight...* Riruru: I... I can't hold on... Takuji: I'm cumming. I'm cumming too. Riruru: Please, together... Together. Takuji: But at this rate... I'm going to cum inside... Riruru: It's fine, it's fine. I want your semen. I want your semen! Riruru: I want your semen inside me... Pour your semen into me. Takuji: Ah! Riruru: Noooo. *She grew far tighter than before.* *I couldn't help cumming too.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *A lot of semen spurted out of my penis and flowed into her.* Riruru: Noooo! *Shlup, shlup, shlup...* Riruru: I-I can't stop coming, I can't stop! *A ton of semen shot out of Riruru-chan's boy parts.* Riruru: Ah, it's hot... Your semen is so hot, Takuji-kun. I can feel your semen inside me! *Spurt, spurt...* *She stopped cumming...* *I collapsed in that spot.*

*" ior."* *"Ple wa up."* Takuji: Mm... *"Please wa up."* Takuji: Mm... *"Please wake up."* Takuji: ...Where am I? *My memory is a little fuzzy...* *I always feel like this when I wake up... It's not something I'm all that worried about.* Kimika: The ark. Takuji: The ark? *Ark? Ark... The school building's foundation is the ark?* Takuji: The ark, huh... *More importantly...* Takuji: More importantly... *What time is it right now?* Takuji: What time is it right now? Kimika: Um, it's just after 2:00 p.m. on the 17th... *Two o'clock, huh... I slept too long.* *Even though I slept so long, I still feel tired.* *Well, I always feel like that.* Takuji: And last night? Kimika: Huh? Takuji: What about last night? Kimika: What about last night, you said? You're not being very clear... who you're talking about. Takuji: Oh, uh... I'm talking about me. Also, how was everyone else after I disappeared? Kimika: So you want a status report? Well, after you went for a walk, they kept going at it like that. Takuji: Like that... Takuji: What are they doing? Kimika: You told them to let Nishimura-kun fuck them. They've been doing that for ages. Takuji: Nishimura isn't there... Kimika: Oh, that's right. my savior. Kimika: Um, over there... *Tachibana pointed to the corner.* Kimika: He kind of stopped moving after he had sex. Takuji: Oh, I see. Kimika: I think he just tired himself out and went too sleep, but he's so tired his heart isn't even beating anymore. Takuji: So tired his heart isn't beating... Doesn't that mean he's just dead? Kimika: What should we do? Can you revive him with your powers? Takuji: There's no need. Kimika: Really? Takuji: He wanted to have sex so bad. After his wish came true, he didn't need to move anymore. Kimika: Oh, that's right. I remember you saying something like that, my savior. Takuji: I used his desire to have sex to heal his wounds. If he doesn't have the will to live anymore, of course he'll stop moving. Takuji: It's just a question of his willpower now. Kimika: Oh, that makes sense... He can't move because he doesn't have any willpower! That makes sense, though I get the feeling he's not the only one without any willpower. Takuji: Yeah, of course. Takuji: Still, they haven't even slept. They're not getting bored of it at all. Kimika: Yeah, they're not tired at all thanks to the savior's elixir. Takuji: Oh, that... That's an all-purpose potion. Takuji: Then what about me? Kimika: Oh my... You don't remember? Takuji: Yeah... This happens sometimes. Part of it is because of the Black Surge's attacks, but... Kimika: Th-That's awful... You were so gentle last night... Takuji: Eh? Do you mean I... with you? Kimika: Yes. You were so gentle when we danced together. Takuji: Huh? Kimika: You were like, 'Watch me dance, hey, hey!' and then you started dancing like crazy. Takuji: Dancing like crazy? Kimika: Last night after you returned, you were in an incredibly good mood, my savior. Takuji: A good mood? Kimika: Yes, and you sang us a song too. Takuji: A song... *Song... Rooftop...* *I can vaguely remember it... I met with God. He was kind of like a scribble of an old man, though...* *And he sang...* *God's song?* *I wonder...* *I can't really remember it very well.* Takuji: A song, huh? Well, whatever... It really is noisy in here, though. Kimika: Noisy? Takuji: It's them. Their orgy is noisy... They've been fucking this whole time? Kimika: Yes. It's kind of funny how long they've been going... All of them are getting in on it. Kimika: Well, I did hear that drug made sex feel better... and it makes people lose track of time, too. Takuji: I see. So that's what it was... Kimika: Yes. Takuji: Hmm... Well, it doesn't really matter. *I have a headache.* *It must be the holy water's fault.* *That holy water was originally a drug you would dip paper in and use. It's incredibly potent even with a small amount.* *I scattered the untreated drug over the crowd, so of course they'd get headaches.* *But I purified mine with the Holy Surge first, so why am I getting a headache?* *Actually, I have a bump...* *Maybe I just hit my head?* *I don't remember last night at all.* Takuji: Now that I think of it... where's Kiyokawa? Kimika: Kiyokawa? Oh, you mean the toilet? Takuji: Y-You're... pretty awful... Kimika: What are you talking about, my savior? You're the one who gave her that name. Takuji: Well, I guess I did... So, where is she? Kimika: Um, first you brought her along this morning so that you could make her see the demons... Takuji: I did? Where to? Kimika: Who knows... I'm not sure, but it was probably somewhere on school grounds. I'm surprised you two were able to walk around on the school grounds even though the school is taped off right now. Takuji: Yeah, I am the savior after all... And what about after that? Kimika: The two of you came back safely. Takuji: And then? Kimika: Since she got back, Ms. Kiyokawa has been over there, scared out of her wits, saying, 'The demon has the same face as the savior!' Takuji: Over there? *There was someone curled up and quivering in the corner.* *Is that... Kiyokawa?* *Why is she so frightened?* Kimika: What did you show her? Takuji: Who knows... I guess I showed her something, but I don't really remember. And more importantly, Tachibana. Takuji: What time is it right now? Kimika: Um, right now... it's 5:00 on the dot. Takuji: It's already five, huh? Time passes so quickly. Kimika: Really? Oh, right, my savior. Takuji: What is it? Kimika: I have something to report. Takuji: Report? Kimika: Yes, him! Kimika: After Nishimura-kun had sex, he just kind of stopped moving. Takuji: Yeah, I guess he did. Kimika: I thought he just tired himself out and went to sleep, but his body is ridiculously stiff. He's gonna ache all over after sleeping in that position. Kimika: Can you revive him with your magic, my savior? Takuji: There's no need. Kimika: Really? Takuji: I used his desire to have sex to heal his wounds. If he doesn't have the will to live anymore, of course he'll stop moving. Takuji: It's just a question of his willpower now. Kimika: I've heard people say that before. In the end, it's just a matter of a person's motivation. That goes for a lot of things. Yeah, that makes sense. Takuji: It really is noisy in here though. They haven't even slept. They're not getting bored of it at all. Kimika: Yeah, they're not tired at all thanks to the savior's elixir. I feel great, too Takuji: Yeah, that's an all-purpose potion. Takuji: And... what time is it right now? Kimika: Um, right now... it's 7:00 on the dot. Takuji: Already seven o'clock, huh? That was fast. Kimika: Time flies like an arrow. Takuji: I guess so... The passing off time is strange. Takuji: Time... Time... Oh, that's right, Tachibana. Kimika: Yes? Takuji: Right now... what time is it? Kimika: Um, right now... it's 8:00 on the dot. Takuji: It's already dinner time, huh? I'm not really hungry, though. Kimika: You can thank the all-purpose potion for that. We should call it a Senzu Bean instead of elixir! Takuji: No, don't change the name... Kimika: And I was wondering... Do you really have dinner at eight o'clock at night? Takuji: We always have dinner at eight o'clock at my house... Is it different at your place? Kimika: We usually have dinner at six o'clock. Dinner is late at the savior's house, huh? Takuji: It's not late. You just have dinner too early... Kimika: You think so? Takuji: I mean, during the summer, the sun hasn't even set at six o'clock. Kimika: Yes, that's true. Takuji: Can you really call that dinner? Kimika: Isn't it dinner if we eat it during the evening...? Takuji: Then do you eat dinner at five o'clock on the winter solstice? Kimika: It really did feel like that. Takuji: It felt like it, huh? Kimika: Yes, it felt like it. Takuji: What about everyone else? Takuji: Um... *They're no good... They're totally worthless.* *Other than them... Uh...* Takuji: What about Kiyokawa? Kimika: She's over there quivering. She's been saying 'I'm scared, I'm scared' for hours. Takuji: Over there? *There was someone curled up and quivering in the corner.* *Is that... Kiyokawa?* Takuji: Why is she so frightened? Kimika: She's kind of got you and the demon mixed up, so she's like, 'It's scaaarryyy, aaaah!' Takuji: Are you even trying to explain it? Kimika: I'm doing my best right now. Takuji: Actually, now that I think of it, I don't see Nishimura in the orgy. Kimika: Oh, that's right. I have a request, my savior. Takuji: A request? Kimika: Yes! Kimika: Look over there. Takuji: At that? Kimika: He stinks! Takuji: What happened to him? Kimika: After he had sex, he was like, 'I'm so tiiireed,' then he laid down, his pupils dilated, he got all stiff, and he went and started rotting. Kimika: He stinks, so... could you please resurrect him? If you leave raw food out in the summer, it doesn't take long for it to spoil! Takuji: I can't. Kimika: You can't? Takuji: I used his desire to have sex to heal his wounds. I can't bring someone back to life after their wish has been granted. Takuji: More importantly, they really are noisy... They haven't even slept. They're not getting bored of it at all. How long have they been doing that? Kimika: Who knows... I'm not sure, but it's fun watching them. The girls' voices are getting so hoarse that they sound like old women! Takuji: You're not sure. It's been since yesterday, hasn't it? What time is it right now? Kimika: Um, right now... it's 8:01. Takuji: Oh, really... It's already that late. Kimika: More importantly, look over there. Takuji: At that? Kimika: It's Nishimura-kun. Takuji: Why's he so big? Kimika: Big? Has he gotten bigger? Takuji: What happened to him? He's the size of a cow, isn't he? Kimika: A cow? I don't know how a big a cow is... Takuji: You've never seen a cow? Kimika: No. Where would I see one? Takuji: On a ranch, probably. Kimika: On the roof?! Takuji: Yeah, on a ranch... They have lots of cows. Kimika: Oh really... There are lots of cows on the roof. That sounds like fun. Takuji: Does it? Kimika: Aren't there lots of cows under the blue sky? Takuji: Yeah, there are lots of cows under the blue sky... on a field of green grass... Kimika: Green? A green monk? Takuji: Besides, why is Nishimura as big as a cow? Kimika: h right, Nishimura-kun stopped moving a while ago, but his pupils dilated, he started rotting, and now his body is swelling. It's really annoying. Takuji: It would be hard for him to move now that he's gotten as big as a cow... Kimika: So then cows don't move very much either? Takuji: Yeah... I've seen a whole bunch of birds resting on a cow's back. Sometimes even big birds will perch on a cow's back. Kimika: Big birds? Takuji: Yeah, just like that... Something like that... Kimika: Something like that? *A huge bird perched on Nishimura's body.* *A white bird.* *Is that a heron?* Takuji: Birds perch on them, kind of like that. Kimika: No, that's not a bird! Takuji: It's a bird... That's a heron. Kimika: It's an angel. An angel is trying to take Nishimura-kun away. Takuji: No... Haven't you ever seen a heron? Kimika: No, I haven't, but are you saying that's a heron? Takuji: Yeah... Sometimes herons will perch on the backs of cows and rest their wings. Now that Nishimura has swelled up like that, he's a perfect perch for a heron. Kimika: Oh, really... So that's a heron... Kimika: Then why are there so many pictures of herons in churches? There are lots of pictures of those. Takuji: Pictures of herons in churches? *What's up with her... Is she mixing up heron and herald?* *A comment on Christianity?* Takuji: That's quite an intellectual way of putting it. Kimika: In ten lectures? Kimika: Ah, the angel flew away. Takuji: Hey, Tachibana. Kimika: Yes? Takuji: Where's Kiyokawa? Kimika: She's curled up over there. She's curled up like a mouse. Someone might step on her and kill her! Kimika: My savior, please go help tiny Ms. Kiyokawa! Takuji: No, it's just a matter of perspective... Think of it another way. Isn't it better if she's small like a mouse? Kimika: Is it better? Takuji: Yeah, if her body was small like a mouse, she could crawl into all kinds of little spaces, couldn't she? Kimika: Yeah, she could. Takuji: In other words, she could crawl into all of humanity's bodies through their mouths. Kimika: Ah, she could! Takuji: That's it. We should put tiny Kiyokawa in all their mouths! Kimika: We'll put her in all their mouths! Takuji: Yes! And once she's invaded all of humanity through their mouths, she could install antennas on all of them! Kimika: She could install antennas! Takuji: Yeah, and then I could transmit my holy gospel directly to all of humanity! Kimika: We could transmit your gospel! Takuji: If we did that, I could return far more people to the sky... We could do it! Kimika: We could drown more people to the sky. We could drown it! Takuji: Yes! Kimika: They'll drown! Takuji: Yes, all of humanity will get lost in my speech... and drown in it. Kimika: All good knowledge will get lost in your speech, and then remember in it. Takuji: Yes! Kimika: I remembered it! Takuji: Did you? Kimika: I did! Takuji: Well good! Kimika: I was good! Praise me! Takuji: I can't do that. No one would praise you for something like that. Kimika: You won't? Kimika: Hahaha... I guess it's no use. Takuji: W-Wait, if it means that much to you, then maybe just a little. Kimika: Maybe just a little? Takuji: I could praise you... I guess? Kimika: Yes! That would make me so happy! Takuji: I see... I'll give it a shot. Kimika: Go ahead! Takuji: Tachibana, good job! Kimika: Um, i-if you don't mind... Kimika: Um, I just thought... it would make me even happier if you called me Kimika instead of Tachibana. Takuji: All right... So Kimika is better than Tachibana? Kimika: Yes! You're better than me! Takuji: Okay, Kimika... good job! Kimika: Yay! I did it! The savior said I did a good job! Takuji: Did that make you happy? Kimika: Eureka? Kimika: Um, that's... Takuji: What is it, all of a sudden? Takuji: Eureka meant 'I found it' in the present perfect tense... Or are you talking about the anime? Kimika: Yes! That's it! I found it! Takuji: Found what? Kimika: I found the savior! Takuji: The savior? You mean me? Kimika: Yes. I found Mamiya Takuji, the savior! I found something incredibly valuable! Takuji: Oh... That's good. Kimika: Yay! I'm so glad I found you! Kimika: Um, do you mind if I hug you, so I have something to remember this moment by? Takuji: No way... I don't offer that service. Kimika: O-Oh, all right... I should have known the savior wouldn't be offering hugs. Takuji: Do you... want to hug me? Kimika: Yes! I want a hug! Takuji: Why don't you just go fuck one of the guys over there? Kimika: I'll punch you, my savior! Takuji: Don't punch me... You're my servant... Kimika: But you're being mean! That's not what I mean! I'm not talking about sex! I'm too pure and vaginal for that! Takuji: Not pure and vaginal... You mean pure and virginal... You sure know some old, obscure jokes. Takuji: Well, if you're not talking about sex, then why don't you go hug that pillar over there? Kimika: That's not what I mean! That's totally wrong! You're not even close! I want to hug you, my savior! Takuji: Is it that different? Takuji: If it has nothing to do with sex... I thought it was like when you can't sleep without a pillow to hold onto or something. Kimika: Oh, I know what you mean. I can't get to sleep if I don't have something to hold onto. Takuji: Oh, really... Kimika: So I haven't slept at all today. Actually, I don't even feel tired. Kimika: I watched you sleeping all day today! Kimika: Unfortunately, you woke up every ten minutes, so I didn't get to see your sleeping face very much. Takuji: Don't watch me sleep. Kimika: I would watch you even if it meant I would fall into the depths of hell! I'm not afraid of dying at all, and I'm sure I'll go to hell when I die! Kimika: But if you say I absolutely can't... I guess I'll stop if you really hate it. Takuji: No... You're not going to go to hell for watching me sleep, and I didn't say you absolutely couldn't. Kimika: Then you don't mind, right? Takuji: Well, I don't really like it, but... Kimika: If you won't let me hug you, at least let me do that! Takuji: What are you talking about? I don't understand. Kimika: You don't understand! Takuji: More importantly, about Kiyokawa... Kimika: You're going to drown Ms. Kiyokawa, right? Takuji: Who said that? Are you stupid? Kimika: I-I'm sorry! I was mistaken! Huh? What were you going to do to Ms. Kiyokawa? Takuji: So... where's Kiyokawa? Kimika: Oh, Ms. Kiyokawa shrunk herself over there. Takuji: So she succeeded at shrinking herself? Kimika: Yes, we succeeded at shrinking her! Takuji: All according to plan... Kimika: Yes, I recorded your plan! Takuji: Hehehe... I'll have the miniaturized Kiyokawa crawl into all of humanity's mouths... and then I'll transmit my words straight to them. Kimika: Yes! And then I'll transmit my words Stalin to them! Takuji: Hehehe... Go call for Kiyokawa. Kimika: Understood! Takuji: What's this? Kimika: What's wrong? Takuji: L-Look at her, you idiot! Kimika: Eh * Whoa, she's huge!"* Asumi: Eh? Takuji: She's over two meters tall... Kimika: She's over two layers through... Over two layers, right... Kimika: It's hard with two layers, though.. * Maybe she's already three layers?"* Takuji: Hey, Kimika. Kimika: Y-Yes? Takuji: What are you mumbling about? Kimika: I-I'm sorry, I was mumble! Takuji: No... No one is mumble... Kimika: Buddha? Takuji: No one's talking about that! Kimika: S-Sorry, no one was talking behind your back * I was just talking about Buddha!"* Takuji: I thought you said we succeeded in shrinking her. Kimika: I-I'm sorry... That's what my sources told me. Kimika: It seems our intelligence network has been disrupted by the war. Kimika: It was hard to break through the second layer. We were under fire the whole way, and the hills were crawling with enemies... Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Kimika: Eh? Um, I was giving you a status report. Takuji: Like I said, she should be shorter than this, shouldn't she? Kimika: A short sword? Kimika: Is that what it was?! A short sword! That's it! Kimika: Understood! Leave it to me! Leave it all to me * It's a short sword! That means we have to carve it in!"* Kimika: I'll go find it! I'll find it as soon as possible! Asumi: U-Um... Takuji: A short sword? Carve it? Asumi: Um, my savior... Wh-What's she... Kimika: My savior! I couldn't find a short sword, but I found a box cutter! We can carve her with this! Asumi: Eh? Did she say carve? Kimika: Just like this! Asumi: Ow! Kimika: Ah, you can't do that * I can't make you smaller if you run away!"* Asumi: N-Nooo! Wh-What are you doing?! Kimika: Ah, stop! Don't run away! Asumi: Tachibana-san, stop it! Kimika: No! I have to make you smaller with this short sword so that you can climb into their food! Ei! Asumi: N-Nooo! Kimika: You have to climb into the mouths of all the people in the world and help the savior! Please stop moving! Asumi: Aah! Kimika: You have more than three layers! You're already at three layers! If you go past three layers, you can't go back! Asumi: Agh! *What's she doing...* *I know she's just trying to help, but she's not accomplishing anything.* *And how is she going to carve something with a box cutter like that?* *Every time Kimika slashed at Kiyokawa, Kiyokawa got another grazing wound on her body.* *The two of them played tag for hours inside the huge ark.* *Kiyokawa was pretty desperate... and Kimika was gasping for air.* Takuji: Wasn't she in the Track and Field Club? Takuji: Why's she slower than Kiyokawa? *After they ran five laps around the ark, Kimika came back to me.* Kimika: Ha, ha, ha... She has too many layers. I can't damage her with normal attacks. Takuji: Do you consider stabbing someone with a box cutter to be a normal attack? That was awfully dangerous to begin with. Kimika: Yes... I couldn't damage her, even with that * If only I had my Estrema Ratio!"* Takuji: You'd actually kill her if you were waving a real knife around... And I think the real problem is that you're too slow. Kimika: Um, I joined the Track and Field Club because I was so slow. I thought I had gotten pretty fast... Takuji: That's delusional. Kimika: D-Delusional? Nooo! Takuji: From what I just saw... you're ridiculously slow. Kimika: I-I was trying to run like a gazelle. Takuji: You looked more like a giraffe to me. Kimika: Don't say that... Takuji: More importantly, Kimika. Kimika: Yes? Takuji: What time is it right now? Kimika: Yes, um... It's 8:02 right now * Time sure does fly, doesn't it?"* Takuji: It sure does... Takuji: Now then... I should give my sermon. It's the perfect time for it, now that the sun has set. Kimika: All right. I'll gather the people. Takuji: You don't have to gather them. Only the people who want to listen have to. Takuji: More importantly... *I looked for a place to sit.* *Then Kimika...* Kimika: A chair? Takuji: Y-Yeah, I need a chair. Kimika: Yesterday, you said you were gonna make Ms. Kiyokawa into your chair. Takuji: Yeah... I did, but what of it? Kimika: Why didn't you? Takuji: It's just like I said... She's too filthy for me to sit on. She's a filthy slut. Kimika: A slut.. * You're talking about sex, right?"* Takuji: Yeah, I am... I can't sit on someone who would do something like that... Takuji: What's so fun about doing that all day long... Takuji: Though I don't really feel like punishing every single one of them. Kimika: I'm a virgin! Takuji: H-Huh? Kimika: I haven't even kissed anyone before! Kimika: I've never held hands with a man! I've hated men all my life! Takuji: Huh... A-And? Kimika: Um, could I be your seat? Takuji: Huh? Kimika: Um, would you allow me to be your seat, my savior? Takuji: You? My seat? Kimika: Yes! I'll do my best! Takuji: No, it has nothing to do with that. Being my seat is a kind of punishment... Kimika: Not at all! How would it be a punishment to support the savior's entire body weight? Takuji: No, it would be. Use your common sense. Kimika: Please consider it! Takuji: C-Consider it, huh... I wonder... *Why does she want to do that? She really is a strange one.* *Well, all right... It's just until the sermon is over.* Takuji: Hmm. I don't really understand you, but all right then, Kimika. Be my chair. Kimika: Understood! *Hmm...* *This is odd...* *The human chair is supposed to be tragic... or it could be used to punish someone for their sins... or something like that...* *When she gleefully chooses to become a chair... it doesn't seem that bad at all.* Takuji: Kimika, do you know about the big four? Kimika: Yes! There are are a few different big fours * The big four of comedy! The big four idols! The big four games that..."* Kimika: Ah! Takuji: Do you want to incur the wrath of the gods? Kimika: I-I'm sorry! Takuji: I'm talking about the Four Heavenly Kings who watch over the cardinal directions. Most of their statues depict them crushing devils underfoot, right? Kimika: I-I don't really understand, but if you say so, it must be true! Takuji: No, that's not what I mean... The devil is being painfully crushed underfoot. Do you know why? Kimika: Because... it hurts? Takuji: Well for the devil, I suppose so, but what does the statue mean? Kimika: The statue's meaning? Um, it's a representation of pain? Takuji: That's the same thing... That's not it. Kimika: Th-Then... maybe it represents the suffering in human life? Takuji: It's not modern art, you know. Why would a Buddhist statue represent something abstract like that? Takuji: The Four Kings look especially conspicuous because they're crushing a devil underfoot. Kimika: The Four Kings look especially promiscuous... because they're cracking a demon underfoot... Got it. Takuji: You're pretty quick. That's why you shouldn't look so happy while you're doing it. Kimika: That's why I shouldn't look so sappy while I'm doing it. Got it. Takuji: Just be careful about that. Kimika: Understood! *Does she really understand?* Kimika: All ready! Kimika: I'm perfectly ready! Takuji: Like I said, Kimika, you're... Kimika: Yes, I can feel the devil within me. Takuji: That wouldn't be a good thing. *Oh well... She's been acting strange all day.* *Her eyes...* *She looked like a dog...* *It felt like I was sitting on a dog.* *I was the one that felt guilty here.* Kimika: My savior! *Her eyes sparkled, like she was telling me, 'Don't worry! I'm ready for it!'* *Jeez... I don't even care anymore.* Takuji: ... *The number of people... increased again, apparently. Where are they coming from?* Takuji: Now then... Kimika: All right! Takuji: A chair shouldn't respond to every little thing I say. Kimika: Ah, excuse me. Kimika: Ah... *My chair made a contented face.* *Like her life was now complete.* *I guess she really just wanted to be of use to me.* *Well, whatever.* Takuji: Everyone, listen to my words! Takuji: All of you! Look at the tiny existence huddled in the corner! Takuji: The tiny, quivering person huddled in the corner! Takuji: That is the form of one of the so-called pastors that until yesterday haughtily brainwashed us with education! Takuji: As the end of the world approaches, she is even more perturbed, even more fearful than any of you! Takuji: And how does she appear to you? Is that the form of a pastor leading the people? Takuji: That's right! That is the true form of the people in the profession of pastors! Kimika: Ah... *A grunt escaped Kimika's mouth.* *Her face was red, as if she was enduring something.* *Well, of course... She was on all fours on this concrete floor, with someone sitting on her. It might not have been a problem at first, but as time passed...* Kimika: ... *Kimika's eyes met mine.* *She gave me a big smile.* *Even though her face was bright red, and her eyes full of tears...* *Is that really the face someone would make if there was no problem? I wonder how she feels right now.* *Well, it's supposed to feel bad when I'm using someone as a chair, at least.* Takuji: This revelation is proof of how many lies are running rampant in the world! Takuji: Those people who can do no more than curl up and quiver in fear are the ones who have supposedly been teaching you the truth of the world! Takuji: That's why I made her into a toilet... Takuji: From now on, everyone here must both urinate and defecate on that thing... Understood? Takuji: Now, what is the truth that they've hidden from us? Takuji: This story is an example... It's just a parable. Takuji: A parable from ancient times... Takuji: In ancient times, the Norse God Loki ate the heart of the female jotunn Angrbooa... causing her to give birth to three children. Takuji: All of them were disgusting beasts, unfit for man's eyes... One of them was the great wolf Fenrir... Takuji: At first, Fenrir seemed to be nothing more than a normal wolf, so the Gods decided to raise it as a pet. Takuji: Yet as time passed, Fenrir grew and grew. Soon he became mighty enough to devour even the Gods who had raised him... Takuji: The Gods were afraid of Fenrir and bound him with a chain known as Leyding. Takuji: Yet the monstrous wolf tore through the chain as if it were nothing... Takuji: The Gods bound Fenrir with an even more powerful chain... the most powerful chain in all of the Niu Heimar, Dromi. Takuji: But even Dromi would prove no match for Fenrir, who grew only greater and greater. Takuji: The Gods were awestruck, terrified by Fenrir's seemingly endless power. Takuji: In their terror, the Gods had the dwarves construct Gleipnir, a chain that would be impossible to break. Takuji: Gleipnir, meaning 'that which devours,' was no mere chain... It was an impossible seal constructed by combining six impossible concepts. Takuji: And thus these six concepts were lost from the world... Takuji: I ask you, what is Fenrir? Takuji: I ask you, what is Fenrir? He who began life as nothing but a tiny wolf and grew to monstrous sizes... Takuji: I ask you, what do you call a being who shrugs off even the binding of the Gods, growing ever larger? Takuji: What do you call a being that can only be bound by that which devours all? Takuji: This is avarice! Takuji: Fenrir is the true form of avarice! Takuji: And the only thing that can restrain avarice is Gleipnir, that which devours even greed... Takuji: Gleipnir devoured avarice as it grew. Fenrir could not grow quickly enough to escape its grasp... And so, pieces of both Fenrir and Gleipnir scattered throughout the world... Takuji: And so Gleipnir, 'that which devours all,' showed itself to people in the form of currency... Takuji: Gleipnir, which was never metal to begin with, transformed into gold, silver, and jewels! Takuji: The true form of Gleipnir, 'that which devours all,' is currency! Fenrir, the being bound by it, is nothing more than humanity's never ending greed! Takuji: Fenrir is only possible to bind if first devoured by currency! Takuji: And so we see that humanity's loathsome greed cannot be bound by fetters of steel or iron, but only by that which devours all! Takuji: Now then, let us discuss that which was born next. Takuji: The next being to emerge from Angrbooa's womb was the goddess Hel... Takuji: As you can imagine from her name, she symbolizes hell. Takuji: But Hel's true form is not hell as we know it. Takuji: Her true form is she who brandishes death... What does it mean to brandish death? Takuji: In other words, Hel alone could manipulate life and death. Takuji: It is said that one of the Aesir, Hermoor, visited upon Hel, begging her to resurrect the fallen god Baldr... Takuji: In response, she spoke thusly... Takuji: 'It would upset the balance of the world to revive the dead so readily... I cannot revive Baldr...' Takuji: In other words, not even the Gods can escape death. Takuji: And Hel herself refused to overturn this principle, even for a god. Takuji: Why is this? Takuji: It is because death is absolute! Takuji: Death cannot be anything less than absolute, even from the perspective of the one who manages it. Takuji: What then, is Hel? Takuji: Hel is not death itself. Takuji: Death is nothing more but that which Hel brandishes, that which Hel directs. Takuji: What then, is Hel? Takuji: Hel is the most basic of anxieties! Takuji: Hel is the fear of life's impermanence! Takuji: Hel is not death. She is life itself, the boundary between life and death! Takuji: To brandish death means to manage that most basic of all anxieties! Takuji: Hel is our fear of death! Takuji: Why did Hermoor attempt to resurrect Baldr? Takuji: Because of a basic fear of death itself. Takuji: If death itself were not something to be feared, there would be no meaning in resurrecting Baldr. Takuji: Much like a tiger has no need to fly or a mouse has no need to breathe underwater... much like humans cannot control death itself... Takuji: There is no reason to treat death as a taboo! Takuji: We must learn to accept death! Takuji: Hel is fear... Hel is anxiety. Takuji: An absolute fear, never ending... A fear directed at a vague future that grows only larger and larger... This is what we call anxiety. Takuji: That is to say, anxiety is fear directed at a future that has yet to come. Takuji: Anxiety is the postponement of fear. Takuji: It can be compared to avarice... In other words, Hel and Fenrir are very similar. Takuji: Avarice and anxiety resemble one another. Takuji: Avarice and fear resemble one another. Takuji: Humanity's endless greed is in the end nothing more than an endless anxiety. Takuji: Currency allows humanity to postpone their avarice... By fulfilling their immediate greed, they postpone its compensation indefinitely. Takuji: Currency is Gleipnir endlessly postponing an immediate greed... Thus, currency will never come to an end. Takuji: It's the same as an endless fear... the same as anxiety! Takuji: Hel's true form is anxiety, an endless chain of fear... an endlessly postponed fear, death! Takuji: There is but one difference between Hel and Fenrir. Takuji: Fenrir is bound by the chain of Gleipnir, but Hel continues to gaze at us from atop the deck of the Naglfar... Yes, she continues to gaze at us! Takuji: Our fear of death is being left to roam free! Takuji: Now, just one remains... Takuji: I will now discuss the Ouroboros, that which is endless... Takuji: The last child to emerge from Angrbooa's womb was the great snake, Jormungandr. Takuji: Jormungandr's form struck great fear into the hearts of the Gods from the instant it was born. Takuji: They cast it into the ocean, hoping to be rid of it... Takuji: But Jormungandr would only grow larger... eventually growing to reach the end of the universe itself. Takuji: And here, something strange happened. Jormungandr's tail, which had reached the end of the universe, wrapped around to the other side, appearing right in front of Jormungandr's eyes. Takuji: And so Jormungandr bit its own tail. Takuji: At the moment, the largest thing in existence became infinity. The universe itself was sealed inside the circle of infinity. Takuji: The Gods, especially Thor, attempted many times to defeat Jormungandr... but their efforts were in vain. Any attempt to defeat Jormungandr could never end in anything but mutual destruction. Takuji: The Twilight of the Gods. Takuji: Ancient mythology refers to it as such... Takuji: One day Jormungandr shall awaken, and this will be the end of the world. Takuji: Everything will be razed and everything will sink... Everything will come to an end. Takuji: Jormungandr and Thor will destroy one another... The rest of the Gods will die as well... Takuji: And finally, a new world will be born. Takuji: The forest of Hoddmimis alone will survive... and there, two humans who survived the blaze, Lif and Lifthrasir, will forge a new world. Takuji: This is nothing but a myth... Takuji: It cannot be anything more, for... Takuji: Jormungandr symbolizes circulation... eternal recurrence... continuity... eternity... circular motion... death and resurrection... destruction and creation... the base of the universe... the infinite... immortality... perfection... omniscience and omnipotence... Takuji: Killing this being would be nothing more than rewinding. Takuji: In other words, Jormungandr and Thor's mutual destruction is not an ending, but a beginning... Takuji: That beginning is the moment when Jormungandr bit its own tail... Takuji: That is infinity... Takuji: And the end of the Universe... where Jormungandr's tail and head meet... Takuji: That is the farthest sky... That is where we must return! Takuji: Only those who exist there will be granted the chance to live in the new world... to be revived... Takuji: The farthest sky... That is the sky where everything shall end... That is the End Sky! Kimika: Ah! Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Wha― Kimika: Ggh! Kimika: Ha! *Willpower... I guess you could call it that.* *She raised me back up again with her skinny arms and legs.* Takuji: Kimika, you... Kimika: Ahgh... *She shook her head back and forth in denial.* *What's she denying... The fact that she fell? Or is she saying she can't keep going?* *Her skinny arms were already shaking violently, and her face wasn't just red, it was like a bright red firework.* *I still had a lot to talk about, but...* Takuji: That's all... Kimika: Ah. Takuji: ... Kimika: Oooh～ *Did she... faint?* *What's she doing?* Takuji: Haa... Everyone, three times daily you should all sprinkle elixir on each other... and lick a little bit of elixir on your finger instead of eating. Then you won't feel hungry or thirsty. Takuji: This is kind of... *Kimika fainted right there. Well, it must have been really hard for her, but...* *Still, why is she trying so hard?* *I understand why they rest of them have gathered here... I understand all too well...* *But I feel like she's here for a different reason.* *The strange unease I felt when we first met... At first, I didn't understand why I felt uneasy.* *It was completely different from the unease I felt around Minakami, Yuuki, the Wakatsuki sisters, or Otonashi. She wasn't an alien, metaphysical existence like them... She was much simpler.* *She bullied Takashima... and then she came to me because she was afraid of the curse.* *She came because she didn't want to die... just like Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and the rest of them did.* *But her eyes...* *Her eyes when we first met... and her voice when she was watching Senagawa...* *She led Senagawa to her death without a moment's hesitation.* *Now that I think about it, did I really fool her with that farce?* *I've put on a show to make the others believe in my predictions...* *But it honestly feels like I showed her my entire hand at the beginning.* *She's the only one who could've figured out that I didn't kill Senagawa with the curse, but led her directly to death instead.* *And yet...* *Why is she the most faithful and devoted of them all? Why did she trying to help me like this?* Kimika: I would watch you even if it meant I would fall into the depths of hell! I'm not afraid of dying at all, and I'm sure I'll go to hell when I die! Kimika: But if you say I absolutely can't... I guess I'll stop if you really hate it. *Those words were strange... even if she was on drugs...* *Someone who just came to be saved wouldn't say that.* *Perhaps those were her true feelings, and she only said them because of the drugs?* *Just what is she thinking?* Kimika: Mmm... Kimika: Ah?! Kimika: Wh-Where am I? Takuji: This is my room... Kimika: Eh? Oh! How did I get here? Takuji: I carried you. Kimika: Eh? Do you mean... you carried me like a princess? Takuji: Yeah... Kimika: ...Daaamn iiiitt! Takuji: Wh-What is it? Kimika: Please don't do that kind of service for me when I'm unconscious! Takuji: It wasn't supposed to be any kind of service... Kimika: Ah, I wish I could go back in time... I missed out. Takuji: Missed out, huh... Kimika: Yes, big time... Takuji: I don't know what you want from me... Takuji: Now then, it's about time. Kimika: Where are you going? Takuji: The roof. Kimika: Eh? You're going outside again? Takuji: Yeah, I can go directly up to the Building C rooftop from here... Kimika: Oh, that's how you disappear sometimes. I thought it was one of your special powers. Takuji: No, it's just a ladder... It's really long. Kimika: U-Um, my savior... Takuji: What? Kimika: It looked like you were having a lot of fun last night. Takuji: Yeah, I guess I heard God's song. I don't really remember it, though... Kimika: I want to go too! Takuji: No, that's ridiculous. Kimika: I can't? Takuji: I'm not saying you can't, but it's pretty dangerous out there. The day before yesterday, there were billions of white and black angels fighting. It wasn't a problem for me, since I'm the savior, but for you... Kimika: That's fine. I don't mind if it's dangerous. Kimika: I don't care if I die right now, so it doesn't matter how dangerous it is. Kimika: But, if possible... If possible, I'd like to see the same landscape that you saw. Would you share the scenery from your viewpoint with me just once? Takuji: Wh-Why are you so serious all of a sudden? Kimika: Hahaha, I'm sorry. I always mess around, so... I'm not good with this kind of stuff. Takuji: ... Takuji: All right, fine. But I'm not responsible if something happens to you. Kimika: S-Seriously? Takuji: The roof is close to the sky, so both the white and black surges can fly there freely... If you get caught by the Black Surge, you might get your brain fried. Kimika: Just what I wanted... I'd be happy to die like that. I still want to see it... The scenery from the roof... Takuji: Hehehe... All right... *This must disqualify me as the savior...* *But I wonder... Maybe this is part of the pre-established harmony too...* *...* *Or not... Not everything goes as God expects it to.* *Oh well, there's no point in dwelling on it.* *I don't mind taking her along... That's what I thought...* *I decided to take her along.* *The signal of the day's change...* *The world's final night approached.*

*Singing at the end of the world.* *She sings.* *Proud of the wings she sprouts... an angel sings.* *Are our brains wider than the sky?* *Look... Put them side by side...* *Put the brain beside it and the sky it will include...* *The sky... the world... and you beside... it will include, include.* *Our brains will include...* *Are our brains deeper than the sea?* *Look... Hold them, blue to blue...* *The sea our brains will absorb...* *As sponges, buckets do...* *Are our brains heavier than God?* *Lift them, pound for pound.* *Our brains and God... Measure them, pound for pound.* *They're the exact same weight.* *Our brains are just the weight of God.* *If they do differ* *it is as syllable* *from sound.* *As melody* *from song.* *I must protect...* *The angel that sings.* *She sprouts wings... and sings joyfully.* *At the end of the world...* *" sama."* *"Ple wa up."* Takuji: Mm... *"Please wa up."* Takuji: Mmmm... *"Please wake up."* Takuji: ...Where am I? *My memory was a little fuzzy...* *I always feel like this when I wake up... It's not something I'm worried about.* Kimika: This is the ark... Isn't that obvious? Takuji: The ark? *Ark? Ark... The school building's foundation is the ark?* Takuji: The ark, huh... *More importantly...* Takuji: More importantly... *What time is it right now?* Takuji: What time is it right now? Kimika: Um, it's just after 6:00 p.m. on the 17th... *Six o'clock, huh... I slept too long.* *Even though I slept so long, I still feel tired.* *Well, I always feel like that.* Takuji: And last night? Kimika: Huh? Takuji: What about last night? Kimika: Eh? What do you mean? Takuji: Oh, uh... After I disappeared... Kimika: Oh, last night? Well, after you went for a walk, they kept going at it like that. Takuji: Like that... Takuji: What are they doing? Kimika: Hehehe... They've been going at it for ages. Takuji: Why? Kimika: What are you talking about? You were the one who ordered them to have sex with Nishimura-kun. Takuji: Did I? But Nishimura isn't over there. Kimika: That's right. Uh, the reason he's not there is... Takuji: I don't really care why. What happened to him? Kimika: He said he was tired and laid down. Takuji: Then? Kimika: He's been laying there like that. Takuji: Like that? Kimika: He's been laying over there like that, not moving at all. Takuji: He's not moving? Kimika: I thought he was just sleeping, but he's not moving at all. He doesn't react to anything. Takuji: No reaction, huh... Kimika: Shouldn't you heal him, my savior? Takuji: There's no need. Kimika: Really? Takuji: He wanted to have sex so bad. After his wish came true, he didn't need to move anymore. There's no need to heal him. Kimika: Oh, that's right. I remember you saying something like that, my savior. Kimika: I see. So it's all about how he feels. Takuji: Well, I guess so. He stopped moving once his wish was granted. That's all. Kimika: So it's just a question of his willpower now... Hmm, that makes sense. Kimika: Well, even if he was alive, he would just keep having sex. This way is better. Takuji: Yeah, it is. Takuji: Still, they haven't even slept. They're not getting bored of it at all. Kimika: They're not getting tired at all thanks to the savior's elixir. It's all-purpose, huh... Look, it even makes your pupils dilate. Kimika: Look, look, my savior, look. It makes your pupils dilate, so you can see everything. Even in the darkness you can see perfectly fine. Takuji: Of course, that's an all-purpose potion. Takuji: Now that you mention it, did I give the elixir to anyone other than Nishimura? I kind of remember sprinkling it on them, but... Kimika: Don't worry about the details. You're the savior! Takuji: It's not just a detail... Kimika: But look... thanks to the drugs, they're all happy. Takuji: Well, yeah... They're all having fun in that orgy. Kimika: Hehehehe... It's like, just look at those sluts. Takuji: What? Kimika: Oh, nothing. I'm just talking to myself. Yeah. I'm just talking to myself. Takuji: Oh, okay... Takuji: My head really hurts... Kimika: It must be because you were in a good mood last night. Maybe you hit your head? Takuji: Hit my head? What do you mean? Kimika: You were dancing... You were yelling, 'It's God's song!' Takuji: God's song... *God... song... roof...* *What is it...* *I feel like that was something incredibly important... God, song, and... and... what?* Kimika: What's wrong? Takuji: No, it's nothing... Nothing at all. *No... It's not like it's rare for me to forget something.* *So I must not need to remember it. I can just forget it.* Takuji: So why did I hit my head exactly? Kimika: You were dancing really happily and just fell down at one point. Takuji: Seriously? Kimika: Yes, seriously. Takuji: I see... After that, I went to sleep? Kimika: No, you got up several times. You were doing lots of stuff. Takuji: Lots? Kimika: Yes, you were only sleeping intermittently... Did you get any rest like that? Takuji: If you were watching me, did you get any sleep? Kimika: No, not at all. I've been drinking Cat's Eye too. Takuji: It's not Cat's Eye... That's holy water. Kimika: Yes, it's Holy Cat Water, right? *Is she even listening to me?* Takuji: Haa... Are you still high? Kimika: Kind of... I'm not sleepy at all. *Damn it... Is that why she's so rude? Well, I guess scolding her for it won't really help.* Takuji: And then? When I was awake, what I was doing for the most part? Kimika: For the most part? For the most part, you went for a walk around the school and stuff. I'm actually pretty surprised you didn't get caught... You're on the wanted list here at school. Takuji: Didn't get caught, huh? I am the savior, you know... Kimika: Yeah, you could just Savior Dash out of there, right? Takuji: Your premise is incorrect. The savior has no reason to run away or hide. Kimika: Because the Savior Dash is too fast? Takuji: No! Because I'm a holy existence! Kimika: I see... You're one of those people. Takuji: It has nothing to do with people! I am the savior, you idiot! Kimika: Oh... You're not a human, right? Takuji: Yeah, the savior isn't human. Kimika: I see... You're not a human... and... Takuji: Y-You... Would you knock it off? Kimika: Oh, right. When you went for a walk, you took Ms. Kiyokawa along. Takuji: Eh? Kiyokawa? Why did I take her along? Kimika: You were like, 'I'll show you the demon!' and then you grabbed her by the hair and dragged her out... Takuji: No... I'm not that cruel, am I? Kimika: Oh, can you understand me? Did I exaggerate it? Takuji: It's not about understanding... My personality isn't like that. The savior would never do something so barbaric. Takuji: The only people who talk with their fists are people who don't have anything to say with their mouths. Kimika: Talk with their dicks? Takuji: Jeez... That's not right at all. Talk with their fists, their fists! You only have the talking part right. Kimika: I know that much. Talking with their fists. That's violence. Gepard! Takuji: Then don't make stupid jokes like that. Kimika: They're not boring. I just wanted to see what would happen if I said something crude like that. Takuji: Why... would you want to say something like that? Kimika: Hahaha, I might not look it, but I've always been totally straightedge. Takuji: Have you? Kimika: But I've always been kind of depressed... Takuji: Really? Kimika: Yeah, so sometimes I was bullied. Or rather, I've been bullied every day since I came to this school. Takuji: Now that you mention it, I think I heard about that. *And then she betrayed Takashima Zakuro...* *So that she could escape her own bullying.* Kimika: ... Kimika: That's right... Everything that just went through your mind is completely correct. Takuji: What are you... Kimika: Oh, no, I don't have the power to read people's minds like you and those other people... Kimika: But... well, it's natural that you would be thinking about that, I guess. Kimika: Because... I'm a backstabber... Kimika: So... Takuji: So? Kimika: I'm truly grateful to you, my savior! Takuji: Huh? Kimika: I'm sorry I ever doubted you! Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Kimika: Oh, nothing. You're just that wonderful, my savior. Takuji: Oh... Really? *Is that... really what she was thinking?* *I don't understand her at all.* Takuji: So where's Kiyokawa? Kimika: Ms. Kiyokawa is over there, scared out of her wits, saying, 'The demon has the same face as the savior. I'm going to die!' Takuji: Over there? *There was someone curled up and quivering in the corner.* *Is that Kiyokawa?* *Why is she so frightened?* Kimika: And she said the demon took her cell phone, too... Takuji: The demon did? Kimika: Yes. What did you show her, my savior? What's the demon? Takuji: Who knows... I guess I showed her something, but I don't really remember. Kimika: You're good at scaring people. Takuji: What do you mean? I don't scare people, I just perform miracles... People are just scared of them. Kimika: Well, that's the result. The result. Kimika: This is what they call charisma, huh? Kimika: Of course the savior would have that! Takuji: You should be scared of me, too... Kimika: I am... You're super scary, my savior! Takuji: Are you making fun of me? Seems like you're having fun to me. Kimika: No, no way, not at all. You're just misunderstanding. Kimika: But... Kimika: But now that you mention it, you really are scary, my savior. Kimika: Fear is when the heart moves. You're good at moving people's hearts... Mine is moving too. Takuji: What are you talking about? Kimika: Who knows, what am I talking about? Maybe I'm delusional? Kimika: Now then, I'll take care of them. You're tired, right, my savior? Takuji: Well, yes, but... but... Kimika: I'm your servant... Please make use of me. Takuji: Sure... Kimika: Do you think I would ever betray you or get in the way of your plans, my savior? Takuji: I don't, but... Kimika: That's right. You would kill someone in the very instant they betrayed you. Kimika: If you don't trust me, please kill me. Takuji: No, I don't think you're going to betray me, but... Kimika: Hehehehe... You don't know the whole story. Kimika: I mean, the first time we met, I tried to kill you. Takuji: I thought you looked suspicious, but is that really what you were going to do? *So she really was hiding a knife in her right hand... My intuition was right.* *I let my guard down soon after, but that was dangerous.* Kimika: Hehehe... I'm a yandere... I'm crazy, depressed, and autistic. Kimika: There's a reason why they started bullying me before Zakuro. Takuji: Haa... Why would you want to kill someone who saved you from a curse? Are you stupid? Kimika: Ahahaha... Like I said, I was mistaken. I was really mistaken. Kimika: I was totally mistaken. You're my ally! Takuji: I'm not your ally... I'm the savior of humanity. Kimika: Yes! I'll never forget it! Kimika: So take care of your body until the final day, my savior. Takuji: Yeah... That's right... Takuji: Um, three times a day. Kimika: Fill the ark with vaporized elixir! Endure your hunger with elixir! Takuji: No, that's not what I said. Clean your bodies by sprinkling elixir on each other. Lick a little bit of elixir to stave off your hunger... Kimika: Aye, aye, sir! *After that...* *It's about that time.* Takuji: I'll go meditate for a while. *I returned to my place, alone.* *To my room...* *I stood before the poster I had Tachibana buy.* *The icon of the Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *Last night, with this... I met Riruru-chan... and then...* *I encountered the Father Himself.* *I guess I did, but...* *Honestly, I don't remember it.* *For some reason... A song... I feel like he sang a song.* *God is melody.* *The world is words.* *Actually, I feel like I've heard that song a long time ago...* *I kind of remember it.* *Whose song was that?* *Why do I remember that song?* Takuji: The brain and the sky are the same... The brain and the sea are the same... Takuji: The brain is just the weight of God... *That kind of song.* *Why do I remember that song so vividly?* *When did I hear that song? Whose song was it?* Takuji: The Savior Brain... isn't yet complete, I guess. Takuji: Haa... Well, I guess not. *I sighed before the icon of the Mahou Shoujo Riruru.* *I didn't remember God's song, but there were plenty of things I did remember.* *Shiroyama's corpse was still walking around...* *Even Takashima-san's corpse was still wandering the school...* *And her soul was residing in her desk, and that desk was wandering around the school looking for her body...* *And finally...* Takuji: Haa... Riruru-chan... You're awful... Takuji: What you did yesterday was beyond awful. Takuji: I can't believe you possessed Takashima-san's body... Even I would be scared by something like that. Takuji: That was terrible... Her death was quite a while ago, so her body was totally rotten, and it smelled awful, just awful. Takuji: Well, I guess... that it's thanks to her body that Riruru-chan and I were able to come into physical contact, so... Oh well. Takuji: ... Takuji: What about today? Will there be someone there again? Takuji: ... Takuji: Maybe I should go to the roof again... Someone might be there again today. *This time I went directly up to the roof from within the building.* *There's a ladder that connects the foundation to the roof of the new building.* *The new building. In other words, Building C...* *The wind was cold... just like yesterday.* *This place is closer to the sky than Building A.* *It's the highest place on campus.* *There was no one there...* *Today I really... don't feel anything.* *Is there really... nothing?* *I already met with God yesterday, so...* Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: Wh-Who is it? *Why is there someone here?* *Building C is supposed to be completely closed off...* *No one should be able to come here...* *Did someone follow me?* *From the ark...* *Then why?* Takuji: Hey, come out already... Takuji: There's someone there... Takuji: I know you're hiding. *I know this feeling.* *This is the feeling of the Black Surge.* *Black Riruru's waves...* *Which means...* Takuji: It's Black Riruru, isn't it? Ayana: How about a consolation prize. Takuji: ...Otonashi? Ayana: Hello, Takuji-kun... I'm the girl known as Otonashi Ayana. Who are you? Are you Mamiya Takuji-kun? *Why is Otonashi here...* *No, she's Riruru-chan's shadow... Sediment... In other words, she's Black Riruru.* *She's the devil himself.* *BEWARE...* Takuji: Otonashi Ayana... Also known as Black Riruru. Ayana: What's that, my new nickname? Takuji: You... The reason you came here is so you could have sex with me, right? Ayana: Why would I do that? Takuji: Hehehe... You're jealous because I came into physical contact with White Riruru yesterday... You're afraid I'm going to be taken by their side. Ayana: I see... But I don't want to have sex with you. Takuji: You're right. You might even hate me. The frequencies of our surges all match, but... Takuji: You came here so that you could have sex with me. This is the Building C rooftop, the bow of our ark... Ayana: Why would you... say... that.. * Ahh..."* Takuji: I knew it. You too, huh... Takuji: Hehehe... Look, it's started... Ayana: A-Ahh... Wh-Why? Why is this... *From her skirt...* *Something that a girl should absolutely never have was poking out, just like with Riruru-chan yesterday.* Ayana: N-No, wh-why am I― Takuji: Hehehehehe... What is it? Do you want to do it that badly? *She tried desperately to hide the thing poking out of her skirt, but her swelling penis moved without regard to her will, stopping her from covering it up.* Ayana: N-No, d-don't. Takuji: Hehehe, you were acting all high and mighty, and now look at you... Ayana: Noo, don't look... Th-This is strange... It's strange... Takuji: It's like you're asking for it. Ayana: Th-That's not true... Takuji: No, you're asking for it. You want me to cum in you just like I did White Riruru, and you want to cum in me! Ayana: That's... impossib―aah. *Her swelling penis lifted up her skirt... Her skirt was lifted up so far that her underwear was completely exposed.* *But still, the panties under her skirt... Wow, they're striped panties. Was she planning on this happening? How much of this was planned?"* *Well, she was made to tempt me, so... they must have made her to match my tastes.* *But... it won't go as smoothly as the dark powers expect.* *In this ritual, I have to cum inside her, and she has to cum inside me.* *We both have to cum inside each other.* *So I'll just cum inside her. I'll purify her insides with my holy semen.* *Then I'll make her shoot her load of black semen all over the ground.* *I'll keep making her waste her sperm... I'll make her spray every drop on the ground.* *Hehehe... Prepare yourself.* Takuji: I thought Black Riruru would be just like White Riruru, but... I can't believe you really are another perverted futanari girl. Ayana: N-No, I'm not a pervert... Takuji: You are... You're a big pervert. Your high and mighty attitude up until now, like you were pushing people away... You were afraid I was going to find out the truth about you... Ayana: Th-That's... not true. That's impossible! Takuji: You have special powers because you're Riruru-chan's shadow... and because of those powers, you look down on humans, but the truth is that you're just a perverted dickgirl, and you were always scared someone was going to find out. Takuji: Hehehe... What would everyone think if they found out about this, Otonashi-san? Ayana: Eh?! *Her face instantly stiffened in fear.* Ayana: Y-You don't mean... Takuji: Your grades are good, right? You're smart, right? Then you know what I'm going to say. Ayana: Ah, a-anything but that... P-Please don't tell everyone. Takuji: I wonder about that. Wouldn't it be a waste if I didn't tell everyone this hilarious story? Takuji: The honors student Otonashi Ayana is actually a dick girl.. * and I saw her get a hard-on on the roof in the middle of the night..."* Ayana: No... Don't tell them... Takuji: Come on... Try showing a little backbone... Are you begging already? You are an angel, even if you are a black one Ayana: ... Takuji: Oh well... Anyway, show it to me. Ayana: Eh? Takuji: I won't say it again... Show me your nasty, disgusting penis. Ayana: Th-That's... Takuji: What? Are you really going to disobey me? Ayana: ... Takuji: You should've figured out by now what will happen if you disobey me. *She gave up... and slowly moved her hand behind her.* Ayana: N-Now... please... forgive me. *She moved her hand, but I still couldn't see it very well... I told her to show it all to me.* Takuji: I said show it to me... All you did was move your hand. Ayana: P-Please... leave it at this. Takuji: Don't make me repeat myself... I won't say it again! Ayana: Ah... *That girl who hardly ever changed expression was already crying. It must have been mortifying.* Takuji: Hehehehehe, now don't you look good... You're always looking down on people, but now you just look like a bitch in heat. *Otonashi slowly lifted up her skirt...* *Her glans revealed its face...* *She was exactly like Riruru-chan.* *White, uncut... with a pink tip.* *Her pink tip was crying just a little bit.* *Moist and glittering, just like Riruru-chan was... Just like pink jelly...* Ayana: Ah, don't look at me like that... If you do that, I-I'll... Takuji: What'll happen? Ayana: ... Takuji: Hehehe, what's wrong? Ayana: Don't... Don't do that. Takuji: What's wrong? Say it! Hurry up and say it! Ayana: I-It'll get bigger... Takuji: What will? Ayana: My penis... My penis will get bigger... Ooh... Takuji: Hahahahaha, oh really? You're just a perverted little dick girl! Are you turned on? Is your girly penis getting hot and bothered? Ayana: Ah, aaah... *The face of despair... Her face was pale as a ghost even though her lower body was bright red. Is her swelling erection draining the blood from the rest of her body?* Takuji: Answer... Quickly! Answer! Am I right? Ayana: Y-Yes... That's right... That's exactly it... So, so please forgive me... Takuji: Hehehehe... Ayana: Please don't look at me anymore... If you keep looking at me, I, I... Takuji: What will happen if I keep looking at you? Ayana: ... Takuji: Answer me. Ayana: I-I can't say that... I can't... Please forgive me. Takuji: Shut up... Be quiet... I don't want to hear your excuses. Say it. Answer. Hurry up, say it. Now, now! Ayana: Eek! *She's completely terrified... She's no different from the scum in the Ark. No different at all...* Ayana: U-Um, i-if you keep looking at me, my... my penis... Takuji: I can't hear you! Say it clearly! Say it over again... Ayana: Y-Yes! Ayana: If you keep looking at me, my penis will get bigger and come out of the foreskin... You'll see everything. Ayana: S-So... please forgive me... Takuji: No. Ayana: B-But... Ayana: Ah... *Right after she said that, her penis swelled even further... The end of her foreskin was forced back.* Ayana: Noooo, you can see... You can see everything. *She quickly tried to hide it with her hand, but―* Takuji: Don't move! *Of course, I yelled at her for that.* *Her entire voice stiffened after I yelled.* Takuji: Who told you you could hide it? Leave it, just like that... Ayana: B-But... Takuji: Come on... You fucking pervert. Thrust it forward so I can see... Come on! Ayana: O-Okay... *She hesitantly moved her hips forward.* *Her penis was exposed to the cold outside air.* *Showing it to anyone else had probably been the greatest taboo throughout her life.* *And then... it was on show for me, here in this foreign place.* *Her face was wet with tears.* Takuji: You pervert... You're an exhibitionist. Ayana: N-No... That's not true. Takuji: Then why does your dick react whenever I look at it? Ayana: Ah, ah... Takuji: Answer me! Ayana: Th-That's terrible... Terrible... Takuji: Shut up! Takuji: Answer! Ayana: Y-Yes... It's just like you said. I-I get excited when someone looks at me... I'm a pervert. Otonashi Ayana is a pervert. Takuji: And? You get excited when someone looks at your what? Ayana: ...Huh? Takuji: Answer me! I said, answer me! Ayana: U-Um... my penis... Takuji: I can't hear you... I can't hear you at all. If you don't cooperate, you'll make me really angry. Is that what you want? *She resigned herself to her fate and opened her mouth.* Ayana: My penis... Ayana's penis. Takuji: You're a fucking futanari girl who gets turned on by having a guy look at her cock on the rooftop at night, right? Takuji: Well?! Say it! I won't let you remain silent! Ayana: Y-Yes... Takuji: Yes, what? Say it. Explain it for me... Ayana: Y-Yes... I-I'm... a futanari girl who gets turned on by having a guy look at her cock on the rooftop at night. *When she said that, a drop of white liquid dripped off the end of her dick.* Takuji: You really are an exhibitionist... You fucking nasty dickgirl... Ayana: No... D-Don't say that... I-I'm not, I'm not like that... *Every time she made an excuse, another drop of white liquid fell from her dick.* Takuji: Says who? *I suddenly knocked her down.* Ayana: Wh-What? Eeaaah! *I grabbed her dick hard.* *Unlike when I did it with Riruru-chan, I didn't hold back at all. I grabbed it really, really hard.* *I don't care if my fingernails make her bleed. It's not my problem.* Ayana: D-Don't grab so hard... Aaah! *I didn't care for her pleas... I mercilessly stroked her dick. I wanted to see what would happen if I just kept stroking it.* Ayana: Ah, stop! I can't take it! *I firmly grasped the most sensitive spot.* *And I pumped my fist up and down... over and over.* Ayana: Don't do it like that, be gentler... Ah! Takuji: Shut up! I can tell you're turned on, so why are you complaining? This is the perfect way of handling a fucking pervert like you! Ayana: N-No! Ah! *Sloosh, sloosh, sloosh...* *Her dick was already covered in a frothing white liquid... There was so much of it that it almost looked like she had already come.* *That was proof that all the pain she was experiencing before had changed into pleasure.* Ayana: Ah, stop, I'm-! Takuji: What is it... Hmm? I hope you're not going to say you're scared because it feels too good. Ayana: I-It doesn't feel good... Not at all... Ah! Takuji: Then why are you so wet? Your female and male parts are both turned on! Takuji: How about it? Are you gonna cum? Would you like to try cumming? Ayana: I-I can't do that... *As I held her penis in my hand, I could feel that she was at her limit. There was no turning back.* *It was just a matter of time until she came.* *But surely it was an unbearable shame for her... For a woman like her to be forced to cum with her man parts in a place like this...* Takuji: Hahahaha, are you gonna cum? You are, aren't you? Ayana: Ahh! I don't want to, I don't want to cum! *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: Ah, ah, ah! N-No, I don't want to, I don't want to! Takuji: Shut up and cum! Just like that! Cum, cum, cum, cum! Ejaculate, right now! Ayana: I-I... I won't do that... Takuji: You're still saying that?! Then how about this? How about this?! *I moved my hand even faster.* Ayana: Ah! N-No, be gentler, be gentler! If you don't, I-I'm... I'm going to-- *Her body quivered.* *It was like she was begging for her life...* *Smack, smack, smack...* *The sound echoed across the summer rooftop.* *It was a sound so incredible that it was hard to imagine it coming from the stroking of a dick. It sounded like someone was playing around with a bottle of lotion.* *It wasn't just her dick. Her thighs were wet with the liquid dripping off her dick too...* *Smack, smack, smack...* *At this point, it didn't matter what I did. No matter how rough I was, she wouldn't feel anything but pleasure.* *It was so wet that when I grabbed it as hard as I could, it just slipped out of my hand.* *I grabbed her dick and started pumping again.* *I extended my other hand to her pussy... It was really wet too.* *The moisture on her thigh might have actually come from here, not from her dick.* Ayana: Ah, ah, th-that's... Ah, don't touch them both at the same time, ah! Ahh! *I attacked her male and female parts simultaneously.* *What a convenient body she has...* Ayana: Ah, ah, ah! *She squirmed madly... She convulsed on the ground, losing control of herself.* *Her brain couldn't even tell the difference between pleasure and pain anymore.* *The signals from her body just kept attacking her brain, numbing it to the outside world.* *She reacted strangely to my touch, as if she had gone completely mad, but the semen dripping from her penis and the moisture dripping out of her pussy made it clear that she was in ecstacy.* *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: No, no, I can't! I'm going to-- *I could tell from the feeling of her penis that she was about to cum.* Takuji: What? You're going to cum? Are you? You're gonna ejaculate all over, even though you're a girl? Fucking pervert! Ayana: N-Noo... I-It doesn't feel good... *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: Ah, no, I-I'm a girl, I shouldn't be cumming like this, no, no... I can't, I'm going to, I'm going to cum, ahh! *Wow!* *She suddenly jumped.* *In that moment.* *I felt something passing through the penis I held in my hand.* *In that moment.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt... She convulsed on the ground.* Ayana: Noooo! *A ton of semen shot from her penis.* Ayana: I-I'm cumming, I'm cumming. It's all coming out, it's all coming out! *Her body convulsed even more wildly.* Takuji: Wh-Whoa, there's so much... Is it ever going to stop? Ayana: Ah, no, I-I'm a girl, I shouldn't be ejaculating like this. I'm cumming everywhere, even though I'm a girl, ahh! *What an awful sight... I can't bear to look at it.* *This is just disgusting.* Takuji: What the fuck, you look ridiculous! This, what the fuck is this?! Ayana: Ah, ah, ah, stop, stop it. If you don't, I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to keep cumming. I'm a girl, but I can't stop! Takuji: There's so much... Are you still cumming? *I know she's not human, but still... This is awful. I don't know if I can get it all out of her.* *Oh well, I'll keep going as long as I can. I can probably get most of it out.* *The white liquid kept gushing from her penis.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt...* *Her convulsions gradually came to a stop.* *I could see the ecstacy on her face.* Ayana: I-I came... You made me cum by stroking my penis... even though I'm a girl... *Otonashi muttered that to herself as she cast her unsteady gaze into the sky.* *I wasn't going to let her off that easily, though.* *I began to stroke her dick again.* *Sloosh, sloosh, sloosh, sloosh, sloosh...* Ayana: Ah! N-No, I just came, don't! *Like I care. I'm not doing it to pleasure you...* Ayana: I-I just came. It's still sensitive, stop, ah! *Smack, smack, smack...* *Thanks to the semen, my hand moved much more smoothly than before.* Ayana: Ah, noo, no, give me a minute. I feel... I feel so strange, nooo! Takuji: Hehehehe... Takuji: You lied... You said it didn't feel good? From now on, I'm not going to believe anything you say... I'm going to have to do an experiment to find out how many times you can cum. Ayana: E-Experiment? *Her face went pale.* Takuji: That's right! I'm going to ignore your pleas and keep stroking your dick until it stops cumming! Ayana: N-No, if you do that, I'll die! Takuji: Die? Then go ahead! Go right ahead and die! Ayana: Aaagh, ah! Takuji: Hehehehe... I'll pull every drop out of you. Prepare yourself. *Over and over and over... My hand was getting tired.* *It felt like my hand had gone up and down ten thousand times.* *How long had I been moving my hand up and down? I was almost out of stamina.* *Nevertheless, I kept going through sheer persistence.* *Over and over, over and over. Every time she came, it told me that I had to keep going.* *And every time she came, she desperately begged me to stop... She fainted several times, but even then, I kept going.* *Her consciousness came back every time she came.* *The words coming out of her mouth didn't even sound like Japanese.* Ayana: Mno... Mnoo, Mnoo, leth me goo... Mno, Mno, I can't cum anymore. Aahh! *She fainted again... She fainted in front of me.* *She stopped cumming. She just convulsed on the floor instead... I had completely drained her.* *Now then... Time to purify her with the Holy Semen, so she can never ejaculate Black Surge again.* *I'll fill her with the Holy Surge.* *I forcibly pulled her up.* Ayana: Noo, let me, let me goo... I-I can't stand... Takuji: Shut up! I'm going to purify your insides with the Holy Surge! Let me see your ass! *I firmly grasped her ass and spread her legs apart.* Ayana: Wha―?! N-Noo! S-Stop it! *I only attacked her penis before. She must have realized that I had changed my target.* *She started resisting again.* Ayana: Nooo, d-don't do that, don't spread it apart! *She tried to resist, but there was nothing she could do. She couldn't even stand under her own power.* *I spread apart her labia.* Ayana: No, d-don't look! *Her lips were red and swollen. It must be because she had come so many times.* *It was incredibly wet. It was glittering with dew.* Takuji: can't see inside at all... Are you a virgin? Ayana: Ah! Takuji: Bullseye? *Honestly, I can't tell the difference between a girl who's a virgin and one who's not.* *But it's hard to imagine that an anomaly like Ayana has had a sexual encounter with someone in the past.* *I was just guessing, but I could tell from her reaction that I was right.* *Lick!* Ayana: Ah! *I licked her swollen pussy.* *She fell to her knees.* *I licked it more and more.* Ayana: Ah, no, not there... Ahh! *I suddenly stuck my tongue in.* Takuji: Hehehehehe, was that a surprise? Did you think I suddenly stuck something in? Ayana: Ah... P-Please, don't stick your dick in. Anything but that. I'll do anything... *She knows how dangerous it is for her to be filled with the Holy Surge, since she's the incarnation of Black Riruru.* *She would rather die than let that happen...* Ayana: Anything but that... Please... Takuji: Oh, so you want to protect your virginity? I respect that, I really do... Ayana: Huh?! *Her face reacted.* *I thrust my penis into her pussy.* Ayana: Ah! N-No, you can't do that, you can't do that! *She was so wet that my penis slid in without any resistance.* Ayana: O-Ow... It hurts. Ayana: Why? Why would you do this? Takuji: Hehehe, can you feel it? Right now... I'm not wearing a condom. You're about to be creampied by the guy you always look down on. How does it feel? Ayana: Ah... Waaahh... *She started crying.* Takuji: Well? Crying doesn't tell me anything... Well, whatever. Here I go. I'm going to cum inside you. Ayana: Wha―?! *I started moving my hips violently.* Ayana: D-Don't cum inside me! Anything but that! *She struggled against me, but she was powerless, utterly unable to resist.* *I was afraid of her?* *I, the savior, was afraid of someone so weak?* Takuji: I'll drive you mad with the semen of the Holy Surge. *I grabbed her dick.* Ayana: Ah?! Takuji: Hehehehe, will you come again if I stroke this? Ayana: ...I-I can't come anymore... *Her face was pale with fear.* Takuji: Here I go! *I simultaneously stroked her dick and pumped my hips.* Ayana: Ah, ah, no, no, no, stop, ah! *She moaned uncontrollably.* Takuji: How does it feel? You fucking pervert, pervert, pervert, pervert! Die, you nasty fucking pervert! I hope you go fucking crazy from my dick and my hand. I hope you fucking die! *I moved my hips even faster.* *The savior's hips can move several hundred times faster than a normal human's.* *And they can give several thousand times as much pleasure.* *Even an angel can't resist.* *Black Angel, lose yourself in ecstacy!* Takuji: You nasty fucking whore! I won't let you go! I'll never let you go! *I moved my hips even faster, even more violently. My hips almost broke the speed of sound... If I moved my hips any faster, the shockwaves would destroy the building.* *Almost at the speed of sound... This is truly a great feat.* *I modulated the speed of my hips so that I got as close to the speed of sound as possible without ever breaking it.* Ayana: Ah! Ahhhh! Ah, ah, nooo, stop, forgive me... *Smack, smack, smack, smack, smack, smack...* *Our thighs were so soaked that I couldn't tell whose juices were whose.* *Smack, smack, smack, smack, smack, smack...* *She writhed in pain, as if she had gone completely mad.* *She had lost all control of her body...* *After being forced to cum over and over, now she was being violated while being forced to cum yet again.* *This would drive anyone insane.* *Something spurted from her pussy... Is she a squirter?* *But still, she's incredibly tight... I'm about to cum...* Ayana: No, no, stop, let me go! Stop, please! *She must be about to cum, too.* *I could tell her dick was about to cum again.* *She cried and begged me to stop, but I ignored her and moved my hand even faster.* *My fist pumped up and down at almost the speed of sound.* *And I thrust my hips.* *My hips moved every bit as fast as my fist.* *I felt her pussy get even tighter... It just got tighter and tighter...* *It's all perfect.* Takuji: Ah, ah, I'm at my limit... I'm at my limit! Ayana: Ah! *Her body visibly convulsed.* *In that moment, she came once again.* *Even after cumming so many times before.* *She came again... I never expected her to have this much Black Surge left in her.* *I came inside her at the same time.* Ayana: Noooooo!! Not inside! Don't cum inside me! *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *I came inside her. I did it!* Ayana: No... Y-You're cumming inside... I'm being cummed inside... *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt...* *I launched all the Holy Semen into her.* Ayana: Ugh, y-you're awful... Takuji: Hehehe. Takuji: How does it feel to be filled with the sperm of the Holy Surge? How does it feel to be creampied? Takuji: Hehehehe... Hahahahaha. Ayana: Hehe... Takuji: Wha― Ayana: Hehe, hehe, hehe... The sperm of the Holy surge... That's funny. Hehehehe... Takuji: Wh-What did you say? Ayana: And the part about being one step away from the speed of sound. That was a masterpiece... Hehehehe, you're too funny... Too amusing... Takuji: What did you say! Ayana: That's what you desire of me... Hehehehe... Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: Otonashi... Wh-Why are you over there? Y-You were... Ayana: Raped by you and left without even the energy to stand... But I'm terribly sorry. Nothing has begun or ended. What a pitiful outcome. Ayana: And... I don't have one of those... Hehe, though I don't want to show you the proof, so I won't. Ayana: Too bad. I don't have one of those. It's really too bad, Mamiya-kun. Hehehe... Takuji: Eh?! *Time advanced, and the day changed.* *The final time was in front of us.*

Takuji: Otonashi Ayana... Also known as Black Riruru. Ayana: What's that, my new nickname? Takuji: You... The reason you came here is so you could have sex with me, right? Ayana: Why would I do that? Takuji: Hehehe... You're jealous because I came into physical contact with White Riruru yesterday... You're afraid I'm going to be taken by their side. Ayana: I see... But I don't want to have sex with you. Takuji: You're right. You might even hate me. The frequencies of our surges all match, but... Takuji: You came here so that you could have sex with me. This is the Building C rooftop, the bow of our ark... Ayana: Why would you... say... that.. * Ahh..."* Takuji: I knew it. You too, huh... Takuji: Hehehe... Look, it's started... Ayana: A-Ahh... Wh-Why? Why is this... *From her skirt...* *Something that a girl should absolutely never have was poking out, just like with Riruru-chan yesterday.* Ayana: N-No, wh-why am I― Takuji: Hehehehehe... What is it? Do you want to do it that badly? *She tried desperately to hide the thing poking out of her skirt, but her swelling penis moved without regard to her will, stopping her from covering it up.* Ayana: N-No, d-don't. Takuji: Hehehe, you were acting all high and mighty, and now look at you... Ayana: Noo, don't look... Th-This is strange... It's strange... Takuji: It's like you're asking for it. Ayana: Th-That's not true... Takuji: No, you're asking for it. You want me to cum in you just like I did White Riruru, and you want to cum in me! Ayana: That's... impossib―aah. *Her swelling penis lifted up her skirt... Her skirt was lifted up so far that her underwear was completely exposed.* *But still, the panties under her skirt... Wow, they're striped panties. Was she planning on this happening? How much of this was planned?"* *Well, she was made to tempt me, so... they must have made her to match my tastes.* *But... it won't go as smoothly as the dark powers expect.* *In this ritual, I have to cum inside her, and she has to cum inside me.* *We both have to cum inside each other.* *So I'll just cum inside her. I'll purify her insides with my holy semen.* *Then I'll make her shoot her load of black semen all over the ground.* *I'll keep making her waste her sperm... I'll make her spray every drop on the ground.* *Hehehe... Prepare yourself.* Takuji: I thought Black Riruru would be just like White Riruru, but... I can't believe you really are another perverted futanari girl. Ayana: N-No, I'm not a pervert... Takuji: You are... You're a big pervert. Your high and mighty attitude up until now, like you were pushing people away... You were afraid I was going to find out the truth about you... Ayana: Th-That's... not true. That's impossible! Takuji: You have special powers because you're Riruru-chan's shadow... and because of those powers, you look down on humans, but the truth is that you're just a perverted dickgirl, and you were always scared someone was going to find out. Takuji: Hehehe... What would everyone think if they found out about this, Otonashi-san? Ayana: Eh?! *Her face instantly stiffened in fear.* Ayana: Y-You don't mean... Takuji: Your grades are good, right? You're smart, right? Then you know what I'm going to say. Ayana: Ah, a-anything but that... P-Please don't tell everyone. Takuji: I wonder about that. Wouldn't it be a waste if I didn't tell everyone this hilarious story? Takuji: The honors student Otonashi Ayana is actually a dick girl.. * and I saw her get a hard-on on the roof in the middle of the night..."* Ayana: No... Don't tell them... Takuji: Come on... Try showing a little backbone... Are you begging already? You are an angel, even if you are a black one Ayana: ... Takuji: Oh well... Anyway, show it to me. Ayana: Eh? Takuji: I won't say it again... Show me your nasty, disgusting penis. Ayana: Th-That's... Takuji: What? Are you really going to disobey me? Ayana: ... Takuji: You should've figured out by now what will happen if you disobey me. *She gave up... and slowly moved her hand behind her.* Ayana: N-Now... please... forgive me. *She moved her hand, but I still couldn't see it very well... I told her to show it all to me.* Takuji: I said show it to me... All you did was move your hand. Ayana: P-Please... leave it at this. Takuji: Don't make me repeat myself... I won't say it again! Ayana: Ah... *That girl who hardly ever changed expression was already crying. It must have been mortifying.* Takuji: Hehehehehe, now don't you look good... You're always looking down on people, but now you just look like a bitch in heat. *Otonashi slowly lifted up her skirt...* *Her glans revealed its face...* *She was exactly like Riruru-chan.* *White, uncut... with a pink tip.* *Her pink tip was crying just a little bit.* *Moist and glittering, just like Riruru-chan was... Just like pink jelly...* Ayana: Ah, don't look at me like that... If you do that, I-I'll... Takuji: What'll happen? Ayana: ... Takuji: Hehehe, what's wrong? Ayana: Don't... Don't do that. Takuji: What's wrong? Say it! Hurry up and say it! Ayana: I-It'll get bigger... Takuji: What will? Ayana: My penis... My penis will get bigger... Ooh... Takuji: Hahahahaha, oh really? You're just a perverted little dick girl! Are you turned on? Is your girly penis getting hot and bothered? Ayana: Ah, aaah... *The face of despair... Her face was pale as a ghost even though her lower body was bright red. Is her swelling erection draining the blood from the rest of her body?* Takuji: Answer... Quickly! Answer! Am I right? Ayana: Y-Yes... That's right... That's exactly it... So, so please forgive me... Takuji: Hehehehe... Ayana: Please don't look at me anymore... If you keep looking at me, I, I... Takuji: What will happen if I keep looking at you? Ayana: ... Takuji: Answer me. Ayana: I-I can't say that... I can't... Please forgive me. Takuji: Shut up... Be quiet... I don't want to hear your excuses. Say it. Answer. Hurry up, say it. Now, now! Ayana: Eek! *She's completely terrified... She's no different from the scum in the Ark. No different at all...* Ayana: U-Um, i-if you keep looking at me, my... my penis... Takuji: I can't hear you! Say it clearly! Say it over again... Ayana: Y-Yes! Ayana: If you keep looking at me, my penis will get bigger and come out of the foreskin... You'll see everything. Ayana: S-So... please forgive me... Takuji: No. Ayana: B-But... Ayana: Ah... *Right after she said that, her penis swelled even further... The end of her foreskin was forced back.* Ayana: Noooo, you can see... You can see everything. *She quickly tried to hide it with her hand, but―* Takuji: Don't move! *Of course, I yelled at her for that.* *Her entire voice stiffened after I yelled.* Takuji: Who told you you could hide it? Leave it, just like that... Ayana: B-But... Takuji: Come on... You fucking pervert. Thrust it forward so I can see... Come on! Ayana: O-Okay... *She hesitantly moved her hips forward.* *Her penis was exposed to the cold outside air.* *Showing it to anyone else had probably been the greatest taboo throughout her life.* *And then... it was on show for me, here in this foreign place.* *Her face was wet with tears.* Takuji: You pervert... You're an exhibitionist. Ayana: N-No... That's not true. Takuji: Then why does your dick react whenever I look at it? Ayana: Ah, ah... Takuji: Answer me! Ayana: Th-That's terrible... Terrible... Takuji: Shut up! Takuji: Answer! Ayana: Y-Yes... It's just like you said. I-I get excited when someone looks at me... I'm a pervert. Otonashi Ayana is a pervert. Takuji: And? You get excited when someone looks at your what? Ayana: ...Huh? Takuji: Answer me! I said, answer me! Ayana: U-Um... my penis... Takuji: I can't hear you... I can't hear you at all. If you don't cooperate, you'll make me really angry. Is that what you want? *She resigned herself to her fate and opened her mouth.* Ayana: My penis... Ayana's penis. Takuji: You're a fucking futanari girl who gets turned on by having a guy look at her cock on the rooftop at night, right? Takuji: Well?! Say it! I won't let you remain silent! Ayana: Y-Yes... Takuji: Yes, what? Say it. Explain it for me... Ayana: Y-Yes... I-I'm... a futanari girl who gets turned on by having a guy look at her cock on the rooftop at night. *When she said that, a drop of white liquid dripped off the end of her dick.* Takuji: You really are an exhibitionist... You fucking nasty dickgirl... Ayana: No... D-Don't say that... I-I'm not, I'm not like that... *Every time she made an excuse, another drop of white liquid fell from her dick.* Takuji: Says who? *I suddenly knocked her down.* Ayana: Wh-What? Eeaaah! *I grabbed her dick hard.* *Unlike when I did it with Riruru-chan, I didn't hold back at all. I grabbed it really, really hard.* *I don't care if my fingernails make her bleed. It's not my problem.* Ayana: D-Don't grab so hard... Aaah! *I didn't care for her pleas... I mercilessly stroked her dick. I wanted to see what would happen if I just kept stroking it.* Ayana: Ah, stop! I can't take it! *I firmly grasped the most sensitive spot.* *And I pumped my fist up and down... over and over.* Ayana: Don't do it like that, be gentler... Ah! Takuji: Shut up! I can tell you're turned on, so why are you complaining? This is the perfect way of handling a fucking pervert like you! Ayana: N-No! Ah! *Sloosh, sloosh, sloosh...* *Her dick was already covered in a frothing white liquid... There was so much of it that it almost looked like she had already come.* *That was proof that all the pain she was experiencing before had changed into pleasure.* Ayana: Ah, stop, I'm-! Takuji: What is it... Hmm? I hope you're not going to say you're scared because it feels too good. Ayana: I-It doesn't feel good... Not at all... Ah! Takuji: Then why are you so wet? Your female and male parts are both turned on! Takuji: How about it? Are you gonna cum? Would you like to try cumming? Ayana: I-I can't do that... *As I held her penis in my hand, I could feel that she was at her limit. There was no turning back.* *It was just a matter of time until she came.* *But surely it was an unbearable shame for her... For a woman like her to be forced to cum with her man parts in a place like this...* Takuji: Hahahaha, are you gonna cum? You are, aren't you? Ayana: Ahh! I don't want to, I don't want to cum! *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: Ah, ah, ah! N-No, I don't want to, I don't want to! Takuji: Shut up and cum! Just like that! Cum, cum, cum, cum! Ejaculate, right now! Ayana: I-I... I won't do that... Takuji: You're still saying that?! Then how about this? How about this?! *I moved my hand even faster.* Ayana: Ah! N-No, be gentler, be gentler! If you don't, I-I'm... I'm going to-- *Her body quivered.* *It was like she was begging for her life...* *Smack, smack, smack...* *The sound echoed across the summer rooftop.* *It was a sound so incredible that it was hard to imagine it coming from the stroking of a dick. It sounded like someone was playing around with a bottle of lotion.* *It wasn't just her dick. Her thighs were wet with the liquid dripping off her dick too...* *Smack, smack, smack...* *At this point, it didn't matter what I did. No matter how rough I was, she wouldn't feel anything but pleasure.* *It was so wet that when I grabbed it as hard as I could, it just slipped out of my hand.* *I grabbed her dick and started pumping again.* *I extended my other hand to her pussy... It was really wet too.* *The moisture on her thigh might have actually come from here, not from her dick.* Ayana: Ah, ah, th-that's... Ah, don't touch them both at the same time, ah! Ahh! *I attacked her male and female parts simultaneously.* *What a convenient body she has...* Ayana: Ah, ah, ah! *She squirmed madly... She convulsed on the ground, losing control of herself.* *Her brain couldn't even tell the difference between pleasure and pain anymore.* *The signals from her body just kept attacking her brain, numbing it to the outside world.* *She reacted strangely to my touch, as if she had gone completely mad, but the semen dripping from her penis and the moisture dripping out of her pussy made it clear that she was in ecstacy.* *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: No, no, I can't! I'm going to-- *I could tell from the feeling of her penis that she was about to cum.* Takuji: What? You're going to cum? Are you? You're gonna ejaculate all over, even though you're a girl? Fucking pervert! Ayana: N-Noo... I-It doesn't feel good... *Smack, smack, smack...* Ayana: Ah, no, I-I'm a girl, I shouldn't be cumming like this, no, no... I can't, I'm going to, I'm going to cum, ahh! *Wow!* *She suddenly jumped.* *In that moment.* *I felt something passing through the penis I held in my hand.* *In that moment.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt... She convulsed on the ground.* Ayana: Noooo! *A ton of semen shot from her penis.* Ayana: I-I'm cumming, I'm cumming. It's all coming out, it's all coming out! *Her body convulsed even more wildly.* Takuji: Wh-Whoa, there's so much... Is it ever going to stop? Ayana: Ah, no, I-I'm a girl, I shouldn't be ejaculating like this. I'm cumming everywhere, even though I'm a girl, ahh! *What an awful sight... I can't bear to look at it.* *This is just disgusting.* Takuji: What the fuck, you look ridiculous! This, what the fuck is this?! Ayana: Ah, ah, ah, stop, stop it. If you don't, I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to keep cumming. I'm a girl, but I can't stop! Takuji: There's so much... Are you still cumming? *I know she's not human, but still... This is awful. I don't know if I can get it all out of her.* *Oh well, I'll keep going as long as I can. I can probably get most of it out.* *The white liquid kept gushing from her penis.* *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt...* *Her convulsions gradually came to a stop.* *I could see the ecstacy on her face.* Ayana: I-I came... You made me cum by stroking my penis... even though I'm a girl... *Otonashi muttered that to herself as she cast her unsteady gaze into the sky.* *I wasn't going to let her off that easily, though.* *I began to stroke her dick again.* *Sloosh, sloosh, sloosh, sloosh, sloosh...* Ayana: Ah! N-No, I just came, don't! *Like I care. I'm not doing it to pleasure you...* Ayana: I-I just came. It's still sensitive, stop, ah! *Smack, smack, smack...* *Thanks to the semen, my hand moved much more smoothly than before.* Ayana: Ah, noo, no, give me a minute. I feel... I feel so strange, nooo! Takuji: Hehehehe... Takuji: You lied... You said it didn't feel good? From now on, I'm not going to believe anything you say... I'm going to have to do an experiment to find out how many times you can cum. Ayana: E-Experiment? *Her face went pale.* Takuji: That's right! I'm going to ignore your pleas and keep stroking your dick until it stops cumming! Ayana: N-No, if you do that, I'll die! Takuji: Die? Then go ahead! Go right ahead and die! Ayana: Aaagh, ah! Takuji: Hehehehe... I'll pull every drop out of you. Prepare yourself. *Over and over and over... My hand was getting tired.* *It felt like my hand had gone up and down ten thousand times.* *How long had I been moving my hand up and down? I was almost out of stamina.* *Nevertheless, I kept going through sheer persistence.* *Over and over, over and over. Every time she came, it told me that I had to keep going.* *And every time she came, she desperately begged me to stop... She fainted several times, but even then, I kept going.* *Her consciousness came back every time she came.* *The words coming out of her mouth didn't even sound like Japanese.* Ayana: Mno... Mnoo, Mnoo, leth me goo... Mno, Mno, I can't cum anymore. Aahh! *She fainted again... She fainted in front of me.* *She stopped cumming. She just convulsed on the floor instead... I had completely drained her.* *Now then... Time to purify her with the Holy Semen, so she can never ejaculate Black Surge again.* *I'll fill her with the Holy Surge.* *I forcibly pulled her up.* Ayana: Noo, let me, let me goo... I-I can't stand... Takuji: Shut up! I'm going to purify your insides with the Holy Surge! Let me see your ass! *I firmly grasped her ass and spread her legs apart.* Ayana: Wha―?! N-Noo! S-Stop it! *I only attacked her penis before. She must have realized that I had changed my target.* *She started resisting again.* Ayana: Nooo, d-don't do that, don't spread it apart! *She tried to resist, but there was nothing she could do. She couldn't even stand under her own power.* *I spread apart her labia.* Ayana: No, d-don't look! *Her lips were red and swollen. It must be because she had come so many times.* *It was incredibly wet. It was glittering with dew.* Takuji: can't see inside at all... Are you a virgin? Ayana: Ah! Takuji: Bullseye? *Honestly, I can't tell the difference between a girl who's a virgin and one who's not.* *But it's hard to imagine that an anomaly like Ayana has had a sexual encounter with someone in the past.* *I was just guessing, but I could tell from her reaction that I was right.* *Lick!* Ayana: Ah! *I licked her swollen pussy.* *She fell to her knees.* *I licked it more and more.* Ayana: Ah, no, not there... Ahh! *I suddenly stuck my tongue in.* Takuji: Hehehehehe, was that a surprise? Did you think I suddenly stuck something in? Ayana: Ah... P-Please, don't stick your dick in. Anything but that. I'll do anything... *She knows how dangerous it is for her to be filled with the Holy Surge, since she's the incarnation of Black Riruru.* *She would rather die than let that happen...* Ayana: Anything but that... Please... Takuji: Oh, so you want to protect your virginity? I respect that, I really do... Ayana: Huh?! *Her face reacted.* *I thrust my penis into her pussy.* Ayana: Ah! N-No, you can't do that, you can't do that! *She was so wet that my penis slid in without any resistance.* Ayana: O-Ow... It hurts. Ayana: Why? Why would you do this? Takuji: Hehehe, can you feel it? Right now... I'm not wearing a condom. You're about to be creampied by the guy you always look down on. How does it feel? Ayana: Ah... Waaahh... *She started crying.* Takuji: Well? Crying doesn't tell me anything... Well, whatever. Here I go. I'm going to cum inside you. Ayana: Wha―?! *I started moving my hips violently.* Ayana: D-Don't cum inside me! Anything but that! *She struggled against me, but she was powerless, utterly unable to resist.* *I was afraid of her?* *I, the savior, was afraid of someone so weak?* Takuji: I'll drive you mad with the semen of the Holy Surge. *I grabbed her dick.* Ayana: Ah?! Takuji: Hehehehe, will you come again if I stroke this? Ayana: ...I-I can't come anymore... *Her face was pale with fear.* Takuji: Here I go! *I simultaneously stroked her dick and pumped my hips.* Ayana: Ah, ah, no, no, no, stop, ah! *She moaned uncontrollably.* Takuji: How does it feel? You fucking pervert, pervert, pervert, pervert! Die, you nasty fucking pervert! I hope you go fucking crazy from my dick and my hand. I hope you fucking die! *I moved my hips even faster.* *The savior's hips can move several hundred times faster than a normal human's.* *And they can give several thousand times as much pleasure.* *Even an angel can't resist.* *Black Angel, lose yourself in ecstacy!* Takuji: You nasty fucking whore! I won't let you go! I'll never let you go! *I moved my hips even faster, even more violently. My hips almost broke the speed of sound... If I moved my hips any faster, the shockwaves would destroy the building.* *Almost at the speed of sound... This is truly a great feat.* *I modulated the speed of my hips so that I got as close to the speed of sound as possible without ever breaking it.* Ayana: Ah! Ahhhh! Ah, ah, nooo, stop, forgive me... *Smack, smack, smack, smack, smack, smack...* *Our thighs were so soaked that I couldn't tell whose juices were whose.* *Smack, smack, smack, smack, smack, smack...* *She writhed in pain, as if she had gone completely mad.* *She had lost all control of her body...* *After being forced to cum over and over, now she was being violated while being forced to cum yet again.* *This would drive anyone insane.* *Something spurted from her pussy... Is she a squirter?* *But still, she's incredibly tight... I'm about to cum...* Ayana: No, no, stop, let me go! Stop, please! *She must be about to cum, too.* *I could tell her dick was about to cum again.* *She cried and begged me to stop, but I ignored her and moved my hand even faster.* *My fist pumped up and down at almost the speed of sound.* *And I thrust my hips.* *My hips moved every bit as fast as my fist.* *I felt her pussy get even tighter... It just got tighter and tighter...* *It's all perfect.* Takuji: Ah, ah, I'm at my limit... I'm at my limit! Ayana: Ah! *Her body visibly convulsed.* *In that moment, she came once again.* *Even after cumming so many times before.* *She came again... I never expected her to have this much Black Surge left in her.* *I came inside her at the same time.* Ayana: Noooooo!! Not inside! Don't cum inside me! *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *I came inside her. I did it!* Ayana: No... Y-You're cumming inside... I'm being cummed inside... *Spurt, spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt, spurt, spurt...* *Spurt...* *I launched all the Holy Semen into her.* Ayana: Ugh, y-you're awful... Takuji: Hehehe. Takuji: How does it feel to be filled with the sperm of the Holy Surge? How does it feel to be creampied? Takuji: Hehehehe... Hahahahaha.

*The sound of the bell rang out through the night.* *It was as if even the rooftop itself was resounding in unison.* Kimika: This is really amazing, being on the school roof at night! Kimika: Oh, that's right... It's time for your drugs. Here, my savior! Takuji: Y-Yeah... *Kimika gave me a capsule. She had put all the powdered elixir in individual capsules.* Kimika: But these capsules are just for you and me. Takuji: Really? Kimika: Yes, most of the others are taking the stuff mixed with sodium benzoate... That's why they're having sex all the time. Takuji: Sodium benzoate? Kimika: Most drugs have impurities in them. Sodium benzoate is also called annaka, and if you mix it with stimulants it causes sexual arousal. Takuji: Oh, but I rearranged their molecules with the White Surge, so I don't think it really matters. Kimika: It's for the atmosphere. These capsules are just for us... Just for you and me. Takuji: Just for us, huh... Kimika: Yes. Here, you'll have to take it without any water. Takuji: You should've brought some. Kimika: Ahahahaha, I forgot. *We put the capsules in our mouths and swallowed.* *The holy drug... The holy capsules.* Takuji: But still, you know a lot, don't you? Kimika: Oh, about drugs, you mean? I am the leader of the science club, not to mention a headcase. Takuji: What? A headcase? Kimika: Oh, that means my brain doesn't work right. That's why I know so much about drugs. Kimika: They gave me a bunch of prescriptions at the hospital, but... I looked up all the ingredients and stuff online. It's sort of my hobby. Takuji: That's kinda creepy. Kimika: Yeah, that's why I wanted to be a security guard when I grew up! That's about the only job I would be able to do right, you know? Kimika: Or I guess I could be a mad scientist. Takuji: I guess so... I couldn't say. Kimika: The night sky sure is far away. Takuji: Yeah, of course. All the light we can see in the night sky comes from incredibly far away. Kimika: Light from incredibly far away, huh... All the light we're seeing right now came from the shining of stars millions of years ago, huh? Takuji: Yeah, that's right. Kimika: I'm kinda jealous. Takuji: Jealous? Kimika: Yeah, my voice only reaches people right next to me... or rather, it doesn't even reach that far. My voice doesn't reach anyone. Kimika: If my voice can't reach anyone near me, then I wish it could at least reach someone millions of light years away. Takuji: Someone millions of light years away... Kimika: Yeah, that's why I'm jealous of the stars. Takuji: Jealous of the stars... I see. Kimika: That's right! You're the savior! You're like a whole convenience store full of miracles! Takuji: What, you want me to make you into a star? Kimika: No way, that's childish! How about this. Make this building reach the heavens? Takuji: The heavens? Kimika: Yes! Building C is four stories tall, and we're on the rooftop... We're standing on the fifth floor! Takuji: Yeah, I guess we are. Kimika: Stretch it out, one floor at a time! Takuji: Who's gonna do that? Kimika: You are! Takuji: You know... Kimika: I'll give you the signal! Wait for me to hit the fence with this police baton! Takuji: Hey, wait... Why do you have something like that? *First knives, and now a police baton... How many weapons does she have?* Takuji: You know... Kimika: Here I go! Takuji: Ah... Kimika: Whoa... *The pole she hit twisted and broke.* *Then a beautiful sound rang out, accompanied by a sudden light, as if she had cast a magic spell.* Kimika: Nice job, my savior! Takuji: Eh? *Suddenly, the building was five stories tall.* *It looks like I actually made a miracle happen when she gave the signal.* Kimika: What an amazing miracle! I knew you could do it, my savior! Here goes the next one! *Kimika sacrificed another part of the fence.* *It broke and released its magic.* *At the same time, I made another miracle.* Takuji: Ha! Kimika: Six stories! Let's go the edges of space, my savior! Kimika: There! Takuji: Ah! Kimika: Ha! Takuji: There! *She broke one after the other.* *Each time she hit a piece of the fence, it broke and changed into sound.* *Everything broke and changed into sound.* Kimika: Amazing! Takuji: Hehehe... Kimika: The sound, the sound! Takuji: Hahahahahaha... *The world broke apart.* *Kimika cheerfully swung her baton around.* *She swung it in a set rhythm, almost like a conductor.* *I matched her pace as I brought about more and more miracles.* *The savior's miracle.* *Building renovation!* *Kimika changed matter to sound.* *And I changed sound to matter.* *The roof stretched up to the sky.* *Stretched, stretched, stretched on upward.* Kimika: This is music! Takuji: Hahaha... I think all the real musicians in the world would take offense at that. Takuji: You're just making stuff up. Kimika: Even if I'm making it up, it's still beautiful! This melody is extremely beautiful! Takuji: Yeah, you're right. *The sound of destruction had changed into a beautiful melody.* Kimika: Ahahahahaha, it's a melody! *For some reason she had a scale in her other hand, which she held up above her head.* Takuji: Hahahahahaha... You're so stupid. Why do you have a scale? Kimika: Ahahaha, I'm measuring the weight of God! That's why I have a scale! *She held the scale up toward the sky as she said that.* Kimika: Come on, God, get on the scale! We already have the melody on the other side. Kimika: It's the melody! I'm in charge of the melody, and you're in charge of the miracles! Kimika: Come on, God, right here. Sit on this scale! Takuji: Hahahaha, what kind of combination is that. Why are we putting melody and miracles together? Kimika: It makes perfect sense. God is the melody! Kimika: God is melody! Kimika: I just understood it! God is melody! Takuji: Why, you... Did you hear me at all? You're just making stuff up at this point. Kimika: Now, let's go even higher! *We were already above the clouds.* *It already stood far above any other building on the planet.* *Like the Tower of Babel.* *I had to wonder if God would be angry at me for using my miracles like this.* Takuji: Hey, wait, this is like the Tower of Babel Kimika: Or maybe Icarus! Takuji: Icarus? Kimika: Yeah, it's the story of a man who tried to fly to the sun with wings of wax. Takuji: What happened at the end? Kimika: He fell and died, ahahahahahaha! Kimika: Icarus was stupid. He didn't notice his wings melting when he got close to the sun. Kimika: But we won't lose! I have the savior with me, after all! Kimika: Keep going. We'll reach the sky! Takuji: I don't know about that. You'll probably get killed by God. Kimika: If that bastard thinks he's got it in him, then he's welcome to try! Kimika: Because I think... Kimika: If God existed, he would be looking down at us from the sky all the time. Kimika: He would see everything. He would know everything about us... Kimika: And that's nasty! I don't want some guy leering at me all the time! Takuji: You better hope he doesn't take offense to that. Kimika: Ahahahahaha... *Naturally, her baton was bent in several places* *But she was laughing cheerfully.* *She laughed as she destroyed the fence.* *Destruction and melody.* *Baton and music.* Kimika: This is music! Kimika: Ahahahahaha! *She completely broke the end of the baton off, but that didn't stop the beautiful melody.* *The melody enveloped the roof, and it enveloped the two of us.* Takuji: Hahahahaha... *The miracles continued with every note.* *We reached the height of the moon.* Kimika: The moon. The moon. Luna! Takuji: Hahahahahaha... *The endless succession of notes.* *The endless succession of miracles.* *We approached the edge of space.* Kimika: O-Oh no! Takuji: What's wrong? Kimika: The building is so tall... The centrifugal forces are making the roof spin incredibly fast! Takuji: Yeah, since the earth is revolving on its axis. Kimika: Hahahahahaha... Oh no, oh no! Takuji: You're having an awful lot of fun! Kimika: Of course I am! This is super fun! Kimika: Ah! *Kimika yelled even louder than she had before.* Kimika: A cow! Takuji: Huh? Kimika: There are tons of cows! Takuji: Eh? *I didn't notice until she said something... the roof was overflowing with cows.* Takuji: Wh-Why are there cows here? Kimika: Why wouldn't there be? You were the one who said there were cows on the roof! Takuji: Cows on the roof?! *The cows mooed.* *The melody rang out.* *We were deep in space, far from the earth.* Kimika: This is the first time I've seen a cow. They're huge, and they dance! Takuji: Dancing cows? *When I looked again, they really were dancing.* *They were on their hind legs, dancing.* Kimika: They're dancing. Dance, dance. Kimika: This is the uncaged dance! Takuji: Uncaged dance? Kimika: Yes! We've left the influence of Earth's gravity. Everything is free from gravity! Kimika: This is the world's first uncaged dance, ahahahaha! *The uncaged dance.* *We're far from any source of gravity... We're dancing in the furthest reaches of the starry sky.* *That certainly would be mankind's first zero gravity dance.* Kimika: It's a zero gravity dance! *Kimika's body floated in the air.* *She danced wildly through the air.* Takuji: Dummy. If you fly through the air like that, everyone can see your panties. Kimika: That's fine! You're the only one who can see! Takuji: Have some shame! Kimika: Ahahahahaha! I have some shame. I'm a virgin, after all. I've never even kissed anyone! Kimika: I don't care if you can see my panties. It's just cloth. It's not like you can see my cunt! Takuji: Don't say that word! Kimika: Ahaha, cunt, cunt, cunt! I'll say it as many times as I want! Whoever wants to tell me that word is bad can go eat shit! Takuji: That's ridiculous! *A zero gravity dance.* *A herd of cows.* *The twinkling stars.* *Kimika danced.* *She danced and danced and danced in space.* *I danced too.* *God doesn't matter.* *I just danced.* *I danced for the pleasure of it.* *I danced because it was fun.* Kimika: Life is suffering! It's like an Unhappy Meal! But it's the best! Life is the best! That's important! Kimika: Ahaha, what comes with the Unhappy Meal, my savior? Takuji: Nothing comes with it. Kimika: That's not true! There's a bonus that comes with it! There's an Unhappy bonus that all the kids love! Takuji: That sounds like it would taste terrible. Kimika: Now then, what is it? Go ahead, open it! What came with today's Unhappy Meal? Takuji: What am I supposed to open? Kimika: It's right there. Look! Right before your eyes! Takuji: Oh, you're right. Kimika: Ahahahahaha, you don't know the story of Tyltyl and Mytyl! That's no good, my savior! Takuji: Why would you bring that up? Kimika: Tyltyl and Mytyl went on a journey around the world to search for the blue bird who was part of the Unhappy Meal! They even went to the edge of space and rode the Galactic Railroad! Kimika: The conductor's here! The Birdcatcher told us that this ticket will take us higher than the sky! Kimika: It's Eagle Station! Look, it's Scorpio's Fire! We've already passed through the Centaur Village! It's the Southern Cross! Kimika: It's Tanabata! It's the night of Tanabata... and the savior and I are on the Weather Station Pillar! Kimika: Because there's nowhere we belong. On Tanabata night... there's nowhere for us! Kimika: That's why the blue bird fled to the Milky Way... so, so far away! Kimika: But the blue bird that thought he got away... Kimika: Was on the menu the next morning. Kimika: So please open your Unhappy Meal's toy! Takuji: I don't understand what you're saying! Kimika: Ahahahahaha... There's nothing to understand! It's the flow. It's music. Come on, open it. Kimika: My savior, open it, open it, open it. I want to see it. I want to see you open it! Takuji: Jeez... I guess I might as well. *The mysterious box that appeared in front of me...* *It had 'Amazonu' written on it.* *Where did this come from?* *I reluctantly opened the box.* *Kimika eagerly watched me.* *Is this going to be unhappy too?* Takuji: Whoa! Kimika: Ah! *It shot iridescent sparks in every direction... and then right above our heads...* *A beautiful explosion of color.* Kimika: Whoa! *The box shot out more and more polychromatic sparks... and each one exploded above us.* Kimika: Oh, so that's it... Takuji: What? Kimika: I think I just solved one of the riddles from my childhood. Takuji: What do you mean? Kimika: I always wondered what would it look like if you saw a skyrocket from directly underneath. Kimika: Would it be flat, or round... What would it look like from underneath... Takuji: Well, it's round, of course... Kimika: Nope, you're wrong! Kimika: If you look at it from directly underneath, it's a perfect circle! Kimika: More perfect than the world! Kimika: Than the universe! Kimika: A perfect circle! *The fireworks went on forever.* *The lights lit up the world.* *The world's final eve.* *Kimika danced.* *And so did I.* *So did the cows, the world, the gods, and everything else.* *We danced, and danced, and danced, and then the eve ended.* *Tomorrow would be the last day.* *Before we realized it, we had come to the edge of the universe.* *We had come to the edge of the world.* Kimika: This is the edge of the universe... Takuji: Yeah... This is the edge. Kimika: Oh, this is the last stop. Takuji: The last stop... *Kimika said those lonesome words as we stood under the final sky.* *We finally made it.* *The world's limit.* *The edge of the universe.* *Our limit.* *This is the sky of the end.* *It was already evening.* *I thought it was morning, but now it was starting to get dark.* Kimika: Oh, we fell asleep, didn't we... Takuji: I'm surprised we got any sleep up here, in the middle of summer... Kimika: Oh, I carried you over to the shade during the day. Takuji: I didn't notice at all. Kimika: Neither of us had slept at all... I guess we just collapsed. Takuji: Yeah... Kimika: Hey, my savior... Takuji: What? Kimika: Is this the End Sky? Takuji: Yeah, that's right... This is the End Sky. The last sky in this world. Kimika: Oh, good. Kimika: Just like I thought... Takuji: What? Kimika: Just like I thought... Neither of them change. Not the last sky, and not the usual sky. Takuji: Yeah... That's right. Kimika: Just because it's over... doesn't mean it's special, does it? Takuji: Yeah... Kimika: But the setting sun is always beautiful, no matter when. Kimika: The setting sun at the end of the world, and the setting sun after any other day. They're both just as beautiful... It's so beautiful. Kimika: Now then, my savior... Takuji: What? Kimika: There's nothing that we've forgotten, is there? Takuji: Forgotten? Kimika: Yes, there's nothing left for us to do here... Takuji: Forgotten... Takuji: Does anything come to mind for you? Kimika: No, I looked at the sky and thought about it for so long, but I haven't forgotten anything. Takuji: And? Kimika: I just thought... if I've forgotten it, maybe it wasn't that important after all... Kimika: I guess I didn't need it. Takuji: Didn't need it, huh... Kimika: Yep, it wasn't necessary. Though the truth is, I doubt that anything is really unnecessary. Kimika: But if nothing is necessary, then it's the same as if everything is. Kimika: So... we have to draw a line somewhere. Kimika: If I've forgotten something, then that's fine. Kimika: There's nothing I've forgotten. Takuji: Something you've forgotten, huh? Kimika: Yes! Things that were incredibly unhappy... and things that were happy too... All of it. Kimika: Hahahahahaha... Well, let's go. Takuji: Yeah, let's... The sun is setting... and then... Kimika: The last night... Takuji: Yeah. Kimika: Let's enjoy it! Takuji: No, today should be more solemn. Kimika: No way. I want to have fun on the last night. Please, spend the last night together with me... Takuji: Um, Kimika... The holy water... Kimika: Right, I'll sprinkle lots of LSD on them at the end. And the stimulants too! Takuji: Like I said, I turned the LSD into holy water and the stimulants into elixir. Kimika: Oh, I misspoke! That's right, that's right! *I kind of wonder...* *What was she trying to accomplish?* *I feel like she only went along with what I was doing to accomplish her own objectives.* *What a strange woman.* *Well, it doesn't matter.* Kimika: We'll give them a ton of it for the finale! Kimika: Oh～! I'm getting pumped up! *Everyone was gathered.* *How many people are there? And when did they all get here...* *It looks like they were having a lot of fun.* *Like they're all excited for something.* *I wonder if the ark is fun...* *I thought salvation would be a more solemn affair.* *I thought saving people would be more serious. I'm sure it should've felt more religious.* *But in reality, it's like this.* *I gathered them all through fear... They all came here out of fear of the curse.* *They gathered to escape their fear of death.* *So why are they having so much fun?* *Returning to the sky... It truly is something wonderful, but it should be more religious, more serious.* *But instead, everyone is laughing.* *Frolicking.* *The world's final day is coming.* *Everyone is celebrating.* *I spoke.* *Of the three monsters born of the gods...* *Of the great wolf, Fenrir, who is human lust itself.* *Of the god of Death Hel, who is human fear of death itself.* *And of Jormungandr, significant of eternity, who will awaken on the world's final day.* *Everyone listened eagerly.* *Like children reading a picture book... they eagerly listened to the story of the world's final day.* *Rather than fear, it was enthusiasm I saw in their eyes.* *Rather than quivering, laughter.* *Rather than despair, amusement.* *They all seemed so happy.* *They all seemed so eager.* *Laughing and screaming.* *I yelled!* *Dance!* *Dance!* *Dance!* *With the melody!* *Dance!* *The world is words!* *God is melody!* *We have no need for the world.* *We need only the melody.* *Everyone danced.* *Joyfully danced.* *Danced as if mad.* *There was no trace of gravity or solemnity.* *I thought once more about whether I had anything left to do here.* *Nothing...* *There's nothing for me to do here.* *I haven't forgotten anything.* *One more spoke.* *We have the melody, do we not?* *The melody is here.* *So we have no need for the world.* *We have no need for words.* *There's nothing we've forgotten...* *After all, we've forgotten it...* *The bell rang.* *Today began.*

Takuji: What... What did you just do to me?! Ayana: I didn't do anything. I just watched. Takuji: You did something! Ayana: Hehehe, you just got caught up in your delusions. I didn't do anything. Takuji: What did you say?! There's no way that was a delusion! If I had such a realistic delusion like that, I wouldn't... I wouldn't even be able to tell the difference between reality and my delusions! Takuji: That's right! I definitely felt the warmth of your skin! That couldn't have been an illusion! Ayana: Warmth... Ayana: How nasty. Takuji: Wh-What are you saying?! Takuji: You're just some perverted futanari girl! You came everywhere! Ayana: Like I said, I'm not a futanari. Takuji: No, I'll prove you're a futanari! *I shoved my hand up Otonashi's skirt and touched her crotch.* Takuji: Look. I knew it. Takuji: ?! Ayana: ... Takuji: ...It's not there? Ayana: Mamiya-kun. Takuji: Agh... Blood? Ayana: Mamiya-kun, that was over the line for a prank. You deserved to get punched for that. Hehehe, your nose is bleeding. Takuji: ! Takuji: Agh... Oww! Ayana: If you want to pull a prank the next time you see me, you should be satisfied with just flicking my forehead. Ayana: Otherwise, I'll break your nose again. Takuji: Y-You... Ayana: But... maybe there won't be a next time. Takuji: ... Ayana: Hehehe... I am Otonashi Ayana. That's what they call me. I am not your Riruru-chan's dregs, and I am not a shadow. I am not one of your delusions. Takuji: Riruru-chan isn't a delusion! Ayana: Yes, that isn't a delusion. Ayana: But that might be how it is. It refuses to recognize itself as a delusion, just like I do, and just like you do. Ayana: I'm not a delusion, and neither are you standing in front of me, but... Ayana: I am Otonashi Ayana. Ayana: In this setting, I am human. Ayana: But you're not a human anymore. Takuji: O-Of course not. I'm the savior! Takuji: I'm going to save humanity. There's no way I could be a normal human! Takuji: And I'm not the property of that pathetic soul called Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: I'm the person who will return the world to the sky! I am the savior! I am the one who controls the Holy Surge! Ayana: Yes... you will return it to the sky... That sky is called... Takuji: The limit of the world. The final sky. End Sky. Ayana: Yes. You will reach the End Sky. Takuji: The infinite and the finite connect. The finite and the infinite connect. A spinning Ouroboros. Takuji: Circulation... eternal recurrence... continuity... eternity... circular motion... death and resurrection... destruction and creation... the base of the universe... the infinite... immortality... perfection... omniscience and omnipotence... Ayana: Hmm... That sounds complicated. Takuji: The awakening of Jormungandr is at hand! It encircles Midgard. The great sea serpent grasping his own tail will awaken! Takuji: It is at hand! Takuji: Therefore, we must return to the sky! Ayana: Hehehehe... That's nice. Ayana: You've found a reason for your existence. Takuji: What? Takuji: It's not such a simple, vulgar concept as you think. Ayana: Hehehe, of course. Ayana: Minakami Yuki... Ayana: Yuuki Tomosane... Takuji: ?! Takuji: Wh-What about them?! Ayana: Hehe. Ayana: Even now, you react to their names. They still bother you. Takuji: Wh-Why would I care about them? There's no reason for me to... Ayana: Those two are living completely different lives than you are, saying completely different things than you are. Ayana: Each one sees different things, does different things, yet those things are the same. Ayana: The three are at the same time both disconnected and unified. Ayana: Creation, Harmony... and Destruction. Ayana: Their natures are completely different, but they're the same. Ayana: One who names it. One who speaks it. One who erases it. Ayana: Yuuki Tomosane-kun... He said... Takuji: What did he say? Ayana: A crying... Takuji: Huh? Ayana: A crying infant. He couldn't stop it from crying. Ayana: And the fact that he couldn't might be man's original sin, and because of that, its benevolence. Ayana: For a human to live is benevolence in the form of original sin. Ayana: The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Ayana: In that case, the road to hell is made of hope. Takuji: Hope... Ayana: Yes, to live is to hope. Ayana: But... Ayana: You don't need that anymore, since you're trying to do what Yuuki-kun was originally supposed to do. Ayana: The roles of the gods change. The Destroyer becomes the Creator. The Creator becomes the Harmonizer. Each of their roles change. Ayana: The Destroyer has lost his right to destroy, since the Creator is ending everything. Ayana: After rebirth, the god that was supposed to rule over harmony can't do anything. The Creator has given up on being the Rebirther. Ayana: The Creator is trying to destroy the world he created. Ayana: The Destroyer speaks of hope. Ayana: The Creator speaks of despair. Ayana: The Harmonizer hesitates and stops in place. Ayana: Stops and looks at where the world is going. Ayana: Now that the rotation has begun, it can't be stopped. Ayana: The final puzzle for man is the infinite and the finite, rotation and suspension. Takuji: Shut up! Shut up! I'm tired of listening to you! Takuji: I'm... I'm the person who will reach the End Sky Takuji: I'll say it again! I'm the person who will reach the End Sky! Takuji: I'll say it again! I am the herald of the End Sky! Takuji: I'll say it again! I hate you! *A quiet voice...* *Lucid eyes...* *She seemed to know, seemed to see everything.* *I hate her...* Takuji: I am the forerunner of prophecy, who will reach the complete world. Ayana: Today is already the 18th. There's just a little longer to go until the last sky. Takuji: That's right. The final sky. The last sky. The world's limit is approaching. Soon, soon I'll see the world's limit. Takuji: There's not much time until the 20th. No, I have to end it before then. I have to return everything to the sky. Everything. Takuji: I have to return all the people gathered in the ark. Takuji: The end is right there. The sky's limit is right there. The boundary line... The world's last... The End Sky is right there. That's it... Look. Takuji: Look. It looks so big. It looks so massive. Takuji: Yes, I can see it... I can see it... Takuji: Beyond the limit... The limit is a door... Yes, a door... And beyond that door is a sea... An incredibly deep sea... Takuji: That sea is a very beautiful, bright blue... There are power lines connected world to world to world to world to world... Takuji: The other side of the window is bright and blue... azure... It's blue as far as you can see... and beautiful... Takuji: Look, that is the world's limit... The final sky... Ayana: You're right. Takuji: The End Sky has already come this far... There are just a few more inches until we reach the edge of the world... Takuji: Even now would be fine... I wouldn't mind jumping now. Our hands would reach... Our hands would reach the edge of the world... I could do it right now... Takuji: I could do it... even now. Ayana: Then why haven't you done it yet? Takuji: I won't do it yet. I won't do it yet. I won't do yet... Because I still have things to do here? Takuji: Things I still have to do? Takuji: Things I still have to do in this world? Takuji: Still have to do... Takuji: Do... *"Mamiya Takuji!"* Takuji: Eh? Huh... You are? Takuji: This voice... Takuji: This is... Takuji: You're... Tomosane: You haven't forgotten about me now that you've become the savior, have you? Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: Y-Yuuki Tomosane... Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. I'm Yuuki. The person you so feared... Yuuki Tomosane-sama. Takuji: Have you changed since the last time we met? I thought you were more of a low-life thug... Tomosane: Actually, I've always been like this. Tomosane: Now then... I've come to make your life hell again... Prepare yourself... Takuji: Feared? Is that what you came here to say? I didn't expect you to come here, though... You're really out of place. Tomosane: Out of place? Takuji: Yeah. Exactly. You're the stupidest, lowest person I know. All you know how to do is talk with your fists, right? Takuji: Yeah, you're stupid, so maybe you don't know this, but talking with your fists means using violence. Takuji: In the furthest reaches of the universe, under the End Sky, why would I meet a vulgar man like you? Takuji: The past times I've come here, I've met White Riruru... the Father Himself... Black Riruru's incarnation Otonashi Ayana... and other metaphysical existences beyond comprehension. Takuji: So then, why are you here? Takuji: A physical person like you appearing here is so out of place. It's like if Mori no Ishimatsu suddenly appeared in Der Ring des Nibelungen and asked, 'Anyone want sushi?' Tomosane: Oh, really? Sorry about that, then. I guess I don't fit in with all your beautiful delusions. Tomosane: But didn't I say it before? Tomosane: The battle between you and me will go on until one of us is destroyed. Tomosane: Did you think you could end it just by hurting me? Takuji: More or less. Tomosane: Oh, really? You've underestimated me, then. Takuji: What are you talking about? You can't act tough now after you've been hiding away from me all this time. Tomosane: Hiding? Are you stupid? Takuji: What? Tomosane: You're going to do your stupid salvation thing on the border of the 19th and the 20th, right... Takuji: Oh... So you wanted to have our final battle under this sky? Takuji: The sky of the world's end... The decisive battle under that sky... Hehehe, a physical being like you has actually planned a pretty good show. Tomosane: Haa... So the savior's brain is still fucked up, huh... What do you mean, a show? Takuji: What did you say? Tomosane: If the savior's head is full of flowers... then I guess all the work I've put in is going to pay off... Takuji: Work? Tomosane: Yeah... That's right. Work, that word you hate. Takuji: What kind of work? Tomosane: Work... to erase you. Takuji: Huh? Work to erase me? Tomosane: Yeah. The three principles that you don't understand. Tomosane: Work, courage, and fucking courage! Takuji: Haa... Takuji: You really are a different character. Were you always such a run of the mill thug? It's kind of off-putting... Tomosane: I've never been serious until now. I've always hidden my power. But this time, I'm serious. I've seriously come to kill you. Takuji: This might be a silly question, but why do you want to erase me so badly? Tomosane: Hehehehe... Why? That's a stupid question, Mamiya Takuji. Takuji: Stupid? Would I be wrong to say it's because you've been infected by the Black Surge? Tomosane: Black Surge? I see you've come up with some new delusions. I don't remember you using that word the last time we met. Takuji: Come up with? Are you utterly thoughtless? I didn't come up with it. I learned it. I learned the truth. Tomosane: You believe every single one of your silly delusions, huh? Takuji: Delusions? Hehehe... It must all sound delusional to someone who hasn't even a fragment of knowledge. Tomosane: Delusion, huh? Just like Copernicus' heliocentric theory was called delusional, right? Takuji: So you do understand. Tomosane: In ancient times, even though Philolaus believed that the Central Fire was at the center of the universe and the earth, the sun, and all other celestial objects rotated around it... Tomosane: He believed the sky rotated around the earth. Do you know why? Takuji: What? Tomosane: That's because... he had preconceived notions... Tomosane: He already had his answer, and he changed reality to fit his notions. His worldview became warped. Tomosane: The center of the world is right here. Tomosane: That was a given... Even if it was mistaken, they couldn't accept that their world revolved around another celestial object... Tomosane: Preconceived notions... Reality forcibly fit to those notions... Doing that warped their worldviews. Tomosane: The facts that you want to be true coincidentally happen to align with reality. How often does that happen to you, Takuji? Tomosane: But they still wanted to believe they were they the center of the world and everything revolved around them. They alone were special in the world. Tomosane: Hey, Takuji... You want to believe that too, don't you? You don't want to accept... the way the world is in reality. Tomosane: You aren't the center of the world, and you aren't special! Tomosane: And you aren't any sort of savior like your mother thought you were! Takuji: Yuuki! *I lost myself in my anger.* *An improper action for the savior.* *The person recognized by God was overtaken by his emotions...* *I tried to punch Yuuki.* Takuji: ?! *I could see the sky above me.* *There were clouds of light in the darkness.* *Those forms were vividly seared into my eyes... I looked upon the night sky with admiration for an instant... In that instant―* Takuji: Gh... Aagh. *I received a blow like none I had ever experienced before...* *The world tilted at an impossible angle.* Takuji: Ah... Takuji: ...Gha... Tomosane: How about that? The all-knowing savior should know about that move, right? Takuji: Wh-What was that? *I searched my Savior Brain... That was... No, I know it... So why?* *I staggered as I stood up... The savior could never lose to a peasant like this...* Tomosane: Work, courage, and fucking courage... Do you know what those are the prerequisites for? Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about... Tomosane: The prerequisites for a hero... Takuji: A-Are you stupid... Tomosane: Though you probably don't need them to be the savior... Takuji: O-Of course not... Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: It looks like you're serious, huh? Takuji: Serious...? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. *His words don't make any sense.* *Serious?* *What does he mean?* *What is this fool talking about?* Tomosane: I thought I was born just to erase you. I denied myself and tried to erase myself. Tomosane: I thought I was created. Takuji: Wh-What... Tomosane: I am the Destroyer. An existence born to end things. To destroy worlds with order. An existence that gives birth to new order. Tomosane: I was supposed to be a person created just for that purpose. Takuji: ? Tomosane: Are you scared? Can't you admit it? Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Tomosane: What am I talking about? Tomosane: Are you stupid? I'm talking about , of course! Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Tomosane: Haa... Even now... Even at the end, you can't hear it. Tomosane: name. That's it, isn't it? You tried to protect by forgetting about and pretending was dead. Tomosane: For that at least, I have to commend you. No matter how crazy you got, you always put 's happiness first. Takuji: What's that? What are you saying? Tomosane: name won't reach you until the very end, huh? Tomosane: Whenever the words you hear aren't convenient for you, you distort them or erase them. Tomosane: Especially when it comes to . You've tried to erase or change all your memories of . Tomosane: You've used every technique to erase, replace, or ignore 's existence. That's bravery. That was your own form of bravery. Takuji: Wh-What is it? You... Why haven't you been saying the most important parts?! Don't hide your words! Tomosane: You're the one who hid them! Tomosane: It was you who hid them. But remember that I was the only one with a connection to Hasaki. Neither you nor Minakami Yuki did, but I did, the person who is fated to disappear! *What is he saying?* *What does Minakami Yuki have to do with it? I don't understand what he's talking about at all.* Takuji: Are you crazy? Tomosane: Crazy? Hehehehe... Are you really asking that? Here, in this place... No, in this world, there is not a single person who isn't crazy! Tomosane: You should know it... The world you've birthed. The world you know. The world you created has nothing but madmen! Takuji: ... *What is he... He was just supposed to be a stepping stone on my path to becoming the savior...* *He's nothing more than a hurdle for me to surpass... So what's he doing? What is his reason for existence?* *Yuuki's attack.* *I saw through it.* *I am the person who knows all martial arts and has practiced them to perfection, so... so...* Takuji: Ah... *I barely managed to cushion my fall. I only managed to turn my head and disperse the force of the blow.* Takuji: Gah... Aah... Tomosane: How about that? You can't even see straight now, can you? Takuji: Aa... Aah... *How hard did I hit the ground... I don't know... In that moment, I couldn't understand it at all...* Tomosane: You haven't learned a single new trick. While you were playing around with your delusions, I was training so hard that I pissed blood so that I would have new techniques. Takuji: Ah... Aah... Tomosane: This is the limit of your delusions. Tomosane: Your delusions... will be ended by my reality. Takuji: E-End... *My head was reeling... I couldn't move properly at all.* *I must have suffered a pretty bad concussion...* *I... leaned against the fence...* Tomosane: This is the opposite of last time... Tomosane: ast time, I was there, leaning against the fence, and you looked down upon me. Tomosane: Now it's the opposite. You're the one who's fallen bloody to the ground... Takuji. Takuji: I've... fallen... Tomosane: That's right. This is the end. Tomosane: Let's end it here... Mamiya Takuji. Takuji: What? Tomosane: We're under the End Sky, so shouldn't it be fine? Tomosane: Now that we're right here, beneath that sky you always longed for... Tomosane: Isn't it a fitting end for us? Takuji: An end for us? Tomosane: Yeah. Let's end it here. We don't need to drag anyone else into this. Tomosane: Don't drag everyone else into your games. The only ones who need to go along with your end of the world are me and her. The three of us are plenty. Tomosane: This sky is the end for just you and me. Tomosane: This is where it will end. Tomosane: Isn't that good enough... Takuji? *What's with him...* *Why does his expression look like that...* *That face... It's just like... It's just like...* *Something glinted in Yuuki's hand... A blade...* *A blade that could easily kill a human...* *So he wants to kill me with that...* *Is this an attack by the Black Surge?* *He's part of the Black Surge...* Tomosane: It won't hurt. I'll aim for the heart. Tomosane: Aren't we both tired of this painful game? *Yuuki changed to an underhand grip on the knife.* *To plunge it into my chest...* *Am I going to die here?* *Is it going to end with me being killed by this commoner?* *Is that my end?* *Am I fine with that end?!* *If it ended here, this would be a kusoge!!* *"You can't! You can't do that!"* Tomosane: ? *Someone's voice...* *I remember this voice... This voice is...* Tsukasa: Y-You can't... Yuuki-kun, you can't do that... Kagami: Tsukasa... Tomosane: Why did you follow me? Kagami: If you had locked the door behind you, Tsukasa wouldn't have been able to follow you. Tomosane: So I forgot to lock the door... Tsukasa: You can't... Yuuki-kun, I, I won't let you do that! Tsukasa: If that's what you were planning to do... I should've tied you up and never let you leave. Tomosane: I told you, that was also an option. *What?* *What are they talking about?* *They're...?* *No... This is the miracle...* *This is why I'm the savior...* *As proof, every time I'm in a hopeless situation, it instantly changes for the better.* *First... my supernatural healing powers...* *My injuries from Yuuki healed instantly.* *With the power of the savior, I healed my body...* *Then finally...* *The knife he's holding...* *That knife...* *That's not something he should have...* *That knife...* *That's right... He's not the one holding the knife...* *I'M THE ONE HOLDING THE KNIFE.* Tomosane: Ah?! Takuji: Yuuki! *The knife disappeared from Yuuki's hand.* *The same knife appeared in my hand... then I...* Tomosane: Ah... Takuji: Your heart is right here. It's right here, isn't it? Tsukasa: Yuuki-kun! Kagami: Mamiya, you little! Tomosane: I messed up... huh? Takuji: Messed up? What are you talking about? This was inevitable. This is pre-established harmony. Tomosane: Pre-established... harmony, huh? Tomosane: I see. So my role is over. Takuji: Yeah, that's right. You were just a hurdle for me on my path to becoming the savior. Takuji: An existence for me to surpass... It's true, I underestimated you. I underestimated you too much. I have to thank you for teaching me that. Takuji: The savior should never let his guard down. No matter how insignificant his opponent seems, he should never let his guard down. Takuji: You've taught me that... Thank you. Tomosane: Hey, ... I'm sorry... Tomosane: It looks like... this is the end for me... Tomosane: Haa... I couldn't do anything for you, ... could I... Tomosane: There's nothing I can do... I've been beaten... Tomosane: Nothing I can do... huh? Tomosane: Is this too reality? Tomosane: Then I have to accept it... Takuji: Yes, accept it. This is reality. Takuji: I am the savior, and I will return the world to the sky. That is the reality. Tomosane: I see... Good job, then... Tomosane: Haa... If this is how it was going to end, I shouldn't have used the last of my time like this... Tomosane: I should've spent my time with you... Tomosane: Hahahaha... I guess I'm... an awful brother too... Tomosane: I haven't changed at all... Tomosane: Now then... Farewell, Mamiya Takuji. Congratulations. You've won. Tomosane: And... I've lost... Tomosane: Tomosane: *"........."* *"........."* *"......"* *"..."* *Yuuki whispered something in a low voice... as he died... What was he looking at?* *A pitiful man...* Takuji: I'm tired... after that... *I started walking... to go home...* Takuji: To the ark... Takuji: Agh... Wh-What is this... *Searing pain... More pain than I've ever felt in my life... What is this?* *My shirt was covered in blood... I thought it was all from when I stabbed him.* *But... the stain of blood steadily expanded.* *My shirt was steadily dyed red...* Takuji: What is this... That's awful, Yuuki. I'm the savior... We must have struck each other at the same time... I'm the savior, and you were just a hurdle, weren't you? Takuji: Right, Yuuki...? *When I turned around... Yuuki's corpse was gone.* *He had no reason to exist any longer... I wonder if he returned to the sky.* *This place is right under the End Sky...* *All those whose roles ended... All of them return there... They all return to the final sky...* Takuji: Ow, damn... *It wasn't a shallow wound... It was actually pretty deep.* Takuji: But... I still have so many things I have to do... Takuji: Agh―... *I held the wound shut as I hurried back to the ark... I had to treat the wound...* *There's elixir there. An all-purpose potion... It's fine. I won't die yet.* *This is another trial...* *A hurdle for me to surpass... That's right. It's a wall for me to climb over...* *I won't die... I am the savior...* *It's impossible for me to be killed by a tiny existence like Yuuki... Impossible...* Takuji: Now, let's go home, to the ark. The final day is at hand. *I closed the wound with medical glue... It'll be fine. This isn't normal glue... I created it from concentrated Holy Surge... With this, my wounds will completely heal.* Takuji: Agh... *Normally I would be able to heal myself instantly with my supernatural healing powers, but... the wound from that knife wouldn't heal at all... That knife must have been made with Black Surge...* *I drank the elixir...* *Now there should be no problem... There's no way there could be any problem...* *Look, my wound is healing... I can't see it at all... It's like it was never there...* *Just a little elixir... Drinking too much can affect my decision making...* *But still, my pain disappeared... It doesn't hurt at all...* *Perfect... Everything is perfect...* *I am the savior... A wound like this doesn't matter at all...* *Calm down... calm... calm... calm...* *The elixir worked incredibly well... The pain went away... and all that was left was euphoria...* *A great confidence.* Takuji: Hehehehe... Of course... Takuji: Because I am the savior... Takuji: I could never be defeated by someone like that... That's obvious... Obvious, obvious! *"Just disappear!"* Takuji: ? Kagami: This farce is over... You were supposed to disappear! You were the one that was supposed to disappear first! Why are you still here?! Takuji: Who are you? Tsukasa: Mamiya-kun... Takuji: Oh, look. Two sources of the Black Surge just walked right on into the ark. Takuji: I see... Yuuki's actions... His abnormal strength... Takuji: Hahaha... Is that it? I thought that hurdle was too high for my mother to have set. He was too strong. Takuji: It was you. You two lent him your power as sources of the Black Surge, just like the White Surge's Riruru did for me. I see. Takuji: So that's what Otonashi was talking about. It makes sense now. The Destroyer, huh? Takuji: Yuuki was a Dark Savior created by you two to destroy me. He was created to prevent humanity's salvation. Takuji: It all makes sense. Why he was so strong, why he hated me so much. It all makes sense. Takuji: But sadly for you two, this is the result. Takuji: The savior of darkness has died. Takuji: The savior of darkness was erased, and I, the true savior, remain on this earth. Takuji: This is my victory. That's right. I've won. Takuji: The battle between light and darkness... The battle between the White Surge and the Black Surge... I've won. The White Surge has won. Takuji: The savior... has won. *What's this... The wound was supposed to be completely healed, but... my body feels sluggish, like I'm going numb...* *Why...* *Why hasn't my body... completely healed...* Kagami: Just disappear! Disappear already! Go! You're not needed anymore! Just disappear! Tsukasa: Onee-chan... *These two...* *These two... They used the Black Surge to...* Takuji: Disappear... Kagami: You're the one who's going disappear! Takuji: I told you to disappear from my sight. Stop spreading the Black Surge. Kagami: Shut up and disappear! Takuji: If you won't stop the Black Surge, then I guess I have no choice. Takuji: I'll forcibly expel you from this world. Takuji: Call the people! Yasuko: Huh? What? Takuji: Anyone will do! Call a bunch of men here! *The deterioration of my healing power... No, that's not it... It feels like my body is growing colder, like it doesn't want to move...* *I'm still going thanks to the elixir, but... This drowsiness... This cold... It has to be the Black Surge.* *They're trying to infect my body with the Black Surge now that I've been weakened...* *That's why they came here in person...* Takuji: That has to be it... Kagami: Are you stupid? What the hell is the Black Surge? Just go disappear. Go die already! Takuji: Fool... Kagami: Wh-What... Male Student: What is it, my savior? Takuji: You've been having sex for ages now, right? Male Student: Well, uh... I wouldn't say for ages... Takuji: You like sex, right? You like adultery, right?! Male Student: Uh, yes! I love it. Takuji: Defile this woman. Male Student: Huh? Can we? Kagami: Wh-What are you talking about? Male Student: Are you serious? Hell yeah! Tsukasa: Ah! Takuji: Not her! Male Student: Eh? Takuji: Don't touch that woman! Make her watch as her sister is defiled and then killed. Make her watch it all. Kagami: Wait, what do you mean? Takuji: You're going to be defiled... After you've been defiled so much that you want to die, we'll kill you... in the most painful way possible. Tsukasa: Wait, Onee-chan! Takuji: Hold her down! Male Student: Ah... Okay... U-Understood... Tsukasa: No! Onee-chan! Kagami: Tsukasa! Kagami: Mamiya... you're really not going to hurt Tsukasa, right... Takuji: Of course not... All I really need is for you two to disappear from my sight. Takuji: The reason it turned out like this is because you were so defiant and got in my face every time you could... I'll forgive Tsukasa. Takuji: Your sister can't do anything without you, right? All she can do is hide behind you. Takuji: I wonder why would she follow someone like you around... Kagami: Maybe because... the person she should be following is useless. Takuji: What's that? Kagami: Who knows... So then, what are you going to do? Kagami: You're going to break me, right? Break me into little pieces, right? That's fine... That's fine too... Takuji: ... *This defiant attitude... really gets on my nerves...* *Does she think she won't actually be raped?* *Does she think she won't actually be killed?* Kagami: You were the one who created me, so go ahead and humiliate me... Go ahead and break me... I'll play along with your farce. Takuji: Shut up! Rape her! Male Student: R-Rape... Um, rape this? Takuji: It'll be fine. She won't resist. She's more worried about her sister. There's nothing to be afraid of. Takuji: Or... are you going to defy my orders? Male Student: Oh, no! We'll do it! Please, let us do it! Male Student: Hey, get over here, you guys. You have to fuck her too. Male Student: Huh? Me too? Male Student: It's the savior's order! Male Student: My savior! Could we have some holy water? Takuji: Holy water? Sure, go ahead... *They put a few drops of holy water on each other, and then they started yelling back and forth.* Male Student: All right, it's an order! Rape her! Everyone: Yeah! Male Student: All right, we're starting to get into it! Takuji: Knock her out before you start. Male Student: Knock her out? Oh, okay! We'll give her a few good licks! Male Student: It's an order! Beat her up! Everyone: Yeah! Kagami: Wh-What are you doing... Takuji: Why are you only getting scared now... Kagami: N-No... Wh-What are you doing? No, don't touch me! N-No! Stop it! *A good sound... a wonderful sound...* *Just like a sandbag... This is great.* *After being punched repeatedly, she stopped moving.* *Now for the main attraction...* Male Student: Ehehehehehe. Male Student: Wow, what a pose. Kagami: Eh? Pose...? Eh?! *They're awfully skilled... They tied her hands and legs in a flash.* *She was held in a terrible position.* Kagami: ?! Kagami: Wh-What is this position? *Even with her skirt still covering her underwear, that was an embarrassing position.* Kagami: M-Mamiya! Th-This is―! Male Student: Hehehehehe, it's just to make sure the ritual goes smoothly... *The pigs laughed nastily...* *They must really like doing this...* *Well, whatever... They can go ahead and break her...* *Go right ahead...* Kagami: D-Do you really think you can do this to someone? T-Take this off! Male Student: Are you stupid? Why would we stop? Hehehehe, the fun time is just beginning. Tsukasa: Nooo! Stop it. Onee-chan! Takuji: Hahaha, all you need to do is watch as your sister is defiled. Male Student: Now it's time for the show to begin. I can't wait. Hehehe, she's shaking already. I guess she's starting to figure out what's going to happen to her. Male Student: Ahahahaha, of course she is! She knows! She knows exactly what's going to happen! Kagami: Wait, wh-what are you talking about... Male Student: It'll be way more amazing than what you're thinking of! Do you know what I mean? It'll be amazing! Kagami: Wha―?! A-Amazing... *The men ignored her and stretched their arms out toward her skirt.* Kagami: Hey, wh-what? Male Student: I don't know why you're wearing a skirt. Maybe we should inspect it and see what's under here. Kagami: N-Noooo, stop! Noo! Male Student: Hehehe, she's yelling already, and we're just looking... Now this is something... *She tried her hardest to resist, but she couldn't do anything with the belts holding her in place...* *Her skirt was lifted up... and under there was...* Male Student: Wh-What's this? Male Student: She's not wearing any... Male Student: Do you always walk around without any panties? Kagami: N-No, I just happened to not wear any today. Male Student: How could that just happen? There's no way it was just today! She must be an exhibitionist! Kagami: N-No... there's a reason... *What, she was never wearing panties? What an exhibitionist...* *All the people in the Black Surge must be perverts like her...* Male Student: Should I touch it? Kagami: T-Touch... wh-what? Kagami: Eek! Male Student: Whoa, her thigh really is soft! I can't take it! Male Student: I-I want to touch her too. Kagami: D-Don't touch me. Kagami: Noooooo! Male Student: Wow, I can't stand it... Her pussy is totally pink. Male Student: P-Pull it open... Kagami: N-Nooo! Forgive me! Male Student: Whoa... Her pussy is so tight, like a child's... *The inside of her pussy, where no one would normally ever see... was spread open for all of the men to see.* *But she was walking around without any panties... She must have wanted this to happen.* Male Student: Is this her clitoris? Then what is this? Kagami: Forgive me... Forgive me already... Don't touch me there... Stop... Male Student: Open it wider. *She was pinned down and ravished by their eyes, like a frog being dissected...* Male Student: The labia minora are inside the labia majora, right? Male Student: That's right... So then, what would it be in this situation? Male Student: No... I don't really know the details, but... Male Student: Anyway, her pussy is really soft... Wow. *The men touched her genitals almost casually... There wasn't even a hint of kindness in their movements... There was just straightforward sexual interest.* Male Student: How does it feel? Does it feel good? Male Student: She's not saying anything... Isn't she being awfully defiant in front of the savior? Male Student: Hey, answer us! How is it? Kagami: ... Male Student: She's so rebellious. I'm starting to get mad... She's going to mess up the ritual like this... Male Student: Hey, anyone got a knife... Kagami: Wh-What are you doing? S-Stop... *One of them patted the flat of a knife against her thigh... The cold steel sent tremors through her body.* Male Student: Hehehehehe... Scared? the savior told us to break you... Do you know what that means? Kagami: I'm not... I'm... not scared. Male Student: Hehehehe, come on, speak up! It's boring if you don't say anything! Kagami: Eek! *The man put the knife on her genitals.* *How scary it must be... feeling the steel of the knife in a place like that...* *Tap, tap...* *He lightly tapped the flat of the knife on her genitals several times... Every time, it came down with just enough force that I had to wonder if she would bruise...* Male Student: Are you scared... Are you scared? Kagami: ... *Kagami glared at the man... She just glared...* Male Student: Hehehehe, you really aren't the talkative type, huh? Kagami: ? *The man's knife cut into her clothes... It shredded the fabric, bit by bit...* Male Student: Why are you even wearing a skirt? It's not natural... You don't need this anymore, right? Male Student: Don't put a skirt on if you're not even going to wear panties. Hahahahaha! Male Student: Let's lick her pussy. Male Student: Yeah, we have to lick her pussy! Kagami: N-Noo, s-s-stop... Noo! *It made a nasty sound... as the men relentlessly attacked her clitoris.* Male Student: It got hard! It got hard! The bitch is getting turned on! Male Student: Hahaha! So you're not a frigid little bitch! Stupid whore! Male Student: Gahahahahaha, she's turned on! Kagami: Th-That's not true... I'm not... Male Student: Ahahahaha. Do it some more! Kagami: Noo... Stop. *What a nasty sound... It's making me feel depressed...* *Hehehe... But it must be so much worse for her... Hehehehe...* Male Student: What a sight... She loves spreading her legs for guys like this. Male Student: This is amazing... It's like I'm on a journey to search for the G-spot... Kagami: Please... Please stop. Male Student: She's getting wet. Male Student: No, that's... just your spit. Male Student: No, she is getting wet. I'm sure of it. She likes it! Male Student: Should we fuck her now? Kagami: Please, don't do that! Please, just not that... Male Student: That's right. You're getting ahead of yourself... We still have a lot to do before we can take her virginity. Male Student: There are?! Male Student: Of course there are! That's just common sense! *The men took off their pants...* *Then they held their swelling genitals out to her.* Kagami: Eh? W-Wait, noooo! Tsukasa: Wh-Wh-Wha―... *Tsukasa covered her face with her hands so she wouldn't have to look.* *All she could do was watch... as her sister was violated...* Male Student: Suck it! This is the first event on our agenda! Kagami: Th-That's... Male Student: If you'd rather, we could just get straight to the main attraction... Just say so if you'd rather do that! Kagami: A-Ah, I'm sorry, a-all right... All right, I'll do it... I'll do it. *She resigned herself to her fate and gave into their demands...* Male Student: Suck it... Start with my Magnum Dry... Magnum Dry! *The man stuck his Magnum Dry in front of her face.* Kagami: ... *They hadn't bathed in days, and they had been having sex constantly... It probably smelled awful...* Male Student: Hey, it looks like your Magnum Dry smells like shit. Male Student: No it doesn't! This is the fragrance of my Magnum! Enjoy the fragrance! Male Student: No... You haven't taken a shower in a while. It probably just stinks... That's why we need her to clean us up... Male Student: No! It doesn't stink! You should enjoy the fragrance! With your throat! Kagami: Ggh! Male Student: I'll rape if you if you don't do it right. Male Student: Jeez... You're so mean to her... Male Student: Look, I'll teach you how to suck a dick. Okay, use your tongue like this... See, you're getting it. Keep doing that. Kagami: Y-Yes... *It was only reluctantly, but... she started to suck it.* *Slurp...* *It must have tasted bad when her tongue touched the tips of their dicks... Her face warped in disgust every time.* Male Student: Come on, it'll never end if you do it like that! You're a runner who can't even see the finish line! Male Student: I can see the finish line! Suck my Magnum Dry, suck it dry! Kagami: Gghagh! *Another man shoved his dick into Kagami's mouth...* *Poor Kagami, what have you gotten yourself into...* Male Student: Ohohohohoho, your mouth is so warm... My Magnum is warming up! Male Student: Hey... Don't just sit there with it in your mouth... Do something. Kagami: Mmgh... Dho shomefthing? Male Student: I don't know what you're saying, but I can see it on your face! You're a dead fish, huh... I guess I'll have to do it! *The man grabbed her head and...* Kagami: Aggh? Mmghh, aagghh, mmmgh, mgpgh... *He grabbed her head and moved it up and down.* *He used her like an onahole... Just awful...* Kagami: Mmgh, ghh, mmph, mmgh, ah, mphha, ee-eecckhph... Ah, hmphh? Mm, haa...! *Her breathing was incredibly rough... It looked like he was going to break her jaw.* *Hahaha... Actually, her mouth must be full of the taste of that man's disgusting unwashed dick... Lick it up good, Kagami...* *Slurp, slurp...* *Slurp, slurp...* Male Student: Ahahahaha, look at her, just look at her! She's a mess! *Slurp, slurp...* *She must be getting the smell of him in her nose every time she breathes... She's trying to hold her breath... What feeble resistance.* Male Student: Her mouth feels great... My Magnum might be at its limit... Male Student: Ah, ahh, this is the last of my Magnum... This is my Magnum's... last staaandd! *The man pistoned her head up and down even more violently.* Kagami: Eehph, mmgh, mmpsch, hgha! Haumph, hmphha! Eeh, eehck... mmpsch, humsh? Mmpch, haa! *Slurp, slurp...* Male Student: I-I'm comiiiinggg. I-I'm gonna cum in her mouth. Kagami: ... *She tried desperately to pull away, but... the man wouldn't let her, so she couldn't do anything but drink it...* *If she didn't, she couldn't even breathe...* Kagami: ...Gulp... Gulp... Gulp... Haa. *Spurt, spurt...* *Just how much did he cum... It was still coming out when she pulled away...* Male Student: Now then... I guess it's time to fuck her... I think we're ready. Kagami: Please... Anything but that. Male Student: No way... Let's do it! Male Student: Nope... That's right. Kagami: Please, I'll do anything else. Male Student: Come on, let's hurry up and destroy her... Male Student: All right! Masturbate for us! Kagami: Eh? I-I can't... do that... Male Student: If you can't, then we'll just have to fuck you... Right, Magnum? Male Student: My Magnum... is feeling fine now... Kagami: ...Will you really let me go if I do? Male Student: Who knows? Come on, show us just how you masturbate every single day. Kagami: All right... Fine, I'll do it... *She was stripped completely naked in front of her sister...* *Hehehe, she's going to masturbate in front of all these men... and in front of her sister...* *Hehehehe...* *Tsukasa evidently didn't know what they meant. Her face was completely blank.* *Go on, show your little sister what masturbation is...* Male Student: Call more people! Kagami: Ah? Male Student: She's going to masturbate for us. We have to show everyone. Male Student: Really? She's going to do it? Male Student: Let's call everyone... *The people slowly gathered...* *Yokoyama Yasuko was in the crowd...* Yasuko: ... Kagami: Yasuko... Yasuko: So you're the Wakatsuki sisters... Whatever, not like I care. Let's get started already. Kagami: ... Male Student: Hurry up! We're bored... Kagami: ...All right. *Shlup...* *She gave up and started touching her genitals.* *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: What's that? That's nothing... Do it for real. Kagami: What do you mean, for real... Yasuko: We can tell if you're really doing it... We're both girls, you know. I can tell... Yasuko: If you don't do it right... all of the men will rape you. Kagami: ... *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Whoa, she's getting wet... *The men started stroking their dicks as they watched... They really liked it.* Yasuko: It looks like your clitoris is really sensitive, Wakatsuki-san... You're only touching your clitoris... Kagami: ...! Yasuko: Can't you put on a better show for everyone? Yasuko: Can't you say anything? Hey! Kagami: Ah! Yasuko: You masturbate every day, right? Kagami: N-No, I don't. Kagami: Eek! Yasuko: Watch your mouth! Now, think about the most important person in your life. Kagami: ...The most important person... *She glanced... at Tsukasa...* *Is Tsukasa... the most important person to her?* *What's wrong with her... That would make her a lesbian, and they're sisters...* *Just how perverted is she...* Yasuko: Come on, you're going to get raped if you don't do it... Get going... *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Ehehehe, she's really starting to feel it... Kagami: Ooh, oh, ah, aah... Aah... Male Student: What a freak. Male Student: She's masturbating in front of everyone. Kagami: Ooh, oh... Ah... A-Aah... ah... Male Student: Oohh! *One of the men ejaculated...* *One.* *Another one.* *One after another they ejaculated as they watched her masturbate...* *She started to smell like semen.* *Even then, she wasn't allowed to stop...* Kagami: Hmm, ah, I'm... I'm... about to... ah, I'm going to, ah, ah, I'm... ah, going to cum... *Her body shook.* *So she finally came...* *That's enough playing around... Now it's time to plunge her into despair...* *Despair...* Kagami: Haa, haa... Now will you forgive me? Male Student: Yeah, we promised... Now then, let's put her on that. Kagami: Eh?! What do you mean? What are you talking about? I thought you were done. Male Student: Yeah, we're going to break your hymen... We'll break your ass hymen too... Kagami: Eh?! Male Student: Look at her face. It's like she's trying to remember if there's such a thing as an ass hymen... Hehehehe, what a dumb bitch. Male Student: Of course there isn't... Of course not. Kagami: D-Didn't you promise? Male Student: Of course we did. We won't break your hymen... We have something else that can do it for us. Kagami: ...Wh-What? What's that? Male Student: It's a wooden horse! I made it! Kagami: Noooo! You liars! Male Student: When did we promise... not to make a wooden horse? Male Student: Knock it off with your one man comedy act... That's enough... Kagami: Noooo! Let me gooo! *Her arms and legs were restrained with the bondage gear.* *She was hung from the ceiling with the hooks on it.* *As the ropes holding her up were loosened... her body would be slowly lowered down...* Kagami: Nooo, please, don't do it. Male Student: Hehehehe, what a pity. You're going to lose your precious virginity to this thing... Kagami: Th-Then why don't you save me? Male Student: No way. You're not human anymore. This is what you deserve... Male Student: Now then... Lower her down... Kagami: Nooo! *The pulley creaked as it spun... The rope slowly lengthened... and Kagami's body moved closer to the horse.* Kagami: I'll do anything! Kagami: I'll do anything!! N-Nooooo!!! Male Student: Ahahahahaha, this is the penetration ceremony! Kagami: Agkh! Male Student: Ahahahahahahaha, it penetrated both of her holes! Kagami: Y-You... Male Student: Now it's time for the main attraction... We're going to rape you until you beg for the cock. Kagami: P-Please stop... *How many hours passed after that... No, maybe it wasn't that long...* *I watched the boring show the whole time.* *Kagami's every hole was defiled... Her mouth, her vagina, her anus. They even played with her urethra.* *She passed out several times...* *They put the elixir in every hole she has.* *The elixir can do anything, even change pain into pleasure... Complete and utter pleasure...* *By this point, she couldn't feel pain at all anymore...* Kagami: It's good, it's sooo goood. Ah, aah, aaaauahh, I can feel it... Kagami: I can feel it all the way in there, I can feel it, I can feel it inside me. *Haa... And she was so set against it before... I guess that's the effect of the elixir... Though she wasn't wearing any panties. She was a lewd woman to begin with...* *Well... whatever, I guess... She's no better than any of the other sluts...* *In the end... all women are like this, huh...* Kagami: Make me feel even better. Male Student: Ahahaha, what a slut. Male Student: Put it in her ass. Kagami: Put some more on before you put it in... Male Student: Put some on her asshole. Male Student: The ass is really sensitive, so it's good at absorbing it. Male Student: All right! Kagami: Ah! *He stuck his finger up her ass...* *She looked happy when he did it...* Male Student: She's squeezing my finger... I'll rub it all in on the inside. *The man's finger rubbed inside her anus.* *Shlup...* Kagami: Ahh. Kagami: Don't take it out of my ass... Put it in. Male Student: All right, I'll stick it in. Kagami: Ah! *His penis slowly entered her anus.* *Shlup...* Kagami: Ahh! Male Student: Whoa, her pussy just got really tight. Male Student: She's squeezing... Kagami: Haaa, aaaah. My ass, and my pussy... They're so full... It's so good. Male Student: It's crazy tight. Male Student: I'm gonna start moving. *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: Ah! D-Don't move at the same time... *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: If you do that... I-I'm gonna start feeling funny... Ah! *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Her pussy is amazing. Kagami: Ah, it's so big. My ass, my asshole is going to tear. Aaahh! *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: Put it in! My pussy and ass feel so good! *Jeez... I'm really getting bored. Everything she says is just vulgar... She can't even say anything creative... Monotonous, monotonous, it's all monotonous.* Male Student: Hey, you're using way too much of that... You're going to overdose. Male Student: It's fine. Our physical bodies are going to be destroyed anyway, right, my brother? Kagami: Ah! My pussy feels so good! Ride me bareback! Kagami: Ah! I can feel the semen! It's hot! *Spurt, spurt!* Kagami: Ah... My pussy is full of everyone's semen. *Spurt, spurt...* Male Student: I'm cumming too... *Spurt, spurt!* Kagami: Ah... Aah... I can feel it in my ass too... It's so hot inside me... *It's been like this the whole time... What a bore...* *I don't even care anymore...* *Jeez... How dull...* Takuji: How is it? How does it feel? Tsukasa: Y-You're awful... Awful... Why would you do this... You're terrible... Takuji: Hehehehe... Kagami's totally broken. Tsukasa: Why? Why would you do that... She's my... my precious, precious... Takuji: Your precious sister is broken. She's utterly broken. Tsukasa: Onee-chan... Onee-chan... Takuji: It's no use... She's broken... Kagami: Are you sure about that? Takuji: Huh? Kagami: I told you... I'll play along with your farce... How was I? Takuji: Wh-What... You... Kagami: All you've done is get me dirty... If you stick me in the washer, I'll be clean again in no time... Kagami: But if you don't mind... I'd like to be hand washed... Make the water about 30 degrees celsius... Not too hot, but not too cold either... Kagami: You can use bleach for the tough stains... Kagami: Did you know they came out with bleach that works even if the clothes aren't white? It takes the stains right out... Kagami: There are special sprays and shampoos too... Do you think you could get all of this off? Kagami: Is this the end? Kagami: Is this the end of your farce? Takuji: Y-You little... Kagami: Weren't you going to break me... You're going to break me, right? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Kagami: Are you afraid to break me? Are you afraid to really break me? Hey, are you scared? Are you scared? Kagami: You have to break me all the way... Go ahead and destroy me... Hey. Break me... Hey, you. Break me, break me... Hey, break me... Break me... Break me. Kagami: Break me... You're going to break me... right? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Are you going to break me? Kagami: Are you going to break me... You're going to break me... right? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Kagami: Are you going to break me... You're going to break me... right? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Kagami: Weren't you going to break me... You're going to break me... right? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Weren't you going to break me? Kagami: BREAK ME ALL THE WAY. I WON'T BREAK LIKE THIS... IF YOU PUT ME IN THE WASHER, I'LL BE CLEAN AGAIN... NOTHING WILL CHANGE... NOTHING WILL CHANGE... Kagami: COME ON DESTROY ME BREAK ME DESTROY ME BREAK ME DESTROY ME BREAK ME DESTROY ME BREAK ME DESTROY ME BREAK ME... Kagami: PLEASE DESTROY ME... COME ON. Takuji: I'll break you... I'll totally break you... I'll break you, once and for all. Takuji: Making a fool... Making a fool of me... Takuji: Someone get a hammer! Someone get a ladder! Get the stakes! Takuji: It's a crufixion... I'll crucify you... Tsukasa: Huh? Wh-Why? Why? Takuji: Shut up! I can't let her go after she challenged me like that! This time I'll really break this fucking rabbit! Tsukasa: No, stop! Takuji: That concrete pillar... Crucify her on that pillar... High up. Much higher than here... Crucify her. *The first strike.* *The palm of the hand.* *The hammer struck the stake.* *The flesh gave way and the bones broke.* *It easily found its way to the concrete.* *But... it took a while after that... The stakes wouldn't go into the concrete easily.* *The hammer fell upon the stake again and again.* *It tore at the wound every time.* *Even then, it wouldn't go into the concrete.* *When the hammer missed its mark, it crushed Kagami's hand...* *Her fingers were broken in one hit.* *Her fingers didn't even retain their original shape... by the time she was nailed to the pillar...* *Stakes were driven into her palms and her feet.* *Driven into the concrete with a steel hammer.* *Tsukasa cried out... but Kagami just laughed. She laughed at me with scorn.* *They drove the stakes through her hands and feet, all the way into the concrete.* Takuji: How is it... How does it feel to be destroyed, Kagami? Kagami: ... *She didn't answer... Is she enjoying the pain?* *Does she want to be destroyed that badly... Is she enjoying the pain?* Tsukasa: L-Let her go... Let her down, please... Don't do any more... Tsukasa: I... don't want to lose anything else. I don't want to lose her... Don't make me live life alone. Save me... Save me, Tomo Nii-san... *Tomo Nii-san?* *What's she talking about... That's her sister... Is she going crazy?* Takuji: Whatever... Now then, Kagami... It's time to get you down from there... Kagami: ... *She looks like she's wondering if it's really over... She knows this isn't the end...* *It's a promise... I'll completely break you.* *I'll destroy you...* *Don't worry...* Tsukasa: Y-You're going to let her down? You'll save her? You won't break her? Takuji: ...Bring them out. *I didn't answer Tsukasa.* *I promised I'd get her down... But I didn't guarantee anything else... If I made any other promises, I would just break them...* Male Student: Yes... Tsukasa: Wh-What's that... Takuji: They're shears for cutting down branches... They're used to cut stuff down from high places... Tsukasa: Eh? Wh-What are you going to do... What are you going to do to Onee-chan?! Takuji: I'll get her down... from a high place. This will be the end of her punishment... Tsukasa: Y-You... You liar... Takuji: It's true... I'll use this to cut her down... She'll come crashing down to the ground... Tsukasa: Nooo! Takuji: Now then... *I should probably start with the legs... I would like to cut through her thighs, but... maybe they're too thick?* *But... it's worth a try.* Kagami: Gghaah! *I guess I should've expected her to scream... Well, I guess... Though I barely clipped into her thigh... I have to use a bit more force...* Kagami: Aaaagh! Kagami: Gguuh! Kagami: Aah! Kagami: Aaaahhhhhhh! *I couldn't get through it... It was too much for one person to do...* *I ordered the rest of them to help.* *It didn't take long after that...* *Her flesh was ripped apart with amazing speed... She must have fainted by now... Hehehe...* *There we go... That's one of her thighs... and the other one is getting there too...* *What's this? Rain?* *No.* *Tears.* *Her eyes were wet with tears.* *Ehehehehehe.* *I've cried far more than you in my life until now.* *How pathetic.* *No one sympathizes with you.* *Just like no one has ever sympathized with me... no one will sympathize with you.* *The death penalty went on.* *The severing of her limbs still wasn't done...* *But... severing limbs isn't easy, even with a horse pulling someone apart... I don't know how long it took with those shears.* *I destroyed her...* *I destroyed her... because that's what she wanted.* *It took quite a few people and a lot of time, but... we completely severed her arms and legs.* *Her bones were especially hard to cut... We had to use a hammer and stake to break her exposed bones.* *But in the end her limbs were completely severed, and then, with nothing to support her body, she fell to the ground...* *It wasn't that high, but it was plenty high enough to kill someone falling on their face.* *Since she had no arms or legs... all she could do was fall straight on her face...* *She died when her skull struck the concrete.* *She was completely broken.* *At the end, she laughed.* *She wasn't in agony. She laughed.* *She laughed at me, and she laughed at the world.* *But she smiled at Tsukasa alone.* *Tsukasa sat and cried beside the body.* *They asked me what they should do with the body, but... I told them to leave it... We don't have time to deal with that.* *The final sky is already over our heads... Now we just have to return to it...* *Once we step out of this ark, it will all end...* *The Black Surge is powerless now...* *We who stand at the edge of this world... began to walk forward...* *That's right... We have nothing else to do here...* *We just have to walk forward...* Takuji: Haa... I'm tired... Kimika: My savior? *Someone called for me.* *I wonder who...* Takuji: What is it? Kimika: Umm... The Wakatsuki girl ran off... Takuji: The girl? Oh... Tsukasa? Kimika: Do you care? Takuji: Why would I? Kimika: Oh, wel * I thought maybe we should kill her instead..."* Takuji: There's no problem... Kimika: I see... She knows everything that's going on down here, though... Takuji: I said there's no problem, so there's no problem! Kimika: Hehehe... You don't need to say it like that. I was just asking. Takuji: Oh... All right... *No problem...* *Not anymore... None at all...* *It's all over...* Kimika: Is it going to end soon? Takuji: Yeah... The world will end soon. Kimika: Oh, that's right. When is the sky at the edge of the world going to come? Takuji: It's already here... The edge of the world is right above our heads... Kimika: Oh, I see.. * This is already the edge of the world..."* Takuji: Yeah, that's right... This is the edge of the world... Kimika: I see... The edge of the world... It's already here... Takuji: Yes... Kimika: Well then, isn't it time for us to return to the sky? Takuji: Oh... Do you want to return that badly? Kimika: Ahahaha... I guess so... I've wanted to return for a long time... Takuji: A long time? Kimika: Oh, well.. * it seems like the sky or whatever will be nice..."* Takuji: What do you mean? Kimika: Who knows... Takuji: ... Kimika: So I'm grateful to you... Takuji: ? Kimika: The day we'll return to the sky, huh... That's nice. That's a really good phrase. Takuji: What do you mean phrase? These are words of gospel. Kimika: Oh, no, I'm sorry * I know that. I'm sorry... Ahahaha..."* Takuji: What are you saying... Kimika: What am I saying? Ahahaha... *Tachibana Kimika... Now that I think about it, she's a strange woman...* *She's different from the rest of them...* *The rest of the people gathered here...* *Something is different...* *She bullied Takashima... and then she came to me because she was afraid of Takashima's curse...* *She came because she didn't want to die... just like Akasaka Megu, Kitami Satoko, and the rest of them did...* *But her eyes...* *She jokingly said she had come to kill me... but was that really a joke?* *Her eyes when we first met... and her voice when she was watching Senagawa...* *She led Senagawa to her death without a moment's hesitation...* *Now that I think about it, did I really fool her with that farce?* *I've put on a show to make the others believe in my predictions...* *But if I had to say it... I feel like I showed her my entire hand at the beginning...* *She's the only one who could've figured out that I didn't kill Senagawa with the curse, but rather led her to her death directly...* *And yet...* *Why is she the most faithful and devoted of them all? Why is she trying to help me like this?* Takuji: Hehehehehe... Well, whatever... Kimika: Yes, whatever you say. Takuji: That's right... It's been long enough already... Kimika: Yes, it's been long enough... *The final sky... The End Sky is here...* *Now we just have to take the final step...* *Yes, the final step.* Kimika: You... don't look too good... Takuji: Oh, really? I'm fine... Kimika: Did something happen up there? Takuji: Up there? Oh... The roof? Well, I guess there was... Kimika: You guess there was? You're bleeding a lot... Takuji: ...You knew that? Kimika: You threw away your old clothes... They were covered in blood... Takuji: You did a good job of figuring out they were mine... Kimika: I always make sure to keep an eye on you... Takuji: Oh, really? Kimika: I have incredible powers of observation. Takuji: Oh really... Incredible powers of observation, huh... Takuji: Haa... That's right... Kimika: Yes? Takuji: Why don't you have sex with the rest of them? Kimika: Eh? Takuji: Why? Kimika: B-But you're... not joining in with them either... Takuji: Because I'm not human... I'm doing it with others who aren't human. Kimika: So you can't do it with humans? Takuji: Well... probably not... Kimika: I see... Takuji: Why? Kimika: Oh, uh.. * Nothing."* Takuji: Are you a virgin? Kimika: Eh * W-Well, yes."* Takuji: Have you ever kissed anyone? Kimika: Of course not.. * Why?"* Takuji: Do you want to do it? Kimika: Eh? Takuji: Sex. Kimika: U-Um... Takuji: I don't really care if you don't want to... Kimika: Why wouldn't I want to?! Takuji: ...Why are you yelling? Kimika: Dunno... I'm probably just at that age... Takuji: Oh... I don't mind if you say no. Kimika: ...U-Umm... Takuji: What? Kimika: Could you... order me to do it? Takuji: Huh? What do you mean? Kimika: I can't do it with you for private reasons... but I could if you ordered me to... Takuji: What do you mean? Are you saying you don't want to? Kimika: Like I said! There's no way I wouldn't want to! Takuji: I don't understand... Kimika: I-I'm sorry... I know it doesn't make sense... Kimika: It's just that I can't do it with you because I want to... but if I had to in order to make the plan succeed... then we could compromise... Takuji: To make the plan succeed? Kimika: Oh, i-it's nothing! Takuji: Hmm... Well, okay... Takuji: Is there any particular human you're in love with? Kimika: A human * Hmm, that's kind of hard... Maybe someone who's not human..."* Takuji: What do you mean? Someone that's two-dimensional? Kimika: Ahahahaha, I am definitely an otaku, but... that's not really it... Takuji: Then what do you mean? Kimika: Well, it doesn't really matter who... Kimika: A-Anyway, order me please. Takuji: To do what? Kimika: I.. * I just told you..."* Takuji: What did you say? Kimika: T-To do it with you... Takuji: All right... Kimika, do it with me. Kimika: ... Takuji: What's wrong? Kimika: Oh, nothing... I-I'm fine... Kimika: But I... don't know anything about this. Takuji: Well I... don't know anything about it either... Kimika: Hahaha.. * So then... what should we do?"* Takuji: What should we do? Takuji: Well we have to do a few things first, right? Apparently... it hurts if you don't get wet first. Kimika: Ah * Wait a second..."* Kimika: Hmm... Kimika: After that conversation just now, my lady parts are on standby and ready to go. Takuji: R-Really? Kimika: Ahahaha * well this is just because... of the atmosphere..."* Takuji: The atmosphere, huh? It doesn't seem like there is any atmosphere. Kimika: Oh, it's just... after you asked if I wanted to do it so casually... I kind of got nervous... Takuji: That makes you nervous? Kimika: Well... at least for me, it does... Takuji: Oh, is that what it is... Kimika: Yeah, it is. Takuji: Shouldn't there still be some kind of foreplay? Kimika: I don't know... Neither of us have bathed recently either. Takuji: I guess not. Kimika: And I don't really want anyone to look at my body. Takuji: What if I just used my hand? Kimika: Your hand would get dirty. Takuji: Don't say that... Kimika: But I wonder... I don't think it's necessary... A little bit of foreplay isn't going to stop it from hurting. Takuji: Then should we forget about it? Kimika: I don't really know much about that stuff. Takuji: About what? Kimika: That Cat's Eye stuff... Whether you're a virgin or even if you're bleeding from anal, it doesn't hurt at all... Takuji: Like I said, it's not Cat's Eye... That's elixir. Kimika: It's not a big deal either way... Come on, stick it in already... Takuji: Stick it in already, huh... Can't you at least act a little excited about it? Kimika: I am excited, in my own way... Kimika: You're just going to... sleep with a commoner on a whim? It kind of sends shivers up my spine. Kimika: I heard Kezawa**** was crazy popular with the ladies. It was supposed to be even better than sleeping with a celebrity. Takuji: Wasn't Kezawa**** celibate? Well, whatever... That story kind of makes me feel depressed. Kimika: Oh, that's what I was doing. Takuji: What? Kimika: I was trying to help you feel better, since you looked down. Takuji: No... I haven't taken a bath lately... Kimika: It'll be fine. I've heard of cults where people would drink the leader's bath water. Takuji: No... That might be true, but still... Kimika: It'll be fine... I've always been self-destructive, and I'm telling you I don't mind... Takuji: Then your hands will be the ones to get dirty. Kimika: Huh? I was going to use my mouth. Takuji: Really? Kimika: And I said before I wasn't really interested in sex itself. Takuji: Then what are you interested in? Kimika: Maybe I just wanted to try sucking a dick? Takuji: Really? Is that all? I thought girls hated doing that... Kimika: That depends on the person. I don't know if other girls like it, and I don't really care... I'd be happy just sucking your dick. Takuji: But still... I told you to do it with me... Kimika: Sure, that's fine... Now's our chance, since the drugs are still working. Takuji: What do you mean chance? Kimika: Oh, nothing * I don't think three fingers would be able to fit normally... I feel like I would die just thinking about it."* Takuji: What you mean, three fingers? Kimika: Oh, it's just that I heard a dick is about three fingers thick... Takuji: Really? But not everyone's fingers are the same thickness... Kimika: Neither are their dicks. Takuji: Well, I guess... Kimika: Something like that. Takuji: Something like that, huh... Kimika: Do you mind if I touch it through your pants while we talk? Takuji: I don't care, but... aren't we going out of order? Kimika: Hmm... How's this～ Takuji: Ahh. Kimika: Oh... Oh! Takuji: Wh-What? Kimika: It must feel good... You moaned... Takuji: Isn't it nasty hearing a guy moan? Kimika: Not at all. I love it. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean... It's disgusting hearing a guy moan... Kimika: Then try to endure it... I don't care if you don't do it... Takuji: Ah... Kimika: Wow... Boys really do have a rod in their pants... Takuji: Well yeah... Kimika: This is fun... Why does it stand out like this? It's kind of nice, since it's easier to stroke like this. Takuji: I guess... Kimika: After all, if a girl doesn't want someone touching her, she can just close her legs... but for a guy, even if he doesn't like it, it's always exposed... Takuji: What do you mean exposed... I'm still wearing pants... Kimika: Do you mind if I take them off? Kimika: It would probably feel better that way... Probably... Takuji: If that's what you want... Kimika: Then I'll do what I want... Here goes the belt... Wow, a black bikini? Takuji: Of course not... They're boxers. Kimika: I see... It's kind of erotic how I can see the shape through the underwear... This is pretty good. Takuji: You don't need to explain every detail! Kimika: Kimika, in charge of explanations! Kimika: At least let me do that... I am about to clean you up nice and good with my mouth after all. Takuji: Why should the savior make a compromise with his servant? Kimika: But look at it... Don't you want me to suck it? Takuji: N-Not really... Kimika: Ahahaha! Don't worry, I'll still do it... I'll make you nice and clean. My mouth is as good as taking a shower... *Then she took off my underwear.* Kimika: Huh... I thought it would be nastier... There's not much hair at all. Takuji: What do you mean by that?! Kimika: Do you wear stockings? Takuji: Why would I do that? Kimika: You must shave, or there would be more hair down here... which means you must wear something like that... Takuji: Why do you think that means I wear stuff like that? Kimika: The savior in stockings... Kimika: Hmm... Mm... Mm... Takuji: Ah! Ah... *She put my penis in her mouth casually, as if she was used to doing this every day... I was taken aback by the warm sensation... It was kind of... kind of like...* Kimika: Mm... Ah... What are you thinking about? Takuji: Oh, nothing... It was a little different than I expected... Kimika: You mean it doesn't feel good? Ah, hmm... Takuji: Oh, no. It feels good, but... it's kind of interesting... So this is what it feels like when someone does this with their mouth... Kimika: Hmm... What do you mean interesting? Ha, hmm... *Waves of pleasure ran up my spine as her lips moved up and down...* Kimika: Mm... The taste changed... Takuji: You're so blunt... Kimika: Blunt, huh... Uh... Ohhh, I can taste you... I-It's my first time, but... it makes me feel so strange when I suck your penis... Takuji: Stop it... Kimika: Make up your mind... Kimika: Oh, but it is fun to suck it... Yeah, I really do like doing it. Takuji: Oh, okay... That's good, then. Kimika: My jaw is kind of getting tired... but it's still fun... Hmm... Ha... Kimika: I-It's kind of amazing... I have the savior's penis... in my mouth. Can you feel it, my savior? Does it feel good? Takuji: What are you talking about... Kimika: I'm just narrating... Takuji: You don't need to do that... Knock it off... Kimika: Really? Aww... But look, it's twitching, and there's stuff coming out of the tip... Takuji: D-Don't say that... Kimika: I'm just narrating. Takuji: I got it already, now cut it out... Kimika: Ahahaha... The savior might be a masochist. Takuji: Th-That's... Well, maybe a little... Wait, who cares about that! Are you stupid? Kimika: Do you want to cum in my mouth? Takuji: Y-Yeah... Kimika: That's it! *Kimika moved her head even lower...* Takuji: Ah, ah! Kimika: That's right... Your balls are really sensitive... Hmm, ha... Hmm... Takuji: S-Stop... If you do that with your hand while you're licking down there... I-I won't be able to hold it... Kimika: Oh, you like having your balls sucked. Takuji: Who cares about that?! Aah! Kimika: Oh, your reactions just get better and better... Whoa, you're so hard. Takuji: Ha, hmm... Haa. Kimika: Ah, but your balls are so soft. Licking them feels so good... This is great... Takuji: Wh-Who cares?! Whoa! Kimika: Hehehehe, Tachibana is in trouble... the savior tells her to clean up... so why does she get dirty every time she cleans up? Takuji: Sh-Shut up! Ah... Kimika: Anyway... Here's the finale... Ah, mm, mm, hmm... Ah, hmm... *Kimika moved her hand up and down even faster... As her lips stimulated my most sensitive parts, I felt something welling up from within me...* Kimika: Mm, mm, mm... Ah... Hehehe... Does it feel good? I'm so glad that you're letting me do this... *I felt it coming... I couldn't resist the feeling coming from my hips.* Takuji: Hmm... I-I'm going to cum... Ah, I can't... hold it any longer... Kimika: All right... My mouth is ready for it. Don't worry. Takuji: Ah, no... I-I'm going to... Aaahh! Kimika: Mm?! Ah... Mm...Mm... Haa... *My back arched and I let out a moan that I would normally never let anyone else hear.* *I felt the liquid spurting from my penis.* *Kimika drank it all down...* Kimika: ... *But she stopped in the middle.* Kimika: Urgh. Takuji: Wh-Whoa, don't spit it out! Kimika: But it's so nasty. It's all sticky in the back of my throat... Kimika: What is this? I thought it would just taste bad... What an awful person. Takuji: Semen isn't a person... Besides, it's not just a normal liquid. If you cum into a tissue, it's sticky, kind of like spit. Kimika: Oh... That's kind of erotic... Takuji: Maybe, but still... you shouldn't spit it out like that... Kimika: I don't like carbonated stuff... This is no good. Takuji: What do you mean carbonated? That has nothing to do with it... Kimika: I mean the feeling in the back of my throat and in my stomach... Well, I guess it's not really the same. Takuji: Of course not... Kimika: But it feels strange in the back of my throat, which is pretty much the same... It's kind of like comparing curry to a cigarette, I guess? Takuji: That comparison doesn't make sense... Curry and tobacco are nothing alike... Can't you speak clearly? Kimika: Oh... It looks like you still have some energy. Look. Takuji: Huh? No, m-maybe, but... let me rest for a while. Kimika: My savior... Do you want to stick it in my pussy or my ass? Takuji: What kind of choice is that... Kimika: They're both virgin, after all.. * Which one do you want? Or do you want both?"* Takuji: No, both would be impossible... There's no way I could cum three times. Kimika: Oh, really.. * Well then, it's time for a choice. Do you want to stick it in my ass? Or do you want to stick it in my pussy?"* Takuji: When you say it like that, I actually see the choices. Knock it off... Kimika: Hehehe... You play too many games. Kimika: All right. I figured you would pick that, you pervert. Takuji: I'll kill you... Kimika: Now now, I'm interested in it too.. * Um... even without lube, the savior's precum should do the trick."* Takuji: Will you be okay? You don't want to use your finger to loosen it up? Kimika: Why wouldn't I be? I like to touch my ass when I masturbate. Takuji: What's that? You're the pervert... Kimika: I guess so. Who cares about that * Come on, give it a try!"* Takuji: You're so blunt... *Kimika straddled me and slowly brought her hips down...* Kimika: Sit still, just like that... I'll do the aiming... *She slowly brought her hips down while holding my penis in place.* Takuji: Are you sure you're okay? Kimika: Yes. I'll do everything. I'll stick it in, and then I'll move... Oh, and tell me if you itch somewhere. Takuji: That's what a barber is supposed to say... Kimika: Ahahaha. Kimika: Well then, I hope you don't mind... Mm, Ah! *A shiver ran up her body when the tip touched her.* *Her pussy was pretty wet, too... It was so wet that we actually didn't need any lotion.* *As my penis entered her, it made her feel a sensation that she had never experienced before in her life.* Kimika: ...! *She pressed down and lined up her aim.* *She took a deep breath and made up her mind.* *As the hot summer air filled her lungs and circulated through her body.* *My penis slowly went inside her...* *Slowly, gently... it was enveloped by her hot body...* Kimika: Ah... Ahh! Ah, ah... Ah...! Takuji: A-Are you all right? *The tip wasn't even all the way in... and her face was twisted in pain.* Kimika: Ahaha... Sorry for making you worry. For the record, I'm not moaning in pain... Takuji: O-Oh, really... Kimika: Ahahaha... Well, that's because of the drugs. Takuji: But it's not really going in easily... Kimika: Ahahaha, I'm sorry... Well, anyway, can I start moving? Takuji: Y-Yeah... It's all right. Kimika: Well then... here I go... Ah! Ooh, ah... Takuji: ...This is... amazing. *Even with just the tip in, it felt like I was going to cum... It was incredibly tight.* *I just came, but I felt myself coming near the peak again.* Takuji: Ah... Aah... Kimika: Ah... Aaaah, ahaaa! Aah... Kimika: Ah... Aahh. It's... in? Is it all in... now? Takuji: I-I'm not sure... Ahh... But it's really warm, and tight... Kimika: Ah, this is bad... This is beyond amazing... Aah! *It wasn't just tight, it was incredibly warm inside her. The sensation was indescribable...* Kimika: Ah, it's so good! Aaah, aaah! my savior, this is too much. Kimika: I can't take it... M-My mind is going blank...! Mm, aaah, aaah! *As she moved her hips, her breath came out in ragged tatters.* Kimika: Ah, aaah! It feels so good... It's moving inside me! Kimika: I can't take it... I can't... I! Kimika: At this rate, I'm going to... I-I... I can't take it... Kimika: Ah, ah, ahhh! I can feel it... tingling... Aaah, my body is tingling... Aah! Kimika: I feel strange! I can feel your warm dick... moving inside me, I―Aaah! *Her ass was completely opened up... It easily took in the entire length of my dick.* Kimika: Aaah! It's coming, I can feel it coming in! It's all the way in... Aaah! Aaah... Now it's going... Now it's going out! *It went in and out, not even giving me time to breathe.* Kimika: Aaah, my ass... my savior, it's coming. Aaaah! I can feel it... It's my first time, but it feels so good... Aah, my savior. Takuji: Kimika... This is amazing. I can feel you loosening up... Kimika: Ooh, aaah, aaah! Aauh, aah, I can feel it inside me... Aaaah! *Shlup, shlup, shlup...* Kimika: Ah, I can't take it... I can't hold back... Aaah... Takuji: It's all right... I'm going to explode any moment now... Takuji: I-I'm... going to cum... K-Kimika... Kimika: Aaah, give it to me... Aaah, aaaauhhh... My Saaavior!! Kimika: Ah... Ahahaha... I-It's coming out... Your sperm... Aaah... I-I can't hold it back... Kimika: Aah!! *Just a moment after me...* *She probably held back until I came...* Kimika: Haa... Ah... Aah, aah. *The contractions slowly subsided...* Takuji: When you say it like that, I actually see the choices. Knock it off... Kimika: Hehehe... You play too many games. Kimika: All right. I figured you liked it plain. Takuji: What do you mean, plain... Kimika: Well then, excuse me. *Kimika pushed the tip into her pussy.* Kimika: Ah... *She was breathing hard.* Takuji: Are you all right? Kimika: Ah, haha... I'm all right... Huh? The drugs should still be working, but it kind of hurts. Kimika: But... it'll probably start working soon... *The entrance was too tight... It was like it was completely closed.* Kimika: Damn it... I'll get it in there. Aaah! Takuji: A-Are you all right? Kimika: Ahh, aaahh... I'm fine... We have penetration... *She took another breath and started moving her hips.* *The tip of my penis slowly made its way further inside of Kimika.* Kimika: Aah, aah... *As it went further in, she started to moan.* Kimika: Ah! Ah! Aaah! *My brain was numb with pleasure as I listened to her moaning.* *Her pussy was very warm and tight as it pressed on my dick from all sides.* Kimika: My savior... You don't need to hold back... Ah! Takuji: H-Hold back? Kimika: Hehehe... You're about to cum, right? Hehehe, go ahead and cum inside me... Aaah! C-Come on... Takuji: Ah... Kimika. *I'm sad to say it, but... I was about to cum already.* *I couldn't hold it in any longer.* Takuji: A-All right... I'm going to... Kimika: Yeah... It's fine. You can cum, just like that... Right inside me... Takuji: Aah, I-I'm going to... Aaah. Kimika: Aaah? Aaah, ah, aaaaaah!! Kimika: Ooh... I can feel you... cumming inside me. It feels amazing. Takuji: A-Aaah... Kimika: Ahahaha... It's still coming out. Amazing... I can really feel it. Takuji: ...Really? Kimika: I guess, I would say... I can feel something moving inside me... I can kind of feel it. Kimika: How should I put it... It's like, I can feel you filling me up... Takuji: Oh... Kimika: Hehehe... Did it feel good, my savior? Takuji: Yeah... Kimika: Um... I'm sorry! Takuji: ? *Kimika suddenly kissed me.* Kimika: Mm, aaah... Mm, ah. Takuji: Mm... Ah... *As we kissed, she started moving her hips.* *I already came, but it was still erect...* Kimika: Mm, mm, aah... Mm, mm... *We entwined our tongues together as we kissed.* *And our genitals were entwined as well, still wet from before. We were connected both above and below.* *Kimika lusted after me... She stuck her tongue in my mouth as she moved her hips.* Kimika: I-I'm sorry, I'm sorry... It's over, but... I'm sorry! Aah, ah... Kimika: I-I can't stop myself... A-At this rate, hmm, aah, aaah... *Before, she was just playing around... Now she lusted after me as if something inside her had broken.* Takuji: Ah... It feels good for me too... Kimika: Ha, aah... I'm sorry... Making you do it twice... *Her pussy became even tighter, but she never slowed down... Her hips started moving even more violently.* *We violently embraced each other... Our skin touching, our body heat being shared, as if we were melting into each other.* Kimika: My savior... Aah! I can't... I'm going to... Takuji: Y-Yeah... It's fine... Go ahead and cum. Kimika: C-Can I? You don't mind? I'm... I'm cumming. *Her body stiffened.* *At the same time, my penis swelled and started to unload inside her yet again.* Takuji: Ah! Kimika: Aaah?! I-I'm cumming. I'm cumming... Haaa, ha, ah, aaaah!! Takuji: Ahh! Kimika: Ah, aaah, ah... Aaaaaah!! Kimika: Hahahaha... I kind of messed up. Takuji: What? Kimika: Oh, no.. * I'm just talking to myself... It's just, well, it's nothing..."* Takuji: What are you talking about... Kimika: Well... I guess that was a good reward. Takuji: A reward? For me? Kimika: Oh, no, that's not what I mean * A reward for me. After I put so much effort in, I guess I deserved one..."* Takuji: Is that all... Kimika: Yes... Well, now the curse will come true... Takuji: Curse? Kimika: Oh, nothing... I'm talking to myself * Ahahaha..."* Takuji: You're a strange one... Kimika: Yes... That's right. I'm a strange one. Takuji: Haa... Kimika: Why are you sighing? Kimika: Did I tire you out? Takuji: Yeah, I'm a bit tired, but... that's not it. Uh... I was thinking... Kimika: Thinking? Takuji: Yeah... I was wondering if I had anything I needed to do above ground... If we forget anything, we won't be able to go get it later. Kimika: That's right... Everything outside will end... Takuji: So I was wondering if I forgot anything... Kimika: So was there anything you forgot? Takuji: I wonder... I can't really remember. Kimika: Then you're probably not forgetting anything. Takuji: I see... I haven't forgotten anything, huh... Takuji: I have nothing left to do here, huh... Kimika: Yes. There's nothing left here... that you need to do... Takuji: So we can end it now... Kimika: Yes... I think we can end it. Kimika: I haven't.. * left anything behind."* Takuji: No... I don't care about you... Kimika: Of course not. Takuji: Why are you so upbeat? Takuji: Haa... The end, huh... I've done everything I needed to... Takuji: I haven't forgotten anything. Kimika: Nope. Takuji: Which means... my job as the savior is over. Kimika: Good work... It must have been tough. Takuji: Yeah... It was incredibly tough. Takuji: So then, what time is it? Kimika: It's... 11:00 p.m. on the 18th... It'll be the 19th in an hour. Takuji: Oh jeez... We have to go to the sky right away when it's the 19th... Kimika: Oh, really... Then.. * should we get going?"* Takuji: Oh, yeah... Maybe we should... Kimika: Ah... *Kimika lent me her shoulder...* *It looks like my wounds from Yuuki still haven't healed...* *Maybe I should've used a bit more of the elixir?* *No... If I use too much, I won't be able to think clearly. If I don't limit myself, I might miss the timing to return to the sky...* *So that should be plenty...* Takuji: Um, Kimika... the holy water... Kimika: Right, I'll sprinkle lots of LSD on them at the end. And the stimulants too! Takuji: Like I said... I turned the LSD into holy water and the stimulants into elixir... Kimika: Oh, I misspoke! That's right, that's what it was! *I kind of wonder...* *What was she trying to accomplish...* *I feel like she only went along with what I was doing to accomplish her own objectives...* *What a strange woman...* *Well, it doesn't matter...* Kimika: We'll give them a ton of it for the finale! Kimika: Oh～! I'm getting pumped! *Everyone was gathered.* *How many people are there? And when did they all get here...* *They all look like they're having fun...* *Like they're all excited for something...* *I wonder if the ark was fun...* *I thought salvation would be a solemn affair...* *I thought saving people would be more serious... It should've felt religious...* *But in reality, it's like this...* *I gathered them all through fear... They all came here out of fear of the curse...* *They gathered to escape their fear of death...* *So why... are they so joyful?* *Returning to the sky... It truly is something wonderful, but... it should be more religious, more serious...* *But everyone's laughing.* *Frolicking.* *The world's final day is coming.* *Everyone is celebrating.* *I spoke.* *Of the three monsters born of the gods...* *Of the great wolf, Fenrir, who is human lust itself.* *Of the god of death, Hel, who is human fear of death itself.* *And of Jormungandr, significant of eternity, who will awaken on the world's final day.* *Everyone listened eagerly.* *Like children reading a picture book... they eagerly listened to the story of the world's final day.* *Rather than fear, it was enthusiasm I saw in their eyes.* *Rather than quivering, laughter.* *Rather than despair, joy.* *They all seemed so happy.* *They all seemed so eager.* *Laughing and screaming.* *I yelled!* *Dance!* *Dance!* *Dance!* *With the melody!* *Dance!* *The world is words!* *God is melody!* *We have no need for the world.* *We need only the melody.* *We danced with God!* *Everyone danced.* *Joyfully danced.* *Danced as if mad.* *There was no trace of gravity or solemnity.* *I thought once more about whether I had anything left to do here.* *Nothing...* *There's nothing for me to do here...* *I haven't forgotten anything...* *One more spoke.* *We have the melody, do we not?* *The melody is here.* *So we have no need for the world.* *We have no need for words.* *There's nothing we've forgotten...* *After all, we've forgotten it...* *The bell rang.* *Today began.*

Male Student: Ehehehehehe. Male Student: Wow, what a pose. Kagami: Eh? Pose...? Eh?! *They're awfully skilled... They tied her hands and legs in a flash.* *She was held in a terrible position.* Kagami: ?! Kagami: Wh-What is this position? *Even with her skirt still covering her underwear, that was an embarrassing position.* Kagami: M-Mamiya! Th-This is―! Male Student: Hehehehehe, it's just to make sure the ritual goes smoothly... *The pigs laughed nastily...* *They must really like doing this...* *Well, whatever... They can go ahead and break her...* *Go right ahead...* Kagami: D-Do you really think you can do this to someone? T-Take this off! Male Student: Are you stupid? Why would we stop? Hehehehe, the fun time is just beginning. Tsukasa: Nooo! Stop it. Onee-chan! Takuji: Hahaha, all you need to do is watch as your sister is defiled. Male Student: Now it's time for the show to begin. I can't wait. Hehehe, she's shaking already. I guess she's starting to figure out what's going to happen to her. Male Student: Ahahahaha, of course she is! She knows! She knows exactly what's going to happen! Kagami: Wait, wh-what are you talking about... Male Student: It'll be way more amazing than what you're thinking of! Do you know what I mean? It'll be amazing! Kagami: Wha―?! A-Amazing... *The men ignored her and stretched their arms out toward her skirt.* Kagami: Hey, wh-what? Male Student: I don't know why you're wearing a skirt. Maybe we should inspect it and see what's under here. Kagami: N-Noooo, stop! Noo! Male Student: Hehehe, she's yelling already, and we're just looking... Now this is something... *She tried her hardest to resist, but she couldn't do anything with the belts holding her in place...* *Her skirt was lifted up... and under there was...* Male Student: Wh-What's this? Male Student: She's not wearing any... Male Student: Do you always walk around without any panties? Kagami: N-No, I just happened to not wear any today. Male Student: How could that just happen? There's no way it was just today! She must be an exhibitionist! Kagami: N-No... there's a reason... *What, she was never wearing panties? What an exhibitionist...* *All the people in the Black Surge must be perverts like her...* Male Student: Should I touch it? Kagami: T-Touch... wh-what? Kagami: Eek! Male Student: Whoa, her thigh really is soft! I can't take it! Male Student: I-I want to touch her too. Kagami: D-Don't touch me. Kagami: Noooooo! Male Student: Wow, I can't stand it... Her pussy is totally pink. Male Student: P-Pull it open... Kagami: N-Nooo! Forgive me! Male Student: Whoa... Her pussy is so tight, like a child's... *The inside of her pussy, where no one would normally ever see... was spread open for all of the men to see.* *But she was walking around without any panties... She must have wanted this to happen.* Male Student: Is this her clitoris? Then what is this? Kagami: Forgive me... Forgive me already... Don't touch me there... Stop... Male Student: Open it wider. *She was pinned down and ravished by their eyes, like a frog being dissected...* Male Student: The labia minora are inside the labia majora, right? Male Student: That's right... So then, what would it be in this situation? Male Student: No... I don't really know the details, but... Male Student: Anyway, her pussy is really soft... Wow. *The men touched her genitals almost casually... There wasn't even a hint of kindness in their movements... There was just straightforward sexual interest.* Male Student: How does it feel? Does it feel good? Male Student: She's not saying anything... Isn't she being awfully defiant in front of the savior? Male Student: Hey, answer us! How is it? Kagami: ... Male Student: She's so rebellious. I'm starting to get mad... She's going to mess up the ritual like this... Male Student: Hey, anyone got a knife... Kagami: Wh-What are you doing? S-Stop... *One of them patted the flat of a knife against her thigh... The cold steel sent tremors through her body.* Male Student: Hehehehehe... Scared? the savior told us to break you... Do you know what that means? Kagami: I'm not... I'm... not scared. Male Student: Hehehehe, come on, speak up! It's boring if you don't say anything! Kagami: Eek! *The man put the knife on her genitals.* *How scary it must be... feeling the steel of the knife in a place like that...* *Tap, tap...* *He lightly tapped the flat of the knife on her genitals several times... Every time, it came down with just enough force that I had to wonder if she would bruise...* Male Student: Are you scared... Are you scared? Kagami: ... *Kagami glared at the man... She just glared...* Male Student: Hehehehe, you really aren't the talkative type, huh? Kagami: ? *The man's knife cut into her clothes... It shredded the fabric, bit by bit...* Male Student: Why are you even wearing a skirt? It's not natural... You don't need this anymore, right? Male Student: Don't put a skirt on if you're not even going to wear panties. Hahahahaha! Male Student: Let's lick her pussy. Male Student: Yeah, we have to lick her pussy! Kagami: N-Noo, s-s-stop... Noo! *It made a nasty sound... as the men relentlessly attacked her clitoris.* Male Student: It got hard! It got hard! The bitch is getting turned on! Male Student: Hahaha! So you're not a frigid little bitch! Stupid whore! Male Student: Gahahahahaha, she's turned on! Kagami: Th-That's not true... I'm not... Male Student: Ahahahaha. Do it some more! Kagami: Noo... Stop. *What a nasty sound... It's making me feel depressed...* *Hehehe... But it must be so much worse for her... Hehehehe...* Male Student: What a sight... She loves spreading her legs for guys like this. Male Student: This is amazing... It's like I'm on a journey to search for the G-spot... Kagami: Please... Please stop. Male Student: She's getting wet. Male Student: No, that's... just your spit. Male Student: No, she is getting wet. I'm sure of it. She likes it! Male Student: Should we fuck her now? Kagami: Please, don't do that! Please, just not that... Male Student: That's right. You're getting ahead of yourself... We still have a lot to do before we can take her virginity. Male Student: There are?! Male Student: Of course there are! That's just common sense! *The men took off their pants...* *Then they held their swelling genitals out to her.* Kagami: Eh? W-Wait, noooo! Tsukasa: Wh-Wh-Wha―... *Tsukasa covered her face with her hands so she wouldn't have to look.* *All she could do was watch... as her sister was violated...* Male Student: Suck it! This is the first event on our agenda! Kagami: Th-That's... Male Student: If you'd rather, we could just get straight to the main attraction... Just say so if you'd rather do that! Kagami: A-Ah, I'm sorry, a-all right... All right, I'll do it... I'll do it. *She resigned herself to her fate and gave into their demands...* Male Student: Suck it... Start with my Magnum Dry... Magnum Dry! *The man stuck his Magnum Dry in front of her face.* Kagami: ... *They hadn't bathed in days, and they had been having sex constantly... It probably smelled awful...* Male Student: Hey, it looks like your Magnum Dry smells like shit. Male Student: No it doesn't! This is the fragrance of my Magnum! Enjoy the fragrance! Male Student: No... You haven't taken a shower in a while. It probably just stinks... That's why we need her to clean us up... Male Student: No! It doesn't stink! You should enjoy the fragrance! With your throat! Kagami: Ggh! Male Student: I'll rape if you if you don't do it right. Male Student: Jeez... You're so mean to her... Male Student: Look, I'll tell you how to suck a dick... Look, use your tongue like this... Look, you're getting it. Keep doing that. Kagami: Y-Yes... *It was only reluctantly, but... she started to suck it.* *Slurp...* *It must have tasted bad when her tongue touched the tip of their dicks... Her face warped in disgust every time.* Male Student: Come on, it'll never end if you do it like that! You're a runner who can't even see the finish line! Male Student: I can see the finish line! Suck my Magnum Dry, suck it dry! Kagami: Gghagh! *Another man shoved his dick into Kagami's mouth...* *Poor Kagami, what have you gotten yourself into...* Male Student: Ohohohohoho, your mouth is so warm... My Magnum is warming up! Male Student: Hey... Don't just sit there with it in your mouth... Do something. Kagami: Mmgh... Dho shomefthing? Male Student: I don't know what you're saying, but I can see it on your face! You're a dead fish, huh... I guess I'll have to do it! *The man grabbed her head and...* Kagami: Aggh? Mmghh, aagghh, mmmgh, mgpgh... *He grabbed her head and moved it up and down.* *He used her like an onahole... Just awful...* Kagami: Mmgh, ghh, mmph, mmgh, ah, mphha, ee-eecckhph... Ah, hmphh? Mm, haa...! *Her breathing was incredibly rough... It looked like he was going to break her jaw.* *Hahaha... Actually, her mouth must be full of the taste of that man's disgusting unwashed dick... Lick it up good, Kagami...* *Slurp, slurp...* *Slurp, slurp...* Male Student: Ahahahaha, look at her, just look at her! She's a mess! *Slurp, slurp...* *She must be getting the smell of him in her nose every time she breathes... She's trying to hold her breath... What feeble resistance.* Male Student: Her mouth feels great... My Magnum might be at its limit... Male Student: Ah, ahh, this is the last of my Magnum... This is my Magnum's... last staaandd! *The man pistoned her head up and down even more violently.* Kagami: Eehph, mmgh, mmpsch, hgha! Haumph, hmphha! Eeh, eehck... mmpsch, humsh? Mmpch, haa! *Slurp, slurp...* Male Student: I-I'm comiiiinggg. I-I'm gonna cum in her mouth. Kagami: ... *She tried desperately to pull away, but... the man wouldn't let her, so she couldn't do anything but drink it...* *If she didn't, she couldn't even breathe...* Kagami: ...Gulp... Gulp... Gulp... Haa. *Spurt, spurt...* *Just how much did he cum... It was still coming out when she pulled away...* Male Student: Now then... I guess it's time to fuck her... I think we're ready. Kagami: Please... Anything but that. Male Student: No way... Let's do it! Male Student: Nope... That's right. Kagami: Please, I'll do anything else. Male Student: Come on, let's hurry up and destroy her... Male Student: All right! Masturbate for us! Kagami: Eh? I-I can't... do that... Male Student: If you can't, then we'll just have to fuck you... Right, Magnum? Male Student: My Magnum... is feeling fine now... Kagami: ...Will you really let me go if I do? Male Student: Who knows? Come on, show us just how you masturbate every single day. Kagami: All right... Fine, I'll do it... *She was stripped completely naked in front of her sister...* *Hehehe, she's going to masturbate in front of all these men... and in front of her sister...* *Hehehehe...* *Tsukasa evidently didn't know what they meant. Her face was completely blank.* *Go on, show your little sister what masturbation is...* Male Student: Call more people! Kagami: Ah? Male Student: She's going to masturbate for us. We have to show everyone. Male Student: Really? She's going to do it? Male Student: Let's call everyone... *The people slowly gathered...* *Yokoyama Yasuko was in the crowd...* Yasuko: ... Kagami: Yasuko... Yasuko: So you're the Wakatsuki sisters... Whatever, not like I care. Let's get started, already. Kagami: ... Male Student: Hurry up! We're bored... Kagami: ...All right. *Shlup...* *She gave up and started touching her genitals.* *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: What's that? That's nothing... Do it for real. Kagami: What do you mean, for real... Yasuko: We can tell if you're really doing it... We're both girls, you know. I can tell... Yasuko: If you don't do it right... all of the men will rape you. Kagami: ... *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Whoa, she's getting wet... *The men started stroking their dicks as they watched... They really liked it.* Yasuko: It looks like your clitoris is really sensitive, Wakatsuki-san... You're only touching your clitoris... Kagami: ...! Yasuko: Can't you put on a better show for everyone? Yasuko: Can't you say anything? Hey! Kagami: Ah! Yasuko: You masturbate every day, right? Kagami: N-No, I don't. Kagami: Eek! Yasuko: Watch your mouth! Now, think about the most important person in your life. Kagami: ...The most important person... *She glanced... at Tsukasa...* *Is Tsukasa... the most important person to her?* *What's wrong with her... That would make her a lesbian, and they're sisters...* *Just how perverted is she...* Yasuko: Come on, you're going to get raped if you don't do it... Get going... *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Ehehehe, she's really starting to feel it... Kagami: Ooh, oh, ah, aah... Aah... Male Student: What a freak. Male Student: She's masturbating in front of everyone. Kagami: Ooh, oh... Ah... A-Aah... ah... Male Student: Oohh! *One of the men ejaculated...* *One.* *Another one.* *One after another they ejaculated as they watched her masturbate...* *She started to smell like semen.* *Even then, she wasn't allowed to stop...* Kagami: Hmm, ah, I'm... I'm... about to... ah, I'm going to, ah, ah, I'm... ah, going to cum... *Her body shook.* *So she finally came...* *That's enough playing around... Now it's time to plunge her into despair...* *Despair...* Kagami: Haa, haa... Now will you forgive me? Male Student: Yeah, we promised... Now then, let's put her on that. Kagami: Eh?! What do you mean? What are you talking about? I thought you were done. Male Student: Yeah, we're going to break your hymen... We'll break your ass hymen too... Kagami: Eh?! Male Student: Look at her face. It's like she's trying to remember if there's such a thing as an ass hymen... Hehehehe, what a dumb bitch. Male Student: Of course there isn't... Of course not. Kagami: D-Didn't you promise? Male Student: Of course we did. We won't break your hymen... We have something else that can do it for us. Kagami: ...Wh-What? What's that? Male Student: It's a wooden horse! I made it! Kagami: Noooo! You liars! Male Student: When did we promise... not to make a wooden horse? Male Student: Knock it off with your one man comedy act... That's enough... Kagami: Noooo! Let me gooo! *Her arms and legs were restrained with the bondage gear.* *She was hung from the ceiling with the hooks on it.* *As the ropes holding her up were loosened... her body would be slowly lowered down...* Kagami: Nooo, please, don't do it. Male Student: Hehehehe, what a pity. You're going to lose your precious virginity to this thing... Kagami: Th-Then why don't you save me? Male Student: No way. You're not human anymore. This is what you deserve... Male Student: Now then... Lower her down... Kagami: Nooo! *The pulley creaked as it spun... The rope slowly lengthened... and Kagami's body moved closer to the horse.* Kagami: I'll do anything! Kagami: I'll do anything!! N-Nooooo!!! Male Student: Ahahahahaha, this is the penetration ceremony! Kagami: Agkh! Male Student: Ahahahahahahaha, it penetrated both of her holes! Kagami: Y-You... Male Student: Now it's time for the main attraction... We're going to rape you until you beg for the cock. Kagami: P-Please stop... *How many hours passed after that... No, maybe it wasn't that long...* *I watched the boring show the whole time.* *Kagami's every hole was defiled... Her mouth, her vagina, her anus. They even played with her urethra.* *She passed out several times...* *They put the elixir in every hole she has.* *The elixir can do anything, even change pain into pleasure... Complete and utter pleasure...* *By this point, she couldn't feel pain at all anymore...* Kagami: It's good, it's sooo goood. Ah, aah, aaaauahh, I can feel it... Kagami: I can feel it all the way in there, I can feel it, I can feel it inside me. *Haa... And she was so set against it before... I guess that's the effect of the elixir... Though she wasn't wearing any panties. She was a lewd woman to begin with...* *Well... whatever, I guess... She's no better than any of the other sluts...* *In the end... all women are like this, huh...* Kagami: Make me feel even better. Male Student: Ahahaha, what a slut. Male Student: Put it in her ass. Kagami: Put some more on before you put it in... Male Student: Put some on her asshole. Male Student: The ass is really sensitive, so it's good at absorbing it. Male Student: All right! Kagami: Ah! *He stuck his finger up her ass...* *She looked happy when he did it...* Male Student: She's squeezing my finger... I'll rub it all in on the inside. *The man's finger rubbed inside her anus.* *Shlup...* Kagami: Ahh. Kagami: Don't take it out of my ass... Put it in. Male Student: All right, I'll stick it in. Kagami: Ah! *His penis slowly entered her anus.* *Shlup...* Kagami: Ahh! Male Student: Whoa, her pussy just got really tight. Male Student: She's squeezing... Kagami: Haaa, aaaah. My ass, and my pussy... They're so full... It's so good. Male Student: It's crazy tight. Male Student: I'm gonna start moving. *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: Ah! D-Don't move at the same time... *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: If you do that... I-I'm gonna start feeling funny... Ah! *Shlup, shlup...* Male Student: Her pussy is amazing. Kagami: Ah, it's so big. My ass, my asshole is going to tear. Aaahh! *Shlup, shlup...* Kagami: Put it in! My pussy and my ass feel so good! *Jeez... I'm really getting bored. Everything she says is just vulgar... She can't even say anything creative... Monotonous, monotonous, it's all monotonous.* Male Student: Hey, you're using way too much of that... You're going to overdose. Male Student: It's fine. Our physical bodies are going to be destroyed anyway, right, my brother? Kagami: Ah! My pussy feels so good! Ride me bareback! Kagami: Ah! I can feel the semen! It's hot! *Spurt, spurt!* Kagami: Ah... My pussy is full of everyone's semen. *Spurt, spurt...* Male Student: I'm cumming too... *Spurt, spurt!* Kagami: Ah... Aah... I can feel it in my ass too... It's so hot inside me... *It's been like this the whole time... What a bore...* *I don't even care anymore...* *Jeez... How dull...*

Kimika: Do you mind if I touch it through your pants while we talk? Takuji: I don't care, but... aren't we going out of order? Kimika: Hmm... How's this～ Takuji: Ahh. Kimika: Oh... Oh! Takuji: Wh-What? Kimika: It must feel good... You moaned... Takuji: Isn't it nasty hearing a guy moan? Kimika: Not at all. I love it. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean... It's disgusting hearing a guy moan... Kimika: Then try to endure it... I don't care if you don't do it... Takuji: Ah... Kimika: Wow... Boys really do have a rod in their pants... Takuji: Well yeah... Kimika: This is fun... Why does it stand out like this? It's kind of nice, since it's easier to stroke like this. Takuji: I guess... Kimika: After all, if a girl doesn't want someone touching her, she can just close her legs... but for a guy, even if he doesn't like it, it's always exposed... Takuji: What do you mean exposed... I'm still wearing pants... Kimika: Do you mind if I take them off? Kimika: It would probably feel better that way... Probably... Takuji: If that's what you want... Kimika: Then I'll do what I want... Here goes the belt... Wow, a black bikini? Takuji: Of course not... They're boxers. Kimika: I see... It's kind of erotic how I can see the shape through the underwear... This is pretty good. Takuji: You don't need to explain every detail! Kimika: Kimika, in charge of explanations! Kimika: At least let me do that... I am about to clean you up nice and good with my mouth after all. Takuji: Why should the savior make a compromise with his servant? Kimika: But look at it... Don't you want me to suck it? Takuji: N-Not really... Kimika: Ahahaha! Don't worry, I'll still do it... I'll make you nice and clean. My mouth is as good as taking a shower... *Then she took off my underwear.* Kimika: Huh... I thought it would be nastier... There's not much hair at all. Takuji: What do you mean by that?! Kimika: Do you wear stockings? Takuji: Why would I do that? Kimika: You must shave, or there would be more hair down here... which means you must wear something like that... Takuji: Why do you think that means I wear stuff like that? Kimika: The savior in stockings... Kimika: Hmm... Mm... Mm... Takuji: Ah! Ah... *She put my penis in her mouth casually, as if she was used to doing this every day... I was taken aback by the warm sensation... It was kind of... kind of like...* Kimika: Mm... Ah... What are you thinking about? Takuji: Oh, nothing... It was a little different than I expected... Kimika: You mean it doesn't feel good? Ah, hmm... Takuji: Oh, no. It feels good, but... it's kind of interesting... So this is what it feels like when someone does this with their mouth... Kimika: Hmm... What do you mean interesting? Ha, hmm... *Waves of pleasure ran up my spine as her lips moved up and down...* Kimika: Mm... The taste changed... Takuji: You're so blunt... Kimika: Blunt, huh... Uh... Ohhh, I can taste you... I-It's my first time, but... it makes me feel so strange when I suck your penis... Takuji: Stop it... Kimika: Make up your mind... Kimika: Oh, but it is fun to suck it... Yeah, I really do like doing it. Takuji: Oh, okay... That's good, then. Kimika: My jaw is kind of getting tired... but it's still fun... Hmm... Ha... Kimika: I-It's kind of amazing... I have the savior's penis... in my mouth. Can you feel it, my savior? Does it feel good? Takuji: What are you talking about... Kimika: I'm just narrating... Takuji: You don't need to do that... Knock it off... Kimika: Really? Aww... But look, it's twitching, and there's stuff coming out of the tip... Takuji: D-Don't say that... Kimika: I'm just narrating. Takuji: I got it already, now cut it out... Kimika: Ahahaha... the savior might be an M. Takuji: Th-That's... Well, maybe a little... Wait, who cares about that! Are you stupid? Kimika: Do you want to cum in my mouth? Takuji: Y-Yeah... Kimika: That's it! *Kimika moved her head even lower...* Takuji: Ah, ah! Kimika: That's right... Your balls are really sensitive... Hmm, ha... Hmm... Takuji: S-Stop... If you do that with your hand while you're licking down there... I-I won't be able to hold it... Kimika: Oh, you like having your balls sucked. Takuji: Who cares about that?! Aah! Kimika: Oh, your reactions just get better and better... Whoa, you're so hard. Takuji: Ha, hmm... Haa. Kimika: Ah, but your balls are so soft. Licking them feels so good... This is great... Takuji: Wh-Who cares?! Whoa! Kimika: Hehehehe, Tachibana is in trouble... the savior tells her to clean up... so why does she get dirty every time she cleans up? Takuji: Sh-Shut up! Ah... Kimika: Anyway... Here's the finale... Ah, mm, mm, hmm... Ah, hmm... *Kimika moved her hand up and down even faster... As her lips stimulated my most sensitive parts, I felt something welling up from within me...* Kimika: Mm, mm, mm... Ah... Hehehe... Does it feel good? I'm so glad that you're letting me do this... *I felt it coming... I couldn't resist the feeling coming from my hips.* Takuji: Hmm... I-I'm going to cum... Ah, I can't... hold it any longer... Kimika: All right... My mouth is ready for it. Don't worry. Takuji: Ah, no... I-I'm going to... Aaahh! Kimika: Mm?! Ah... Mm...Mm... Haa... *My back arched and I let out a moan that I would normally never let anyone else hear.* *I felt the liquid spurting from my penis.* *Kimika drank it all down...* Kimika: ... *But she stopped in the middle.* Kimika: Urgh. Takuji: Wh-Whoa, don't spit it out! Kimika: But it's so nasty. It's all sticky in the back of my throat... Kimika: What is this? I thought it would just taste bad... What an awful person. Takuji: Semen isn't a person... Besides, it's not just a normal liquid. If you cum into a tissue, it's sticky, kind of like spit. Kimika: Oh... That's kind of erotic... Takuji: Maybe, but still... you shouldn't spit it out like that... Kimika: I don't like carbonated stuff... This is no good. Takuji: What do you mean carbonated? That has nothing to do with it... Kimika: I mean the feeling in the back of my throat and in my stomach... Well, I guess it's not really the same. Takuji: Of course not... Kimika: But it feels strange in the back of my throat, which is pretty much the same... It's kind of like comparing curry to a cigarette, I guess? Takuji: That comparison doesn't make sense... Curry and tobacco are nothing alike... Can't you speak clearly? Kimika: Oh... It looks like you still have some energy. Look. Takuji: Huh? No, m-maybe, but... let me rest for a while. Kimika: My savior... Do you want to stick it in my pussy or my ass? Takuji: What kind of choice is that... Kimika: They're both virgin, after all.. * Which one do you want? Or do you want both?"* Takuji: No, both would be impossible... There's no way I could cum three times. Kimika: Oh, really.. * Well then, it's time for a choice. Do you want to stick it in my ass? Or do you want to stick it in my pussy?"* Takuji: When you say it like that, I actually see the choices. Knock it off... Kimika: Hehehe... You play too many games. Kimika: All right. I figured you would pick that, you pervert. Takuji: I'll kill you... Kimika: Now now, I'm interested in it too.. * Um... even without lube, the savior's precum should do the trick."* Takuji: Will you be okay? You don't want to use your finger to loosen it up? Kimika: Why wouldn't I be? I like to touch my ass when I masturbate. Takuji: What's that? You're the pervert... Kimika: I guess so. Who cares about that * Come on, give it a try!"* Takuji: You're so blunt... *Kimika straddled me and slowly brought her hips down...* Kimika: Sit still, just like that... I'll do the aiming... *She slowly brought her hips down while holding my penis in place.* Takuji: Are you sure you're okay? Kimika: Yes. I'll do everything. I'll stick it in, and then I'll move... Oh, and tell me if you itch somewhere. Takuji: That's what a barber is supposed to say... Kimika: Ahahaha. Kimika: Well then, I hope you don't mind... Mm, Ah! *A shiver ran up her body when the tip touched her.* *Her pussy was pretty wet, too... It was so wet that we actually didn't need any lotion.* *As my penis entered her, it made her feel a sensation that she had never experienced before in her life.* Kimika: ...! *She pressed down and lined up her aim.* *She took a deep breath and made up her mind.* *As the hot summer air filled her lungs and circulated through her body.* *My penis slowly went inside her...* *Slowly, gently... it was enveloped by her hot body...* Kimika: Ah... Ahh! Ah, ah... Ah...! Takuji: A-Are you all right? *The tip wasn't even all the way in... and her face was twisted in pain.* Kimika: Ahaha... Sorry for making you worry. For the record, I'm not moaning in pain... Takuji: O-Oh, really... Kimika: Ahahaha... Well, that's because of the drugs. Takuji: But it's not really going in easily... Kimika: Ahahaha, I'm sorry... Well, anyway, can I start moving? Takuji: Y-Yeah... It's all right. Kimika: Well then... here I go... Ah! Ooh, ah... Takuji: ...This is... amazing. *Even with just the tip in, it felt like I was going to cum... It was incredibly tight.* *I just came, but I felt myself coming near the peak again.* Takuji: Ah... Aah... Kimika: Ah... Aaaah, ahaaa! Aah... Kimika: Ah... Aahh. It's... in? Is it all in... now? Takuji: I-I'm not sure... Ahh... But it's really warm, and tight... Kimika: Ah, this is bad... This is beyond amazing... Aah! *It wasn't just tight, it was incredibly warm inside her. The sensation was indescribable...* Kimika: Ah, it's so good! Aaah, aaah! my savior, this is too much. Kimika: I can't take it... M-My mind is going blank...! Mm, aaah, aaah! *As she moved her hips, her breath came out in ragged tatters.* Kimika: Ah, aaah! It feels so good... It's moving inside me! Kimika: I can't take it... I can't... I! Kimika: At this rate, I'm going to... I-I... I can't take it... Kimika: Ah, ah, ahhh! I can feel it... tingling... Aaah, my body is tingling... Aah! Kimika: I feel strange! I can feel your warm dick... moving inside me, I―Aaah! *Her ass was completely opened up... It easily took in the entire length of my dick.* Kimika: Aaah! It's coming, I can feel it coming in! It's all the way in... Aaah! Aaah... Now it's going... Now it's going out! *It went in and out, not even giving me time to breathe.* Kimika: Aaah, my ass... my savior, it's coming. Aaaah! I can feel it... It's my first time, but it feels so good... Aah, my savior. Takuji: Kimika... This is amazing. I can feel you loosening up... Kimika: Ooh, aaah, aaah! Aauh, aah, I can feel it inside me... Aaaah! *Shlup, shlup, shlup...* Kimika: Ah, I can't take it... I can't hold back... Aaah... Takuji: It's all right... I'm going to explode any moment now... Takuji: I-I'm... going to cum... K-Kimika... Kimika: Aaah, give it to me... Aaah, aaaauhhh... My Saaavior!! Kimika: Ah... Ahahaha... I-It's coming out... Your sperm... Aaah... I-I can't hold it back... Kimika: Aah!! *Just a moment after me...* *She probably held back until I came...* Kimika: Haa... Ah... Aah, aah. *The contractions slowly subsided...* Takuji: When you say it like that, I actually see the choices. Knock it off... Kimika: Hehehe... You play too many games. Kimika: All right. I figured you liked it plain. Takuji: What do you mean, plain... Kimika: Well then, excuse me. *Kimika pushed the tip into her pussy.* Kimika: Ah... *She was breathing hard.* Takuji: Are you all right? Kimika: Ah, haha... I'm all right... Huh? The drugs should still be working, but it kind of hurts. Kimika: But... it'll probably start working soon... *The entrance was too tight... It was like it was completely closed.* Kimika: Damn it... I'll get it in there. Aaah! Takuji: A-Are you all right? Kimika: Ahh, aaahh... I'm fine... We have penetration... *She took another breath and started moving her hips.* *My tip moved went further inside her.* Kimika: Aah, aah... *As it went further in, she started to moan.* Kimika: Ah! Ah! Aaah! *My brain was numb with pleasure as I listened to her moaning.* *Her pussy was very warm and tight as it pressed on my dick from all sides.* Kimika: My savior... You don't need to hold back... Ah! Takuji: H-Hold back? Kimika: Hehehe... You're about to cum, right? Hehehe, go ahead and cum inside me... Aaah! C-Come on... Takuji: Ah... Kimika. *I'm sad to say it, but... I was about to cum already.* *I couldn't hold it in any longer.* Takuji: A-All right... I'm going to... Kimika: Yeah... It's fine. You can cum, just like that... Right inside me... Takuji: Aah, I-I'm going to... Aaah. Kimika: Aaah? Aaah, ah, aaaaaah!! Kimika: Ooh... I can feel you... cumming inside me. It feels amazing. Takuji: A-Aaah... Kimika: Ahahaha... It's still coming out. Amazing... I can really feel it. Takuji: ...Really? Kimika: I guess, I would say... I can feel something moving inside me... I can kind of feel it. Kimika: How should I put it... It's like, I can feel you filling me up... Takuji: Oh... Kimika: Hehehe... Did it feel good, my savior? Takuji: Yeah... Kimika: Um... I'm sorry! Takuji: ? *Kimika suddenly kissed me.* Kimika: Mm, aaah... Mm, ah. Takuji: Mm... Ah... *As we kissed, she started moving her hips.* *I already came, but it was still erect...* Kimika: Mm, mm, aah... Mm, mm... *We entwined our tongues together as we kissed.* *And our genitals were entwined as well, still wet from before. We were connected both above and below.* *Kimika lusted after me... She stuck her tongue in my mouth as she moved her hips.* Kimika: I-I'm sorry, I'm sorry... It's over, but... I'm sorry! Aah, ah... Kimika: I-I can't stop myself... A-At this rate, hmm, aah, aaah... *Before, she was just playing around... Now she lusted after me as if something inside her had broken.* Takuji: Ah... It feels good for me too... Kimika: Ha, aah... I'm sorry... Making you do it twice... *Her pussy became even tighter, but she never slowed down... Her hips started moving even more violently.* *We violently embraced each other... Our skin touching, our body heat being shared, as if we were melting into each other.* Kimika: My savior... Aah! I can't... I'm going to... Takuji: Y-Yeah... It's fine... Go ahead and cum. Kimika: C-Can I? You don't mind? I'm... I'm cumming. *Her body stiffened.* *At the same time, my penis swelled and started to unload inside her yet again.* Takuji: Ah! Kimika: Aaah?! I-I'm cumming. I'm cumming... Haaa, ha, ah, aaaah!! Takuji: Ahh! Kimika: Ah, aaah, ah... Aaaaaah!!

Kimika: I wonder if everyone can see it. Takuji: Yeah, they can. That's why they're all so cheerful... They have to see it. *I stood under the final sky.* *It already seemed like I could reach out and touch it.* *I'd come to a place where it seemed like my outstretched hand was mere inches from the edge of the universe.* *That's why they were all celebrating.* *Jumping around on the roof.* *They were celebrating the last sky in this world.* *The world will end.* *So we're all going to return to the sky.* *Return to the last sky in the world...* *The light from all the stars in the sky rained down on us. How many millions, how many billions of years ago was the light that's illuminating us now emitted?* *The light was born in the distant past so that it could illuminate us. It traveled for billions of years to deliver us light.* *That's something worth celebrating.* *The last sky.* *We stood at the edge of the universe.* *The place called... End Sky.* Kimika: Hey, does it look like the same thing to everyone? Or is it different? How does the End Sky look? Takuji: What does it look like to you? Kimika: It's like fireworks in the sky. Takuji: Huh? Wasn't that what came in the Unhappy Meal you saw yesterday? Kimika: That's right. That's why I think the End Sky is just some cheap piece of crap like the toys they give away at McDonalds! Takuji: You're a cheap woman, that's why you see such a cheap End Sky. Kimika: Whoa, that's cruel! You're such a meanie, my savior. Takuji: Well, fireworks are really beautiful, so that's okay... Don't you think so, Kimika? Kimika: Yeah! It's great! Thanks for the fireworks, Unhappy Meal! Kimika: Right, everyone?! *Kimika yelled out to the crowd.* *Everyone looked at Kimika.* Kimika: Can you all see the End Sky? Can you see it?! Kimika: Do you want to go there?! Kimika: Whoa! They're all so excited. Kimika: Now then, this is my final question for you all! What does the End Sky look like to you?! *Everyone screamed at the same time, so I couldn't hear a thing.* *Jeez, what's she doing?* *They all talked about their own End Sky, one after another. Every one of them yelled at the top of their lungs.* Kimika: Ahahahaha, really?! Wow! I couldn't really understand any of that, but I could tell by your enthusiasm! I understand perfectly! Kimika: This is the last sky! *Kimika yelled back to the crowd.* *Right beside me... so joyfully...* Kimika: All right! Destroy that fence! *Kimika picked up a mallet.* *Then several others waved their mallets over their heads.* *That stupid woman... She brought mallets too? Or maybe she made the believers gather them?* *Actually, now that I look, it seems like someone got hit with one of those.* *There's so much blood...* *What a silly ritual.* Takuji: I thought I told you this was supposed to be a solemn occasion. Kimika: Hahahahahaha! You were too slow! Takuji: Jeez... They're making a mess of the whole thing. Kimika: Isn't it better this way? Look, they're all having so much fun. Takuji: I guess they are... Takuji: Not like I care, but you're taking over too many of my responsibilities. Knock it off. Kimika: It'll be okay. I'm going to leave the finale to you, my savior. Believer: W-Wow... Believer: A colossal cross... Believer: It looks like... a huge door. Believer: I see a key and a keyhole. *They all tried to put what they saw in the final sky into words.* *The world's last sky... How does it appear to them?* *The world's final scene.* *The world's final words.* *People dancing.* *People fighting.* *People laughing.* *People happily destroying the building here under the sky.* *People already covered in blood.* *The sky peering down on us from overhead.* *A dark blue sky, absent the light of the stars, pressed down on us from above.* *A beautiful night sky.* *Someone set off fireworks.* *For some reason, a spark caused a pillar of flame to bellow up from the ground.* *Someone brought a can of gasoline...* *Some idiot must have brought the gasoline from the generator up here.* *A pillar of flame on the rooftop.* *A huge pillar of flame.* *Several people got caught in the flames and burnt alive.* *Even with the drugs, that must have hurt... They had burns all over their bodies.* *To an outsider, this sight would look like a peek into hell itself.* *Why are they all having so much fun in this hell?* *This is the last sky.* *The sky of the end.* *Looking out from their eyes... what does this final sky look like?* *Fireworks.* *That's what Kimika said... Fireworks, huh? That's a pretty good answer.* *She's right. This sky does look like it's full of fireworks.* *The stars twinkled in the sky.* *They twinkled like the embers of a skyrocket in bloom...* *This is the limit.* *The sky where all duality comes to an end.* *And thus we looked up at the sky that had taken on the light of the fireworks.* Kimika: Now the party is in full swing! I'll leave the rest to our one and only savior! Kimika: He's everyone's idol, your one and only savior! This is the finale, so make sure you listen closely! *Pfft... You're the one who's not listening to me.* Takuji: Haa... Takuji: This is a mysterious night. Takuji: A night like any other... and yet completely different... Takuji: But this is most certainly the last stop. Takuji: This place, where we're standing right now... This is the last... Takuji: So the way forward is simple... We can go at any time. Takuji: We can move forward at any time... Takuji: Let's take that step... From this spot, from the final sky. Takuji: Take that step! Kimika: All right, my savior... I guess this is it. Takuji: Kimika? *Kimika was about to jump, but I stopped her.* Takuji: You're last... Kimika: Wha―?! Kimika: Wait! Um... Megu: N-No way, I'm not letting Tachibana go before me! Satoko: I-I'm first! *People flying through the sky.* *People returning to the sky.* *At the edge of the world... the people headed toward the sky.* *They extended their arms wider and wider, like they were trying to grab onto the world itself.* *The people went to the sky.* *Some of them said their farewells to me before they went.* *But most of them were taken by passion, and they went screaming and jumping into the sky as soon as they could.* *They screamed.* *Meaningless words...* *Truly meaningless words.* *Today feels especially good... especially comfortable.* *A cool breeze.* *A beautiful blue.* *A world of light.* *A good day to die.* *Someone once said that.* *An incredible number of people jumped the smashed fence and flew into the sky.* *There were some people who had been injured or burned too badly to move, but others picked them up and threw them into the sky.* *They too were sucked into the great blue sky.* *Before I knew it... the commotion had disappeared.* *The great clamor turned into unbroken silence.* *Before I knew it... only Kimika and I stood on the rooftop.* *I embraced Kimika on the desolate rooftop.* Kimika: Ahahahaha... I'm happy that I can hold your hand at the end. Kimika: But this isn't good... Takuji: What isn't? Kimika: I don't deserve happiness. Kimika: I only deserve unhappiness... But... But... I... *Kimika disentangled her hand from mine.* Kimika: My savior, this is it... Takuji: What? Kimika: Once I die, it'll all be over. Takuji: Wh-What do you mean? Kimika: Before I knew about what you had planned... I tried to stop your grand plan... Takuji: Plan? Kimika: That's right... I'm sorry that I didn't understand. Takuji: What are you talking about? Kimika: It should've been me, my savior. Kimika: ...I'm the one who absolutely has to die. Kimika: I have to fall from a high place... and splatter myself all over the ground... and die. Kimika: That's right. I should've died... I have to die... And of course, I have to end my life with my own hands. Takuji: ...With your own hands? Kimika: Yes! Because I betrayed her. I betrayed Zakuro. Kimika: She tried to talk to me, but I betrayed her. Takuji: Yeah... I know. Kimika: But honestly, even after I betrayed her, she never hated me. I couldn't forgive her for that. Kimika: As much as the girls who bullied us... No, even more than them. I couldn't forgive her. Kimika: Why didn't she hate me? Why didn't she ever want to get revenge? Kimika: Why? What made her do that? Why wouldn't she hate me? Why didn't she curse me? Why did she smile at me? Kimika: Just thinking about that made me so, so, so mad that I couldn't take it. She annoyed me so much... I couldn't stand it. Kimika: I don't give two shits about Megu or Satoko... I couldn't care less if they died... Kimika: To me, only Zakuro mattered. She was the most important figure in my life. She never hated me... She always smiled at me... And I couldn't forgive her for that. It was so hard. Kimika: I wanted to kill her. Kimika: So when she died and the curse reared its head... I was incredibly happy. Kimika: I was so happy. Kimika: Oh, Zakuro finally got mad at me. She finally hates me. Kimika: Now she can actually see me for what I am... Kimika: Now she's finally seeing me as human. Kimika: Not looking down on me from upon high, but instead standing next to me. *Looking at her...* *I see...* *Takashima Zakuro certainly did save Tachibana Kimika from persecution.* *I heard that Zakuro was bullied in her place.* *But to Kimika, it's not like that.* *To Kimika, who was ignored while Zakuro was bullied, it was an unforgivable act of betrayal.* *It was the same as ignoring her own existence.* *Since Takashima Zakuro refused to face Tachibana directly... she could never have been Tachibana's friend...* *For Tachibana, their relationship wasn't one between two equals because Takashima refused to get angry or hate her.* *Takashima-san's good will must have weighed more heavily on her shoulders than any insult.* *Sometimes, good intentions can cause far more evil than bad ones... The road to hell is paved with good intentions.* *Takashima-san's good intentions must have seemed like haughty pride or pity.* Kimika: You know... I've always wondered about something since I was a child. Kimika: There's one thing I could just never, ever understand. Kimika: Haven't you heard people say that a person who dies after committing a grave sin is only running away... That they should live and pay back their debt to society... *She looked to the sky and spat out those words under her breath.* Kimika: What's up with that? Kimika: I don't understand at all. Live and pay it back? Even though the person you commited the sin against is dead? Kimika: What if the person is dead? How can you make recompense to the dead by living on in this life? Kimika: You have to look someone in the eyes before you can ever make amends. How should a living person look the dead in the eyes? All that crap is just stuff people say to make themselves feel better. Kimika: To make amends to the dead, one has to be dead... That much should be obvious. Kimika: In the past, revenge was seen as virtuous... The only way to satisfy a dead man's anger is to kill the person who killed him. Kimika: That's just common sense. Kimika: Or as you would put it, it's a truth that the liars have hidden away from the world. Kimika: A death can only be repaid with another death. Kimika: So... Kimika: So once Zakuro died... there was only one way to pay for my sins. Kimika: Death. Kimika: The people who bullied her, and all the people who saw it happening and did nothing... All of them had to die. Kimika: That was the only true way for us to atone. Kimika: Hehe, isn't that messed up? How can the living repay the dead? Kimika: A change of heart? Or maybe just by apologizing? Or should they work to prevent any further deaths? Hehe... If you told them of their sins, they would swear any of those in an instant. Kimika: They would just say they bullied her because the world was unfair, or because they were scared about the future. Kimika: So they would swear any oath you asked them to. Please forgive us, we swear this will never happen again! Kimika: Hehe, liars, liars, fucking liars... Kimika: Only death can repay the dead. That's obvious. The only thing that carries the same value as death is death. Kimika: My death, and the death of all the rest of them... We all have to die. Kimika: We have to die the same way she did, or if not a more gruesome death than hers. Kimika: That's why... Kimika: When I first heard about you online... my mind went blank for a moment. Kimika: Who the fuck is this? Who does he think he is? The savior? Kimika: So when I met you, I asked.. * You think you can stop the curse? Don't fuck with me!"* Kimika: He's an enemy. He's a demon trying to erase Zakuro's feelings. Kimika: So I have to stop him. I have to kill him... Kimika: Zakuro's curse is real. She had every right to curse us. I wouldn't let anyone stop her curse, not even God himself. Kimika: That's why I approached you. Kimika: I was going to kill you for trying to stop Zakuro's curse. Kimika: But you were different. I was totally mistaken. Kimika: I understood everything on the first day... On that day... Kimika: I watched you, my savior. I found your secret base, and I saw what was on your computer. Kimika: I was really surprised... Like, this guy is really incredible. Kimika: You were trying to kill way more people than I was... You wanted to return not only yourself but as many other people as you could to the sky... Kimika: The sky... where Zakuro is, where her soul is enshrined. That's where you wanted to send as many people as possible. Kimika: I thought it was probably something you were doing for your own gain. Kimika: But I knew I had to kill as many other people as possible for basically the same reason as you. Kimika: I knew you were trying to kill a great number of people... No, return them to the sky. Kimika: So I knew you were the same as me... That made you Zakuro's ally. Takuji: Kimika... Kimika: Soon, I realized you had Zakuro's cell phone too. Every time I reported back to you where Senagawa was... her phone would ring. Kimika: Even a fool could've figured out that you were the one sending those messages. Kimika: But you were making mistakes. Sometimes you forgot to send the messages... Kimika: Sometimes you would space out and start talking to yourself... I got tired of waiting for you to get stuff done, so I started doing everything myself. Kimika: I made Senagawa feel true fear... and killed her. Kimika: I honestly thought that was an amazing plan. I never would've thought of that... Kimika: Which made me think, this guy is a bit airheaded, but he really is the savior. I don't know what the other people thought, but to me you really were the savior. Kimika: I probably hated Senagawa Yui more than Zakuro herself did. Kimika: I don't actually know who Zakuro hated the most, but... Kimika: But when you said that Zakuro hated Senagawa the most... my heart fluttered. Kimika: Amazing. This guy is amazing. He understands. He's speaking the truth. Kimika: I don't know about Zakuro, but I know that I never could've forgiven Senagawa. I wanted to make her die a more gruesome death than anyone else. Kimika: That's why I was amazed by your plan. Kimika: If possible, I would've liked.. * to make Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko die in utter terror like she did."* Kimika: So I did my best to think something up... Kimika: But in the end, I just decided to leave it to you. Kimika: You were the one who made Zakuro's curse into a reality, so I knew you were the only one who could make my wish come true. Kimika: You're the savior... You're my savior... Kimika: No one really looked at me... No one ever looked at me... Not even Zakuro was really looking at me... Kimika: She was just a good girl... She was incredibly kind, and her soul was beautiful. That's the only reason she talked to me. Kimika: You're the only one who truly looked at me for who I am... You really talked to me, looked me in the eyes, got mad at me, laughed with me, got annoyed with me... You showed me all these emotions. Kimika: You're a boy, but you don't seem interested in sex at all.. * Well, I guess you do jerk off a lot."* Takuji: What did you say? Kimika: Oh, but I do that too.. * Just once in a while, though."* Kimika: We went up on the roof to hear the God's song, right? Kimika: I was totally tripping, so I kept rambling about cows and stuff... Hehehe. Kimika: But you know, I really did hear God's song. Kimika: I found out that the difference between the world and God... is the difference between words and music. Kimika: I felt that truth deep in my soul. Kimika: No one could've told me that... No one knew that... Teachers, parents, writers, politicians―they're all the same. They just talk about boring crap. Kimika: But you taught me so many things... Kimika: The world is cruel... and the world is impure, bu * it's also incredibly beautiful."* Kimika: That night... we sang, and danced, and screamed, and spun around till we fell to the ground. All the stars fell from the sky, and everything in the world glittered just for me... Kimika: I realized that's what it was all about. Kimika: It was something you said before, my savior. You can't measure the world's value only by the time you spend in it... And you can't measure its value with meaning either. Kimika: That night, I tried to measure the weight of the world with that scale... Kimika: And when I did, the world's weight was exactly the same as God's weight! Kimika: In that very moment, the world was the exact same weight as God... Kimika: Dance, dance, dance with the music... Kimika: Dance with the savior... Dance through the universe... Kimika: Dance outside the cage... Kimika: The world's first dance outside the cage. Kimika: So now... it's over. Kimika: This is the end. Kimika: But... now that I've killed all these people, I understand for the first time... Kimika: The meaning of the words 'Live on and repay your debt.' Kimika: I know that it's selfish for me to ask you this! B-But... Kimika: My savior, you... At least you should continue to live! Kimika: Even if no one else, at least you... Please live on and repay our debt. Kimika: I'll be the final death. Kimika: The last life that needs to be sacrificed to Zakuro is mine. Kimika: Sometimes I wonder if this really was a curse. Kimika: I was never scared of dying... Kimika: But that's only because I never had any regrets. Kimika: I can't believe that now, at the very end, I've found one thing to regret. Kimika: Ahaha... I can't believe I fell in love just before the end. Kimika: I want someone to make love to me, even just once. Kimika: I have one regret in my life... Takuji: Kimika... Kimika: But... I can't! I can't do that. Kimika: If I do everything I want to do before I die, I won't truly be able to atone for my mistakes. Kimika: I have to atone for what I did to her... Kimika: I made her curse come true, so my dance with you, and with God, was just a little reward. Kimika: If that gave some value to my world, then that's enough. That reward is enough to give my world some meaning. Kimika: All that's left is for me to atone. Kimika: So... please, my savior, stay here. *Just like that, her body... Just like that...* *The world tilted at a diagonal.* *Kimika's body wasn't parallel with the world anymore.* *She moved from the world of parallel lines to the one of free fall, two irreconcilable worlds.* *She was sucked down.* *She said,* *this is my atonement.* *She said.* *this is enough.* *She said,* *this is the value of my world.* *I think.* *That's a load of shit.* *Who cares about the world?* *Who cares about atonement?* *Who cares about Takashima?* *Who cares about the curse?* *Who cares about death?* *I want to embrace her.* *I just want to hold her close.* *I don't care if I live on.* *I don't care if anyone lives on.* *The world,* *me,* *Kimika.* *None of us need to live on.* *Everything can just disappear.* *I just,* *I just want* *to hold her in my arms.* *Even if it's just for one second before death.* *Even if it's just a glitter in a fleeting world,* *I want to feel the warmth of her living body.* *So I jumped.* Kimika: Ah! Takuji: Kimika! *Complete freefall.* *I never intended to survive the fall,* *I never intended to save Kimika...* *No, in truth, I wanted her to live.* *Even if I die, I want her to live.* *But...* *That wish will never be fulfilled.* *A dream I can never grasp...* *In a few seconds, she and I will splatter onto the concrete.* *We'll probably just be deformed piles of flesh.* *But...* *Even so...* *I want to hold Kimika.* *I want to hold her tight.* *I just want to hold her tight... here in freefall.* *Simply feeling her warmth is enough for me.* *When she saw me, Kimika cried and said...* Kimika: You dummy... *She was crying, but she seemed happy too.* *She seemed very sad, but also very happy.* *I'm sure she was struggling with a lot of emotions.* *I felt that her happiness outweighed all the rest.* *She smiled and hugged me back.* *She squeezed me tight.* *I'll never let you go.* *I've always wanted to do this.* *She said that to me with something much faster than words.* *There are things that travel much faster than words.* *There are things that ring much truer than words.* *Even in those fleeting moments, the world holds meaning.* *The world holds significance.* *The end is coming.* *The final moment.* *Ah...* *Sirens in the distance.* *The black sky.* *The laughing moon.* *The dew upon the earth.* *The dancing stars.* *The cool air.* *Something warm within me.* *Tachibana Kimika...* *As I held her in my arms... she silently closed her eyes.* *And then I also...* *quietly closed my eyes.*

*Maybe... that was the last sky.* *Maybe... that was the world's limit.* *The final sky.* *End Sky.* *The world's edge... I was standing at the end of the earth...* *The place where the gigantic snake found its own tail.* Kimika: My savior! Takuji: Yeah... I wonder if everyone else can see it. *Everyone was celebrating.* *Like a dog pulling out a leash to ask for a walk... Bark, bark, bark.* *They danced around the rooftop.* *What an end for the world...* *The world was ending.* *So we're going to return to the sky.* *Like the first time a child sees snow. Bark, bark, bark... No, that would be a dog.* *The world's final sky.* *Instead of snow, we had a sky full of stars.* *The stars sparkled on the world's final night.* *The time of fear recorded in the Book of Revelation.* *But the fools were celebrating... Bark, bark, bark...* *Whether the stars come out or snow falls for the first time, it's all the same.* Kimika: Why wouldn't they see it? I can see it just fine. Takuji: What do you see? Kimika: It's like, the border is held together with cellophane tape. Takuji: What? Kimika: Well, I mean... You said the world's beginning and end are connected. It looks like you rolled it up and taped the ends together. Takuji: That's what you see? Kimika: Yes! Clear as day! Takuji: That's your End Sky, huh... Kimika: Yes. In my End Sky, the beginning and end are held together with tape! Takuji: Is that the kind of place where you want to go? Kimika: I SUPER want to go there! Kimika: Hey, everyone! *Kimika shouted to the crowd.* *Everyone looked at her.* Kimika: Do you want to go to the End Sky? Kimika: Look, my savior! Everyone SUPER wants to go! Kimika: What does the End Sky look like to you all? *I couldn't tell what they were screaming.* *Calm down a little... my believers.* *You can talk about what you all see, one by one. You can even scream it.* Kimika: Really?! I can't hear you at all... Well, anyway, this is the final sky! *Kimika yelled.* *At my side... like she was having so much fun...* Kimika: All right! Let's break that fence! *Kimika picked up a mallet.* *Then several others waved their mallets over their heads.* *That stupid woman... She brought mallets too? Or maybe she made the believers gather them?* *Actually, now that I look, it seems like someone got hit with one of those.* *There's so much blood...* *What a silly ritual...* Takuji: Wait, wait... Kimika, calm down. You're messing up the ritual. Kimika: Really? Isn't it supposed to be a celebration? This is the last festival, my savior. Takuji: Well, I guess so... Kimika: Go on, break that fence! That's the barrier standing in our way! Kimika: Destroy the barrier! Destroy it! Return to the sky! Kimika: It's the Berlin Wall! This is a victory for democracy! Are you stupid? You actually believed that? Anyway, I want that wall torn down! Kimika: Destroy! Destroy! Tear it down! Hammers! Heavy metal! Ma**o! Ha**er brothers! Kimika: Do it, Ha**er Brothers! Take down Ma**o! Take down the psychiatrist who denies Ma**o-sama's great deeds! Rip him to pieces Takuji: Kimika... I don't get it. I don't know what you're talking about at all. Kimika: Ahahaha, I'm just going along with it. That's what's really important right now! Takuji: Whatever you say, but don't take my job. Kimika: Ehehehe. It'll be all right... My savior, your voice isn't as loud as mine, is it? And your wounds look pretty bad... Takuji: I guess so... Kimika: You don't look too good. Takuji: Yeah, I might not have enough blood left. Kimika: Do you want to drink some of mine? Takuji: The savior isn't a vampire. That won't heal me... Kimika: Oh, really? That's kind of inconvenient. Takuji: Yeah, I guess. Believer: W-Whoa... Believer: A colossal cross... Believer: It looks like a huge door. Believer: I see a key and a keyhole... *They all tried to put what they saw in the final sky into words.* *The world's last sky... How does it appear to them?* *The world's final scene.* *The world's final words.* *People dancing.* *People fighting.* *People laughing.* *People happily destroying the building here under the sky.* *People already covered in blood.* *Under the final sky.* *The stars shined out from every inch of that dark blue sky...* *A beautiful night sky.* *Someone set off fireworks.* *For some reason, a spark caused a pillar of flame to bellow up from the ground.* *Someone brought a can of gasoline...* *Some idiot must have brought the gasoline from the generator up here.* *A pillar of flame on the rooftop.* *A huge pillar of flame.* *Several people got caught in the flames and burnt alive.* *Even with the drugs, that must have hurt... They had burns all over their bodies.* *To an outsider, this sight would look like a peek into hell itself.* *Why are they all having so much fun in this hell?* *Under the End Sky... I hesitated.* *I hesitated at the end of the world.* *I was struck by the joy... and the happiness here.* *Why does it shine so?* *Why do they all shine so?* *Everyone shone.* *They all shone as if their lives were being illuminated by a great light.* *The final sky reflected their lives like nothing else could. It made them shine so beautifully that I was convinced this was the meaning to their lives.* *Shine brighter!* *Light our lives!* *Suddenly, the words floated up from my memory.* *The time is during the first World War! The preeminent philosopher of the 20th century stood on the battlefield.* *He saw the beauty of his life as he stood within that storm of bullets.* *He wrote that his life was most beautiful in a world where he could die at any moment.* *"God, light our lives!"* *His name was Wittgenstein.* *"Tell them."* *"I've had a wonderful life!"* *"Tell my friends I've had an amazing, wonderful life!"* *He said those words just before he died.* *Anyone could see he had been unhappy in life.* *Anyone could see he had been troubled.* *They say his pupil was confused by those words.* *What part of your life was so wonderful?* *He had a bad temper, and he was always a rude person.* *All the books talk about how he was such a bothersome person.* *An incredibly bothersome person.* *Nonsensical, selfish, and... a genius.* *Huh? But why do I know his name...* *I hate difficult books like that.* *But Wittgenstein repudiated suicide.* *Since he was always on the verge of suicide himself...* *He was such a maniac that he wrote his diaries in cipher.* *A genius, and a devil.* *He said this.* *"Live happily!"* *What right does such a thoroughly unhappy person have to say that?!* *But now I understand.* *If this is the world's limit...* *If this is the world's edge...* *The world is nothing but a vessel...* *Someone once said that human life is empty and meaningless.* *Of course... The world is nothing but a vessel. There's nothing that can fill it.* *What can fill that vessel?* *Money? Dreams? Fame? Women? Eroge?* *That's ridiculous... Those too are part of the vessel.* *They're all part of the world.* *Everything that can be described... everything that can be put into words... is nothing more than the world.* *That which can fill the world must lie outside of the world.* *"The subject does not belong to the world but it is a limit of the world."* *"The sense of the world must lie outside the world. In the world everything is as it is and happens as it does happen."* *"In it there is no value."* *The words of the great philosopher who said, "Tell them I've had a wonderful life."* *I feel like... I can understand the meaning of those words.* *The words of a great philosopher who lived long ago, in a far away place, resonated within me.* *Now, let's fill our vessel!* *Let's light our lives!* *Don't hold back... Don't hold death back!* *Life shines when freed from its restraints.* *This sky will light our lives.* *It will light our lives with its pale blue light.* *But we will be the ones shining in the sky!* *It is within this world of blue that we can understand that fact.* *This is the last sky.* *The sky of the end.* *How will they all be reflected... in this final sky?* *The border of the sky held together with tape.* *The colossal cross.* *The blue ocean glimpsed from within a white room.* *Power lines that continue into eternity.* *The Virgin Mary depicted within the Church of Rosaries.* *This is the final edge.* *The sky where all duality ends.* *The shining moon.* *The sky full of stars.* *The lights of people spread out across the land...* *Like a party.* *Beyond a ritual... Just a party.* *The world's final party.* *The first and last moment of life in this world.* Kimika: Now then, the savior has something to say. Kimika: Give him your undivided attention! *You're the one who's not paying attention to me...* Takuji: This is... Takuji: This is the end of the sky... Takuji: This is the world's limit... Takuji: We are standing beneath the final sky... Takuji: The rest is simple... The rest is easy. Takuji: You can reach the sky... effortlessly... Takuji: Let's return to the sky... Kimika: Well then, my savior... This is it. Takuji: Kimika? Kimika: Someone needs to go first... I'll go. I'll leave the rest to you. Kimika: The last few days... I've had a lot of fun. Takuji: Eh? Kimika: Does anyone have anything left to do in this world? *My question was blocked out by her yelling.* Kimika: Is there anything you still need to do in this world? Kimika: And what the hell do we really need to do anyway? Kimika: Eat! Sleep! Jack off! That's all you guys do, right?! Kimika: I'm pretty much the same! Eating, sleeping, or masturbating! Kimika: But there's nothing left... Yeah, it feels like I've done everything I need to do. Kimika: So I'm going to return to the sky! Kimika: Happily! Come on, follow me! *The broken fence.* *Nothing separated us from the sky anymore.* *We just needed to take one step... and fly.* *That's all.* *Kimika was smiling as she yelled out again.* Kimika: Now fly to the final sky! *Kimika flew.* *Kimika flew like a shooting star in reverse.* *Kimika floated in the sky... She rose and rose...* *She went faster and faster as her voice receded.* *They were inspired...* Megu: W-Wait, why do you think you get to go before me?! Satoko: M-Me too! *As Kimika flew into the sky... those two followed her.* *People flying through the sky.* *People returning to the sky.* *At the edge of the world... the people headed toward the sky.* *They extended their arms wider and wider, like they were trying to grab onto the world itself.* *The people went to the sky.* Believer: Let's go together. Believer: Yeah. Believer: We'll be together again in the complete world. Believer: Yeah. Believer: Here goes. Believer: Thank you, my savior. *Some of them were hesitant.* *But most of them flew into the sky immediately without thinking twice.* *They just screamed.* *Words without meaning...* *Truly meaningless words.* *Today feels especially good... It feels especially comfortable.* *A cool breeze.* *A beautiful blue.* *A world of light.* *It's a good day to die.* *Someone said that once.* *An amazing number of people passed over the broken fence and stepped over the borderline.* *Some of them couldn't move because they had been injured or burnt, but there were several believers throwing these people into the sky as well.* *They too were sucked into the sky.* *Before I realized it... all the commotion had disappeared.* *All that noise had changed into complete silence.* *When I came to my senses... I was the only one standing there.* *I stood on the rooftop... alone.* *Hehehe, there's no one left.* *Just me...* *It's really over...* *I heard the sounds of sirens in the distance.* *Of course the police were called after we made such a commotion.* *People dancing on the roof, committing vandalism, and then flying...* *...* *Now...* *Now it's over...* *My...* *My wonderful life... is over.* *That's right... I was meant to do this from the beginning.* *From the beginning?* *Huh? Why did I ever try to do this?* *I feel like I can't quite remember something important.* *What was the reason why I had to do this?* *Actually, Yuuki...* *Yuuki Tomosane... Why did he apologize at the end?* *Who was he apologizing to...* *What was he apologizing for?* *Who did he try to protect?* Takuji: Hehehehe... Takuji: It's not important. It doesn't matter anymore. Takuji: I have nothing left to do here. Takuji: I haven't forgotten anything... Takuji: That's right... Nothing I've forgotten. Nothing... Takuji: I haven't forgotten it... I don't need it. Takuji: I don't need those words. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji! *Huh?* *I've heard this voice before...* *This voice is... Oh, it's her.* *The woman who was intended to harmonize the world in the aftermath.* Yuki: Mamiya, you―! Takuji: Huh? Takuji: Oh. Takuji: Minakami Yuki-san... Yuki: You... Takuji: So you were still there. I just saved everyone. Yuki: Saved? Is this salvation? Takuji: That's right. Yuki: Are you that stupid? Takuji: Salvation, huh? Salvation... *I thought about something completely unrelated.* *Something that's not even tangentially related.* *Minakami-san slowly explained the truth of the incident.* *She's a great detective.* *So I went along with her and acted like I was the culprit, caught red handed.* Takuji: Heheheh. What a wonderful deduction, Minakami-san. You're almost totally correct. *I declared that in the voice of a charismatic cult leader.* *It was strangely satisfying.* *Well...* *More importantly, what I was thinking about.* *If I'm going to jump, I should've taken a shower first. I haven't changed my clothes lately either...* *And I didn't wash after having sex with Kimika... I just wiped myself off with a tissue.* *Kimika didn't bathe herself either... She really should have. She is a girl after all...* *I came inside, you know... Don't you mind, Kimika?* Yuki: It wasn't a supernatural phenomenon or God or a ghost or anything like that. Just a single person. You came up with the whole thing. Yuki: You broke into my room and left Takashima-san's phone. And Kagami and Tsukasa... Yuki: What was that? Yuki: How did they... Yuki: They... They... Yuki: Just what did you do to me?! Yuki: Tell me that! Takuji: ... Takuji: I haven't done anything to you. Yuki: Th-That can't be true. Takuji: Sorry to say, but I haven't done a single thing to you. Yuki: That's a lie! That can't be true! You did something to me! Takuji: I didn't. I can't do anything to you. Yuki: Then what was that I saw?! What is all this?! *Oh... The sirens are almost here.* *I don't have any more time to play along with her.* *Ahahahaha...* *That's right...* *I wonder if this will surprise her?* Takuji: Though I did love you. *Not really.* *Now then.* *From parallel lines to the world of perpendicular descent.* *I was sucked down.* *Complete freefall.* *The final instant.* *Ah...* *The sirens in the distance.* *The blue sky.* *The laughing moon.* *The spinning earth.* *The dancing stars.* *The cool air.* *God and music.* *With a pleasant glow...* *It all lit up.*

*Lewis Carroll - "Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There"* *'and if you're not good directly,' she added,* *'I'll put you through into Looking-glass House.'* *'How would you like THAT?'* *'Now, if you'll only attend, Kitty,* *and not talk so much,* *I'll tell you all my ideas about Looking-glass House.'* *'First, there's the room you can see through the glass―* *that's just the same as our drawing room, only the things go the other way. I can see all of it when I get upon a chair―* *all but the bit behind the fireplace.'* *'Oh! I do so wish I could see THAT bit!'* *'I want so much to know whether they've a fire in the winter:* *you never CAN tell, you know,* *unless our fire smokes, and then smoke comes up in that room too― but that may be only pretence,* *just to make it look as if they had a fire.'* *'Well then, the books are something like our books, only the words go the wrong way;* *I know that, because I've held up one of our books to the glass, and then they hold up one in the other room.'* *I wonder if there are beautiful things in the world of mirrors...* *I wonder if there are wonderful things in the world of mirrors...* *My self in the world of mirrors makes a bored face, just like I do.* *The same bored face as the person in this boring world.* *I wonder why Alice thought the world of mirrors was different than ours.* *No. She saw that the world was reversed, and she wondered if the smoke coming from the fireplace was real.* *But even in the world of mirrors, I'm still making a bored face... That side might be boring too.* *That's what I think.* *The world of mirrors is just like this one.* *But to Alice, the world of mirrors looked like a wonderful place.* *'How would you like to live in Looking-glass House, Kitty?* *Wonder if they'd give you milk in there? Perhaps Looking-glass milk isn't good to drink―* *But oh, Kitty! now we come to the passage.* *You can just see a little PEEP of the passage in Looking-glass House, if you leave the door of our drawing-room wide open:* *and it's very like our passage as far as you can see, only you know it may be quite different on beyond.'* *'Oh, Kitty! how nice it would be if we could only get through* *into Looking-glass House!* *I'm sure it's got, oh! such beautiful things in it!'* *A Sunday afternoon.* *A department store roof.* *I happened to spot someone I knew.* *That person always wore a different face.* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Who are you? Zakuro: Uh... Umm... *He was smoking, even though he's underage.* *I don't really think Mamiya-kun is a low life, but...* Zakuro: Wh-What a coincidence seeing you here. Mamiya: A coincidence? Well, I suppose so. *A disinterested response came back at me.* *What's this... He might be harder to get along with than I thought.* *But it's strange.* *I'm terribly shy...* *And... I hate lowlifes.* *Someone smoking here, at a time like this, might be the kind of person who would hurt me, but...* *But for some reason... I talked to him.* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun, are you... Mamiya: Hmm? Zakuro: A lowlife? Mamiya: ... Mamiya: ...I don't think so. Zakuro: But you're smoking... Mamiya: I guess so. Mamiya: And my grades are terrible, and I skip class all the time... Zakuro: So... a lowlife? Mamiya: If I was, I wouldn't be getting bullied. Everyone wouldn't think I was disgusting, would they? Zakuro: Disgusting? *He thinks he's disgusting?* *But Mamiya-kun is...* Zakuro: But I think you have a really pretty face. Mamiya: Isn't that why I'm disgusting? I'm skinny... and short... and pale... and stupid... and lots of other stuff. Zakuro: So you're disgusting? *I wonder if you could really say he's being bullied.* *I heard he used to be, but now most people are afraid of him.* *Even if there are people who avoid him because they're scared of him. I don't think anyone would bully him.* *And...* *And, unlike me... he carries a few things with him.* *For instance...* Zakuro: You carry a knife, don't you? Isn't that because you're a lowlife? Mamiya: It's because I'm an otaku. Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: I have a survival knife because I'm an otaku. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: Yeah... Nowadays, only otakus carry around knives. Zakuro: ... *I wonder if that's true...* Mamiya: No lowlifes take knives around with them anymore. They haven't been able to carry concealed knives for quite a while. Mamiya: Now only otakus have them... Only disgusting freaks who talk to themselves have knives. Mamiya: So the only people who get searched by the police are the ones carrying black bags and wearing bleached jeans and flannel shirts... Mamiya: Fat girls... or skinny kids with glasses like me... Zakuro: But you don't wear glasses. Mamiya: I got punched a lot by my bullies. I don't wear them anymore, since they're broken. Zakuro: Then how can you see? Mamiya: I can't... Mamiya: I can't see very well, so it's hard to remember people's faces... and I can't really make out what's on the blackboard, either. That's why my grades are so bad. Zakuro: Isn't that a problem? Mamiya: There are people who are better off blind. Mamiya: I... don't really want to be able to see. Zakuro: ... *I felt that I could understand it.* *The reason why I called out to him...* *The boy who carries a knife because he's an otaku...* *Who doesn't get his glasses fixed because he doesn't want to see...* *I know him.* *No... I know his world.* *It's just like the world of mirrors.* *Your world is mine.* *It reflects beautifully. That world reflects me.* *My boring face...* *The me reflected in the world of mirrors is also...* *Boring.* *Mamiya-kun laughed, bored.* Mamiya: Isn't it easier to see as little as possible until you die? Mamiya: After all, most of the things I've seen in my life have been unpleasant. Zakuro: ... Mamiya: Look... that couple... Mamiya: She's really beautiful, right? And the guy is handsome, too. Mamiya: When I see something like that, it kind of... Mamiya: Makes me wish for them to die in the most painful way possible. Mamiya: It makes me want to melt her face with sulfuric acid. Her face would melt and fall off in globs as she yelled in pain... Ahahahaha. Zakuro: ... *I wonder...* *Right now, I can't really think like that.* *I kind of...* *Wouldn't mind if the two could live on happily... and be happy forever.* *That's...* *What I thought when I talked to Mamiya-kun.* *That the world could be happy...* *That you could be happy...* *That's what I wanted to pray for.*

*I absentmindedly looked out the window.* *That's...* *Someone was walking across the schoolyard.* *Why's he out there?* Zakuro: That's... *Mamiya-kun.* *He was carefully walking across the edge of the courtyard... where there was a shadow from the fence.* *He looked like he was trying to step on his shadow.* Zakuro: What is he doing? *He walked to the left side of the schoolyard.* Zakuro: Is he going behind the school? *Actually, that's where the old pool is...* *It looked like he was carrying a bunch of books.* Zakuro: Where's he going? Doesn't he have class? *I looked at the clock.* *It had been ten minutes since class started.* Zakuro: Maybe he's skipping class? *Apparently, he skips classes a lot.* *Though I'm in a different class, so I don't really know how often he skips.* *'And my grades are terrible, and I skip class all the time...'* *That's what he said.* *He said it himself.* *He said his grades were bad. I wonder how bad... Well, if he's skipping class all the time, they can't be all that great.* *While I was thinking about that... he came back again.* *I guess that took about ten minutes?* *He appeared again from the same place he had gone off, walking quickly through the shadows.* *He walked across the yard in less than two minutes and disappeared off in the other direction.* Zakuro: ... *What's he doing?* *I kept looking out the window.* *The world on the other side of the glass looked very hot.* *A few minutes later, he appeared again, carrying several books through the shadows.* Zakuro: Why does he have to walk in the shadows? *He would stand out if he walked across the middle of the schoolyard, but either way, it's not like people aren't going to see him.* Zakuro: Why's he walking in the shadows? *As I was thinking about that, he disappeared behind the school again.* Zakuro: What was he going the other direction for? *The front gate is on the opposite side of the school from the back courtyard.* *So he's going back and forth between the main gate and the back courtyard?* Zakuro: Now that I think of it... *There's a bicycle rack outside the front gate.* *The time between him disappearing and showing up again was too long for him to just be going to the front gate.* *Which would make the bicycle rack his most likely destination.* *Which means...* Zakuro: Maybe he's carrying something from the bicycle rack? *Maybe he brought some books from his house with his bicycle, and now he's carrying them somewhere?* Zakuro: But where's he bringing them to? Zakuro: I don't think there's any place to put books over in that direction... *The old pool is still there, behind the school.* *An indoor pool was installed this spring, so the old one will probably be demolished, but...* *There's not much of anything else over there.* Zakuro: I don't think there's a library or a warehouse or anything over there... *What could he be doing?* Teacher: Remember this part. It'll be on the test. Male Student: What, really? Teacher: Yes, really... Make sure to go back over that part. Female Student: Stand! *The class ended.* *The classroom instantly got noisy.* *And then I noticed class was over.* *Oh no, that's bad.* *I wasn't listening at all.* *I accidentally scribbled all over my math notes.* Zakuro: I just ended up drawing more boring pictures. *But while I was looking outside... I was drawing something.* Zakuro: Hahahaha... That's why everyone says I'm creepy. *I never learn... do I.* *I didn't see Mamiya-kun walking across the yard anymore after class ended.* *This is the break period, even for him, I guess.* *I pushed my math notes into my desk.* Zakuro: I won't be able to use my notes to study with all these scribbles on them... I guess I'll have to throw this notebook away and get a new one. Megu: Takashima! Zakuro: Eh? Ah, yes? Megu: What are you spacing out for? Zakuro: Oh, uh... Sorry. Megu: Hey Takashima, do you have one? Zakuro: Eh? One what? *Akasaka-san gently smiled at me.* *But her smile was incredibly scary.* *I tried my best to answer it with a smile of my own.* Megu: Like I said, there's a concert in Raika. Do you have a ticket? Zakuro: Raika? Oh, yeah. The concert at the CD store... I have one. Megu: Oh, I see. I couldn't get a ticket, since I didn't get to the CD store soon enough. Zakuro: Really? Megu: Really. I went the day before yesterday, and there weren't any left. Zakuro: I-I think there were still tickets. I went there yesterday too. Megu: No way, there weren't any. Zakuro: But... Megu: You must have been mistaken. There weren't any when I went. Zakuro: Oh, yeah... Megu: Jeez, even though you got one. Zakuro: Y-Yeah... Zakuro: Akasaka-san. Do... Do you want my ticket? Megu: Yeah, I do. Zakuro: Okay, then I'll give it to you... I'll bring it tomorrow. Megu: Really? That would be great. Zakuro: Yeah. Megu: Thanks. We're best friends, you know? Zakuro: Oh, y-yeah... *I hesitated before I responded... Her face looked really scary for a second.* *But then she started smiling again.* *I'm probably safe...* Megu: Do you want to go to the bathroom? Zakuro: Oh, sure... *She invited me to the bathroom.* *She's usually in a good mood when she does that.* *She must be happy about the ticket.* Satoko: Oh, Megu, you're going too? Satoko: We'll go too. Tachibana, you too. Kimika: Hmm? Me? Kimika: Ah, Zakuro... I'll come if Zakuro does. *...* *Kimika came along too... Kimika always bullies me, but the truth is, she's really nice.* *It seems like no one else knows, but Kimika is really kind... and she's the kind of strong person who would never let someone change her mind.* *Though she is kind of distant...* *But I don't really get along with Akasaka Megu or Kitami Satoko.* *So I have to be really careful... I have to be super careful around them.* Megu: So then the old guy suddenly started talking to me. Megu: He asked if 30,000 yen would be enough. Megu: Isn't that ridiculous? Zakuro: Y-You mean... he asked you if you were a prostitute? Megu: ... Megu: You know? It really ticked me off. Zakuro: Ah... *She ignored me and kept talking to Kitami-san instead.* *Maybe she's annoyed because I said something so stupid.* *Seems like I stepped on a landmine...* Satoko: Why didn't you just take his money and beat him up? Megu: No way. That's disgusting. Zakuro: ...Yeah, disgusting. *I spoke in a quiet voice and agreed with her.* *I couldn't even tell whether she heard me... and I was sweating.* Megu: Disgusting. Just disgusting. *Akasaka-san looked at me.* *I hurriedly agreed with her.* Megu: It was scary having this old guy suddenly talking to me like that. Satoko: That's so scary. It's like he just goes after any girl he sees. Megu: Old guys like that are too desperate. Zakuro: Y-Yeah... Kimika: You know... It seems like you're just agreeing with everything they say. Have you ever had an old guy talk to you like that, Zakuro? Zakuro: Eh? Zakuro: U-Uh... Kimika: What? Zakuro... You were just going along with whatever they said, weren't you? Megu: No, I bet geezers like that can't resist girls like Takashima. Satoko: Geezers like that? lol. Megu: Takashima has to be popular with the geezers, right? I bet she would wear those weird outfits they sell in Donkey's. Maid outfits or bunnygirl outfits, stuff like that. Satoko: Oh, yeah, yeah. Cosplay, right? The one with all the cosplay stuff. Megu: What do you mean all the cosplay stuff? lol. Satoko: That's what they call it in Akiba, right Tachibana? Kimika: Dunno... I'm not really sure. Have you heard of that, Zakuro? Zakuro: Oh, y-yeah... *I haven't really heard much about it.* *Well, it's called cosplay...* Kimika: Oh really.. * So then, do you like to cosplay, Zakuro? Do you like to do it in public... or do you just do it at home?"* Megu: At home? When no one else can see it? Isn't that kind of weird? Zakuro: I-I don't really do anything like that. Megu: You don't? lol. Satoko: You would be perfect for it lol. Zakuro: Aha, ahahaha... Kimika: Hehehe... *This is the part where I'm supposed to laugh... I don't really understand, but I desperately tried to make a smile.* *When she saw that, Kimika laughed at me.* *Did I mess up again?* *Here at school, anything I say can turn into a landmine... I'm always sweating in fear.* *And of course, silence is just as bad. I stand out even more if I don't say anything.* *I prayed for the bell to ring soon.* Satoko: But she draws manga lol. Kimika: She draws during class too. Zakuro: No, that's... Megu: What? Is there another event happening in Akiba this summer? Satoko: What? Another Akiba event? Do you know about that, Tachibana? Kimika: The famous one they do every year, right? There are tens of thousands of otakus that gather every year. It can get pretty crazy, I guess. Megu: Seriously * There are really that many? lol. What they hell would they all do in one place? lol."* Satoko: It must smell like shit there lololol. It would be like an entire city of nerds lol. Megu: Don't ask me lol, but yeah I bet it does lolol. Right, Takashima? Zakuro: Eh? Oh, yeah... *Well, there are a lot of smelly guys... and sometimes the women smell too.* Satoko: Why would all those smelly people want to get together lol? What are they all going to do together? Megu: I heard they sell anime porn lol. And they dress up as anime characters too lol. Satoko: What the hell lol * Why would you draw porn like that, Takashima?"* Zakuro: U-Um, for the record... I'm one of the producers, and that's kind of... Megu: I bet she draws those manga where two guys fuck. Zakuro: I-I'm... Satoko: Two guys? Really * What the hell is wrong with those people?"* Zakuro: U-Um... Megu: Oh, crap. That was the bell for the next class. Satoko: Isn't the next class English? Zakuro: Y-Yeah, it is... Satoko: No waaay. Kimika: What is it? Satoko: He's definitely going to call on me today. Megu: Now that you mention it, the person in front of you went last yesterday. So you didn't do your homework today either? Kimika: But isn't it Zakuro's turn today too? Zakuro: Yeah, probably... I'm not sure, but it probably is. Satoko: Did you do it? Zakuro: Yeah. I did it, but... Satoko: Let me borrow your notebook. Zakuro: Eh? But... Satoko: I'm trying to get a recommendation for the college here, so this is really important. My grades will fall. Zakuro: But if I give you my notebook... Satoko: There's no time for me to copy it. Just let me borrow it. Megu: Can't you just skip class, Takashima? They'll let you go if you say you're not feeling well, won't they? Satoko: It would help me out a lot if you could. I need your notebook. Zakuro: Sure... Megu: Really? Zakuro: All right... I'll let you borrow it. Satoko: Great * We'll explain to the teacher."* Zakuro: Sure... Satoko: I guess this is what friends are for! Ahahaha. Zakuro: ... *I can't put them in a bad mood over something small like this.* *I'll lose my award for three years of perfect attendance, but still, compared to what could happen, it's not a big deal.* *So...* *I guess I have no choice.* Kimika: You're so kind, Zakuro... Hmm. Zakuro: Ow! *After she said that, she pinched my arm for some reason.* *She didn't seem all that happy about my decision.* Zakuro: I'm skipping class... *I stood alone in the hallway.* *I had never skipped class before, so I didn't know what to do.* *I have to go the school infirmary.* *That's what I was told.* *If you feel bad, go rest in the infirmary...* *But maybe the nurse would see through me if I faked an illness.* *Since I don't actually feel bad...* Zakuro: What should I do... *A quiet hallway... It's not really a question of what to do. There isn't anything I can do here.* Zakuro: Oh... There are a lot of things I could do if I had a notebook and a pencil. *Jeez... If only I had something to do. I can't even go to the infirmary.* *Though honestly, I didn't really want to go there in the first place.* *Not only because the nurse would probably see through me, but also since there's no reason to go to the infirmary when I feel perfectly fine* Zakuro: What should I do... *I wandered through the hallway alone, lost in thought.* Zakuro: Ah... *I hid in the bathroom when I saw someone coming.* Iida: Seriously, there's no way. Shiroyama: No, really. It really was. Iida: No, seriously. Seriously now. Shiroyama: There you go again. I'm telling you, you should've seen it. Zakuro: ... *I leaned on the door.* Zakuro: Those are lowlifes... *They don't seem like good people. They almost always skip class.* *Th-That's right... People like that are wandering around...* *Does that mean I can't leave the bathroom?* Zakuro: What should I do? Sitting in the bathroom alone for an hour is kind of... *Or maybe... there might be some other place where they won't see me... some place the teachers won't find me either...* *I guess the bathroom really is my only choice.* Zakuro: Actually... *Is Mamiya-kun skipping class right now?* Zakuro: I wonder if Mamiya-kun knows a place where no one will bother him? *He went off toward the old pool...* Zakuro: Maybe I should go look... *After all, I have nothing else to do for the next hour.* Zakuro: No one's here... *I thought Mamiya-kun came this way, but I guess he's not here.* Zakuro: Or maybe he went to class? *That might be it. There's no guarantee he skipped class again.* Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: Is that... ash? *There was a black spot next to the pool.* *When I looked closer, I noticed that they were burnt cinders.* Zakuro: This is... *Manga?* Mamiya: Wh-What are you doing? Zakuro: Eh? Oh. *I suddenly heard someone behind me. When I turned around, Mamiya-kun was standing there.* *He wasn't there a moment ago...* Zakuro: Umm, something was burning, so... Mamiya: N-Not really. It wasn't a very big fire. Zakuro: Th-That's not what I mean. Um, there was smoke in the air... Mamiya: So what? Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... Mamiya: ...Who are you? Zakuro: Um, I'm Takashima Zakuro. I'm in the class next to yours. Mamiya: The next class? Mamiya: What? Skipping class? Weren't you a good student? Zakuro: I have certain circumstances... Mamiya: Circumstances? What do you mean? Zakuro: Wh-What about you? Mamiya: Huh? Zakuro: What were you doing? Mamiya: N-Nothing, really... Zakuro: Your books were burning, though... Did someone make you burn them? Mamiya: No. Mamiya: It's just... it bugged me how the heroine in this manga wasn't a virgin, so I was gonna burn it and upload the video. Zakuro: Th-The heroine? Mamiya: Y-Yeah... It's not like someone was bullying me. I just couldn't let it go, so I burnt it. Zakuro: I read that manga. Mamiya: Eh? You did? Zakuro: Uh, yeah... I like manga. Mamiya: ...Oh. *It looked like he was going to smile for a moment, but then he gave a casual response.* *Like he was trying to say, 'I don't care'...* Mamiya: So you like manga... I see... Zakuro: Yes... Mostly just shoujo manga, but I read shounen too. Mamiya: So you must be a fujoshi, right? The otakus must be all over you. Zakuro: N-No. I'm not a― Mamiya: Well, who cares about something like that. Zakuro: ... *The atmosphere felt uneasy.* *Did I step on another landmine?* Zakuro: Do you like manga, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: Don't most nerds like manga? Zakuro: So what about you? Mamiya: Huh? Of course I do. I just said it! Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... Mamiya: Um, could you just go away? Zakuro: Eh? Um... Mamiya: If you stand around here... Yuuki will see us, and then I'll get beat up again. *Yuuki? Oh, he must be one of those thugs.* Zakuro: Um, I'm... Mamiya: You know, as long as you're here, I can't go back. You're bothering me. *Go back?* *Why can't he go back because of me?* Mamiya: Don't make me repeat myself. Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... Mamiya: I don't need your apologies. Just disappear. Otherwise... Ah! *His face twisted in fear.* *He was looking at...* Zakuro: The people from before. Mamiya: Tch. Zakuro: Eh? Zakuro: Ah! *Mamiya-kun grabbed my collar and pushed me down.* Zakuro: U-Um... Shiroyama: Did you just hear a girl's voice? Iida: You're just imagining things 'cause you haven't gotten any action lately... Shiroyama: No, really! Zakuro: U-Um... Mamiya: Jeez, why did it turn out like this? Damn it. What should I do... They're already so close. Mamiya: Um... Y-You can't tell anyone about what you're about to see! Zakuro: Eh? What? Mamiya: Just promise that you won't tell anyone about it.". Zakuro: Oh, sure... Shiroyama: It came from over here. Someone's probably fucking. Iida: Hey, wait up. Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Come on... Zakuro: Eh? *He pulled on my hand hard.* *Into the open manhole...* Mamiya: What are you doing? Get in! Just go down the ladder. Zakuro: Ah, okay... *After I went in, Mamiya-kun came down and immediately pulled the lid back over the manhole.* *It was pitch black inside.* Zakuro: U-Umm... Mamiya: Be quiet... Also, this ladder is pretty high, so be careful. Zakuro: Ah, okay... Shiroyama: Huhh? Iida: Look, no one's here, just like I said. Shiroyama: That's weird... I'm sure I heard someone. Iida: But there's no one around here. Shiroyama: I definitely heard someone... Iida: You got any smokes? Shiroyama: Yeah, a few... Iida: Sevens, huh... Shiroyama: What's wrong with Sevens? Iida: Sevens is the kind of crap old men smoke... Shiroyama: Huh? Why don't you go smoke your mint crap then? *......* Mamiya: Th-Those bastards... They're smoking up there. Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... Mamiya: Hmm? Zakuro: U-Umm... *My hands had gone numb.* Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Tch... Go down the ladder, I guess. Zakuro: Down? Mamiya: Yeah, I'll turn on the lights when we get to the bottom, so go down. Zakuro: S-Sure... *'Either the well was very deep,'* *'or she fell very slowly,'* *'for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her, and to wonder what was going to happen next.'* Zakuro: It's like the rabbit hole Alice fell down... Zakuro: ... Mamiya: There we go... Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: From here, you can get out through the irrigation canal, so just go that way. Zakuro: That way? Mamiya: Look, over there, further in... Zakuro: But my shoes will get dirty. Mamiya: Huh? Who cares about that?! Shiroyama: I heard something! Seriously! Iida: Again? Shiroyama: No, really, I heard a guy and a girl! Mamiya: Ah! Zakuro: I-If we talk too loudly... Mamiya: I-I know that. Iida: You're hearing things. You need to get laid, man. Shiroyama: That's not it. Mamiya: ... Zakuro: ... Mamiya: ...Do you promise not to tell anyone? Zakuro: About what? Mamiya: I can't say what, which is why I'm asking! Zakuro: Ah, okay... Mamiya: Jeez... If I don't have any dirt on you, I really can't tell you, though... Zakuro: Dirt? Mamiya: N-Nothing! Who cares about that?! Zakuro: S-Sorry. *Mamiya-kun is kind of mysterious...* *Sometimes he seems frightened like this, other times he's relaxed, and sometimes he's really scary.* Mamiya: Jeez... Of course you can't say something like that. That's too embarrassing. Zakuro: ... *I couldn't hear him well, but he was mumbling something to himself.* *Mamiya-kun always seems to be talking to himself, just like this.* *He's kind of strange.* Zakuro: Ah. Zakuro: Whoa... This is... Mamiya: D-Don't touch anything. Zakuro: Ah, okay... Zakuro: Is this your hideout? Mamiya: Hideout? The hell is that? Sounds stupid. Makes it seem like I'm a terrorist or something. Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... *Oh, so hideouts aren't cool... I'm not sure, but I always thought hideouts were cool.* Mamiya: Don't you think that word is nasty? That's the kind of word all the sheeple eat up. Zakuro: ...Sheeple? Mamiya: I hate the mass media... Anyone who watches TV or reads the newspaper is dumb as a rock. *Sheeple... Like sheep people? Is that a word?* Zakuro: R-Really? *I've heard the same thing about people who watch TV, but... don't smart people read the newspaper?* Mamiya: That's right. The sheeple who watch that crap are stupid, vulgar peasants. Zakuro: Oh... Okay. *I heard the muffled sound of the bell.* *It sounded like it was incredibly far away, since we were underground.* Mamiya: Go on, get out... Class is over. *Mamiya-kun put his hand on the ladder in the back of the reservoir tank.* Mamiya: The bell rang, so get out. And don't... Mamiya: ...Don't say anything about this place! Really, this isn't fair! Zakuro: Eh? Um... Mamiya: Why did I have to tell you my secret? This is so unfair... Zakuro: U-Um... You mean, I should tell you a secret I've never told anyone else? Mamiya: Eh? Eh? Wh-What do you mean? Zakuro: U-Um... Well, you said it wasn't fair that I know your secret and you don't know any of mine... Mamiya: Uh, w-well, I guess... Zakuro: If you wait a little bit, I'll bring it here. Mamiya: Eh? Wh-What do you... Zakuro: I'm not sure, but maybe it's as important to me as this place is to you. *I ran off.* *Behind me, Mamiya-kun yelled...* Mamiya: Wh-When you come down, make sure no one sees you! Satoko: Oh, Takashima. Thanks for the notebook. Zakuro: Oh, sure... *I took the notebook from Kitami-san and stuck it back in my desk.* *Then I took out another notebook.* Zakuro: ... Zakuro: This is really embarrassing... Zakuro: ... *But it has to be, otherwise it's not a secret.* *The pictures I drew while I was watching Mamiya-kun earlier...* *It's not like I was drawing pictures of him, but still, it would be really embarrassing to show him this.* *I wouldn't even want my parents to see this.* *I'd like to take it to my grave, or maybe burn it... Either way, I wouldn't ever tell anyone about it.* Zakuro: But that place is Mamiya-kun's secret, so... Zakuro: ... *I stuck the notebook in my shirt and started running back.* *That's right... It has to be something embarrassing like this.* Zakuro: Ha... Ha... Ha... *It was this manhole, wasn't it?* Zakuro: Hhm... H-Heavy... Zakuro: Ah... Ahh... *I couldn't lift it at all.* Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: Wh-What are you doing? I thought it was someone else. Zakuro: Oh, I'm sorry... Zakuro: Uh, um... earlier, you said... Mamiya: Huh? What? Zakuro: U-Um, you said you needed to know my secret. Mamiya: Eh? Y-You mean, like, your under... Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: Oh, no. I-It's nothing... So, what is it? Zakuro: No, like... my weak point. Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Your weak point? Zakuro: Yeah. It's not fair that I know your secret, so... Mamiya: U-Um, you mean... Zakuro: So... Mamiya: E-Eh? Really? Zakuro: Please take this! Mamiya: ... Mamiya: What is this? Zakuro: M-My notebook! Mamiya: No, I can see that. Zakuro: Um, this is my weak point. Mamiya: Oh, okay. *He quizzically opened my notebook.* *It really is embarrassing.* Mamiya: Is it... a manga? Zakuro: Y-Yes... Mamiya: Well, it's pretty good. Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya: What? Are you trying to go pro? Zakuro: Oh, no... Not really. Mamiya: I see. Well, I guess it would be embarrassing to show someone something you drew, but is that really a secret? Zakuro: Y-You don't think that counts? Mamiya: I dunno... It's not like it matters to me. Zakuro: W-Well, then what would be better? Mamiya: L-Like I said, I-I can't say something like that! Zakuro: R-Really? Mamiya: J-Just forget about it * Jeez..."* *Mamiya-kun crawled back into the manhole.* Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: Hey * Why are you trying to come down?"* Zakuro: Oh, uh... Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Hmm... W-Well, I guess it doesn't matter now. I don't really mind. Zakuro: Do you stay down here a lot? Mamiya: Here * I'd get sick if I stayed here in the humidity... It's kind of nasty."* Zakuro: Yeah... *Even if it is underground, a sealed space like this really would get hot in the summer.* Zakuro: It wouldn't be bad to stay here for a while, but I wouldn't want to stay for too long. Mamiya: It would be awful, wouldn't it? The temperature isn't really a problem, but the humidity is really bad. *I suppose so.* *So it's not like he's always down here...* *Maybe it's like an emergency shelter?* Mamiya: What are you doing? Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya: I mean, I don't really care if you want to stay here, but... Zakuro: Ah... *Mamiya-kun opened a hatch further in.* Zakuro: Is that an exit? Mamiya: ... *Mamiya-kun silently climbed the ladder.* Zakuro: U-Um... *Mamiya-kun disappeared.* *Will he mind if I follow him?* Zakuro: This is... *It wasn't nearly as hot.* *This place...* *A huge space opened up before me.* *Several concrete pillars stretched into the infinite void.* Zakuro: We're not outside, are we? It's still just the afternoon... *It wouldn't be dark at this time of day.* *I never knew there was such a huge space here...* Mamiya: This is the new school building's foundation. The new pool is right above us. Mamiya: It's usually pretty cool down here. When they turn on the air conditioning up above, it cools the air down here too. Mamiya: They put ventilation shafts down here so that the humidity wouldn't eat away at the foundation. Zakuro: It was built right over the old pool's drainage tank... Mamiya: Well, maybe they were considering the possibility of using the old pool's drainage tank. Either way, it's really convenient for me. Zakuro: How did you find this place? Mamiya: There are a few sets of stairs that lead down here, so I guess you can get in here from above, but all those doors are locked. Mamiya: As far as I know, they've never been unlocked. I doubt there's any way in here other than the route we just took. Zakuro: So no one comes down here... Mamiya: There are drainage pipes over there, so maybe a maintenance worker would come down if there was a problem with the pool... Zakuro: But bullies and teachers don't come down here? Mamiya: Of course not. *Mamiya-kun walked further in.* *I quickly followed him.* *But still, the roof is really high.* *It was built on a slope, so it makes sense, but still...* Zakuro: Why's the roof so high? Mamiya: Maybe they were going to build something down here? I guess they ran out of money halfway through. Zakuro: You think so? Mamiya: Who knows... It looks like they could fit another whole floor down here, though I'm not really an expert. Zakuro: I see. Mamiya: Here it is. Zakuro: Here? *Mamiya-kun suddenly pushed on the wall.* *The wall gave in easily.* Zakuro: Is this fabric? Mamiya: I rubbed gravel into the fabric. It just looks like another part of the wall in the darkness. Zakuro: Wow... It's almost like a house. It's so bright. Mamiya: Yeah, that's why I have the generator. I can read or even play games in here. Zakuro: Can you use the Internet too? Mamiya: Yeah, but it's super slow, since I have to use my phone to get a connection. Zakuro: But we're underground... Mamiya: The building was probably designed so you could get a signal in here. Mamiya: Other than that... I guess I have these shelves for keeping food. Zakuro: Books... *I've seen this bookshelf before. It's probably one of the school's...* *But there are an awful lot of books.* Zakuro: Are these your books? Mamiya: Some of them are mine, but not all. I brought some books that my parents make me read. Zakuro: There are a lot of really difficult books here... Mamiya: Those aren't mine. They're the ones my parents try to make me read... They're in the way, so I just keep them down here. Zakuro: There are a bunch of plays... Mamiya: Those aren't mine either. They're from my house. Zakuro: From your house? Mamiya: I don't really plan on reading them, but... Zakuro: You don't read them, but you carried them here anyway... Mamiya: I guess... Zakuro: Philosophy books... Mamiya: I don't read those. Zakuro: World literature... Mamiya: Who cares about that? Zakuro: Classic literature... Mamiya: Who would read that crap? Zakuro: Light novels... Mamiya: A ton of them, right? They're all mine. Zakuro: So you like light novels, huh? Mamiya: I don't think there's anything to learn from old books. Why do you need to read anything but light novels? Zakuro: O-Oh, really... Mamiya: Huh? Do you think there's something to learn from those old books? Only old geezers read them. Zakuro: Old geezers... *I don't think that's right.* *Well, that's not important.* *But really... that's not right.* *He's probably wrong about that.* *I took a bottle off his food shelf.* *A bottle of something...* Zakuro: This isn't a bottle of marmalade, is it? Mamiya: What? Zakuro: Nothing... *'First,'* *'she tried to look down and make out what she was coming to,'* *'but it was too dark to see anything:'* *'then she looked at the sides of the well,'* *'and noticed that they were filled with cupboards and book-shelves:'* *'here and there she saw maps and pictures hung upon pegs.'* *'She took down a jar from one of the shelves as she passed:'* *'it was labelled "ORANGE MARMALADE," but to her great disappointment it was empty;'* *'she did not like to drop the jar, for fear of killing somebody underneath,'* *'so managed to put it into one of the cupboards as she fell past it.'* *A passage from Alice in Wonderland, when she fell into the rabbit hole.* *That's right...* *This isn't the rabbit hole that leads to Wonderland.* *But this was the first time Mamiya-kun seemed truly mysterious to me.* *When I came here... I felt like there was something drawing me in.* *Somewhere else...* *Somewhere other than the place I am.* *The world of mirrors... The world of mystery...* *I know that nothing like that really exists, but for some reason I had gotten the feeling that there was something different about him.* *Mamiya-kun seemed enigmatic at first, but...* *But it was just an illusion.* *This place lost its luster once I found that out.* *It was just another dull place.* Mamiya: Hmm? What's wrong? Zakuro: I should be heading home. Mamiya: Eh? Already? Zakuro: Ah... Yes... Mamiya: U-Um... *I fled that place.* *Behind me, Mamiya-kun yelled...* Mamiya: Y-You can come back any time you want. Mamiya: U-Uh, Takashima-san! *Before, he didn't want me to come here at all.* *His voice suddenly sounded incredibly bothersome.* *I hated the sound of his voice chasing after me.* Zakuro: Ahh. *Nothing interesting ever happens.* *Of course not.* *If amazing things happened every day, we would get tired of them.* *Life is just...* Zakuro: Haa... *Mamiya-kun, huh?* *Honestly, I was disappointed.* Zakuro: Disappointed, huh? *What was I expecting?* *The sun began to set.* *The color of the sky doesn't change with the day, but it does change with the hour.* *It slowly changes to yellow... and then dyes all the buildings purple.* *The sunset was depressing.* *That was because I was already tired by the time I saw the scenery.* *My body felt heavy. My heart felt heavy.* *Even though nothing happened in the day. Even though it was all empty.* *The only things that remained after such an empty day were the weight in my body and the weight in my heart.* *And also... a strange frustration, almost like regret.* *It seemed like regret, even though... I hadn't done anything wrong.* *Of course.* *No one could fault me for my choices today.* *There was no point where my empty existence could have blossomed into a bouquet of flowers.* *It's not like you can make life-changing choices every single day.* *And even if there was a bouquet of flowers to fill the hole in my life... they would wilt in just a few days.* *A flower without roots... withers and dies.* *That's why I found the sunset incredibly depressing.* *The scenery was too melancholy.* *This melancholy scene was another...* *It was the scenery of another conclusive ending.* *This is how it ended, with a heavy body and a heavy heart.* *It actually cheered me up a little to think that at least it was over.* *The melancholy scenery outside passed from the right to the left, on and on.* *Right to left, right to left, it flowed on.* *As it flowed, the shade of purple on the buildings grew more apparent.* Zakuro: Haa.. *I ate dinner and then went to my room.* *I idly surfed the Internet on my phone.* *Though... it's not like that's any fun.* *I had gotten a friend request from some man I didn't know...* *He was a 30 year old businessman. His listed interests were the same as mine, and he said he had become one of my fans after reading my journal.* *"You've got a good head on your shoulders for a girl of your age."* *"It's nice to see that there are still some girls who think before they act."* *That's what he said...* *"You like Alice in Wonderland, huh? Have you seen Jan Svankmajer's version, Cheshire Cat?"* *By the way, Cheshire Cat is my username.* *"It's a very artistic film, but you're a smart, sensitive girl, so I thought you might like it."* *Sadly enough, I'm neither smart nor sensitive.* *"The Jabberwocky's Riddle community is having an offline meeting soon. Are you coming? If you are, I could bring the DVD for you."* *Unfortunately, I'm not going (I've never even been to that site).* *I wanted to send him a sarcastic reply like that, but... of course, I can't.* *I wasn't feeling good, so I just let it go.* Zakuro: Haa... *I aimlessly surfed the Internet.* Zakuro: Now that I think about it, they're not gossiping about me anymore. *Kita High's message board, SAWAYAKA...* *They call it the school's underground message board... Until about half a year ago, they said horrible things about me on here.* Zakuro: Fat... Zakuro: Ugly... Zakuro: Disgusting... Zakuro: She must have gotten a boobjob... *Well, sorry for that... I guess ugly girls shouldn't have big boobs.* *Lately there hadn't been any new posts about me.* *Since about the same time the bullying stopped.* Zakuro: Bullying, huh... *I checked on the anonymous bullying prevention forum that I had signed up for back then.* *My thread was still there...* *They told me to keep fighting. To never give up.* *Telling me to never give up... Their advice only made it worse.* *But there were also a lot of people who told me how to solve my problems.* *They really helped me.* *But one of them was a 28 year old man. I was scared of him, since he seemed more like a stalker than anything.* Zakuro: I should've never given him my phone number... *At first, I thought he was really nice, since he told me the phone number for a hotline for people who've been bullied...* *After I gave him my phone number... he called almost every night...* *He asked what I was doing.* *He asked if I wanted to go somewhere to hang out.* *It had nothing to do with bullying anymore... I got scared and changed my phone number.* *But there were lots of good things, too.* *The women in particular were always nice.* *They were always kind... and I could relax, since I knew they didn't have any ulterior motives.* *But one day, all the bullying suddenly stopped.* *Because I was seriously injured.* *It was painful, but now that I look back on it, it wasn't so bad. Now I don't need to come to this site anymore.* *226: I Hate Bullies: 2012/01/15(W) 11:26:15 ID:KAERA* *The new school semester started. Are you still doing all right, Cheshire Cat?* *By the way, 'I Hate Bullies' is the 28 year old stalker.* *You hate bullies, but you're just fine with stalkers, huh...* *228: The March Hare: 2012/01/25(W) 11:30:20 ID:inkin* *She hasn't posted anything new, so I guess she's fine.* *229: The March Hare: 2012/05/09(Th) 11:35:40 ID:ADAMO* *It's been a long time. I guess nothing new has happened.* *I'm praying for you. I hope your life goes better from here on out.* Zakuro: The March Hare... *She was one of the kind women...* *I wanted to tell her what happened after that...* *But I wanted to avoid the stalker, so I didn't post on there anymore.* *The bullying really had stopped.* *The March Hare... She always talks about praying...* *And she's always very polite and kind... She seems like a good person.* *I really wish I could tell her what happened.* *That the bullying stopped...* *I wish I could at least tell her.* Zakuro: Haa... I'm tired. *I looked at the clock.* *It was already past midnight.* Zakuro: Whoa... I need to get to sleep. *That night... I had a dream.* *A dream I've never had before.* *But one that seems so familiar.* *Maybe... it was a dream from long ago.* *The dream made me sad...* *Then it disappeared.*

Zakuro: It sure is hot... *The sun on the rooftop was harsh.* Zakuro: Maybe I shouldn't have come here... *I ended up skipping class today too.* *Though no one forced me to do it today.* *It just happened.* *I wasn't really aiming for perfect attendance, but still, once I skipped class a single time, it became a lot easier to do it again.* Zakuro: I've never skipped class before... *I can probably get away with skipping every once in a while.* Zakuro: I'm really not used to this, though... *I came to the rooftop because it didn't seem like anyone else would be up here... and it really was deserted.* Zakuro: No one comes up here because it's so hot. Zakuro: Haa... *What should I do for an hour?* Zakuro: Maybe I should've gone to class after all... *I put my hand on the fence as I walked across the rooftop.* *The school's layout is pretty complicated, so the roof isn't a normal rectangle either.* *Building A has a shape like a cross.* *The scenery changed as I walked.* *The Building B and C rooftops are closed off.* *...* Zakuro: Is that... *Mamiya-kun?* *Why?* *That's Building B, so it should be off limits. Why is he over there?* Zakuro: Huh? *When I squinted, I could see stairs on the other side of the fence.* Zakuro: It's connected to the other building's rooftop here... *Building B has one less floor, so the stairs lead down.* *It doesn't stand out since it's below the lip of the rooftop, but it really is a pretty big staircase.* Zakuro: It's probably off limits, but... Mamiya: Who are you? Zakuro: U-Um... *Did he forget about yesterday already?* Zakuro: I-I'm Takashima Zakuro. I'm in the next class over. Mamiya: Takashima... Zakuro? That's right. *What does he mean by that?* Mamiya: Sorry... I'm really bad at remembering faces. Zakuro: I see... *But still, it was just yesterday.* *I don't really care about him, but it really bothers me that he doesn't even seem to remember me.* Mamiya: What are you doing in a place like this? Zakuro: Oh, uh, nothing in particular. Mamiya: Are you cutting class? Zakuro: W-Well, I guess so. Mamiya: I see... You shouldn't do that, you know? Zakuro: B-But you're doing the same thing. Mamiya: I'll be fine. Zakuro: Why? Mamiya: I always skip classes. Zakuro: Th-That's not a good reason. Mamiya: Who needs a reason? Either way, you shouldn't skip class. Mamiya: Weren't you a good student? Zakuro: N-Not really... Mamiya: Oh... Well, if you say so. Zakuro: ... *What is it...* *Yesterday when I left, his voice was so bothersome, but now he almost sounds different.* *But his voice hasn't changed...* Mamiya: Isn't it nice and cool here? Zakuro: Eh? *Now that he mentioned it...* *I didn't notice because I was talking to him.* *It's pretty cool here.* Zakuro: There's shade here, and... Mamiya: A cool breeze comes out of the forest behind the school. Mamiya: No one comes here because the Building A rooftop is so hot in the summer. Mamiya: Even though the Building C rooftop is so much cooler... Zakuro: So it's a perfect place for skipping class... Mamiya: You could say that. Zakuro: ... Zakuro: What are you doing here, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: What does it look like I'm doing? Zakuro: Reading? Mamiya: Correct. Zakuro: Is that a light novel? Mamiya: Do you like light novels? Zakuro: Not really, but... Mamiya: This is... *Mamiya-kun took the cover off the book he was reading.* Zakuro: ...Cyrano de Bergerac? Mamiya: It's the most popular play in France... Zakuro: Popular in France? Is it a modern play? Mamiya: I wouldn't call it modern... It was written in the 19th century. Zakuro: Is it interesting? Mamiya: It's incredibly well written, but it seems like it wasn't so well received when it was first published. Zakuro: What do you mean? Mamiya: I guess you could say it was a heavily commercialized play. To the people of the time, it must have seemed old and musty. Zakuro: I see... It looks like it would be hard to read. Mamiya: It's not that hard. The translation is very recent. Most people who've finished middle school could probably read it. Mamiya: Have you finished middle school? Zakuro: I suppose I have... Wait, isn't that obvious? Mamiya: Then you should be able to read it just fine. Zakuro: What kind of story is it? Mamiya: A poet! Mamiya: Swordsman! Mamiya: Scientist! Mamiya: And a musician! Mamiya: It's a story about a real person who lived in the 17th century. Zakuro: A true story? Mamiya: No, it's still a play. Mamiya: It speaks of an ugly man's unrequited love. Zakuro: Unrequited love? Mamiya: I've lived without knowing the touch of a woman. Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya: Even my mother thought I was a repugnant child... I had no sisters either... As an adult, women have always looked at me with disdain. Mamiya: It's a play about that person's unrequited pure love. Zakuro: Unrequited... pure love... Mamiya: That's what it's about. Zakuro: Is it interesting? Mamiya: Yes, of course. I really like it. Zakuro: ... *Mamiya-kun laughed kindly.* Mamiya: Do you want to read something? Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya: Aren't you bored? A lot of the time when I skip class, I read books. Why don't you try one? Zakuro: Oh, sure... Mamiya: Would you like to read a light novel? Zakuro: Ah... What would you recommend? Mamiya: A light novel? Zakuro: It doesn't have to be a light novel. Mamiya: What would you prefer? Zakuro: I don't know a whole lot about that stuff, so I'm not sure, but... I like Alice in Wonderland. I read Through the Looking-Glass, too. Mamiya: Alice! Lewis Carroll, huh? Then how about this? *Mamiya-kun fished around in his bag and took out a paperback book.* Zakuro: What's this? *There was a cute drawing on the cover, but more than that...* Zakuro: Stories Written on a Typewriter... Heh, what's this? *The title made me laugh...* Mamiya: Why don't you try reading it? *My eyes met his as I took the book from his outstretched hand.* *He smiled at me.* Zakuro: Th-Thank you... Mamiya: It's from the same publisher as the one I'm reading, but the words are bigger and the story is easier to understand. Zakuro: Sure... Mamiya: Light novels are nice too, but sometimes a book like this is better, you know? Zakuro: B-But I don't read many light novels. Mamiya: Really? You mentioned them earlier, so I thought you liked them. Zakuro: You're the one that likes light novels, aren't you? Mamiya: I like pretty much all books. I mean... Zakuro: You mean? Mamiya: If you just want to hide away in your heart without using any electronics, books are pretty much the best way to do it, aren't they? Zakuro: Without electronics? Mamiya: Sadly enough, there aren't any outlets or anything on the roof, so I can't use the Internet or play games up here. Zakuro: Hehehe... You're right. Mamiya: I can't even play games on my cell phone because it's never charged... I'm lazy, so I always forget to charge it. Zakuro: You read instead of playing games because you're lazy? Mamiya: Something like that. If I wasn't so lazy, I might be able to play games more often. Zakuro: Hehehe... In that case, you might not be skipping class at all. Mamiya: I see... That's a good point. *He's really mysterious...* *I opened the book, but Mamiya-kun was distracting me, so I couldn't focus on it.* *He interested me far more than the aging pensioners and bald managers in the book.* Zakuro: Do you like reading, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: Eh? Didn't I say that earlier? Zakuro: Oh, yeah. You did... Ahahaha. Mamiya: I mostly tend to keep to myself, which is probably why I like books so much. Zakuro: You mostly keep to yourself? Mamiya: Pretty much. Zakuro: That's the bell. Mamiya: Class is over. Zakuro: Oh, yeah... Mamiya: Ah... Zakuro: Huh? *"Nii-san..."* Zakuro: Nii...san? Mamiya: What is it? You two don't come up here very often. Zakuro: ... *You two?* *What did he mean by saying, 'you two'?* *I only saw one person...* *I looked at the girl standing in front of Mamiya-kun.* *Does she go to a different school? That's not our uniform...* *Though she looks a bit younger than us too.* *She must be his little sister.* *Putting that aside...* *I really don't understand why he said 'you two'...* *"...A friend?"* Mamiya: O-Oh.. * We just happened to both be up here. She's the girl from the next class, uh..."* Zakuro: Takashima Zakuro... And you are? Hasaki: Hasaki... I'm Mamiya Hasaki. Zakuro: Mamiya-kun's little sister? Hasaki: Yes... Zakuro: I see... *She's really cute.* *I don't want to bother them.* *She came all the way here to visit him, after all.* Zakuro: Well then, I should be going. Mamiya: Oh, sure. Zakuro: Goodbye, Hasaki-san. Hasaki: Bye. Zakuro: Oh, what about this book? Mamiya: You haven't finished it, right? Zakuro: Yeah... I-I'm a slow reader. Mamiya: Then keep it until you finish. Mamiya: It's a children's story by a man who wrote a book called The Grammar of Fantasy. It definitely has a lot more to it than most children's books. I think you'll like it. Zakuro: O-Okay... *I turned and ran off.* *What is this feeling? It's like I'm embarrassed, but also very happy. I couldn't stand still, so I ended up dashing off.* Kimika: Zakuro? Huh? You skipped again? Zakuro: Ah, yeah... Kimika: Hmm, I see... That's rare. *Kimika laughed shortly.* *Kimika usually only laughs when she's angry, but this time it seemed different.* Megu: Takashima! Let's get something to eat. Zakuro: Oh, okay... Kimika: Me too... Satoko: I'm broke. Megu: What do you mean? When did that happen? Satoko: I'm totally broke... I need some money. Megu: Why don't you have any? Satoko: I don't know. I never have any money at the end of the month. Megu: But it's not even close to the end of the month. Kimika: But still, her job pays on the 25th, and she gets her allowance on the 30th... This time of month is pretty rough. Satoko: Isn't there an easy way to earn money? Megu: Don't ask me. If there was, I'd be doing it too. Satoko: Isn't your family stupid rich? Megu: That doesn't mean I'm rich. My parents only give me 30,000 yen a month for my allowance. Satoko: I'm telling you, that's a ton of money. Megu: How is that a lot of money? I hear that all the girls at that rich kids' school get 100,000 a month. Satoko: Those girls are on a different level, though. Megu: But I don't have any money. It's because I'm always paying for shit for you guys. Satoko: I really appreciate it, though! Megu: Money, huh * It's easy if you have someone to give it to you, but earning it yourself is a pain in the ass."* Satoko: And I hear you can get in big trouble for selling yourself. Zakuro: What are you selling? Kimika: Zakuro... Do you have to try to be that stupid, or does it come naturally? You're kind of ticking me off. Zakuro: N-No, I didn't mean to... Satoko: You're so stupid. I'm talking about prostitution. Megu: But it's really a pain to do, isn't it? Satoko: Isn't there a more creative way we could earn money? Zakuro: Creative? Megu: Isn't there? Haven't you heard? You can even make money blogging and stuff like that. Satoko: You can make money blogging? Megu: They were talking about it on TV. Satoko: Then why don't we start a blog? Megu: How? Satoko: Dunno... I'm not really sure. *Making money with a blog... How would they do that?* *No one would care about their blog anyway, since they know nothing about the Internet and have no particular knowledge or skills.* Megu: There has to be some way we can earn money fast. Kimika: I don't think there is a way to earn money fast. Megu: Takashima, you draw manga, right? Zakuro: Ah, yes... Megu: Can't you make money with that? Zakuro: I'm not that good... I don't think I could get anything for it. Kimika: Akasaka-san... Why don't you try writing a novel? Megu: A novel? Kimika: I heard they're looking for novels. The kind you write on your phone. Megu: Cell phone novels! Satoko: Yeah, I heard about one that got made into a movie. They're making tons of money. Megu: That's it! Zakuro: Can you write a novel? Megu: Won't know 'til I try. Satoko: Anyway, let's try writing one during the next class. Kimika: Anyway, shouldn't we get something to eat? We're running out of time here. Megu: That's right! Kimika: It's not worth getting that worked up about. *A cell phone novel, huh...* *I read part of one before, but it was really strange.* *It used lots of weird slang I didn't understand... Actually, I think I read a book that started out kind of like that.* *At the beginning, the writer seemed incredibly dumb, but as he got smarter and smarter, the writing got better and more sophisticated.* *Though cell phone novels are kind of dumb the whole way through.* *What kind of story was that...* *...* *Maybe Mamiya-kun has a copy...* *There were lots of books in his secret room.* *He might have it.* *A novel, huh?* Zakuro: I ended up borrowing this... *"Stories Written on a Typewriter."* *What a bizarre title. I'd never heard of this before.* *When I looked at the table of contents, there were several other short stories included along with the main story.* *Each individual story is really short... I guess that makes sense, since children would get bored if they were too long.* *I started reading the story from the title and...* *Huh... This old man...* *He didn't have anywhere to go, so... he turned into a cat.* *The old man is the protagonist of the story. He turns into a cat and plays with all the other cats at the beginning of the story.* *Hehehe... What a silly story.* *It really is the kind of story I like.* *It was really interesting.* *The author was Gianni Rodari... I'd never heard of him before.* *So he knows all about stuff like this.* *I've heard of "book sommeliers" before, but does that word really describe someone like Mamiya-kun?* *A sommelier is a person who picks out wines to match a customer's tastes... It's just like Mamiya-kun.* *I really liked the book Mamiya-kun lent me.* *When he gave me this book, he kind of looked like a sommelier offering his finest wine, too.* *Though I don't know anything about sommeliers... It seems like it fits.* *I stared out the window, lost in thought.* Zakuro: I wonder if Mamiya-kun is in his secret room right now. Zakuro: That's right... I should go see him later. Zakuro: He said I could come back whenever I wanted... Zakuro: I-I hope he doesn't get mad at me. Zakuro: ... Zakuro: It's pitch black. It's a little scary... *I waited for a moment until my eyes adjusted.* Zakuro: I wish I had a lighter or something... Zakuro: It's so dark... *I walked along the wall.* *Huh?* Zakuro: This... *There were scribbled red letters hanging in the dark.* *The letters scrawled childishly on the wall said...* Zakuro: Why aren't you a virgin? Zakuro: Die, you slut. *When I looked closer, there were scribbles all over the walls of the reservoir tank.* *They were all...* Zakuro: Kind of... Zakuro: A little scary. *...* *I quickly left the reservoir tank.* *Why...* *He seemed so intelligent before.* *Why would he write that?* Mamiya: Ah, Takashima-san! Mamiya: Wh-Why are you here? Were you in my secret room? Zakuro: ... Mamiya: H-Hey! Mamiya: What's wrong? *I ran from that place.* *It was kind of scary.* *Mamiya-kun seems like a different person when he's here.* Zakuro: Hmm? *I ate dinner at a silent table and returned to my room.* *I didn't have anything in particular to do, so I opened my phone to get on the Internet.* Zakuro: Another message... *It must be another message from some random guy.* *I felt depressed as I opened my messages.* Zakuro: Ugh... The person from yesterday. *"I saw you didn't accept my friend request yet. Did I say something to offend you?"* *"I'd like to apologize if I did."* *No, not really. That's not it...* Zakuro: Haa... *I went ahead and accepted his request.* *I don't like to accept friend requests from people I don't know, but I had no choice.* Zakuro: Huh? *There was another message... Were there two of them?* *I opened the other message.* *――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/03 22:01* *from: Usami* *Subject: I've finally made contact with you.* *――――――――――――――――――――――――――* *I'm not sure if I should say... nice to meet you.* ** *"The battle at the stone tower."* ** *Please respond when you remember the significance of these words.* ** *Also, you will probably experience a large change.* *It will probably be a good thing.* Zakuro: ... Zakuro: What... is this? *The battle at the stone tower...* *Is that from a game... or maybe a novel? Or maybe even a manga?* *Why would that phrase be significant? I've never heard that before.* Zakuro: Haa... *Do I just naturally attract weird people like this?* *Maybe it's because I'm so gloomy...* *Maybe they can tell just by reading my journal online...* Zakuro: Ah... This is the worst. *I should just go to sleep.* *Hmph.* *I love the sound that comes out when I fall into bed.* *The sheets always feel good, too.* *I put my blankets in the drier while I was eating.* *It makes a big difference.* *That's probably a good thing.* Zakuro: They felt sweaty yesterday, but now they're nice and soft. *That's the only "large change" that could happen in my life.* *Especially if we're talking about good things that could happen.* Zakuro: Though there have been plenty of bad changes. *Oh well...* *Time to sleep.* *Ah...* *I have to brush my teeth...* *And wash my face.* *...* *A black shadow... draped over the sky.* *An dreary black shadow that stretches into the infinite.* *Like the world's twilight...* *A dreary scene.* *A dream I've never had before.* *But one that seems so familiar.* *Maybe... it was a dream from long ago.* *The dream made me sad...* *Then it disappeared.*

*It's Saturday... School lets out early today.* *Despite that, I couldn't stop myself from skipping class after first period.* *Before, I never even considered skipping...* *I went up the stairs as the bell for second period rang.* *I went up the stairs and left that place where I didn't belong behind me. Up and up.* *I was expecting him to be there.* *His beautiful hair fluttered in the wind.* *Long, straight, carefully combed hair.* *Pretty eyes...* *Even God himself would be enthralled by that sight.* *That's why...* Mamiya: Hmm? Zakuro: Oh, g-good morning. Mamiya: Huh? Who are you? *He had a smile on his face as he asked me that.* Zakuro: Wh-Why can't you remember it? I'm Takashima Zakuro, from the class next to yours. Mamiya: Takashima... Zakuro... Oh, you skipped class yesterday. Wait, what are you doing right now? Zakuro: Skipping class. Mamiya: Really? Zakuro: Yes. *I sat down next to him.* *Maybe a little too close...* Zakuro: Oh, here. *I gave him the book I had borrowed.* Mamiya: Oh, Rodari. Did you like it? Zakuro: Yeah, it was really interesting. Mamiya: Then I'm glad I lent it to you. Zakuro: ... Zakuro: What country is the author from? Mamiya: Which do you think? There are hints in the story if you think about the places and buildings that show up... Can you remember? Zakuro: Uh, there were lots of old Roman ruins in the story... Mamiya: Largo di Torre Argentina. Zakuro: Yeah, and there was also... Venice, the Garibaldi Bridge, and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Does that mean he's from Italy? Mamiya: Exactly. Gianni Rodari was a writer of children's stories in Italy. Zakuro: You know a lot about writers, don't you? Mamiya: Not at all. It's just easy to remember the authors you like, don't you think? Zakuro: Yeah... Zakuro: What are you reading today? Mamiya: Oh, nothing new... It's the same book as yesterday. Zakuro: The same book as yesterday? Zakuro: The cover is different... and it's not even the same size. Mamiya: I was just curious, so I tried it. Zakuro: Curious about what? *There were unfamiliar words printed in book he held up in front of me.* *Beside him he had a notebook and...* Zakuro: A French dictionary... F-French?! Mamiya: Oh, well... I'm probably not understanding much of it. I was just curious. Zakuro: Mamiya-kun, can you read French? Mamiya: Of course not. I just like to study it in my free time once in a while. Zakuro: But there are translations in your notebook... Mamiya: Oh, that's just because I've read it so many times before. With a dictionary, I can at least translate a few of the lines. Mamiya: But really, it's not a big deal. *He hid the book away.* *...* Zakuro: Cyrano... de... Mamiya: Cyrano de Bergerac? Zakuro: Yeah... Do you think I could read it? Mamiya: Can you read French? Zakuro: Oh, that's not what I mean. The one you were reading before. Mamiya: Oh, like I said, anyone who's graduated from middle school could read that. Have you finished middle school? Zakuro: Of course I have! Mamiya: Do you want to read it? Zakuro: Yes... Mamiya: Okay, then... Here. *He gave me the book from yesterday.* Zakuro: Cyrano de Bergerac... Mamiya: It's an excellent, flowing translation. Zakuro: Thank you. Mamiya: So that book caught your eye? *Well, it's the book you were reading so intently...* *Though I could never say that.* Zakuro: It sounded really interesting when I heard you talk about it. Mamiya: It really is a good book. Zakuro: Yeah... Zakuro: You've read this book quite a few times, then. Mamiya: Well, it's a play, so it's not as long as it looks. I just ended up reading it over a few times. Zakuro: Not because you particularly like it? Mamiya: I wonder... I'm not sure, but there definitely aren't many other books that have made me want to read the original text. Zakuro: Have you done that for other books? Mamiya: Just a few pages. I always give up after a while. Mamiya: I guess, in a way... I do really like it, since I've filled up a couple notebooks translating it as I read. Zakuro: I see... *He said it was a story about an ugly man... Why was Mamiya-kun so captivated by this play?* *And he said it was about unrequited true love...* *Does that mean...* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... Have you ever experienced unrequited love? Mamiya: ...Where did that come from? Zakuro: Oh, nevermind... I'm sorry. Mamiya: You mean maybe that's why I like this book? Zakuro: Oh, no... Uh... *Maybe I was too straightforward... I must seem stupid...* *Does he like a book about unrequited love because he's experienced it... That was a stupid question.* *My face must have been beet red. Mamiya-kun looked at me and laughed... and then...* Mamiya: I'm still human, you know? Of course I've experienced unrequited love. Mamiya: A one-sided love that never reaches the object of one's affections... I've experienced that before. Zakuro: ... *I kind of...* *Felt a little... jealous.* Mamiya: Well, let's drop that subject. It's kind of embarrassing. Zakuro: Oh, sure... I'm sorry. *Embarrassing... It really was embarrassing.* Mamiya: The way you said that makes me wonder... Are you interested in it because of your own experiences with unrequited love? Zakuro: Eh? Y-Yes! *Wait, why did I answer that question? Am I stupid?* Mamiya: I see. That must be tough... though it can be fun in its own way. Zakuro: Yes... *...* *He can probably see straight through me.* *Jeez, it's like...* *Just... what is going on?* *Today I borrowed another book from Mamiya-kun.* *But today, unlike yesterday, it's one of Mamiya-kun's favorite plays.* Zakuro: Maybe I can get a little closer to Mamiya-kun... *Maybe not.* *I can read it during the next class.* *The Classical Literature teacher does nothing but write on the blackboard and talk in a monotone.* *He won't even notice me reading in his class.* Zakuro: Yeah... It's interesting. *It didn't seem like an old book at all.* *He said it was criticized for being old and dated when it was first published... and yet reading it after all these years, it didn't seem old at all.* *The protagonist, Cyrano, was kind of like Mamiya-kun.* *Though Mamiya-kun isn't ugly like Cyrano. He seems more like the beautiful man in the story, Christian (though I don't know what Christian would have actually looked like, since it's just text).* *Cyrano is very ugly, but also intelligent and reliable.* *Mamiya-kun is intelligent and reliable, but also very handsome.* Zakuro: His vocabulary is really good. *That could be said of both Cyrano and Mamiya-kun.* Zakuro: The beautiful heroine, Roxanne, was captivated by Cyrano's voice, but... *Listening to an intelligent person speak definitely is captivating...* *That happens to me when I listen to Mamiya-kun.* *But...* Mamiya: It's just... it bugged me how the heroine in this manga wasn't a virgin, so I was gonna burn it and upload the video. *Sometimes he's like that.* *When he talks like that, he just seems pitiful.* *His voice is so beautiful, but what he's saying...* *I can't even think of that as the same person.* Zakuro: Why would Mamiya-kun say something crude like that? Zakuro: He burnt it because the girl wasn't a virgin... That's terrible. *That was when we first met.* *Which means... maybe he was trying to deceive me...* *Maybe he was intentionally acting like that...* *Oh, actually...* Zakuro: Come! Take it, and change... Zakuro: That was a line in Cyrano de Bergerac. Zakuro: It was a line from the scene where Cyrano suggests that he could write love letters for Christian to send to Roxanne. *The protagonist, Cyrano... He was a genius, but also incredibly ugly.* *He fell in love with a beautiful, intelligent woman named Roxanne.* *But a beautiful woman would never fall in love with such a hideous man.* *A love that could never be requited...* *That's what he thought.* *He met a man named Christian, whose only virtue was that he was incredibly handsome.* *He too had fallen in love with Roxanne, but a brilliant woman like Roxanne would never fall in love with a constantly tongue-tied man like him just because he was handsome.* *Then Cyrano came up with a plan.* *Christian would profess his love with the words that Cyrano had written.* *When he suggested it to Christian, this is what he said:* Zakuro: Come! Take it, and change... *Then... when Mamiya-kun acted like that...* *Maybe it wasn't really him...* *Maybe he was telling me, 'Take it!'...* Zakuro: Ahahahaha... Reality could never be that sweet. *It couldn't be... After that, he said, "feigned love-words into true." That would make the strange, pitiful Mamiya-kun the real one.* Zakuro: That wouldn't be good at all. *Mamiya-kun's favorite play, Cyrano de Bergerac...* *A story about an ugly genius and a beautiful idiot working together to seduce a woman...* *Cyrano has the soul and Christian has the body...* *By the way, Christian was the kind of man who got so flustered in front of the woman he loved that he could barely even speak.* *If you think about it like that, the intelligent Christian with Cyrano's soul, and the stupid Christian without it...* *It's just like the intelligent Mamiya-kun and the strange one.* *Huh?* *Could there be... two of him?* *Maybe there's a stupid yet handsome Mamiya-kun and an ugly but smart Mamiya-kun.* Zakuro: That's impossible, huh... *In Cyrano de Bergerac, Christian's voice changed when Cyrano talked.* *Of course, it was like someone else was dubbed in over his voice.* *But Mamiya-kun's voice didn't change.* *They both sounded like Mamiya-kun.* *Their voices were the same, but the words they used were so different...* *Completely different.* *...* Zakuro: Though, I've... Zakuro: Been thinking about Mamiya-kun all day... Zakuro: Ahahahaha... *It has to be love.* *This is unrequited love.* *Yep.* *...* *Yeah... That's right.* *Totally unrequited love...* *One-sided...* Zakuro: Because... *We could never be together.* *Mamiya-kun, with his handsome face and his vast intellect, is more like Roxanne than Christian or Cyrano.* Zakuro: Then I'm... *I'm not smart or beautiful...* *I'm neither Christian nor Cyrano... I'm no one.* *That's why...* Zakuro: My love could never be requited. Zakuro: That's right. *Everyone looks at me with disgust.* *Until a few months ago, I was bullied.* *Recently, the bullying has stopped, though. I don't understand why.* *They bullied me so much, then one day, it suddenly stopped. That's why I'm always on edge.* *I'm always worried that I'll be plunged back into that hell.* *I'm always cautious not to offend anyone.* *Trying not to annoy anyone... Trying to fit in...* *That's all I can think about.* Zakuro: Ahaha... I'm like a stalker... *When I saw Mamiya-kun reading alone on the rooftop... I took a picture.* Zakuro: He would probably hate me if he found it. Zakuro: But... *Why is he so cool when he's up there? He's completely different from any other time I see him.* Zakuro: Why is he so smart and cool? Ahahaha. *I didn't even realize until a moment later that I was rolling around in bed, unconsciously clutching his picture to my chest.* Zakuro: This really makes me seem like a stalker, but tomorrow's Sunday... It should be fine. *That excuse doesn't really make sense.* *I know that.* *But I won't be able to see Mamiya-kun tomorrow.* *Though I do have the book he lent me.* Zakuro: Huh? *That's right... This is Mamiya-kun's book.* *It's something he touched...* Zakuro: W-Whoa! Zakuro: Next time I take a bath... I won't wash this hand. *Though doing that might just confirm me as a stalker.* Zakuro: Ahahaha. That's a joke. I just met him. There's no way I could fall in love that quickly. Zakuro: Yeah, he's just really interesting, that's all. Zakuro: There's no way I could become a normal girl. Only a normal girl could fall in love like that. *...* *That's right...* *Nothing good has happened in the past when I started to feel like that about someone.* *I should just stay in my room and keep my feelings to myself.* *I'll just pretend it's a joke... I'll just keep it to myself... That's good enough for me.*

*Sunday... I didn't have anything in particular to do, but I got on the train anyway.* *It's not really something unusual for me.* *There was just one surprise that made my heart beat about three times faster than normal.* *Why did it end up like this?* *No... I doubt there's any particular reason.* *I just got on the train to go buy a new CD from my favorite voice actor and sat in an open seat.* *Then...* Mamiya: ... Zakuro: ... Mamiya: Um, you're... Zakuro: ... Mamiya: Ah... *The exact same reaction as when he was on the rooftop.* *I could feel my face growing so hot that I just wanted to push him over and run out the doors. Though, why would I need to push him over to do that?* *I took a deep breath and said, very naturally...* Zakuro: O-Oh... If it isn't Mamiya-kun." <- Not at all natural *That's what I said.* Mamiya: Ahahaha... What are you doing here? *After that, I managed to speak a little more calmly... This is becoming a daily ritual every time I meet him.* Zakuro: I-I'm Takashima Zakuro. Mamiya: Ahahaha, r-right. I'm sorry. Mamiya: Where are you going, Takashima-san? Zakuro: What about you? Where would you happen to be going? Mamiya: Me? Ahahaha... I haven't actually decided yet. Zakuro: Ahahaha... Really? M-Me too. *Nice one. I'm surprised I was able to say that so smoothly... I'm doing really good today.* *Sorry, but my favorite voice actress is going to have to wait until tomorrow.* Mamiya: The weather is nice... I was just going to ride the train until I knew where I wanted to go. Zakuro: O-Oh, really... *M-Me too!* *W-Would you like to go somewhere together?* *That's what I wanted to say...* *Instead, I just whispered it in my heart.* *What I said in reality was...* Zakuro: Ahahahaha... *I just smiled, like if someone had spoken to me in a foreign language and I didn't know what to say.* *I have to do something...* Mamiya: Huh? Aren't you getting off here? This is Suginomiya. Zakuro: Oh, yeah... What about you? Mamiya: Like I said, I'm not going anywhere in particular... I wouldn't mind getting off here, but it might be nice to keep going, too. Zakuro: I see... Mamiya: So you really don't have anywhere to go either, huh? Zakuro: No... Also, could you call me Zakuro, instead of just saying 'you'? Mamiya: Huh? Why? Zakuro: I think that's the reason you can't ever remember my name. You never call me by it. Mamiya: Ahahaha, does it really matter if I don't remember? Zakuro: That's for me to decide, not you. I want you to remember it. Mamiya: Ahahahaha... All right. Zakuro: Oh, I'm sorry. That was rude. Mamiya: No, not at all. You're right. Zakuro: ...Then please call me Zakuro. Mamiya: Ah... Mamiya: I don't think I could get used to that. Zakuro: But we've talked so much lately... *Maybe I'm the only one who feels like that, though...* *From the way he reacts to me... it's like I'm nothing more than an acquaintance.* *I wish I could talk to him more often.* *Maybe then he would remember my name...* *Maybe not...* *Just thinking that is probably ridiculous.* Mamiya: Do you like to read books, Takashima-san? Zakuro: Eh? Yes, sort of... Mamiya: Do you read anything other than Lewis Carroll? Zakuro: Sometimes, but I'm not that well read. I just read simple stuff. I like short stories. Mamiya: Eh? Like what? Zakuro: Like Atouda... and of course Tsutsui Yasutaka. I like Hoshi Shinichi too... Mamiya: Oh, I read those when I was younger too. I really loved Tsutsui Yasutaka. Oh, and Hoshi Shinichi and Atouda Takashi were great too. Zakuro: R-Really? Mamiya: Atouda was a bit much for me when I was a grade schooler, but maybe that was a good thing. They were so exciting, I always climbed under the covers when I read them. Zakuro: Ahahaha... Under the covers... *I felt my face flush... That's right. Atouda's books had a lot more sexual illustrations in them.* *I would've liked to have seen Mamiya-kun reading them as a child.* Mamiya: Yeah, I still like short stories. Oh, that's right. Next time, I'll lend you another book. I think I know one you'll like. Zakuro: Huh? What kind of book? Mamiya: It's a book by another Italian author, Buzzati. I thought it was really fascinating when I read it. Zakuro: Italy... That's the same as the author that wrote the story about the cat. You know a lot about Italian authors, huh? Mamiya: Oh, not at all. I just happened to have read them recently. If you had asked me a couple weeks earlier, I probably would've recommended you something different. Ahahahaha... Zakuro: Like Marquez? Mamiya: You know about Gabriel Garcia Marquez? Zakuro: Ahahaha, it just seemed like something you would like. I read it because my father recommended it to me. Zakuro: One day I couldn't sleep. My father was in the living room, and when I told him I couldn't sleep, he told me to read _Chronicle of a Death Foretold_ . Mamiya: And then? Zakuro: I couldn't sleep at all. It was too interesting! Mamiya: Ahahaha, yeah, it is. Isn't it really short, though? Zakuro: But still, I couldn't stop thinking about it after I finished it. Mamiya: I know what you mean. Zakuro: Hehehe... *It's so different...* *Completely different.* *Completely different... from my life before I met him.* *I've never felt this way before.* *I've never had such a dazzlingly wonderful time as today.* *It makes me think... I wish I could keep talking to him for all eternity.* *I might never have this much fun talking to anyone else in my entire life.* *I just wish this moment would never end.* *Though that wish could never come true.* Zakuro: Oh, the next... Mamiya: The next? Zakuro: The next station is the last stop. Mamiya: Oh... We're already at the last stop. *...* *It's already over.* *It was so fun, and...* *It's over...* Mamiya: Where's the last stop? Zakuro: It says it's an amusement park... Mamiya: An amusement park, huh? I guess I don't have any reason to go there. Maybe I should ride it back to the beginning. Zakuro: ... Mamiya: Well then... Huh? *I silently pulled on Mamiya-kun's hand.* *I was bold... or maybe I was just confused.* *I grabbed his hand and descended onto the platform with him just before the doors closed.* *I didn't want the wonderful time I spent with him to end so anticlimactically, so I...* *Crunch, crunch...* *Crunch, crunch...* Mamiya: Shaved ice is great in the summer. Zakuro: I'm sorry... Mamiya: Eh? Why? Zakuro: Well, I dragged you off the train and made you come here. Mamiya: Really? I don't mind. I didn't have anything to do anyway, and I got a nice treat out of it. Zakuro: Oh... I'm sorry. Mamiya: Like I said, you don't need to apologize. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: There are a lot of people here for such a run-down amusement park... It must be busy because it's Sunday. Zakuro: You shouldn't say that. Mamiya: I mean, I heard most of the smaller amusement parks had to shut down. They're definitely doing a good job of attracting customers, at least. Zakuro: Maybe that just means it's more fun than any of the other amusement parks? Mamiya: You could be right. Zakuro: It's my treat. Let's have fun, okay? Mamiya: You don't have to pay. But yeah, let's have fun... I haven't been to an amusement park in years. Zakuro: Sure! *Ahahahaha.* *I'm such a weird girl.* *What am I doing?* *Last night I decided to keep my feelings inside...* *And I ended up forcibly dragging him along on a date...* *Wait!* Zakuro: A d-date?! Mamiya: Hmm? Zakuro: Ah, i-i-i-it's nothing! Mamiya: Really? I was just thinking, coming here together on Sunday like this kind of feels like a date. Zakuro: Ah! Mamiya: Huh? Would you rather I didn't put it like that? Zakuro: P-Please, go right ahead! It's an honor, really. I don't mind at all! Mamiya: Ahahaha... It's not a big deal. *Noo! Why am I getting so flustered?!* *He must think I'm strange! He must think I'm weird! He must think I'm a freak!* Mamiya: You're a little weirder than I thought you were. Zakuro: Ah! *Crap!* *Come on, it was all going so well! Now he knows I'm a freak!* *Now he won't look at me the same way... He must think I'm gross.* Mamiya: I guess that's why... Zakuro: Oogh... *That's why...* Mamiya: That's why I feel like I can relax, even though I don't usually like other people. *Look, he said it. He thinks I'm disgust―What?* *Huh? Huh? Huh? Relax?* Mamiya: I'm pretty strange myself... I can't usually relax around other people, but I can when I'm with you. Zakuro: Eh... Mamiya: Hmm? Zakuro: Uh... Uh... Mamiya: What's wrong? You haven't said anything in a while, and your face is all red... Are you feeling all right? *He worriedly put his hand on my forehead... Wait, his hand?!* Zakuro: N-No, that's not it! *Ah, I slapped his hand away!* Mamiya: Oh, okay... *Aaah, I'm sorry, Mamiya-kun! The truth is I wanted you to touch me, but I couldn't think and...* *Now it feels awkward...* *Because I slapped his hand away.* *Ah, what should I do? Maybe I should grab his hand and stick it up my skirt?* *No, that would only make me happy. Mamiya-kun wouldn't like it at all! If I did that, I really would be a freak!* *Ahh... I'm so confused...* *Uh... Uh...* Zakuro: U-Um... Mamiya: What is it? Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... I don't have a fever or anything like that. Zakuro: I-I just haven't ever done this with anyone before, so I'm really nervous. Mamiya: You've never walked around like this with someone? Ahahahaha, you're such a shut-in. *No! That's a misunderstanding! I mean with a boy!!* Mamiya: I'm the same, though. Zakuro: Eh? But Mamiya-kun, you said you go out like this a lot. Mamiya: I just like to go someplace on my free days so I don't have to talk to anyone. I guess I'm not a shut-in, but I am pretty reclusive. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: Yeah, I guess so. Mamiya: Most people who like books don't like people. People who are good at everything, who like books, people, are good at sports, and who are really smart on top of all that just creep me out. Zakuro: Aren't those people to look up to? Mamiya: I guess so. I think people like that are creepy, though. Zakuro: ... *I couldn't help myself. I grabbed his hand.* *He seemed surprised when I did that, so I immediately...* Zakuro: Look there, Mamiya-kun. That looks like fun! *I tried to play it off like that.* *It's like I can't hold myself back when I'm with him.* Mamiya: I see... You like the screamers, huh? Zakuro: A-Aha, aha... *Actually, I hate them.* *I just pointed at the first thing I saw, and it was a screamer.* *But to keep up the ruse, I had to rise to the challenge.* *And now... I feel like I'm going to hurl.* Mamiya: A-Are you all right? You don't look too good. Zakuro: Ahahaha... I might've overdone it. Mamiya: Would something a bit more relaxing be better? Zakuro: Something relaxing? Mamiya: Yeah, like that... Zakuro: Wh-Wh-What?! That's a haunted house! How is that relaxing?! Mamiya: Oh, well, you can walk around on your own legs, so I figured it would be more relaxing than the last one... and it's dark. Zakuro: The dark makes your blood pressure rise! Mamiya: That's not true. Everyone's blood pressure would go up at night if it was. *My blood pressure definitely goes up when I'm lying in bed!* *That's a little vulgar, though... I can't say that.* *Oh, this is no good... I should stop reading vulgar books. My internal jokes are becoming too crude.* Zakuro: I guess so... Mamiya: Then what would you prefer? Zakuro: Could we just walk around for a while? Mamiya: Oh, sure... I don't mind at all. Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: What is it? Zakuro: Oh, I just remembered... There are boats here... Mamiya: Boats? Oh, do you think that would be relaxing? Zakuro: Eh? You wouldn't mind? Mamiya: Huh? Mind what? *Everything! The two of us alone on a boat... That's the classic way of ending a date.* Mamiya: I hope you're not thinking that I wouldn't be able to row the boat. Zakuro: N-Not at all... But you don't mind? Mamiya: If you'd like to, then I'd be more than happy to help. Zakuro: ... *He waved his hand, inviting me on like a gallant prince.* *He really understands a woman's heart, which means he must have been on dates with other women before.* *I've never seen anyone who was this good with the ladies.* *He seems like a total playboy... Actually, it seems like only another woman could understand women this well.* *But...* *It doesn't matter whether he's a playboy or even if he's a girl.* Zakuro: L-Let's go. *Creek... Creek...* *Creek... Creek...* Zakuro: You're really good. Mamiya: Really? I don't think I'm that good. Zakuro: Have you taken a lot of girls on boat rides like this? Mamiya: Why would I do that? Besides, I don't think you can really be exceptionally good or bad at this. Zakuro: I wonder about that. *But I think you can be exceptionally good or bad with women.* Mamiya: Are you all right? You're not feeling seasick, are you? Zakuro: Oh, I'm perfectly fine. I feel great. Mamiya: That's good. Zakuro: It really feels good out on the water. Mamiya: That's right... If there was a bit of shade too, I'd forget that it's summer at all. *Mamiya-kun brushed his hair back after a breeze came across the water.* *His movement was incredibly graceful... I felt drawn to the exposed white skin of his neck.* Zakuro: I-I'm sorry for making you row. Mamiya: Wh-Whoa, it's fine. That's dangerous! *I tried to take the oars from him.* *The boat tilted back and forth, and Mamiya-kun got mad at me.* *Floating on the surface of the water with just a few pieces of wood like this... It felt like we had left reality behind.* *Maybe we really did, right when our feet left the shore.* *And what's more, the person sitting in front of me was Mamiya-kun.* *I felt nervous.* Zakuro: I-It feels nice, but at the same time... I feel kind of uneasy out here. Mamiya: Why's that? *There wasn't a reason... I just said it. I was just talking about how I felt.* Zakuro: The surface of the water looks like the sky in the world of mirrors... It feels like we're on the precipice. Mamiya: I see what you mean, but I think it's nice. It's like we're sailing through the clouds. *Mamiya-kun touched the surface of the water with his fingertips.* *Every time he touched the water sky... it warped and distorted.* Zakuro: I wonder if it would feel good to walk through the clouds. Mamiya: Who knows? I've never done it, so I couldn't tell you. All I know is that I feel good right now. Zakuro: I see... *I moved to touch the surface of the water too, but I stopped once I realized I was tipping the boat.* Zakuro: The sky reflected in the water might not be the real sky, but maybe the real sky is too far for us to grasp. Mamiya: The real sky? Hehe... What's the real sky? Zakuro: Eh? I'm just talking about the sky reflected in the water and the sky above our heads... Mamiya: That's true, but the sky I see is simply reflected in my eyes. Mamiya: You might not be able to say that the sky in the water is fake... or that the real sky is too far. Mamiya: The sky that you think of as so far is actually reflected in your eyes. Zakuro: ... Mamiya: The sky is only far because we assume it so... Otherwise, everything would be far off... Everything would be out of reach. *The words he said were too hard for me to understand... I couldn't grasp the meaning behind his words.* *But they gave me courage.* *Creek... Creek...* *Creek... Creek...* Mamiya: ... Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Hehe. Mamiya: Hmm? What is it? Zakuro: Oh, nothing. I was just thinking, maybe for you, the sky really is within reach. Mamiya: Huh? Why's that? Zakuro: Well, that's how I understood your words. Mamiya: The sky is within reach, huh? I guess so. Mamiya: Just like this. *He raised his hands up toward the great blue sky.* Mamiya: Am I touching the sky? Or am I not? Zakuro: Hehehe. Who knows? Mamiya: You know, I think that's just like the blue bird. Zakuro: The blue bird? Mamiya: Yes, the mystical blue bird... A blue bird that no one could ever hope to catch... But I think it's actually really easy to catch it. Zakuro: ... *After he said that, he laughed.* *As I looked at his face, I...* *Ah... This is bad...* *That's what I thought.* *......* *...* Mamiya: ...♪ Zakuro: ... *The train home.* *It felt nice. Our languid spirits swayed back and forth with the movement of the train.* *And then...* *Music.* *Mamiya-kun let me listen to his music.* *After watching my expression as he played a few songs for me, he focused on one genre.* *He picked out songs he thought I would like...* *Classic songs that I wasn't sure whether I had heard before.* *Bright, jovial music.* *He told me the recording was from a New Year's concert they hold every year in a foreign country.* *A conductor who was lauded as a genius, leading the most famous philharmonic in the world.* *Waltz.* *Polka.* *March.* *A dancing melody.* *The swaying of the train seemed to match the rhythm of the songs.* *He put his hand on the music player, and I silently moved my hand on top of his.* *Fittingly, the name on the screen was Vergnugungszug, 'Journey Train.'* *This was just a ride across town, not a journey, but the relaxed feeling was the same, and the song almost made the scenery outside look like it was glowing.* *Our hands moved ever so slightly, tapping out the rhythm of the song.* *The instant I felt the warmth of his hand, the music seemed to grow even more lively and beautiful.* Zakuro: You really know a lot. Mamiya: Well, my mother used to be really strict, and she made me practice the piano. Zakuro: You can play the piano, then? Mamiya: Yeah, a little bit. Not very well, though. Zakuro: What can you play? Mamiya: I'm not sure, but I guess the last thing I played was a piece by Liszt. It was really hard. Zakuro: Play it for me next time. Mamiya: No, I definitely can't play Liszt anymore. Maybe something else, though... What composers do you like? Zakuro: Eh? I don't know much about classical music, but what about La campanella? Mamiya: No... The piano version of La campanella was by Liszt, so only virtuosi can play it. Zakuro: R-Really? Mamiya: How about something a little easier... How about Twinkle Twinkle Little Star? Zakuro: Oh, that would be nice. Mamiya: Oh, uh... That was a joke. You weren't supposed to go along with it like that. Zakuro: I told you, I don't know anything about classical music. Mamiya: I wonder... What would be good... Mamiya: Well, if anything comes to mind, I'd be happy to play it for you. Zakuro: Hehehe... Okay. That might be nice. *...* Zakuro: Thank you for everything today. Mamiya: Huh * Why are you thanking me?"* Zakuro: Oh, uh... I was the one who dragged you along into the amusement park... Mamiya: Like I said, I didn't have anywhere to go. Besides, it was a lot of fun. Zakuro: Huh? What did you say? Mamiya: I said it was a lot of fun. Zakuro: R-Really? Mamiya: Really. I wouldn't've stuck around if it wasn't. I might not look like it, but I really don't get along with most people. Zakuro: O-Oh, really... Well, I'm glad you had fun... I really am. Mamiya: Yeah, so I should be thanking you. Zakuro: Um, that store... Mamiya: Hmm? What is it? Zakuro: Ah... Uh, nothing. Mamiya: Oh, okay.. * Do you want to get something to eat?"* Zakuro: Y-You don't mind? Mamiya: Of course not. We've been together all day. Zakuro: Then I'll pay. Mamiya: No way. This time it's my turn to treat you * Now then, what should we eat? Japanese? Chinese? Italian? Beef bowls? French is too expensive though, so I'll have to veto that."* Zakuro: That's okay. I've never had French anyway. Mamiya: Then maybe we really should eat French. Zakuro: Hehehe... You don't need to do that. Mamiya: Then what about the place I always go to? Zakuro: Where's that? Mamiya: It has Japanese, Chinese, Italian, beef bowls, whatever you want. Zakuro: Like a bistro or something? Mamiya: You'll see when we get there. Don't be shy now. Let's go. Zakuro: Oh, okay. Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: What do you think? Zakuro: ...Eh? Isn't this a bar? Mamiya: Don't worry about that. Come on, sit here. Zakuro: Oh, there's a piano. Mamiya: That's right. They have a piano. Zakuro: Wow... Mamiya: Actually, I have a job here playing piano. Zakuro: Y-You do? Mamiya: Yeah... This store's master has helped me out since I was a child. Mamiya: But more importantly, what would you like to hear * Oh wait, you hadn't decided, right?"* Zakuro: No, I've decided now. Mamiya: Oh, you have? Zakuro: Yes, it's, well... Mamiya: What is it? Zakuro: Play every song that you thought about playing for me. Mamiya: What?! Master: Oh, Yu-... No, wait, Mamiya-chan. Mamiya: Ah.. * Hello..."* Master: You don't have a shift today. Are you a customer? Mamiya: Of course I am. Zakuro: But you'll still play, right? Mamiya: Ugh... I guess so. Master: Oh, really? So you brought your girlfriend along after a date to show off? Master: And you brought her here. Haha. Mamiya: What are you laughing about? Master: Oh, you're awfully mouthy today. I guess that's because your girlfriend's here? Zakuro: U-Um, well, uh... *Ah... He keeps saying girlfriend... Why would he do that...* Mamiya: Now wait a second. She's just a friend from school, and we just happened to see each other. She's not my girlfriend! Zakuro: Ah. *Aha... Ahaha...* *That's right, isn't it...* *But it kind of stings when you say it like that, Mamiya-kun.* Zakuro: Ah... Y-Yes, I'm just a girl that goes to the same school as Mamiya-kun. Master: Really? But she's so pretty. Zakuro: Wh-What, no I'm not. Everyone says I'm ugly... Oh, wait, that was a compliment, wasn't it? Master: What's she talking about? Is she stupid? It's not like I have any reason to give a girl a compliment. Mamiya: She doesn't seem to get along well with most people. Don't bully her too much, Master. Master: Oh, she doesn't? Sounds just like you. Zakuro: Really? He doesn't seem that way to me. Master: That's right. He just plays the piano, never talks to anyone. He's not attractive at all. Mamiya: That so? I like to think of myself as very attractive, actually. Master: Well, sometimes you are, but... Anyway, what do you want to eat? Zakuro: Oh, can I get a menu? Master: There's no menu. I can make whatever you ask for. That's how this shop works. Mamiya: The rice here is pretty good. Master here is a fag, but everything else about this shop is really good. Master: Come on... I don't know how to respond when you insult me and then compliment me in the same sentence. Mamiya: Anyway, I'll take chicken ramen with eggs and celery on the side. Oh, and if you could get me the key to the piano, too. Master: Sure, sure... *Master took the key from his pocket and threw it to Mamiya-kun.* Master: But don't play any depressing songs. Mamiya: Oh, don't worry. I'm not in that kind of mood. Zakuro: ... *As Mamiya-kun stood in front of the piano... he looked incredibly cool.* Mamiya: Well... First, we'll start off with something simple. *He slowly spread his fingers over the keys.* *He closed his eyes for a moment and then...* *His fingers danced.* *As he struck the keys, layers of different tones flowed out of the piano.* *The music wove a tapestry of good cheer.* *It was a happy rhythm.* *Bright.* *Ornate.* *And somehow nostalgic.* *It felt simple and candid.* Zakuro: I've heard this song before. Mamiya: What's the song called, and who wrote it? If you get it right, I'll play another one for you. Zakuro: Um... Master: It's Satie... Piccadilly, right? Mamiya: I wasn't asking you! Zakuro: Yay, one more! Mamiya: But you didn't answer... Zakuro: I'm sorry. Master: Don't be cheap. Play her another one. Mamiya: Shut up. Zakuro: You don't want to? Mamiya: No... It's not that I don't want to... Master: I won't charge you for your meal, so play her another song. Mamiya: Seriously? You mean it's free? Master: Like I said, play her something. Play something moody for her. Mamiya: You know moody basically means the same thing as depressing... Master: I don't care what the word means. You know what I'm trying to say. Mamiya: I'm not sure I do. Master: What? What are you trying to say? Mamiya: Oh, nothing... Well, let's forget about that. Now, about that song... Mamiya: Takashima-san... Zakuro: Eh? *Mamiya-kun looked at me.* Mamiya: That's right... I'll play a song that reminds me of you. Zakuro: A song that reminds you of me? Mamiya: Yeah, a song that captures the image you conjure in my mind. Zakuro: Sure. Mamiya: Well then... *He faced the piano and closed his eyes again.* *Then he spread his hands across the keys, and...* *The music began.* *What is this song? I've never heard this before...* *It's like... the sky. Or maybe the ocean. I'm not sure, but it feels like someone is moving through something transparent.* *The melody made me feel strange... He seemed to be tracing an outline on the keyboard... No, the outline was wholly shapeless. It was more akin to a texture.* *Like something fantastical... Like something in a dream...* *The feeling of touching blue... An incredibly cold, pleasant blue.* *The blue sensation filled my body. The piano's sound changed into texture, and the tone changed into a translucent color.* *The endless, endlessly extensive blue inevitably melds with the red, the orange, the purple, and eventually the sky turns blue.* *His sounds turned to color.* *The colors turned to ocean, then to sky, then again to ocean.* *Then the sky turned to a much greater celestial sphere.* *The timbre of the celestial sphere.* *It is heard not by the ears but by the body.* *Like a creature in the water... feeling the water with its entire body.* *The world within the celestial sphere.* *Everything is subsumed within it. It has a nigh endless scope.* *The blue sky.* *The blue ocean.* *The white clouds.* *The white waves.* *It's just like the world.* *It's just like... a dream.* *It's just like...* Mamiya: What is it? Zakuro: ... Mamiya: Eh? D-Didn't you like it? Zakuro: Oh... I'm sorry. U-Um, I was so moved that... Mamiya: Then you liked it? *He never did tell me what song that was... All I knew was that Mamiya-kun played a song he liked for me.* *And in the end...* Mamiya: What do you mean, it's not free?! Master: Like I said, only the chicken ramen and the celery was free. Mamiya: Wait, you mean only mine was free?! Master: That's right. I'm already doing you a favor. Chicken ramen isn't cheap. Mamiya: You can buy ramen for 60 yen. Master: Shut up and pay me for the margarita pizza, the caesar salad, and the Russian tea. Zakuro: U-Um, I can pay for it. Master: Shut up. The man is supposed to pay for this, so let him pay. Zakuro: O-Oh... I'm sorry... Master: And please stop apologizing all the time. Master: I find it kind of hard to believe you actually think you're ugly, but I'll go ahead and say it just in case. Master: There are a lot of brats who hate people just for being different. They only say that about you because you're so beautiful and you have such a nice body. Master: Once you grow up, everyone will be hitting on you. You're not ugly at all. Zakuro: A-All right... Master: And you. Hurry up and pay me already. Mamiya: Jeez...

Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya-kun. Mamiya: Oh, hello. Zakuro: Are you wasting time again today? Mamiya: Well, something like that, but, uh... Zakuro: Yes, yes. I'm Takashima Zakuro. Mamiya: Ahahaha, no. I remembered it this time. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: I was just thinking about asking what's going on today. That's a big package. Zakuro: Oh this? This is... Mamiya: Hmm? A lunchbox? Zakuro: Yes. Would you like to eat it together? I haven't had lunch yet. Mamiya: It's not even lunchtime yet. Zakuro: Did you have other plans? Mamiya: No, I was just going to buy some bread at the store.. * You sure you don't mind?"* Zakuro: If you don't like it, I won't make you eat it. Mamiya: Oh? That's an awfully lavish lunchbox... This looks like Thanksgiving, not an early lunch. Zakuro: Really? Is there a problem? Mamiya: There's no problem. It looks great, though. I hope it tastes good, too. Zakuro: I wouldn't know. Why don't you try it? Mamiya: Well then, I'll take you up on your offer. *The test.* *I'm pretty confident in my cooking... though no one but my parents has ever eaten it before.* *They always say it's good, but maybe their taste buds are just malfunctioning.* *What if everyone else thinks it's terrible? That kind of thing happens all the time in manga...* *His chopsticks went to the fried food first.* *Oh no!* *I never tasted them to see if they would still taste good after a few hours had passed!* *I only tasted them when they were fresh! And the spring rolls too...* *Maybe the spring rolls taste terrible if you let them cool down...* *Aah.* *If I had just made plain ones I wouldn't have to worry. But plain ones would probably go bad since it's so hot out. Oh, what should I do...* *Aah!* *He's eating it, he's really eating it!* *I'm getting too excited! Come on, I sound like a girl in some eroge! But that isn't what I should be worried about right now!* Mamiya: ... Zakuro: U-Um...? Mamiya: Hmm... Amph... Hmm, mm... Zakuro: Ah... *He's just eating. He's not saying anything...* *Does that mean it's all right?* *No!* *When I eat something I don't like, I just eat it as fast as possible so I don't have to taste it.* *Is that what he's doing?* *If so...* Zakuro: A-Aha... You don't have to force yourself. Mamiya: Eh? What do you mean? Zakuro: Oh, uh, if you don't like it, you don't have to eat it. Mamiya: Does it look like I don't like it? Zakuro: Oh, well... I'm not sure. How is it? Mamiya: Honestly, I was surprised... This is really good. It feels like I'm eating out at a nice restaurant. Zakuro: Eh? R-Really? Mamiya: Yeah, I was really surprised. It all tastes good, and there's a lot of variety. Zakuro: Really? I'm glad you like it. Mamiya: he spring rolls are amazing. They're stuffed with cheese, aren't they? Zakuro: I thought they might not be any good after they cooled down. Are they really still good? Mamiya: No way, they're really good. Zakuro: That's Camembert cheese. My father always liked that kind of cheese... Mamiya: Your father? Oh, the same person who recommended Garcia Marquez to you? Zakuro: Yeah, he really likes to read... though he usually reads science fiction and mysteries. Mamiya: Sounds like he has some good taste. I'd like to see his bookshelf. Zakuro: Oh, it kind of looks like yours. *Though there aren't any light novels or manga...* Mamiya: Eh? My bookshelf? Mamiya: How do you know about my bookshelf? Zakuro: Eh? Um, in the secret underground room... Mamiya: Secret underground room? Zakuro: Oh... I-It's nothing! Mamiya: Um, you mean... *Why doesn't he remember it?* *He really can't remember something from just a few days ago? It didn't really look like he was playing dumb...* *He acted like he really didn't remember.* Zakuro: Oh, besides that. *The atmosphere is heavy... I have to change the topic.* Zakuro: What was the song you played for me the other day? Mamiya: Like I said, I can't tell you that. That's for you to figure out. Zakuro: O-Oh, I see... *Every time I talk to him... I just find more questions.* *The way he talks, his personality, and his knowledge... It seems to change all the time.* *Maybe it's just depends on what mood he's in? Or maybe he's just playing with me...* *I've heard some strange rumors about him too.* *There were so many different rumors about him that it was hard to even believe that they were all talking about the same person.* *At first, he was bullied, just like I was, but now no one even thinks about bullying him.* *At the very least, I heard about one famous incident involving him.* *It involved people from this school as well as some gang members from another school, and he was at the center of the incident.* *He was clearly acting in self-defense, since several people ganged up on him. That's the only reason he wasn't expelled.* *Apparently all the people that tried to fight him ended up in the hospital.* *Apparently they instigated it, and he was just the victim.* *People think that he's the most violent and dangerous person in the school.* *Everyone is afraid of him...* *And yet...* *Why is he so peaceful and calm right now?* *He reads French plays on the rooftop... and at night he plays the piano at a bar.* *He knows all sorts of stuff... and he's always kind... If there ever was a perfect, Renaissance man in the world, he would be it.* *But...* *He...* *Sometimes he seems incredibly weak and bitter... and afraid. Just like me.* *And the writing on the wall underground looked almost demonic... That was really scary, and honestly kind of disgusting.* *And still other times... he's a violent man that everyone in the school fears...* *Which one is real?* Mamiya: Hmm? What is it? Zakuro: Oh, I-I'm sorry! *It doesn't matter which one is real...* *I just want to be with him a little longer, just the way he is right now... That's all.* *I just want to get closer to him... That's all.* *He happily ate all the food I made for him.* *He really is a kind person.* *I wish I had been born as such a wonderful person.* Zakuro: Ah... Kimika... Kimika: Zakuro... Was that Mamiya Takuji? Zakuro: Uh, yeah... Kimika: Mamiya Takuji, huh... What, have you been getting along with him lately? Zakuro: Oh, uh, it's not like that... Kimika: It's not like that, huh... Even though you made him lunch? Zakuro: Umm... Kimika: Well, whatever you say... Still, you should be careful around him. Zakuro: ...Yeah, I know that. Kimika: Hmm... So even you can figure that much out. Zakuro: What? Kimika: Well, it's just a rumor... I don't really know anything about him. *After saying that, Kimika walked away.* *That was an awfully candid conversation.* *Tachibana Kimika.* *She's a strange person.* *I was in the same class as her in elementary school.* *But I transferred to a different school... I didn't see her again for a long time.* *After that, I changed schools a few more times, and then I ultimately got into Kita High, where I ended up in the same class as her again.* *I was so happy to see her that I tried to make friends with her again.* *Maybe I shouldn't have done that... Ever since then, I've been bullied too.* *I guess Kimika was originally the target of most of the bullying here... and when I showed up, I became the new target.* *I haven't talked to Kimika one on one like that in a long time... What should I do? Should I just let it go?* *I'm not really sure what she's thinking...* *When she walked off just now, her attitude seemed to be screaming, "And don't follow me!"* *Maybe she was angry about something?* *Now that I think of it, back when Kimika was being bullied... she always got angry at me for talking to her.* *Back then, I didn't understand why.* *She must have been mad at me for being so stupid.* Zakuro: Um... I forgot something... Zakuro: Eh? I-Is someone there? Kimika: ... Zakuro: U-Um... Are you staying late and studying? *I slowly moved toward the noise I heard.* Kimika: Don't come near me... Zakuro: Eh? That voice... Kimika: Right now... I want to be alone... Zakuro: Wh-What happened? Kimika: I-I said get away! *Kimika was curled up in the corner of the classroom...* *She was completely soaked... and for some reason she wasn't wearing any clothes...* *Why would she be naked in a place like this?* Kimika: You shouldn't get involved with me. It has nothing to do with you. Zakuro: Wh-What do you mean nothing to do with me... What happened? Kimika: I got wet in the rain, so I set my clothes out to dry... and then the wind carried my clothes off somewhere. Zakuro: What? That's impossible. It didn't even rain today. Kimika: It did rain, but just on me. Is that good enough for you? Now leave me alone... Achoo. Zakuro: Th-That's no good. You're sneezing. You're going to catch a cold. Kimika: I'll be fine. Leave me alone... I want to be naked for a little while longer. Zakuro: Huh? Why? Kimika: Who knows... Maybe I'm an exhibitionist... I love the thrill when I don't know whether someone's going to see me or not. Zakuro: But now I've seen you... Kimika: Then forget it. Pretend it never happened. We'll start over from scratch. Zakuro: Besides, why are you wet? I don't think an exhibitionist would do that... Kimika: Th-That's... because I feel like a dirty girl when I'm all wet, you know? Zakuro: But you're dirty, too... That must have been water from a mop bucket. Kimika: Shut up, shut up! Just shut the hell up, Zakuro! Zakuro: Huh? Okay... Kimika: You know, Zakuro... I keep telling you, nothing good will come of associating with me. Stay away from me. Zakuro: That's not the problem right now... Uh, where are your clothes. *I looked for Kimika's clothes.* *They weren't anywhere in the classroom... Wait, of course they aren't. If they were here, Kimika wouldn't be sitting there naked.* Zakuro: Um... Oh. *The window sill behind her was wet too... That was probably where they dumped the water on her.* *Which means...* Zakuro: Um... Um... *I looked out the window and surveyed the schoolyard... There was a good chance someone threw her clothes out this window.* Kimika: Zakuro, that's enough... Zakuro: Th-There they are! *The wind carried them for a little while and dumped them in a flower bed by the school.* Kimika: Zakuro... You're overdoing it. I don't want you to do that. *Kimika said something, but I was already running out the door to get her clothes.* *If I didn't hurry, they would get blown away.* Zakuro: Your clothes aren't wet, at least. Kimika: They made me take them off before they dumped the water on me. Zakuro: That's good. Kimika: It's not good at all. Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Do you know what's going to happen if you keep doing this? Zakuro: Doing what? Kimika: Everyone in the class has always ignored me... except for one stupid girl who transferred in. You keep breaking the taboo. Zakuro: What's going to happen? Kimika: You'll definitely get bullied too. Zakuro: ...Will I? Kimika: That's right... In this classroom, I'm nothing more than a worm. Zakuro: You don't look like a worm to me. Kimika: ... Kimika: Idiot... Kimika: ...Guilt. Zakuro: Huh? Kimika: You've never thought about that, have you? You're too stupid to understand that word. Kimika: If you get bullied too, I'll feel guilty, and then I'll just... Kimika: ...Die. Zakuro: Huh? What do you mean? Kimika: I'm joking, but.. * Well, sometimes a smile can be crueler than a fist. Remember that."* Zakuro: O-Okay... Kimika: It's especially cruel for people like me... People who aren't used to kindness... Kimika: So stay away from me. Zakuro: Oh, okay... *The result was just as expected.* *It was just like she told me.* *I started to get bullied just like her.* *The two of us were almost always bullied at the same time.* *But they didn't bully me nearly as badly... Kimika always tried to make the bullies mad so they would focus on her instead of bullying me.* *She tried to draw their attention to herself.* *Kimika was always mad about that.* *And I can't blame her... My presence didn't alleviate any of the bullying she received. I actually made it worse for her.* *Now that I think of it, back then...* *When Akasaka-san tried to throw away the doll Kimika gave me as a present... she was angry about that too...* Megu: Come on, get rid of that thing already. Zakuro: I-I can't throw it away. This is... Megu: It matches with Tachibana's right? Zakuro: Eh? No... Megu: It does! Look, this is the same as the one Tachibana always used to carry around! Megu: Though she never puts it on her phone strap anymore, ever since you got that one. *Y-You're misunderstanding something. Kimika gave this to me... It's the same one Kimika had before.* *It's a rare version, so I was jealous, and then... she slipped it into my bag one day.* *It's supposed to be a panda, but for some reason it's all black... like someone painted it black. It's cute even though the color is a bit odd.* Megu: You're such a bitch, Tachibana. *The two of them kicked Kimika as she laid on the ground.* *Akasaka is always a lot meaner to Kimika than to me.* Kimika: Hehehe... That's right. I'm a bitch. That should be obvious by now... right, Zakuro? Zakuro: Huh? N-No, not at― Megu: This doll is the reason why everyone in the class started ignoring you too, Takashima... You're such a dumb bitch. Kimika: That's not true... Zakuro isn't dumb, she's just too kind. Megu: Huh? *Unlike me, Kimika never gives in... She never backs down even when they're bullying her.* *Back when they first started bullying me, she probably could've turned around and bullied me alongside them. Then she would've been released from this hell, but her attitude never changed at all.* *Though she didn't act friendly toward me either.* *Back then... they didn't take the panda doll away from me because Kimika butted in and drew the attention to herself.* *Akasaka-san believed that Kimika had painted it black... though it was black from the very beginning. Her memory isn't so good, is it?* *The topic of the panda doll came up several other times after that, and Akasaka ultimately threw it off the rooftop.* *She suddenly took it from me and threw it.* *She did it so quickly that I immediately reached out to grab it when she threw it. I lost my balance and fell from the rooftop.* *My injuries took two months to heal.* *It really hurt... I broke a few bones, and it was boring in the hospital. It was a major hassle all around.* *But thanks to that incident... the bullying stopped.* *I have a long history with that doll.* *I don't want anything like that to happen again, so I don't take it out of my room anymore.* *I still have it, though.* *While I was in the hospital... Kimika found it for me, and she came to give it to me while I was still recovering.* *She always gets mad at me, but she really is a nice girl at heart.* *She can be cold, but still... she's very kind.* *She's the only one who never treats me differently.* *Maybe she's a bully, but... I love her.* Zakuro: U-Um... Kimika. Kimika: Don't follow me. Zakuro: B-But... Kimika: Oh, and let me give you some advice. *Kimika didn't even turn to face me as she spoke.* Kimika: The two of us shouldn't be alone together... At least for now, you should be careful about that. Zakuro: Huh? Why? Kimika: You really are stupid.. * You're a shit. You're just shit. You're such shit, Zakuro... Hehehe."* Zakuro: Why would you say that? Kimika: I think Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko have been planning something lately... Kimika: I bet they'll get suspicious of us. If they see the two of us together... Zakuro: Eh? Really? Kimika: You should be careful.. * But you're a bit thickheaded, so you probably won't listen anyway."* Zakuro: Wh-What do you mean thickheaded? Kimika: You are... You're super, super, super friggin' thickheaded. Zakuro: Th-That's mean... Kimika: Super, super, super, super, super, super, super, super, super thickheaded. Zakuro: You don't need to say it that many times. Kimika: Hehehehehe... Super x 1,000 + thickheaded = Zakuro. Zakuro: Why would you say that? Kimika: Who knows? Maybe it's because I hate you? Zakuro: You're mean... Kimika: If that's what you think of me * then don't follow me."* Zakuro: Hmph... Fine, then. Kimika: I told you before, Zakuro. Zakuro: Before? Kimika: Guilt... Planting the seeds of guilt is much crueler than simple bullying could ever be... and that's what you did to me. Zakuro: Ahahahaha... It turned out just like you said, didn't it... Zakuro: It didn't even alleviate any of the bullying you received. I just got added on as a side dish. Kimika: Yeah, now I just have more stuff to worry about. Zakuro: To worry about? Kimika: It's a pain how I have to worry about you instead of just myself. Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... *It's true. She always tries to stop them from bullying me, even when it makes it worse for her.* Kimika: Hehehe... If you want to apologize, you should probably get down on your hands and knees. Zakuro: I-If that's what you want, then... Kimika: You're always like that.. * Why don't you just do what you think is right for a change?"* Zakuro: But I really do feel bad for you. Kimika: Then get down on your hands and knees and lick my feet. Zakuro: Huh? Wait, seriously? Kimika: No. Zakuro: O-Oh... Good... Kimika: Why would you take that seriously? Has your brain rotted away or what? Zakuro: Of course not. I'd die if that happened. Kimika: Who knows, maybe you wouldn't. Zakuro: Eh? Why? Kimika: Because you're an idiot. Zakuro: Th-That's mean... Kimika: Your head is so messed up that you wouldn't even notice a difference. Zakuro: Y-You don't need to explain it! Kimika: You shouldn't go along with everything anyone else says. You have to make up your own mind and get away... Otherwise, bad things can happen. Zakuro: Eh... Okay... Kimika: Well, whatever.. * You seem like you're finally enjoying life, after all."* Zakuro: E-Enjoying life? Kimika: I mean you look like you're actually happy now. Zakuro: No, I know that, but, what do you mean? Kimika: Shut up... Shoo, shoo, get away from me with that stupid smile of yours. Zakuro: Stupid smile? Wait, Kimika! Kimika: You've been grinning all the time lately. It's really creepy. Zakuro: Eh? Really? I was smiling? Kimika: Yeah... You've looked really happy for the past few days. It makes your face look creepy. Zakuro: Creepy? My face has always looked like this... Kimika: Hehehe... That's not what I mean. That's why people always pick on you, Zakuro. Zakuro: Wh-What are you talking about? Kimika: You don't know? The real reason so many people bully you is because you're cute. Zakuro: Huh? Why do you think that? Kimika: I was the first one, though. Zakuro: What do you mean? Kimika: Do you know Shiroyama Tsubasa? Zakuro: Um, he skips class... and the rumors about him are really scary. Kimika: Shiroyama and Akasaka Megu are dating. Zakuro: Oh, that's right. So then, what about it? Kimika: Shiroyama Tsubasa said I was cute in front of Megu... and then when he saw you, he said the exact same thing. Zakuro: Eh? R-Really? But what does that have to do with the people bullying us? Kimika: They're jealous, you know * Well, either way, Akasaka Megu is super rich, and Kitami Satoko is the most violent girl in the school... Now that they've picked us out from the pack, there's nothing we can do."* Kimika: Though I'm a stupid girl who doesn't care what those bitches think, and you're an airhead who doesn't know the difference... I guess we reap what we sow. Zakuro: What does that have to do with anything? Kimika: Well, whatever.. * Zakuro."* Zakuro: Hmm? Kimika: You should go ahead and be happy. Don't come back to me. Zakuro: Come back? Kimika: Be careful you don't attract the attention of those two girls again. Kimika: Yeah, that's it. Zakuro, you should go on and live a happy life. Kimika: Then my guilt will disappear too. Zakuro: Guilt? But I― Kimika: It's my fault you ended up falling from Building C... If you had never talked to me, that wouldn't have happened to you. Zakuro: But that was... Kimika: Just shut up. We've talked about that enough. Zakuro: A-All right... Kimika: I'll take the initiative. I'll try to draw their attention. All you have to do is run. Zakuro: I-I can't do that. Kimika: Just shut up, you dumbass. Zakuro: Th-That's mean... You don't have to say it like that. Kimika: I said it because you wouldn't shut up... I'm just trying to tell you to shut your trap and listen to me for once. Zakuro: B-But you said I shouldn't go along with everything anyone else says... and now you're telling me to shut up and do what you say... Kimika: For once * you make a good point, Zakuro."* Zakuro: Ow! Wh-Why did you hit me? Kimika: Jeez, you have to do that all the time. If you say what's on your mind, people won't take advantage of you. Zakuro: So then why did you hit me? Kimika: Because you don't fight back against anyone but me. Zakuro: Th-That doesn't make sense... Kimika: It does... I hear that's what happens when you date a guy, too. You get knocked around just like that. Zakuro: Where did you hear that? I don't think that's normal. Kimika: Damens Walker! Zakuro: Like I said, that's not a good source of information. Kimika: Better than those Cobalt Magazine books you read... Zakuro: Sh-Shut up, jeez. Kimika: ... Zakuro: Ow... *Kimika suddenly kicked me... and then pushed me into an empty classroom.* Zakuro: K-Kimika, that was mea― *My mouth snapped shut.* *Kimika glared daggers at me, telling me to shut up.* *I put my hand over my mouth and didn't say another word.* Megu: Oh, if it isn't Tachibana. We were looking for you. Satoko: So this is where you were. Kimika: Yeah, this is where I was. Megu: We're going to skip the next class. Come with us. Kimika: Yeah, I'll go with you guys... *Kimika is protecting me... again...* *Why does she always protect me like this?* *She's kind of mysterious.* *I returned to the classroom after that.* *I'm glad I got to talk to Mamiya-kun again today.* *I wish these days could go on forever.* *Those thoughts filled my head.*

Megu: Ah, Takashima. Zakuro: Eh? What? Megu: We were talking about going to karaoke after school today. Zakuro: Oh... Sure... Megu: I wonder if they have that new song I was listening to the other day. Zakuro: Yeah... Though the CD just came out, so I doubt they have it yet. Megu: Oh, that's right, what about those concert tickets I was asking you about before? Zakuro: Oh, yeah... Here they are. Megu: Wow, thanks. Zakuro: No... It's nothing. Satoko: Megu, how did your cell phone novel turn out? Megu: I gave up. I'm no good at writing. That's probably why my grades in Japanese are so bad, too. Zakuro: Writing something like that must be hard. Satoko: Do we really have to write it? Couldn't we express ourselves some other way? Megu: Yeah, that would be great! Satoko: I guess it would. *The life of a worm...* *That lifestyle suddenly came to a close.* *On that day, after the accident, my life as a worm ended.* *Now everyone talks to me like normal, and we go out to karaoke or get fast food together sometimes.* *They don't mind if I hang out with them.* *But... maybe that's even scarier than the way it was before.* *I always have to watch their expressions closely.* *I always try to be cheerful around them.* Satoko: Oh, you got a new phone, Megu. Megu: Yeah, isn't it cute? Satoko: It has a really nice screen. Kimika: Didn't you just get a new one? Megu: What, you got a problem? Kimika: Not really... It's cute. Megu: Isn't it? Look, Tachibana, I'll take a picture of you. Kimika: A picture? Megu: Smile for the camera. Kimika: Sure... Megu: I said smile! Kimika: Smile, smile... L-Like this? Megu: That's great. You look really cute. Satoko: That's right. Smile for the camera, Kimika. Kimika: Ah... *Akasaka-san was taking pictures, and behind her, Kitami-san was recording us with a video camera.* Zakuro: ... *What are they doing?* *But... I couldn't ask.* *There's no way I could ask "What's that?"...* *If I asked, they would probably...* Satoko: Oh, that's great, Kimika-chan. Kimika: U-Um... Megu: What? Kimika: Why do you have a video camera? Megu: Who cares about that? Kimika: U-Um... Satoko: Don't worry about it. Just smile. Kimika: ... *Kimika looked toward me for an instant.* Satoko: Now then... Why don't you lift up your skirt? Kimika: M-My skirt? Megu: Kimika-chan, what kind of panties are you wearing? Kimika: Eh? Uh, normal ones... Satoko: What's normal? Kimika: Ah, uh... Satoko: Come on, why don't you lift up your skirt for a second? Kimika: Eh? Um, r-right here? Megu: Don't worry, don't worry. We're in the back. No one's looking this way. Zakuro: ... *Even if we are in the back... The restaurant is full of people...* *What are they trying to do?* *It's the same feeling as when they used to bully me.* *This is...* Kimika: U-Um, what is this... Megu: Hey, Tachibana! Kimika: Eh? Megu: How about... *Akasaka-san's mouth moved right next to Kimika's ear.* *Then she whispered something to her.* Satoko: Takashima, why don't you get a hamburger or something? Zakuro: Oh, okay... Kimika: You won't record my face, right? Megu: Of course. Kimika: ... Megu: I'm telling you, you're overthinking it. Right, Satoko? Satoko: Eh, what? *Akasaka-san pointed the camera toward Kitami-san next.* Megu: Satoko, you look great. Satoko: Yay! Megu: Give them a little fan service. Satoko: Just a little. Oopsie! Megu: Oh, you have nice legs. Satoko: Now let me see the camera for a second. Megu: Oh? Megu: Ooooh? *Kitami-san took the camera from Akasaka-san and jammed it up her skirt.* Megu: Ow, ow, ow, knock it off, ahahahaha. Satoko: And those were Megu's panties. Megu: Ahahahaha... It was probably too dark to see anything on camera. Megu: Jeez, give it back already! Satoko: Oh, fine... Megu: Satoko, lift up your skirt a bit. Satoko: Eeh, like this? Megu: Oh, that's great. Megu: Come on, give us a little more. Satoko: No waaay. *What are they doing?* *This is strange.* *This is almost like...*

*My body quivered in fear.* *Defying them would mean...* *Kimika glanced toward me again.* *She was trying to give me a signal with her eyes...* *Her eyes were yelling at me to run away.* *But then she looked back at the camera and gave them a big smile so they wouldn't notice.* Megu: Come on, Tachibana. Kimika: Um, like this? Megu: Oh, that's sexy. Kimika: Aha... You think so? This is embarrassing. Megu: Come on, just a little more. Kimika: ... *Her expression hardened.* Kimika: Ahahaha... Maybe just for a second. *But then she smiled again.* *She's not acting normal... There's no way she would give in that easily.* Kimika: I'll take the initiative. I'll try to draw their attention. All you have to do is run. *She's doing this so I can run away.* *What should I do?* *But I can't leave Kimika behind... I could never run off and abandon her...* *But at this rate...* Zakuro: ... *I can't go along with what they're trying to do.* *At this rate... it'll end up just like before...* *No, that's wrong.* *Even if I go along with them... I won't be bullied like I was before.* *If I just act like they want, I won't have to go through the same experiences as before.* *They won't trample me like a worm, they won't tear me in half, they won't laugh at my suffering.* *But...* *That's the worm speaking.* *That's me from back then.* *My life as a worm...* *If I go along with them...* *I'll be no better than a worm.* *Do I really want to go back to being a bug trampled underfoot?* *The worm writhing on the other side of the mirror...* *That's not me... That's a worm writhing somewhere in the distance.* *But the truth is... it's no different.* *The worm writhing within the mirror... is me.* *No, it's not even writhing within the mirror. It simply reflects my pitiful state.* *That is all I am.* Zakuro: That's why... *My form... reflected in the mirror.* *The heart of a worm...* *I am a worm...* *A bug...* *But...* *I am a swordsman... I am a poet... I am a philosopher. I am... I am... I am...* *I am not a worm...* *...* *I can change...* *After all...* Zakuro: What say you? Zakuro: It is useless? Satoko: Huh? Kimika: Huh? Megu: What's she saying? Zakuro: Ay, I know... Zakuro: But... who fights ever hoping for success? Zakuro: I fought for lost cause, and for fruitless quest! Megu: What is it, Takashima? Satoko: What? She's talking to herself. That's creepy... Zakuro: You there, who are you! ―You are thousands!... Ah! I know you now, old enemies of mine! Satoko: Old enemies? Megu: Wh-What's wrong with her? Zakuro: Falsehood! Zakuro: Have at you! Ha! and Compromise! Prejudice, Treachery!... Zakuro: Surrender, I? Parley? No, never! You too, Folly,―you? Megu: Seriously, that's creepy. Knock it off... Satoko: What's her problem... Zakuro: I know that you will lay me low at last; Let be! Yet I fall fighting, fighting still! Megu: Takashima! Zakuro: I'm sorry! I just remembered I have somewhere I need to be! And I need to talk to Kimika! Kimika: Eh? Satoko: Huh? Zakuro: Gotta go! Megu: Wait a second! *I forcibly pulled Kimika by the arm and ran away.* *She almost tripped and fell as we ran... She yelled something at me, but I couldn't hear her.* *I could think of nothing more than putting one foot in front of the other.* *I recited the lines from the play I borrowed from Mamiya-kun.* *I repeated them and repeated them... like I was praying for something.* *I whispered the lines as I ran.* *That's Mamiya-kun's favorite play...* *Mamiya-kun's...* Zakuro: Ha, ha, ha... Kimika: Ha, ha, ha... You know... Zakuro: Ahahahaha... We got away. Kimika: Ah! Kimika: You dumbass! What have you done?! *My left cheek stung. Oh, I was slapped. Which means... Huh? Why is Kimika angry?* *I'd never seen this expression before. It didn't look like she was angry. It looked more like she was... crying?* *Ahahahahaha... I guess I did something silly again. All I did was upset her, huh...* *She wanted me to run away while she distracted them.* *She would've been happy being bullied if it meant I got away...* *But...* *But that's wrong, Kimika...* Zakuro: I did this through my own will, Kimika. Kimika: Huh? Zakuro: I didn't want to go along with what they wanted, so I thought about what I could do. Kimika: E-Even so! Zakuro: Even I could understand what they were doing... They wanted to film us doing nasty things and sell it. Kimika: I know that... That's why I― Zakuro: What are you saying, Kimika... You're the one being stupid now. Zakuro: I wouldn't want that... I wouldn't want to be saved if it meant you had to go through that. Kimika: Z-Zakuro... Zakuro: Starting tomorrow, they'll probably bully us like they used to, but... I think that's better than leaving you behind. Zakuro: You were the one who said it, Kimika. Zakuro: Guilt... Guilt is crueler than any bully. I don't want to be saved if it means sacrificing you... I would never want that. Zakuro: Even if I was saved, I would die of regret... It would be more painful than anything a bully could ever do to me. Kimika: You're so stupid, Zakuro. Kimika: It's going to be hell tomorrow... Zakuro: Yeah, that's fine. Kimika: Haa... You're such an optimist... Kimika: ... Kimika: ...Zakuro, you've changed. Kimika: You really have changed in the past few days. Kimika: When you were a kid, and later when we met up again at Kita High, you were always too timid to speak up when someone did something you didn't like... and now you're brave enough to do what you just did. Zakuro: H-Have I really changed that much? Kimika: And... what were you saying earlier? I sounded like you were reciting an incantation or something. Zakuro: It wasn't an incantation... It was a quote from a play called _Cyrano de Bergerac_ . Kimika: A play * Oh, I see. So it really was because of Mamiya Takuji."* Zakuro: Eh? Uh, I guess... Kimika: Oh well.. * Anyway, you should be careful... though it's probably futile at this point."* Zakuro: Yeah, you too. Kimika: Haa... *Kimika turned and looked away from me.* *Then, when she was leaving...* Kimika: Thanks... for saving me... *She said that, and then she left.* *Wednesday night...* *The shopping district was still full of people.* *Kimika and I went our separate ways.* *Tomorrow will be hell.* *That's what Kimika told me.* *But...* *I'm not scared.* *Though I was scared for a little while there, I'm not anymore.* *After that, I went up to the department store roof.* *Maybe I wanted to look at the sky... or maybe I couldn't stand being in the crowd.* *Maybe I just wanted to find a quiet place to sit.* *I'm not sure.* *Maybe I was expecting something...* *Since this is where I met him.* *I found my conviction as I stood under that sky.* *I'm not afraid.* *I'm not afraid at all.* Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: ... Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... Mamiya: Um... Zakuro: You forgot again... Mamiya: Ahahaha... Not at all. You're the person I lent that book to. Zakuro: My name... Mamiya: Um... Zakuro: Takashima Zakuro. Mamiya: That's it! Zakuro: Of course it is... I wish you would remember it. Mamiya: Ahahahaha... Are you thirsty? Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: Do you want this? Zakuro: Ah... *Mamiya-kun held a can of pop out toward me.* Mamiya: You look like you're sweating... Shouldn't you replenish your fluids? Zakuro: Ah, sure... *I took the can from him.* *This is... an indirect...* Mamiya: What are you doing here at this time of night? Running a marathon? Zakuro: Eh? No one would run a marathon in their school uniform... Mamiya: But you were running. Zakuro: Yeah... Well, it's not important. Mamiya: ...I was wondering. Zakuro: Yes? Mamiya: You're in the same year as me, right? Zakuro: Yes. Mamiya: Why is your speech so formal? Zakuro: I'm not sure... Mamiya: Have you always talked like that? Zakuro: Hehe... You should be able to remember that. Zakuro: Oh, and... you're smoking again. Mamiya: Yeah... I guess I am. Zakuro: That's not good for you. Mamiya: That's not entirely true. You see, it's not good for your brain... Zakuro: That's what I'm saying... Mamiya: But it is good for your spirit. Zakuro: Really? It seems like it would be bad for your spirit too... Mamiya: Let me amend that statement. Smoking is good for the spirit that's not good to begin with. Zakuro: That doesn't make any sense... Mamiya: Or maybe it does... Zakuro: Um, that play... Mamiya: Oh, Cyrano? Zakuro: Yeah... It was really good. Mamiya: You already finished it? You're really fast. Zakuro: Ahahaha... You're the one who said you kept reading it over because it ends too soon. Mamiya: So you liked it? Zakuro: Yes, it was really good... and it gave me courage. Mamiya: Courage? Zakuro: Yes... Mamiya: Courage, huh... Zakuro: A-Ahahaha... That's kind of strange, isn't it? Mamiya: Why? Zakuro: Uh, um... Zakuro: Oh, uh... I just meant, maybe you think I'm a pathetic girl because of that... Mamiya: Pathetic? Hahahaha... I guess so. Mamiya: There's not a single person that isn't pathetic. People just hide their pain. Zakuro: Wh-Whose words are those? Mamiya: Mine. Zakuro: A-Ahahaha. Mamiya: If you're pathetic, then so am I. You could even call me a bit pitiful. Zakuro: You're not really... Oh, but... Mamiya: But what? Zakuro: If even you are pathetic, then... what kind of person isn't? Mamiya: That's a good question, and the answer is... Zakuro: The answer is? Mamiya: I've never met anyone that wasn't, so I wouldn't know. Zakuro: Hehe... Mamiya: I wonder where that person is hiding. There has to be a wonderful person like that somewhere in the world, right? Zakuro: ...Yes. Mamiya: Cyrano's words have a certain rhythm to them... Zakuro: Yes. Mamiya: Anyone capable of reason would be encouraged by his panache. Zakuro: Panache? Mamiya: Yeah. At the end, Cyrano screams out the word 'panache' as he dies. Zakuro: Yes... 'You strip from me the laurel and the rose!' Mamiya: 'Take all! Despite you there is yet one thing I hold against you all, and when, to-night, I enter Christ's fair courts, and, lowly bowed, Zakuro: Sweep with doffed casque the heavens' threshold blue, one thing is left, that, void of stain or smutch, I bear away despite you.' Zakuro: 'My panache!' Mamiya: You remembered the whole thing. Zakuro: I read it over and over... Mamiya: The last thing he tried to take with him was 'mon panache'... In other words, his white plume. Zakuro: A white plume? Mamiya: Yeah, the white plume on his hat. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: Apparently the word came to mean something closer to 'A flamboyant manner.' Mamiya: In other translations you'll see the final line translated as 'My white plume.' Zakuro: I see. Mamiya: He says those words as death takes everything else from him. Isn't that cool? Mamiya: It gives me chills to think of him crying out the three syllables of 'Mon panache!' at the moment of his death... Mamiya: If the kind of person who could witness his final moments without feeling something, the kind of person who would call you pathetic for doing so... Mamiya: If that's the kind of person that isn't 'pathetic,' then I'd rather be pathetic. Zakuro: Yeah... Zakuro: U-Um, Mamiya-kun... Mamiya: What? Zakuro: C-Could I borrow it... for just a little while longer? Mamiya: Eh? I don't really mind, but... why? Zakuro: I want to read it again. Mamiya: ...I guess so. Zakuro: I've memorized some parts of it. Mamiya: Yeah, you just recited that one part. You must have read it a lot. Zakuro: Ahahaha... It's really powerful. Mamiya: But the prose is really beautiful, isn't it? Cyrano is a poet, after all... Zakuro: The way he talks is really cool, isn't it? Mamiya: Hahaha... That's right. It's really cool. Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Now that I think about it... Why are you here at this time of night, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: Huh? There's no reason, really... Zakuro: I see you on the rooftop a lot. Mamiya: I guess you're right... I feel like I'm suffocating when I'm inside. Zakuro: Like you're suffocating... Mamiya: Yeah. The higher the ceiling, the better... Zakuro: The higher the ceiling, the better... Mamiya: Yeah, the higher the better... and it feels best when it's infinitely high, you know? Zakuro: Infinitely high... Mamiya: What? Am I boring you? Zakuro: N-No, that's not what I mean... Mamiya: At first, I hated the endless sky... People really change, huh? Zakuro: You used to hate it? Mamiya: Yeah, I used to like the rain. I loved rain clouds. Zakuro: Really? Then how did that change? Why do you like the endless sky now? Mamiya: Who knows... A lot of people tell me I ramble on about a lot of boring stuff, so I tend to frustrate them. Zakuro: That's not true. The endless sky. That sounds nice. Mamiya: Hahaha... Thanks for saying that. Mamiya: Sometimes when someone says something ridiculous like that, he's actually serious. Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... *I drank from the can that he gave me.* *The sweet, carbonated flavor filled my mouth.* *I escaped from that place...* *And that's how I came to stand here...* *Looking at the eternal sky with Mamiya-kun.* *The two of us... looking at the night sky...* *I looked at his face.* *He was still looking up at the sky.* *I might lose everything I have, but...* *But if I can hold onto my panache...* Zakuro: ... Mamiya: What's wrong? Zakuro: Eh? Uh... Mamiya: Are you crying? Zakuro: Oh, no... Not at all... Zakuro: That's not... *I ran away...* *From those people...* *From that place...* *Something might happen tomorrow...* *But still...* Zakuro: Ah!

*I wanted to leave, but...* *But...* *My body was frozen in place.* *Defying them would mean...* *Kimika glanced toward me again.* *She was trying to tell me something, but I couldn't understand.* *Even if I had understood, I was frozen. I couldn't do anything.* *When I didn't react, Kimika sighed and looked back toward the camera. She gave them a large, unnatural grin.* Megu: Come on, Tachibana. Kimika: Um, like this? Megu: Oh, that's sexy. Kimika: Aha... You think so? Megu: Come on, just a little more. Kimika: Eh? L-Like this? Megu: Oh, that's great... What color are your panties? Kimika: You sound like a perverted old man. Megu: They must be really cute, right? Kimika: Well, they were pretty expensive. Megu: Oh, really? Come on, show us a bit more! Kimika: Eh? Then why don't you get yourselves on camera, too? Megu: Sure. Come on. Kimika: Wow... Just a little, all right? Megu: Oh, you look great. I got a good picture. Satoko: That's great. Let's zoom in... Kimika: N-No way. Satoko: And here are her panties. Megu: Get a closeup of this. Satoko: It'll be fine, it'll be fine. They're really beautiful. Did you just buy them? Kimika: Y-Yeah... *I don't like where this is going.* *This is bizarre.* Satoko: By the way, Zakuro-chan, what kind of panties are you wearing? Megu: What kind of panties do you have on? Zakuro: Eh? Satoko: Hey, Zakuro. Zakuro: I-I'm, uh... Megu: Oh, that's great, Tachibana. How far can you open your legs? *She wasn't only reservedly opening her legs like before, but rather opening them as far as she could so the camera could see everything.* *Kimika... Are you doing this to protect me?* *It was just like when I used to get bullied... Whenever it seemed like their attention would shift to me, she would offer herself up to them.* *She was trying to give me a chance to escape.* *And yet...* *I was too scared to do anything.* *I couldn't even move.* *What should I do?* Kimika: Ah... U-Um, what is this? Megu: How is it? It's a portable backrubber. Kimika: O-Oh... Then it's not designed to be used here, is it... Megu: Don't worry about it. It's for massaging. What's it matter where you use it? Satoko: What's that? Megu: It's a back massager. I bought it at the store. Satoko: No, this has to be a sex toy. Megu: Don't ask me. I just thought I would try it like this, since it doesn't really work on my back. Kimika: U-Um... It kinda hurts, but... A-Ah! Megu: Your voice sounded really sexy just now, you know? Kimika: No, that's not it. It's just... It's kind of ticklish, ah! Satoko: That's not what it sounds like. Kimika: W-Wait a second, ah, ah! Megu: They're gonna hear if you keep moaning like that. Kimika: Eh? Satoko: Look, that guy over there is looking at you. Kimika: Eh? Ah! Satoko: You sound really turned on. Kimika: N-No... Satoko: Come on, hold still. Kimika: I am holding still. Megu: Takashima. Zakuro: Eh? Megu: Go get us three Bikkuri Mugs. Zakuro: Huh? Satoko: Hurry up. Zakuro: Ah, okay... *What is it all of a sudden?* *I didn't understand why they said that, but I did as they told me.* *And why would they want three Bikkuri Mugs? That's going to take a while.* *The cashier gave me the receipt like it was perfectly normal.* *I was told to wait at my seat because they would take a while to make.* Megu: Oh, Takashima. Zakuro: I brought the receipt. Megu: Oh, so you didn't wait for our drinks? Zakuro: Huh? Kimika: ...Ah... Satoko: I don't think you can hold out much longer, Tachibana. Megu: Why don't you do it like this? Zakuro: Ah... Satoko: The waiter's coming. Kimika: ... Satoko: Act like nothing's happening. Kimika: Ah! Waiter: Order number 74. Kimika: ... Satoko: Oh, over here. Waiter: You wanted three Bikkuri Mugs, correct? Megu: Yeah. Waiter: Here you go. Kimika: ... *Even as the waiter was standing right at the table, Satoko kept pushing the massager into Kimika's crotch.* *Kimika was trying to act like nothing was happening, but her body was still shaking.* *So this is why they ordered three Bikkuri Mugs.* *There's no way they would be able to serve those right away... Satoko knew a waiter would have to bring them over to the table.* *Which made me into an accomplice.* *Kimika had to stay quiet so he won't notice, which meant Satoko could do whatever she wanted...* *And Kimika had no choice but to endure it so the waiter and the people nearby wouldn't notice.* Megu: Hey, waiter. Waiter: Yes? Megu: I'd like some water. Waiter: Water? Megu: Yeah, I'm kinda broke after getting three of these. Waiter: You did get three, after all. Megu: I'm kinda hungry. How about you, Tachibana? Kimika: Ah... Ah... Yes... Waiter: Hmm? Satoko: Why does your voice sound so strange, Tachibana? Megu: Come on, Tachibana. Kimika: Ah... S-Sure... Ah! Waiter: I-Is she all right? Megu: Huh? Waiter: Her face is bright red. Megu: Oh, that. We're having an endurance competition. Kimika: Wha―?! Waiter: Endurance competition? Megu: Yeah, an endurance competition. Waiter: What kind? Kimika: A-Akasakaaa, aah, uh! Megu: Can't you tell from her voice? Isn't it hot? You should be able to tell what she's enduring. Waiter: Wait... What? Waiter: Y-You don't mean?! Satoko: Ahahahahaha, what did you imagine? Her stomach just hurts cause she's on her period. Waiter: Her period? Megu: Hahahaha... She's gonna take some medicine, but she needs some water. Hurry up. Waiter: Ah, okay... Kimika: Ah, ahh... Megu: It's not over yet... That waiter is gonna bring you some water. Finish up before he gets back. Kimika: Finish? Megu: You know what I mean. Hurry, hurry. Kimika: Th-There's no way I could do that here. Megu: Really? You won't know until you try. Megu: I'm gonna keep going until you cum. He was already suspicious. Don't you think he's going to figure it out next time? Satoko: Couldn't that be bad for us too? Megu: That's why I'm telling her to hurry up! Kimika: Ah, ah... Megu: And touch your chest, like this... and pull your panties down, so the camera can see. Kimika: Ah... *Kimika gave in and put the vibrator up to her crotch.* Kimika: Ah... *She just laid it there, but the vibrator made a wet sound.* Megu: What, you're already wet? You like that back massager that much? Kimika: Ahh... No, I'm not... *I doubt that she really liked it... She just had to do it or they wouldn't let her go.* *Kimika understood that... That's why she was really masturbating in a place like this.* *Her hand moved to her breast, massaging it and grabbing the nipple.* *And her other hand pushed the vibrator in, pushing her labia apart and showing the swollen red color of her vagina.* *She was desperate to finish it quickly.* Satoko: Whoa... Tachibana, you're going crazy over there. Do you want everyone to see you moving your hips like that? Kimika: No... Th-That's not it... Aaaahh! *Clear liquid dripped from her crotch, throwing drops everywhere as she moved her fingers. The floor beneath her was wet.* *The room was filled with the smell of it.* Satoko: Whoa... They're all staring at us. This could be bad. Do you think they can tell? Kimika: Th-Then maybe... aahhh. Megu: No, hurry up and finish. It's not like they can see your pussy, right? Kimika: B-But... Aah... Satoko: Everyone's watching us... Megu: No, look over there. Satoko: Hmm? Megu: The people who can actually tell what we're doing aren't looking at us. Satoko: You think? Megu: Look... The people who are looking can't tell what we're doing. The ones who can tell are too embarrassed to look, you see? Zakuro: Ah... *She was right... Most of them were looking at us suspiciously. The ones who could actually tell didn't want to look straight at us.* *They weren't looking directly at us, but they were still watching us out of the corners of their eyes.* Megu: The only ones who have figured it out are the student over there studying and that old salaryman there. The rest of them can't tell. Satoko: You're right. Megu: So hurry up and cum, Tachibana. Kimika: Ahh. Megu: Who knows, though. You stink to high heaven. Don't you think they're all going to smell it pretty soon? Kimika: Ahh! No, you can't let that happen... D-Don't... Megu: Not my problem. Hurry up, like I said. If you don't, we'll leave you here naked, so you better get to it. Kimika: Haaa... Aah... *Akasaka-san showed Kimika the time on her cell phone.* *It ticked away the seconds with cruel precision.* Megu: It's already been a minute. The waiter's gonna be back soon. Kimika: Ahh, no... No! Ahh, ahh! *She moved her finger rapidly and cried, focusing on nothing else.* *Her hips moved quickly and rhythmically, shaking the chair.* Megu: You're still not cumming? He's gonna be back soon, you know? Kimika: Aahh! Noo! I can't take it! *Akasaka-san constantly teased her... and Kimika madly moved her finger in and out while rubbing her clitoris simultaneously.* Satoko: Ah... This is getting pretty shady, don't you think? Kimika: Ahhh! Ah! Noo! No, nooo! Satoko: Whoa... Do you think they can hear us? Kimika: Haaa! Ah, no... Megu: Why don't we gag her and make her fuck the waiter, then? He's a guy, after all. Kimika: No, don't do that. No! *Her juices foamed, sticking to the vibrator and her fingers.* *Maybe it was because she was rushing, but she couldn't cum even after all that.* Kimika: Ahhh, I have to cum, quick... Aaah, ah! *She shook and ground her hips against her arm, covering herself in juice.* *The scent wafting out grew even stronger.* Satoko: Shouldn't we get outta here? Megu: That's right... If you don't cum soon, we might have to make you fuck the waiter. Kimika: Aaah! Ah! A-Almost, I'm almost there... *Her entire body moved in tremors... and she finally felt the pleasure come over her.* Megu: Whoa, he's almost here... He just came up the stairs. Kimika: Aah, ah, ah! I'm coming, I'm coming! Ahh, ah, ah! Megu: Five meters... Four meters... *Kimika's hips moved in time with Megu's countdown.* *Drool hung from her mouth and dripped onto her blouse.* Kimika: Ahhh! I can feel it, it's coming! Megu: Three meters... Kimika: Aah, ah, ahh... Kimika: Ahhhhhh! *Kimika clenched her jaw as her body trembled.* Waiter: W-Water is fine, right? Kimika: Ah... Y-Yes... Waiter: A-Are you okay? Kimika: Y-Yes... I'm fahne... Waiter: Well then... Satoko: Close call. Megu: Great job. You're awesome, Tachibana! Kimika: I-I'm not... awesome... Megu: My heart was racing. Kimika: Then you two will do it too, right? Megu: No way. I'm the cameraman. Satoko: I'm the director. Kimika: D-Director of what... Zakuro: ... *At this rate...* Satoko: Now what? Megu: Anyway, can we go somewhere else? Megu: We shouldn't do anything more here. Zakuro: ... Megu: So, where should we go? Satoko: Karaoke sound good? Kimika: Haa... Why would you make me do something like that before we could go to karaoke. Satoko: Well, I guess... Kimika: What are you trying to do? Megu: I told you yesterday, didn't I? Kimika: Told me what? Megu: A creative way of earning money. Kimika: Creative? Megu: Yeah, I had a spark, and now I must be an artist. Kimika: Sure... and this is your brilliant idea... Megu: The moment I first held a camera, I recognized it. Kimika: Recognized what? Megu: My own talent. Satoko: So we want to make a movie. Kimika: A movie... Just a movie, huh? Megu: Yeah. Kimika: And what's it about? Megu: I'm not sure. I'm not a genius scriptwriter. I'm just a genius cameraman. Satoko: I'm in charge of the script. Kimika: So what kind of script is it? Satoko: It's kind of like, there's this old professor whose body is made of gears and springs, and he spends his last moments in the depths of the forest with the fairies. That's the plot. *That doesn't make much sense, but I think I've heard something like that before. Maybe they're ripping off some manga...* *Kimika was already disgusted.* Satoko: We're following the latest trends... It's like young adult fiction, but with a bit of Visual K added in for taste. I got the idea from a shoujo manga I was reading. *Wouldn't you just call that a ripoff?* Kimika: I see... So what's this part? Why are you filming right now? Satoko: Don't ask me. Megu is in charge of filmography. Megu: The story will come together on its own if Takashima just does her best. Zakuro: U-Um... Megu: Oh, I got an idea! Kimika: What now? Megu: We'll give her a manicure. Kimika: Huh? A manicure? Megu: We have to give her red nails. Kimika: Why? Megu: Wouldn't she look good with her black hair... her white skin... and red nails? Satoko: What then? Megu: And then.. * if she masturbated for us?"* Satoko: You're crazy. Zakuro: Eh? Um... Megu: Doesn't it sound dirty? Satoko: That again? Megu: I told you, it just came to me in a flash of inspiration. We have to give her a manicure, the red will go great with her white skin. Kimika: And where are you planning on doing that... While we're singing karaoke? Megu: Nah... Isn't the setting sun sexy? Isn't this perfect? Satoko: Ha, I think she's got a screw loose, lol. Zakuro: U-Um, I... Kimika: Zakuro, let's go home. Zakuro: Eh? Satoko: Hey! Tachibana, what did you just say? Kimika: Didn't you get enough footage earlier? I thought you just wanted to make some money? Satoko: The fuck did you say? Kimika: You're gonna sell that at some shop, right? Upskirt shots sell for a pretty penny, don't they? That's why you were filming in the school earlier too. Zakuro: Huh? Y-You think? Kimika: They were probably filming the whole time. I could tell Akasaka-san was holding her bag weird. Satoko: What are you trying to say? Megu: You got it all wrong... What are you getting so serious for? It's just a game. It's not like it's a porno or anything. Call it a documentary. Kimika: Either way, you don't need to get Zakuro involved. You already got plenty of me. Satoko: You think you're the one who gets to decide that?! Kimika: Then what do you think, Zakuro? Do you want the same thing to happen to you that just happened to me? Zakuro: Th-That's kind of... Satoko: Zakuro, I'm sure you don't mind, right? Aren't we friends? Megu: Haa... I told you Tachibana would be a pain in the ass if we brought her along. Well, I guess it was worth it since we got a nice one of her. Kimika: Then we'll be going... Zakuro, let's go. Zakuro: Ah... Ow! Kimika: Ow! *Kimika tried to take me by the hand and leave, but Kitami-san grabbed my other arm so I couldn't move.* Satoko: What are you talking about? I told you, we don't need you anymore... Get out of here. Kimika: Even after the accident, you still haven't learned. Satoko: Learned? What accident? I don't know what you're talking about. Kimika: You've forgotten already, huh * I'm talking about the time Zakuro fell from Building C because of one of your stupid plans."* Megu: Huh? What are you talking about? That was an accident. It's her own fault. Kimika: Why are you playing dumb for? It was your bullying that caused it. Satoko: No way. That's ridiculous. What bullying? Kimika: You don't think there was any bullying? Satoko: It was a game. A game, you know? You and Takashima were there of your own consent, weren't you? Kimika: You call that consent? Megu: Oh, fine. I'm tired of you... Satoko, beat her up. Satoko: Gotcha... She's pissing me off too. You know, we were doing you a favor, since you had no friends. We sympathized with you... Satoko: Anyway, I'll have to teach you a lesson. Satoko: Ah! Zakuro: Eh? Megu: Wha―?! Kimika: A cornered rat will bite the cat. Haven't you ever heard that one? Megu: Wh-Why you... Satoko: A-Ahh... *I couldn't believe my eyes... Kitami Satoko had crumpled and fallen in front of Kimika.* Kimika: I made up my mind last time Zakuro got hurt... If you ever try to do something like that again, I will stop you, even if it means I have to kill you both. Kimika: I'm glad I brought this along. It's a 31 inch high carbon steel baton... You'll be feeling that one in the morning. *I had no idea what was happening.* *Suddenly, there was a long steel rod clenched in Kimika's hand.* Megu: S-Satoko? Satoko: D-Damn it... *Apparently it was an extendible steel rod. It extended on its own when Kimika swung it at Kitami-san.* Kimika: Tch... You got off light because it wasn't fully extended. I was trying to break your ribs. Kimika: Doesn't matter, though. I'm going to make sure you two feel all the pain you've inflicted on Zakuro. Satoko: ... *Apparently Kitami-san is really strong in fights... She's like the bodyguard for Akasaka-san, who has all the money.* *But there's nothing they can do against someone with a weapon like that.* *They could tell it wasn't a toy in her hand... It was a real weapon, capable of killing someone if necessary.* *What's going on... Why is this happening?* Megu: Ts-Tsubasa! Kimika: Sh-Shiroyama... Shiroyama: What are you doing, Megu? You said we were gonna have some fun. Is this what you were talking about? Megu: You're late, you dumbass! Shiroyama: What? Satoko: Tachibana has a weapon, and she's fighting back... Shiroyama: A weapon? Oh, what's that? That's pretty cool. Kimika: D-Don't come near me! Shiroyama: Hehehe... What's that, Tachibana? You know, if we have some girl swinging a weapon at us, no one's gonna be able to blame us for fighting back. Kimika: H-How do you figure? Megu: It's just self-defense! Yeah, it's self-defense! Tsubasa, beat the shit out of her! Shiroyama: Beat up a girl? Seriously? I'm not into that shit. Megu: I'll give you something nice later. Shiroyama: What'll you give me? Megu: If you come to the karaoke place with us, you'll see. Just tell them you're with Akasaka. Shiroyama: Are you talking about what I think you are? Really? I thought you were jealous when I was checking out Takashima. Megu: Sh-Shut up. I'll forgive you for today, so beat her the fuck up. I don't want to see her face in school for a month. Iida: That stick looks like it would fucking hurt, though... She could knock you out with one good hit. Megu: I-I'll let you guys fuck her too. Just go! Iida: Wait, really? I don't think we can just rape her, though. Megu: It'll be fine! I'll make sure it's all consensual. *Eh? Wh-What are they talking about?* *Wh-Why are they talking about me?* *What do they mean, consensual?* *Consent for what?* Nishimura: You can do that? That's great! I can't wait to lose my virginity! Iida: Oh yeah, I forgot. You're a virgin, huh? Nishimura: Well, yeah, but not for much longer! Kimika: Like I'm gonna let you do that! Nishimura: Shut up. You have nothing to do with it! Nishimura: Ah! *When he carelessly moved toward Kimika, he was knocked to the ground in one hit.* *She didn't hesitate to hit him right in the neck. Maybe she was aiming for the head...* *She's serious...* Iida: Oh my, poor Nishimura-chan got knocked on his cute little ass... What are we gonna do now? Shiroyama: Use your backpack as a shield. Numada, we'll rush her at the same time. Iida: Okay, that works. Shiroyama: Megu, you promised me... Don't forget it. Megu: Y-Yeah, but just this one time! Shiroyama: One time is plenty, right Numada? Iida: Oh, uh, I'd like to do it as many times as I can... Do you mind? Megu: Why would I care? Do it as many times as you want. Takashima's not gonna stop you. Zakuro: U-Um, I, uh... Megu: Don't worry * You just come with us, Takashima."* Zakuro: N-No... Kimika: Z-Zakuro! *Kimika let her guard down for a moment when she saw me being taken away.* Shiroyama: Take this! Kimika: Ah! Zakuro: Kimika! *She was knocked over.* Iida: Agh! *But she still fought back desperately.* Shiroyama: Damn it. This stick is fucking dangerous! Megu: Hurry up, before someone calls the cops! Just beat her up, quick! Satoko: And if you're gonna rape her, don't do it here. Take her to some hotel, or your house! Iida: How the hell would we get her in a hotel? Shiroyama: We'd have to knock her out, wouldn't we? Iida: I dunno if I wanna fuck a girl when her face is all bloody and shit... Shiroyama: So just finish her off and then fuck Takashima! Right, Megu? Megu: I heard you! I'll take care of Takashima! Kimika: Ugh * No fucking way!"* Shiroyama: All right... Anyway, we'll take care of this crazy bitch. Megu: Yeah, I'm counting on you. Iida: This hurts like a bitch! Nishimura: I'm alive! Iida: Oh, Nishimura-chan, I thought you were dead. You weren't moving at all. Nishimura: Damn it, Tachibana! You've crushed my dreams! I'll kill you! All I fucking wanted was to lose my virginity! Shiroyama: Nishimura's back, I guess. You want to let him in on the action too? Megu: Yeah, sure. Sounds great. Just take care of the other one. Kimika: Zakuro! *We were powerless against them.* *They closed in on her.* *After a while, her blows stopped connecting, or started connecting with their bags instead of flesh.* Zakuro: K-Kimika! Kimika: Zakuro! *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san took me away.* *I wanted to fight back too, but my body wouldn't move. I was led away, powerless to resist.* Zakuro: U-Um, will Kimika be... Megu: That's her own fault... She's the one who pulled that fucking baton on us. Satoko: That's right. We just wanted to have some fun. Zakuro: B-But... Megu: So you should just be a good little girl for the camera... Zakuro: Camera? Megu: I told you, we're making a movie. You're the star. Satoko: That's right. If we can finish this up quick, Tachibana might get off easy. Megu: Yeah, she might. There's no reason for her to get hurt once we finish up. Zakuro: R-Really? Megu: Don't you agree? Zakuro: B-But, a movie... Megu: Oh, that was just a joke earlier. I'm not gonna make you do anything with them. Don't worry about that. Satoko: Yeah, we're not gonna do anything crazy like that. We're not making a porno. Photo shots like this are really popular nowadays, haven't you heard? Zakuro: Like what? Megu: It's like, you have your models still clothed, but just doing some erotic poses or taking sensual videos. It's really artistic and stuff. Zakuro: O-Oh, really? Satoko: Yeah, I've heard about that. All the big names are doing that now. It's not a problem at all. Megu: It's not like we're making a porno. Don't worry, we're not gonna make you fuck some guy or anything. Zakuro: B-But still, a video sounds kind of... Megu: Don't worry, I just told you everything... And here, take this medicine. Zakuro: Medicine? Megu: It's special. You just need to suck it up your nose with this straw. Zakuro: What's it for? Megu: Huh? You haven't heard of this * It's really popular right now. It'll improve your bloodflow and make your skin look better. It's for the camera."* Satoko: We're the creators, so we want it to come out as good as possible. We're just worried about you. Zakuro: Y-Yeah, all right... You won't do anything bad to Kimika if we finish up quickly, right? Megu: Of course not. If you'd like, I could call them right now and make sure they don't hurt her. Zakuro: Kimika won't get hurt, then? Megu: Yeah, I'll call them right now... Uh... Megu: Hello, Tsubasa? I have a favor to ask. Satoko: Look, Megu's doing her best. You have to show us you're serious about this too. Zakuro: Oh, sure... If you won't hurt Kimika... *I just had to do the same thing they made Kimika do.* *I couldn't make Kimika go through all the bad stuff for my sake... I had to help her.* Megu: Oh, and this drug is really strong, so you just need to do it once. Zakuro: Oh, okay... *I used a straw to suck the powder out of a small bottle and into my nose.* *I'd never heard of taking medicine like this.* Megu: Now then! Let's have some fun. Zakuro: Oh, sure... *What?* *It's like... something is weird...* *Maybe it's just my imagination...* *The light is awfully bright.* *It's like everything is shining.* Satoko: Now then, let's go somewhere a bit sexier. Megu: Yeah! Well, there are a lot of people here. That would be kind of hot in its own way. Satoko: Don't worry, I thought of that ahead of time. Megu: Oh, good, hehehe... All right, I'll leave it up to you. *Her face broke into a smile, and she patted Kitami-san on the shoulder.* Satoko: Hehehe. Well, this could be fun. *My body is weird...* *I'm sweating so bad...* *It's not that hot out...* *And my pulse is faster than usual...* Megu: Here, drink this juice, Takashima. Zakuro: Huh? Juice? Megu: Yeah, when you do drugs like this, you get super thirsty. Zakuro: Oh, okay... *She's right...* *My throat is dry...* *Those drugs... I shouldn't have taken those.* *Uh... Why am I sweating so bad?* *My heart is beating fast... It's all so bright.* *Uh...* *My thoughts started slipping... I was still there, but my thoughts went off track.* Megu: Come on, Takashima, let's go. You're the star, so look pep. Zakuro: Ah, okay... *Akasaka-san grabbed my arm hard, and Kitami-san pushed me from behind.* Satoko: Come on, walk already! Zakuro: Ah, okay... *Umm... That was probably something bad, which is probably why they made me take it... That's why it's so bright, and why my heart is beating so fast.* *And... uh, what?* *How did this happen, uh...* *Right, to save Kimika... And, uh... After that, uh...* *That's right!* *We have to make a video to save Kimika.* *So they're gonna film me... One of them was the director, and one of them was the cameraman... So who was writing the script?* *Um... We need a script, after all. And some other stuff... I think there was some more...* *We have to have it all... so I can save Kimika...* *Is there still stuff we need?* *Um...* *My thoughts were flying, but I still couldn't figure it out.* *What am I supposed to be doing...* *Something I have to do...* *I'm sweating so bad...* *I can't think straight...* *Something I need to do...* Megu: Oh, that's right! I'll go ahead and give this to you now. *Why was she smiling when she handed me that...* Zakuro: Huh? *Um... This is that thing they were using on Kimika...* *They said it was a back massager, but...* *She gave it to me because she wants me to use it.* *It's a back massager, so on my back... No, that's wrong. That's not how Kimika used it.* *I have to do it just like Kimika.* *Yeah, that's what I'm supposed to do now.* *The exact same thing as Kimika.* *Kimika shouldn't be the only one who has to go through this... I have to do it for her sake.* Megu: Hey... Are you sure about this? Wasn't that an awful lot for a beginner? It looks like her brain melted... Satoko: You're the one who made her do it. Megu: She probably won't fall. I didn't tranquilize her or anything. Satoko: But it's a downer, right? Megu: Of course. What else would I give her? We're gonna make her do some crazy stuff later. Satoko: Those are really strong... Once someone takes one, they'll do anything. *They're talking about something... Downers and stuff. Lots of words I don't know...* Megu: Hey Takashima, let's go! Zakuro: Huh? O-Okhay. Satoko: Hahaha, listen to her, lol. She's so high right now. Megu: Listen, when people snort this stuff, they think they're acting perfectly logically. They don't get it at all. Satoko: Oh wow. Megu: And she's still trying to act normal, lol. Her eyes are scary, though. Look at her pupils... Satoko: And she's talking to herself... Satoko: All right, this place looks good. *They brought me, tottering along, over to a place by the traffic light in front of the station, in a bit of a blindspot.* *They're really gonna film here...* *Maybe the people passing by won't see us if we're careful doing it here, but...* *I have to do this for Kimika's sake...* *I'll do everything they tell me.* Megu: All right, here's the camera. Satoko: Zakuro-chan, lift up your skirt, slowly. Zakuro: M-My skirt? Um, uh... *The video camera focused in on my lower body. I lifted up my skirt, just like they told me to.* Satoko: That's great, that's great! Yeah, move your hands just like that! *I lifted my skirt. I saw the camera zoom in when I showed them my panties.* Satoko: Hmm... She always acts like such a nice girl, but her underwear is really sexy. That's kind of surprising. Megu: Do you think we should bring some panties for her to wear next time? Satoko: Heh, you have a lot of panties that can hardly be called underwear. Satoko: That pair that's nothing but string. That would be perfect. Megu: Those are designed to make a guy wanna fuck. They have their own purpose. Don't make fun of them. Satoko: Makes perfect sense to me. Megu: It works like a charm, ahaha. *I couldn't understand what they were talking about... I was more worried about all the people I could hear in the train station.* *Why are there so many people around? I can hear all their voices and footsteps, clear as day.* *It's all too loud...* Satoko: Oh, sorry, don't worry about us. Keep going. Megu: Yeah! Put your skirt in your mouth, so you can use your hands. Zakuro: Um, that's... Zakuro: ...Like this? *I bit the end of my skirt, just like they told me. My panties were completely revealed, and my hands were free.* Satoko: That's great. Megu: Hehehehe... It's so surreal. Satoko: Who cares about that? Get to it. Megu: Oh, right. Next, turn on the back massager I gave you earlier. *The back massager started vibrating.* *The sound echoed in my brain.* Megu: What are you waiting for? You know what to do next... Do it just like Tachibana did earlier. *What Kimika did earlier...* *My finger moved on its own, turning the switch back off.* Megu: The fuck did you do that for?! Satoko: Hey, I can't guarantee anything about Tachibana if you do that... *Th-That's right... I have to do what Kimika did...* *I have to do the same thing if I want to save her...* Zakuro: Haa... *I sighed as I turned the switch on. The long, elliptically shaped back massager came back to life.* Satoko: All right, now the props are all set to go. Satoko: We won't be able to guide you anymore. Just do it like you always do at home. Zakuro: Ah... *Like I always do at home?* *I don't do that... I only do it once in a while...* Megu: And I'll get all your cute reactions on tape! Don't hold back, now. Zakuro: Okay... *This is for Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... To save Kimika... To save Kimika... To save Kimika...* *To save Kimika... To save Kimika... To save Kimika...* Satoko: Quit talking to yourself, damn... Megu: Don't blame her. She's never done drugs before... She'll calm down once she gets into it. Satoko: Yeah, she looks like she's sick or something. It's creepy. Let's get her going with that vibe already. *I have to do my best...?* Zakuro: Hmm, hmm... Ah, ha, hmm... *When I put the vibrator up to my pussy from over my underwear, my legs shook from the sudden, new sensation.* Megu: Pretty good reaction, huh? Satoko: Yeah... It's pretty nice. *I had my skirt in my mouth, so at least I couldn't moan very loudly...* Zakuro: Haa... Ah, ah... *My underwear's probably going to feel wet and nasty after this, but if I just get through this without anyone seeing us, then there'll be no problem, no problem at all.* *Ahh... But if I can hurry up and cum without getting too wet... Kimika might...?* Zakuro: a, ahh... Mmm～～?! *This is scary.* *Wh-Why does it have to be in a place like this?* *I can't... My head isn't, isn't working, my head, my head's not, it's, ah... Aaah.* *Why? Why? Why? I'm barely touching it, but I'm jumping, jumping, jumping, jumping, jumping every single time I touch myself.* Zakuro: Haa, ah, ahh, mm... *Th-This is... I've really never done anything l-like this...* Zakuro: Haa, ahh, haaa... ah... Megu: Whoa... She just started and she's already doing this. Satoko: We've never been sober when there were other people around doing drugs. Megu: We always take 'em when other people do too... I've never been sober enough to watch anyone else. Satoko: Hehehe, this is just the start. We have a lot more planned. Zakuro: Haa, ah, mm, ahh... Satoko: Takashima, if it feels so good, why don't you pull your panties down? Zakuro: Ahh, ah, ahh... *They said something.* *Can't respond.* *My brain was taken by pleasure... Everything was gone...* Megu: Come on! Drop 'em already Zakuro: O-Okay. *I quickly pulled my underwear down.* *They fell to the ground.* Zakuro: Hhtherre, thheeere,... ah, ahh, ahh... *My eyes were spinning.* *It's so different when I do it directly... So different, too different...* *And more, more importantly... I have to calm, calm down, just calm down a little, little bit so I can...* *Huh?* *Um...?* *What am I doing here?* *This could be bad.* *I can't be doing this right now... No way.* Zakuro: No wwhay, no whaay,... Ah, ahh, haa... *Why am I doing what Akasaka-san told me to? She said I could do it with my underwear on... Ahh... Why?* Zakuro: Hhhhhway, waahyy? Aahhh. *I can't believe I'm naked in a place like this... Why am I smiling?* *I would never do this... My eyes can't focus, I'm sweating... Wow, I'm sweating so much, and that's not all...* *It's like all the fluids are running out of my body.* Megu: Whoa, that's crazy, Takashima... You have a talent for this! Zakuro: Th-Thankkhshh... Y-Yeaauh... Satoko: What's she doing? Megu: She's happy, since I said she was good at it. She's the kind of girl who works off compliments. Satoko: Heh, great... *Regret? But I'm happy because she complimented me??* *Happy? Why? This place, no, should I be happy? No, what if someone sees? Someone I don't know? Eh? There are people watching me? Watching what? Watching what I'm doing? Right now?* Megu: Takashima, are you happy? Zakuro: Yhesh... ah, ahmm, mmm, ah! *When I put it directly on my pussy... No, wh-what's this feeling, like my head is splitting open, no, someone's gonna see me, I'm moaning too, stop.* Zakuro: Ahmm, ah, mm, aaah! *I'm sweating so bad... And my thighs and the ground underneath me are all drenched. It's so wet that I could easily slip and drop the vibrator.* *I can't tell what's going on... What should I do? Is my head broken? Here? Doing this? This? Huh? Doing this?* Zakuro: Ahhh, ah, aah, aahhmm... Megu: Ahaha, this is really gonna be a great video. Satoko: I can smell her. Wow, that's crazy. Megu: These drugs are amazing... Satoko: Well, when you mix it with annaka, it makes you feel even better. Megu: But I've never seen anything like this... Satoko: Ahaha... There are some people looking over here, but I don't think anyone's gonna call the police. Megu: We can just run if they do. Satoko: Yeah, pretty much... Zakuro: Haaa, mm, mmm... *...Hey, K-K-Kimika... I-I'm just fine...* *I-I-I'm j-just fine... Kimikaa, just a little longer...* Satoko: All right, Takashima's trying her best. We have to do our jobs too, right? Megu: Absolutely! Satoko, get to it. Satoko: Aye aye. *I was about to lose consciousness from the pleasure coming over me. I put the vibrator up to my hard clitoris and...* *Akasaka-san yelled orders at Kitami-san, who came up to me and extended her hand to my skirt.* Zakuro: Haa... Aah, ah? *Kitami-san quickly took my skirt off, pulling it down forcibly...* Satoko: Come on, get your leg up. I can't get it off like that. Zakuro: Aah, okay... *I was confused by the sudden commotion, so I just went along with her when she threatened me.* *I couldn't think straight. I was overcome with pleasure.* *N-No, no, I can't, I can't do that...* Satoko: There, how about that? Megu: Oh, it's perfect! *Kitami-san took my clothes and went back over by Akasaka-san.* *I tried to calmly take in my situation.* *My underwear, my skirt, my blouse... I have nothing on. Everyone can see.* *Ah, aaaah, no, no, no, no way. Why are they doing this? This is a crime. Everyone will see. Who's watching? What are they looking at?* Zakuro: Ah, ah, no, no, noo, ahh... mm, ah, aaah, no... *I have to stop, I have to stop this... But there's nothing I can do. Someone might see. The cops might catch us...* Zakuro: No, they're gonna see, they're gonna see, no, no, you can't do that... Aaah, ah, aaah. *What? I don't understand it... What if someone sees? We'll get arrested. The cops will come, and we'll be on the news. No, my parents will be so sad... Aaahh.* *I put the nasty, vibrating tip of the back massager up to my pussy, feeling the sensation on my hard clitoris.* *My eyes were empty, I was drooling, and Akasaka-san got it all on camera...* *Aha? This feels kind of good...* Satoko: You must be willing to talk by now. Tell us, how does it feel? *Eh? Tell them? How it feels? Huh? How it feels? What's it matter to them if it feels good? They want me to say something?* Megu: Come on, say something, anything... How does it feel to do something nasty like this in public? Zakuro: N-Noo, I don't want to do this. Megu: But you are. Zakuro: Y-Yesh... I am. I'm doing it right heeere. Megu: This is a crime, you know? Zakuro: A crime, I shouldn'hth do this, I can't do thiiissh, no, I can't... Megu: But you're doing it. Zakuro: No, noo, it'th not like thaatt. Megu: Does it get you hot because someone might see? Zakuro: Noo, thaht would never happhen... Haa, no... Megu: But you're still doing it... Where does it feel the best? Zakuro: Ahh... I-It h-has to bee... my cliiitt... Megu: Huh? The mic on the camera must be broken. We didn't get that. Satoko: Come on, Takashima. Say it again, so everyone can hear! Zakuro: All hrirght! My clihtoriss... It's sho goodd...? Haaaann, mm... *After admitting it, my hand unconsciously moved to push the vibrator up against my swollen clitoris.* Zakuro: Aaahha! Haaa, ah, aaahh～ *I moved it around my pussy and shook my hips.* Satoko: Wow, she looks like such a slut. Zakuro: Haa, aah, ah, ah... Zakuro: Haa, ha, ah... Megu: Now she's getting into it! Satoko: This is great! She always looks so polite, but just look at her now. I can just imagine the guys jerking off to her. Zakuro: Haa, ahh, ahh... *I realized that I was putting the vibrator up to my anus as well.* Zakuro: Wow, wow, wooow, aah, ah, mmmm... Megu: She's bleeding... Did she put it in her ass without any lotion? Satoko: Oh, don't worry about it. That just means it feels good. Megu: Well, I guess everything feels good when you're on that stuff. Male Student: What's going on over there... Male Student: Quick, get your camera! Satoko: Whoa?! Megu: What?! *It was like a peal of thunder on a clear day.* *A few men saw us in the blindspot and started making a commotion.* *They probably heard my moans and came to look.* Zakuro: Ahh, haa, ahh... Male Student: Hey, what's going on here? Are they filming a porno or something? She's totally naked. Male Student: Seriously? They're really doing it outside, too. *I could hardly make out his shocked face through the overflowing tears clouding my vision.* *But my hand wouldn't stop...* Satoko: Shut up, you fags! If you don't go on your merry way, we'll tell the police you raped her. Male Student: Wh-Why would you do that? Megu: Come on, Satoko-san... The audience makes it feel more realistic, don't you think? Satoko: But they're annoying... and they kind of look like nerds, you know? Megu: All the better. Male Student: That's rude. We're not nerds. Megu: The fuck did you say? If you don't shut your trap, we won't let you watch. Male Student: Oh, I wanna watch, I wanna watch. Megu: Then come over here and get a better look? Male Student: Really? Wow. Zakuro: Nho, hwhy? Nnho, no, ahh, ahh, ahh... Ah! Aah, haa! Male Student: Wow... Does she like people watching her? Male Student: I've heard of that. They're called exhibitionists. Zakuro: N-Nho, nhoo, I, I, aaah, ah! *The place I'd never shown anyone else in my life... was being ogled by men I had never seen before.* *How did this happen?* *I don't understand... I just...* Zakuro: Dhon't, dhon't look! Noo, don't, thtop, ahh! Male Student: Why don't you tell us where you don't want us to look? *Where? That's obvious, the place no one should ever see...* Male Student: Come on, where! Hurry up and say it! Zakuro: D-Dhon't look therhee, don't look therhe, nhoo... Male Student: Where do you mean? Go on, say its name. If you don't, we can't understand you. Megu: He's a fucking genius, lol. Satoko: We have a real prodigy on our hands, lol. Zakuro: R-Rhighht hhere! Don'hth lookh hhere! It'th my pushy, don'hth lookh at my pushy, ifh you do, I, I, ahh. Male Student: What'll happen if we look? Zakuro: I can'ht geth mahried! I can'hth do zhis... Ahh, mm, noo, stop... Ah! Zakuro: Noo, don'th look... Aah, ah, auuh, ah! Zakuro: Hmm, ha, aah, it feelth so good in therhee～ Zakuro: Mm, mmm, ah, aaah～ *I could see the bulges in their pants.* Zakuro: Aaah, ah, ah! Mm, mm... *What? What? Why am I getting turned on by this?* *Come on, Takashima Zakuro-chan... You're not a dirty girl like that, are you?* Zakuro: Haa, it feelth so good! My pushy ith tingling! Megu: Keep it up, Takashima! This is gonna be great, keep it up! Zakuro: Ohhkayh... Ih'll tryrh... Aah, ah, aah! *The camera lens zoomed in again... It was focused on my drooling face.* *It must have been pathetic, but there was nothing I could do to hide it.* Satoko: Now then, Takashima, why don't you cum for us? The camera's batteries are running low. Zakuro: Ohkayh... Ih'm gohnna cum～! *You don't need to order me around... Ahaha... Hehehehe...* Zakuro: Ih'm cummhing, ah, mmm, here it comhes! Nnnooo― *...Look... My whole body feels light...* Zakuro: Haa, haaa, Ih'm cumming～! Zakuro: Ah... Haa... Satoko: She came. She just came, didn't she? Zakuro: Haaa, ha... *Ehehe... I'm surprised. This is too amazing...* Megu: All right, I got it all. Satoko: This'll turn out great. What should the title be? Megu: Let's see, uh... How about 'A Single Raindrop... The Mecha Angel who Descended upon the Station'?! Satoko: That doesn't make any sense. *Haa...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... ah! Haa, haa... *...Now Kimika will be safe, right?* Zakuro: Haa, haa, haa... *...Yuck... I can still feel it in my stomach...* Megu: All right, let's get out the backup battery. Zakuro: Haa, haa... *What did I just do... in front of all these people... I, uh...* Zakuro: Haa... Haa... Ahaaa... *Oh no... My vision is getting blurry...* Zakuro: Ah... *All the strength left my body.* Satoko: Whoa, Takashima! Are you all right? Is she gonna be all right? Megu: Wait a sec... Zakuro: ... Megu: Her heart's still going. She should be fine. I don't think she overdosed. Let's just get her to the karaoke place and let her sleep. Megu: It's probably not the drugs. I guess it's cause she just came. Satoko: Makes sense... Don't scare me like that. I was freaked out! Megu: Well, it's probably no good for her heart. We should let her rest a bit. *.........* *......* *...* *I was conscious the whole time, but my body wouldn't move.* *Time advanced quickly after that.* *The sun moved across the sky faster than I've ever seen it.* *Light in my eyes, sound in my ears.* *Everything in the world moved so fast.* *As I lay in the karaoke box, my pulse calmed and slowed.* *While I rested, they sang karaoke.* *Watching them having so much fun, I started to get happier as well...* *Why's that...* Satoko: Oh! She's awake. Satoko: Hey, Megu! Stop singing. Takashima's up. Megu: Come on, I was just getting into it... Couldn't you wait a minute? *Akasaka scowled at me, then grabbed the remote control and stopped the song.* *The room was silent... All I could hear was the thumping of music in another room.* Megu: Let's have Takashima sing the next one! Satoko: Hell yeah! Zakuro: ...Me? Satoko: So get out there and sing! Dance too! Megu: That's why we came here. Satoko: Let's have some fun! Zakuro: Fun... *Fun... The second I heard that word, it was like my brain absorbed it, and I was instantly having fun.* *Fun... Fun...* Satoko: Yeah, have some fun! Zakuro: Fun... Fun... *What is this... I'm having fun... It's kind of fun...* Zakuro: Kinda... fun... Megu: Yeah, it's a lot of fun! We're all happy here! Zakuro: Yeah... Happy... Megu: Hey, let's have a blast! Satoko: Yeah, go for it! Dance and sing! Zakuro: Oh, okay... Satoko: Come on, Takashima. Stand on the sofa. Zakuro: Huh? Why? Megu: Because you're the heroine! Look, you're an idol! Zakuro: I'm... an idol... Zakuro: A singing... idol. *I took off my shoes and stood on the sofa, holding the microphone in both hands.* *I'm getting kind of excited.* *This is kind of fun.* *Then the intro played...* Zakuro: Oh, I know this song! Satoko: Yeah, get into it! Zakuro: Y-Yeah! Megu: Come on, you're an idol. Say 'yay.' Zakuro: Yay! Megu: Yeah, you're happy, right? *　――――♪♪* *　――♪♪* Zakuro: ...I look up at the big blue sky♪ Here on the usual road♪ Zakuro: And the summer sunflowers♪ All bloomed just for me...♪ *Before, whenever I would get sad... this song would play on my MP3 player.* *So I really like this song... Love, happiness, happiness, happiness... It's such a happy song. It's just...* *My head feels like... I'm too happy...* Zakuro: And the hills ♪ I saw that day～♪ Zakuro: I see them reflected on my eyelids― Ah?! *While I was looking at the TV, Kitami-san came up beside me.* Satoko: Hehehe... *She grabbed the edge of my skirt and laughed.* Zakuro: Every little moment is precious♪ *Then she took advantage of the fact that I wasn't moving by flipping up my skirt and showing off my panties a few times.* Zakuro: Every fleeting second...♪ Zakuro: The little moments every― Ah, um?! Satoko: Don't worry about me. Keep going. Zakuro: Ah... I want to walk beside you...♪ *I was confused by her prank, but I started singing again.* Zakuro: Forever...♪ Always and now...♪ Zakuro: Holding hands♪ And laughing all the way♪ *As I sung, Kitami-san slowly pulled up my skirt.* Zakuro: Next to you♪ Side by si― Ah?! *She kept going, this time reaching for the fastener on my skirt.* Zakuro: Here in the sun♪ On this road... Stop that! *By the time the chorus was over, my skirt was laying in a pile at my ankles.* *Then Akasaka-san's camera zoomed in on my crotch.* Satoko: Just focus on singing and being cute. Megu: We'll take care of the rest. Zakuro: ... *Ahaha... So I have to do this again...* *But...* *Maybe because they already filmed everything... I didn't really care anymore...* * ――♪♪* Zakuro: ...And before you know it♪ The evening sun is setting♪ *I can sing better than this...* Zakuro: It lights our path♪ A bath of red and scarlet♪ *That's perfect... I'll just focus on singing my favorite song. This is so great. I don't need to think about anything else...* Zakuro: The sights of yesterday♪ Zakuro: Become the memories of today...♪ *I felt something on my legs, and then the pressure on my crotch disappeared.* *I looked away from the screen for a second and saw Kitami-san twirling my panties on her finger.* Zakuro: We said goodbye and waved goodbye♪ It's a past we share♪ Zakuro: The warmth of your hand♪ Is all the proof I need♪ *Why do they always do this?* Zakuro: I want to be with you foreve―Ah, ah! *When we got to the second chorus, Kitami-san grabbed my chest through my blouse.* Megu: Oh, that's sexy! Zakuro: Forever...♪ Now and forever...♪ Zakuro: Never leave my side♪ Sit and be my guide♪ Zakuro: Forever...♪ Now and forever...♪ Zakuro: Never leave my side♪ Sit and be my guide♪ Zakuro: I look into your eyes...♪ *Kitami-san groped me without a hint of restraint, even as I was trying to sing.* Satoko: Sorry to keep you all waiting! Now it's time to have some fun. Megu: The camera's ready. Zakuro: I'm walking with you... Ah! *As I focused on singing, Kitami-san carefully removed my blouse, making sure not to interrupt me.* Megu: I'll be needing your bra too～ Zakuro: I think of you...♪ Satoko: All right... Wait, whoa, her boobs are huge. Zakuro: Your smile is my... Ah! *Wh-Whoa! Kitami-san took the blouse off and threw it toward Akasaka-san.* Zakuro: You give me water. It makes me―Ah! Megu: Oh, they bounce too! *She put her hand on my bra, pulling it off with one hand and fiddling with the hook with the other.* Zakuro: I'll try everything for our life...♪ *When I got to the interlude, I looked down at my own body, and...* *I was completely naked except for my socks.* Megu: And your nipples are nice and pink too... God damn. Zakuro: No, please stop... Satoko: Hey, don't hide 'em! Megu: Yeah, even we can tell how beautiful you are. Zakuro: But... But! Satoko: We'll put a mosaic in. Don't worry. Megu: Yeah, we'll hide the important bits, so keep going! Zakuro: Ah... Ah... *Time ruthlessly advanced forward, ending the interlude...* *Um... Umm...* *They'll just put a mosaic in, right?* *And I was getting really hot from singing so much...* *So I just needed to take it all off.* *That should help me cool down, right?* * ――♪♪* Zakuro: I whanth 'o walhk nexht 'o you～♪. *Huh? It's so much easier to sing without any clothes...* Megu: That's great, Takashima! Keep swinging your boobs! Zakuro: Fhorevher... Nhow and fhorevher...♪ *Akasaka-san pointed the camera at me and urged me to keep going...* *And Kitami-san was taking pictures with a cell phone.* Satoko: Her camera takes really high resolution pictures... They look great. Megu: I think your phone is just old. Satoko: Maybe... Zakuro: Holhding hanths♪ An' laughin' a' hthe hway♪ *And I can finally talk straight... Ehehe, this is great!* Male Waiter: Sorry to keep you waiting. I have the chocolate waffle and ginger ale you ordered. Zakuro: Nehxt 'o you♪ Sihde by sihde♪ Male Waiter: Well then, excuse me― Ah?! Zakuro: Hthethe ehverlahsting feehlings... *Oh, great! The waiter let out a shocked voice when he looked up and saw me singing like an idol.* Male Waiter: Eh... Ehh?! * ――♪♪...* Zakuro: Ehehehe～ *Yay, Kimika, I finished the song!* Male Waiter: Wh-Wh-Wh-What's going on here?! Satoko: Sorry, Mister. She always gets carried away like this. Male Waiter: But this is too much― Megu: I got your face on tape too. You're an accomplice now. Satoko: So close the door and come over here. Male Waiter: ...Are you threatening me? Zakuro: Ahaha～ Satoko: She gets excited when strangers look at her. Megu: If you don't sit your ass down, we'll tell the police you raped her in here. Male Waiter: What?! Satoko: Like I said, just sit there and watch. Megu: Yeah, and look, she's hot as hell. Zakuro: Haa～? Male Waiter: ...W-Well, yeah. Megu: Okay, next song! Satoko: Are you ready, Takashima? Zakuro: Yheah. Male Waiter: Hmm... I guess I'm stuck. *The young attendant murmered a few words and then sat down next to Akasaka-san.* *...Well, what's one more person?* Satoko: I put the next song on. Megu: Takashima, do something cute! Zakuro: Ohkhay! *I held out my hand, smiled, and took a pose... Perfect!* Male Waiter: Jeez, what am I doing... *　――――♪♪* *　――♪♪* Zakuro: ...and then thime passes♪ Zakuro: We made a lah' of memories...♪ *I'm so lucky! This song is one of my favorites, so I know it really well.* Zakuro: Hand all the kihnd words from my thime with you♪ Zakuro: Come rahshing bahck to meee♪ *I have to do what I can... so Kimika will be safe...* Satoko: Damn, she has such a nice body. What do you eat? Zakuro: Let's talk a walk on the beach♪ Megu: And her skin's so soft. You must be surprised too, huh? Male Waiter: Oh, well, yeah... Zakuro: Hand the shun will right our way♪ Satoko: Hey, Mister, why don't you clean under the table? Megu: I hope you don't mind! She left all the candy wrappers under there from earlier! Zakuro: Shank yoou for this beauchifuw blue thky♪ Satoko: And you'll be able to see her pussy clear as day from down there! Zakuro: A happhy liifee♪ Megu: That's a virgin pussy! You're missing out if you don't get a good look. Zakuro: Hand ihn the darhkness♪ Male Waiter: Jeez, look at all this trash... Zakuro: And you're right here♪ Male Waiter: You shouldn't get the karaoke booth so dirty. Megu: Ahaha, don't say that! *The attendant has to keep the room clean.* Zakuro: By mhy siide♪ Male Waiter: Whoa... *He glanced up at me several times as he cleaned under the table...* Zakuro: Ahh♪ Satoko: All right, Takashima. Keep it up. You gotta cheer on our hardworking waiter. Megu: You don't need us to tell you what to do, right? *I heard him gulp, even over the music.* Zakuro: An' rhat's whyy♪ *...I moved my empty hand to my crotch.* Zakuro: Hafther shcool, hall the shtreetsh are shihning♪ *I stuck my middle finger in my pussy and started moving it back and forth.* Male Waiter: Wow... *Aha... This is nothing compared to earlier...* *My body is so sensitive today.* Megu: Hahaha, you came at just the right time, Mister. Zakuro: Ah' rahmembah it chlearly... *When I felt the pleasure radiating out from my crotch, I smiled and started getting into it.* *I could feel myself getting wet, and there were lewd, wet sounds mixed in with the music.* Zakuro: Two setsh ofh footprintsh...♪ *...Huh? Why are my cheeks wet...?* *I'm having fun... I'm not sad at all, right?* Satoko: Takashima, hold it open so we can all get a good look. Zakuro: Tha reezon why I cry, ahh! *I did as they told me... No, I wanted to do it myself. I put my fingers on my labia and pulled it open.* *I felt myself getting wet, with lines of juice running down my legs.* Zakuro: Whipe my tearsh with yourh shakhing handsh♪ *My body twisted and turned from the intense pleasure, and the song lyrics I was trying to sing grew more and more distorted.* *Aha～ I feel so warm down there～* Zakuro: Ifh I loohk hup at tha blue shky～♪ *I can't believe how turned on I am... Maybe I really do get excited when people are watching. Aha, I wonder if that's true～?* Zakuro: Daays pash by♪ *My clitoris swelled up when I started rubbing it, wiping my mind blank and leaving me drooling.* *He's staring at me... He's staring right between my legs, where I pee...* Zakuro: I whant to dream with yhou♪ *I stuck my middle finger halfway in and then started moving my hand rhythmically, just like I had read about in a dirty girl's magazine.* Zakuro: Evhen when tha shkies aren't blue♪ *Aha～～! This is great. I'm so happy...* *Oh no～ What it would it be like if it was a guy's dick instead of my finger?* Zakuro: Whe walkhed side by shide.♪ *Nyahahaha～ Kimika's missing out～～!* Zakuro: I love you... *Yes... I love you, Mamiya-kun...* *Mamiya-kun, I love you... so much...* Zakuro: I have a dream... Ahh, no more!! *I collapsed onto the sofa, gasping for air.* Zakuro: Ahh... Ah, ah! *But the finger between my legs kept moving, leaving my free hand to play with my breasts.* Zakuro: Ahh, ahh, ahh! *Haa... I don't care anymore.* *The sofa was sticky and wet... I promise I'll clean it up later, so please forgive me...* Zakuro: Ahh... It feels so good, ah, ahh... Megu: Yeah, keep going, just like that! Zakuro: Hehehehe～... Ah, ah, ah! *I wanted to push my finger all the way in, but I resisted the urge.* *But in exchange, I moved my hand on my breasts like it was a man's hand.* *Ahamm... I pinched the nipple, trying to pull the milk out of it...* Zakuro: Ah, ah, it's so hot... Ah, I shouldn't be doing this... Zakuro: Ah, ah, ah... I can't breathe. I'm gonna die. *It felt like I had just run a marathon. I could feel my ragged pulse through the hand on my breast.* *But the heat never rose to my head... In the darkened room, the lights glittered like treasure...* Zakuro: Haa... Ahh... My pussy is so hot. Ah, ah, ahh! Male Waiter: Whoa... Satoko: Hehehe, you can't help yourself, huh?! Male Waiter: Ah... Why would such a cute girl do this? I don't believe it... Zakuro: Ahh, ah... Ehehe, thank you... *No way... A man said I was cute. That made me feel really good, in a different way than the masturbation.* *If only it was Mamiya-kun saying that... Ah, my pussy is so wet...* Megu: Hey, Takashima. You seem to be having a lot of fun over there, but it's about time for you to cum and finish up, all right? Satoko: Huh? You don't have any more batteries? Megu: No, I do. I just want to make this a two part film. This is the end of the first part. Satoko: Oh, sure. Sounds perfect. Megu: So cum for us real good, Zakuro-chan. Zakuro: Ah, ah, I'm gonna cum... *All right, got it...* Zakuro: Ah, mm... Ah, ah, ahh― *I can't hold out any longer... I have to cum now...* Zakuro: Ah, ahh―Ah, ah～～ *I pressed on my clitoris hard and simultaneously played with my breasts. I felt a warmth building in my stomach.* *My pussy was so sensitive that I felt hot waves of pleasure every time I moved my finger.* Zakuro: Ahh, I'm cumming, I'm cumming― *Ah, here it is... I'm gonna fall, it's like I'm gonna fall...* Zakuro: Ahhmmm～～!! *I climaxed harder than I thought possible.* *A bubble popped inside me. My brain boiled over, and all the energy left my body.* Megu: Okay! I got a pretty good video. *Everything I saw melted, and they all started clapping for me, applauding my performance.* Zakuro: Haa... Hehe, hehehe... *...It's like I'm dreaming about Wonderland...* *Ahaha, I never thought I could do this...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... Hehehe... *Maybe I should try it one more time...* Megu: All right, now it's your turn, Mister! Go fuck the brains out of her! Male Waiter: What?! Wouldn't that be going over the line? Satoko: Just look at her. She's gonna get the room even dirtier if you don't do something to satisfy her, and then you'll just have more work to do. Zakuro: Haa, ah, mm... Aha, ah... *I still felt the waves of pleasure throughout my body. I started playing with my pussy and stimulating my breasts again...* Male Waiter: ...Gulp. *The front of his pants was bulging as he looked down at me...* *At this rate... I might have sex with him...* Zakuro: Aah, ah... *...Well, maybe it'll be all right―* *It's so easy to lose your virginity...* *"XXX Why aren't you a virgin?! XXX"* *Huh?!* *"XXX Die, you slut! XXX"* Zakuro: Ahh?! *That's right. To Mamiya-kun, girls are nothing but trash once they give away their virginity.* Zakuro: Ah... Ah... Satoko: Huh? She just started shaking. *I'm going to have sex here―* Megu: Oh, she's awake again... You know, the fast ones feel really good, but the come down sucks ass. Satoko: You mean the drugs wore off? Megu: No, it's still a bit early for that. *I'm going to lose my virginity to a complete stranger―* Megu: Well, it'll be fine. Not like she's gonna die. *Then Mamiya-kun won't ever love me!* Zakuro: Noo! No, no! I won't do it! Zakuro: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, forgive me! Satoko: What is it all of a sudden? *I stopped masturbating, crossed my hands over my chest, and grabbed my shoulders, holding myself and shaking as I yelled.* Megu: Hmm, she's such a nice masochist. Satoko: She's the kind of girl that gets off on being bullied. Zakuro: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, anything but that! Zakuro: I'll do anything else, please! Megu: You need to learn a lesson, I think. You don't have the right to say no. Satoko: We didn't even have to worry about tracking down a sexy actor. *But... But I can't―!!* Zakuro: 'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! *I got on my hands and knees and begged her, still completely naked.* Zakuro: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'll do great if you just let me do something else! And I'll get you those tickets, no problem! Zakuro: If you tell me to lick my shoe, I will. If you tell me to go find an old man to sell my panties to, I will! *―As long as I don't have to do "that," it doesn't matter if my pride is hurt.* Megu: Oh wow, you're awfully assertive today, aren't you? *But I love him so much―I found something to protect!* Zakuro: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!! Male Waiter: U-Um, I don't think we should be doing this. Satoko: Huh? What do you mean? *I put my head to the ground, begging and listening to the two of them talking about me.* Male Waiter: Look, I'm not gonna tell your parents or anything... Megu: Huh? Are you trying to lecture us now? Satoko: You don't wanna fuck her? She really is a virgin, you know? Male Waiter: Well, if I was being perfectly honest... Megu: Then stop pussyfooting around and do it. Zakuro: Ah! Ah... Male Waiter: Um, I really can't afford to lose this job. I need the money, and there's nowhere else I can really work. *He warded off their glares as he tried to dissuade them.* *So he wasn't even really worried about me as much as his job.* Male Waiter: And we should delete the video you already took. That stuff is dangerous. *But still, I wanted to thank him for what he was doing.* Megu: Hmph. Satoko: You're such a loser. Male Waiter: Haha... Ahaha... Megu: Man, I'm bored as hell. Satoko: Me too. That left a bad taste in my mouth, goddamn it. *Akasaka-san reluctantly threw her video camera back in its bag.* *The moment I heard the clasp shut, I felt a calm wind blow through my heart.* *Thank goodness... I'm so relieved...* Zakuro: ... *I still have my purity, Mamiya-kun...* *You're proud of me, right, Mamiya-kun?* Megu: Hey, how long are you gonna be bawling? Zakuro: But... But... *She was in a foul mood, so she rapped me on the head.* Satoko: Dumb bitch... Megu: What a pain in the ass, seriously... Male Waiter: W-W-Well then, I'll be going! *The waiter fled from the room, opening the door quickly and dashing out.* Satoko: ...What are we gonna do now? Megu: Let's go to the arcade or something. I feel like shit. Satoko: Yeah, they might have new prizes. Megu: Hey, Takashima, get dressed already. Zakuro: Oh, sure... *I took a few tissues and wiped around my crotch, then desperately pulled on my clothes before they got mad at me again.* Megu: We'll pay for the booth. Satoko: You should be grateful. It's not cheap. Zakuro: ... Megu: Are you dressed? Let's go. Satoko: Jeez, she's so useless. *They looked at me with cold eyes and insulted me, then turned and left.* Zakuro: Ah, wait a second! *...I was scared to be left alone there...* *...Even though I hated them so much...* *......I was too weak and pathetic. The only thing I could do was follow after them.* *......* *...* Megu: I wonder what happened with Tsubasa and them. Satoko: Do you have your phone? Megu: Yeah, haven't heard a thing. Satoko: You don't think Kimika won, do you? Megu: Nah, she would've come running to the karaoke place if she had. Satoko: Then what happened? Megu: Hmm, I'll call him... Satoko: Sure, whatever... And you, Takashima. Zakuro: Eh? Satoko: You consented to everything today, right? Zakuro: Huh? Um... Satoko: It's not like I was threatening you or anything, right? I just led you along. Megu: And you were so wet. Zakuro: B-But... Satoko: Don't get any dumb ideas in your head... I'm gonna block out your face in the video, but if you do something stupid, that might just change. Zakuro: Oh, okay... Megu: Now then... Well, I guess that's enough for today. Satoko: Thank you for your cooperation in producing today's feature film. Zakuro: Huh? A movie? Th-That was one? Megu: Yeah, softcore is where all the great directors get started. Satoko: Yeah, this is a real work of art. Don't worry about that. Zakuro: Oh... Sure... *Can you really call something like that a feature film?* *Or a softcore video?* *Even a dunce like me could tell they were lying.* *They were gonna sell that to some company...* *They did try not to get my face in the picture... It's not like they were being malicious...* *I'm not sure why, but after I took those drugs, I couldn't make rational decisions anymore. I just got caught up in the moment.* *Anyone watching probably wouldn't think I was forced to do it.* *What was that drug?* *And what happened to Kimika?* *I tried calling her a few times already.* *I haven't been able to reach her.* *What's going on...* *I glanced up at the clock.* Zakuro: Oh, right... *I looked at the text message I got earlier.* *――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/03 22:01* *from: Usami* *subject: I've finally made contact with you.* *――――――――――――――――――――――――* *I'm not sure if I should say... Nice to meet you?* ** *"The battle at the stone tower."* ** *Please respond when you remember the significance of these words.* *Also, you will probably experience a large change.* ** *It will probably be a good thing.* *...* *How is this a good thing?* *There definitely was a big change, though...* *They started bullying me again...* *Something definitely happened, but it was a terrible thing.* *They probably don't even think of it as bullying. They're just doing it to make money...* *And now I pissed them off...* Zakuro: What's going to happen tomorrow? Zakuro: It's because of these stupid messages... *――――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/08 23:10* *to: Cheshire Cat* *subject: re: I've finally made contact with you.* *――――――――――――――――――――――――* *Nice to meet you. I'm the Cheshire Cat.* ** *I read your message, but I have never heard those words.* ** *I'm sorry.* *Though I was a bit curious... What is this large change that's going to happen to me?* *You said it would be something good, but I was curious.* * >I'm not sure if I should say... Nice to meet you?* * >"The battle at the stone tower."* * >Please respond when you remember the significance of these words.* * >Also, you will probably experience a large change.* * >It will probably be a good thing.* *Flipping out on her won't help...* Zakuro: I can't take it. *I wish today could be a dream... and tomorrow, then everything could go back to normal.* *I hate this...* *......* *...* *A black shadow... draped over the sky...* *A dreary black shadow that stretches into the infinite.* *Like the world's twilight...* *A dreary scene.* *A dream I've never had before.* *But one that seems so familiar.* *Maybe... it was a dream from long ago.* *The dream made me sad...* *Then it disappeared.*

*I wanted to leave, but...* *But...* *My body was frozen in place.* *Defying them would mean...* *Kimika glanced toward me again.* *She was trying to tell me something, but I couldn't understand.* *Even if I had understood, I was frozen. I couldn't do anything.* *When I didn't react, Kimika sighed and looked back toward the camera. She gave them a large, unnatural grin.* Megu: Come on, Tachibana. Kimika: Um, like this? Megu: Oh, that's sexy. Kimika: Aha... You think so? Megu: Come on, just a little more. Kimika: Eh? L-Like this? Megu: Oh, that's great... What color are your panties? Kimika: You sound like a perverted old man. Megu: They must be really cute, right? Kimika: Well, they were pretty expensive. Megu: Oh, really? Come on, show us a bit more! Kimika: Eh? Then why don't you get yourselves on camera, too? Megu: Sure. Come on. Kimika: Wow... Just a little, all right? Megu: Oh, you look great. I got a good picture. Satoko: That's great. Let's zoom in... Kimika: N-No way. Satoko: And here are her panties. Megu: Get a closeup of this. Satoko: It'll be fine, it'll be fine. They're really beautiful. Did you just buy them? Kimika: Y-Yeah... *I don't like where this is going.* *This is bizarre.* Satoko: By the way, Zakuro-chan, what kind of panties are you wearing? Megu: What kind of panties do you have on? Zakuro: Eh? Satoko: Hey, Zakuro. Zakuro: I-I'm, uh... Megu: Oh, that's great, Tachibana. How far can you open your legs? *She wasn't only reservedly opening her legs like before, but rather opening them as far as she could so the camera could see everything.* *Kimika... Are you doing this to protect me?* *It was just like when I used to get bullied... Whenever it seemed like their attention would shift to me, she would offer herself up to them.* *She was trying to give me a chance to escape.* *And yet...* *I was too scared to do anything.* *I couldn't even move.* *What should I do?* Kimika: Ah... U-Um, what is this? Megu: How is it? It's a portable backrubber. Kimika: O-Oh... Then it's not designed to be used here, is it... Megu: Don't worry about it. It's for massaging. What's it matter where you use it? Satoko: What's that? Megu: It's a back massager. I bought it at the store. Satoko: No, this has to be a sex toy. Megu: Don't ask me. I just thought I would try it like this, since it doesn't really work on my back. Kimika: U-Um... It kinda hurts, but... A-Ah! Megu: Your voice sounded really sexy just now, you know? Kimika: No, that's not it. It's just... It's kind of ticklish, ah! Satoko: That's not what it sounds like. Kimika: W-Wait a second, ah, ah! Megu: They're gonna hear if you keep moaning like that. Kimika: Eh? Satoko: Look, that guy over there is looking at you. Kimika: Eh? Ah! Satoko: You sound really turned on. Kimika: N-No... Satoko: Come on, hold still. Kimika: I am holding still. Megu: Takashima. Zakuro: Eh? Megu: Go get us three Bikkuri Mugs. Zakuro: Huh? Satoko: Hurry up. Zakuro: Ah, okay... *What is it all of a sudden?* *I didn't understand why they said that, but I did as they told me.* *And why would they want three Bikkuri Mugs? That's going to take a while.* *The cashier gave me the receipt like it was perfectly normal.* *I was told to wait at my seat because they would take a while to make.* Megu: Oh, Takashima. Zakuro: I brought the receipt. Megu: Oh, so you didn't wait for our drinks? Zakuro: Huh? Kimika: ...Ah... Satoko: I don't think you can hold out much longer, Tachibana. Megu: Why don't you do it like this? Zakuro: Ah... Satoko: The waiter's coming. Kimika: ... Satoko: Act like nothing's happening. Kimika: Ah! Waiter: Order number 74. Kimika: ... Satoko: Oh, over here. Waiter: You wanted three Bikkuri Mugs, correct? Megu: Yeah. Waiter: Here you go. Kimika: ... *Even as the waiter was standing right at the table, Satoko kept pushing the massager into Kimika's crotch.* *Kimika was trying to act like nothing was happening, but her body was still shaking.* *So this is why they ordered three Bikkuri Mugs.* *There's no way they would be able to serve those right away... Satoko knew a waiter would have to bring them over to the table.* *Which made me into an accomplice.* *Kimika had to stay quiet so he won't notice, which meant Satoko could do whatever she wanted...* *And Kimika had no choice but to endure it so the waiter and the people nearby wouldn't notice.* Megu: Hey, waiter. Waiter: Yes? Megu: I'd like some water. Waiter: Water? Megu: Yeah, I'm kinda broke after getting three of these. Waiter: You did get three, after all. Megu: I'm kinda hungry. How about you, Tachibana? Kimika: Ah... Ah... Yes... Waiter: Hmm? Satoko: Why does your voice sound so strange, Tachibana? Megu: Come on, Tachibana. Kimika: Ah... S-Sure... Ah! Waiter: I-Is she all right? Megu: Huh? Waiter: Her face is bright red. Megu: Oh, that. We're having an endurance competition. Kimika: Wha―?! Waiter: Endurance competition? Megu: Yeah, an endurance competition. Waiter: What kind? Kimika: A-Akasakaaa, aah, uh! Megu: Can't you tell from her voice? Isn't it hot? You should be able to tell what she's enduring. Waiter: Wait... What? Waiter: Y-You don't mean?! Satoko: Ahahahahaha, what did you imagine? Her stomach just hurts cause she's on her period. Waiter: Her period? Megu: Hahahaha... She's gonna take some medicine, but she needs some water. Hurry up. Waiter: Ah, okay... Kimika: Ah, ahh... Megu: It's not over yet... That waiter is gonna bring you some water. Finish up before he gets back. Kimika: Finish? Megu: You know what I mean. Hurry, hurry. Kimika: Th-There's no way I could do that here. Megu: Really? You won't know until you try. Megu: I'm gonna keep going until you cum. He was already suspicious. Don't you think he's going to figure it out next time? Satoko: Couldn't that be bad for us too? Megu: That's why I'm telling her to hurry up! Kimika: Ah, ah... Megu: And touch your chest, like this... and pull your panties down, so the camera can see. Kimika: Ah... *Kimika gave in and put the vibrator up to her crotch.* Kimika: Ah... *She just laid it there, but the vibrator made a wet sound.* Megu: What, you're already wet? You like that back massager that much? Kimika: Ahh... No, I'm not... *I doubt that she really liked it... She just had to do it or they wouldn't let her go.* *Kimika understood that... That's why she was really masturbating in a place like this.* *Her hand moved to her breast, massaging it and grabbing the nipple.* *And her other hand pushed the vibrator in, pushing her labia apart and showing the swollen red color of her vagina.* *She was desperate to finish it quickly.* Satoko: Whoa... Tachibana, you're going crazy over there. Do you want everyone to see you moving your hips like that? Kimika: No... Th-That's not it... Aaaahh! *Clear liquid dripped from her crotch, throwing drops everywhere as she moved her fingers. The floor beneath her was wet.* *The room was filled with the smell of it.* Satoko: Whoa... They're all staring at us. This could be bad. Do you think they can tell? Kimika: Th-Then maybe... aahhh. Megu: No, hurry up and finish. It's not like they can see your pussy, right? Kimika: B-But... Aah... Satoko: Everyone's watching us... Megu: No, look over there. Satoko: Hmm? Megu: The people who can actually tell what we're doing aren't looking at us. Satoko: You think? Megu: Look... The people who are looking can't tell what we're doing. The ones who can tell are too embarrassed to look, you see? Zakuro: Ah... *She was right... Most of them were looking at us suspiciously. The ones who could actually tell didn't want to look straight at us.* *They weren't looking directly at us, but they were still watching us out of the corners of their eyes.* Megu: The only ones who have figured it out are the student over there studying and that old salaryman there. The rest of them can't tell. Satoko: You're right. Megu: So hurry up and cum, Tachibana. Kimika: Ahh. Megu: Who knows, though. You stink to high heaven. Don't you think they're all going to smell it pretty soon? Kimika: Ahh! No, you can't let that happen... D-Don't... Megu: Not my problem. Hurry up, like I said. If you don't, we'll leave you here naked, so you better get to it. Kimika: Haaa... Aah... *Akasaka-san showed Kimika the time on her cell phone.* *It ticked away the seconds with cruel precision.* Megu: It's already been a minute. The waiter's gonna be back soon. Kimika: Ahh, no... No! Ahh, ahh! *She moved her finger rapidly and cried, focusing on nothing else.* *Her hips moved quickly and rhythmically, shaking the chair.* Megu: You're still not cumming? He's gonna be back soon, you know? Kimika: Aahh! Noo! I can't take it! *Akasaka-san constantly teased her... and Kimika madly moved her finger in and out while rubbing her clitoris simultaneously.* Satoko: Ah... This is getting pretty shady, don't you think? Kimika: Ahhh! Ah! Noo! No, nooo! Satoko: Whoa... Do you think they can hear us? Kimika: Haaa! Ah, no... Megu: Why don't we gag her and make her fuck the waiter, then? He's a guy, after all. Kimika: No, don't do that. No! *Her juices foamed, sticking to the vibrator and her fingers.* *Maybe it was because she was rushing, but she couldn't cum even after all that.* Kimika: Ahhh, I have to cum, quick... Aaah, ah! *She shook and ground her hips against her arm, covering herself in juice.* *The scent wafting out grew even stronger.* Satoko: Shouldn't we get outta here? Megu: That's right... If you don't cum soon, we might have to make you fuck the waiter. Kimika: Aaah! Ah! A-Almost, I'm almost there... *Her entire body moved in tremors... and she finally felt the pleasure come over her.* Megu: Whoa, he's almost here... He just came up the stairs. Kimika: Aah, ah, ah! I'm coming, I'm coming! Ahh, ah, ah! Megu: Five meters... Four meters... *Kimika's hips moved in time with Megu's countdown.* *Drool hung from her mouth and dripped onto her blouse.* Kimika: Ahhh! I can feel it, it's coming! Megu: Three meters... Kimika: Aah, ah, ahh... Kimika: Ahhhhhh! *Kimika clenched her jaw as her body trembled.* Waiter: W-Water is fine, right? Kimika: Ah... Y-Yes... Waiter: A-Are you okay? Kimika: Y-Yes... I'm fahne... Waiter: Well then... Satoko: Close call. Megu: Great job. You're awesome, Tachibana! Kimika: I-I'm not... awesome... Megu: My heart was racing. Kimika: Then you two will do it too, right? Megu: No way. I'm the cameraman. Satoko: I'm the director. Kimika: D-Director of what... Zakuro: ... *At this rate...* Satoko: Now what? Megu: Anyway, can we go somewhere else? Megu: We shouldn't do anything more here. Zakuro: ...

*I'm getting kind of excited.* *This is kind of fun.* *Then the intro played...* Zakuro: Oh, I know this song! Satoko: Yeah, get into it! Zakuro: Y-Yeah! Megu: Come on, you're an idol. Say 'yay.' Zakuro: Yay! Megu: Yeah, you're happy, right? *　――――♪♪* *　――♪♪* Zakuro: ...I look up at the big blue sky♪ Here on the usual road♪ Zakuro: And the summer sunflowers♪ All bloomed just for me...♪ *Before, whenever I would get sad... this song would play on my MP3 player.* *So I really like this song... Love, happiness, happiness, happiness... It's such a happy song. It's just...* *My head feels like... I'm too happy...* Zakuro: And the hills ♪ I saw that day～♪ Zakuro: I see them reflected on my eyelids― Ah?! *While I was looking at the TV, Kitami-san came up beside me.* Satoko: Hehehe... *She grabbed the edge of my skirt and laughed.* Zakuro: Every little moment is precious♪ *Then she took advantage of the fact that I wasn't moving by flipping up my skirt and showing off my panties a few times.* Zakuro: Every fleeting second...♪ Zakuro: The little moments every― Ah, um?! Satoko: Don't worry about me. Keep going. Zakuro: Ah... I want to walk beside you...♪ *I was confused by her prank, but I started singing again.* Zakuro: Forever...♪ Always and now...♪ Zakuro: Holding hands♪ And laughing all the way♪ *As I sung, Kitami-san slowly pulled up my skirt.* Zakuro: Next to you♪ Side by si― Ah?! *She kept going, this time reaching for the fastener on my skirt.* Zakuro: Here in the sun♪ On this road... Stop that! *By the time the chorus was over, my skirt was laying in a pile at my ankles.* *Then Akasaka-san's camera zoomed in on my crotch.* Satoko: Just focus on singing and being cute. Megu: We'll take care of the rest. Zakuro: ... *Ahaha... So I have to do this again...* *But...* *Maybe because they already filmed everything... I didn't really care anymore...* * ――♪♪* Zakuro: ...And before you know it♪ The evening sun is setting♪ *I can sing better than this...* Zakuro: It lights our path♪ A bath of red and scarlet♪ *That's perfect... I'll just focus on singing my favorite song. This is so great. I don't need to think about anything else...* Zakuro: The sights of yesterday♪ Zakuro: Become the memories of today...♪ *I felt something on my legs, and then the pressure on my crotch disappeared.* *I looked away from the screen for a second and saw Kitami-san twirling my panties on her finger.* Zakuro: We said goodbye and waved goodbye♪ It's a past we share♪ Zakuro: The warmth of your hand♪ Is all the proof I need♪ *Why do they always do this?* Zakuro: I want to be with you foreve―Ah, ah! *When we got to the second chorus, Kitami-san grabbed my chest through my blouse.* Megu: Oh, that's sexy! Zakuro: Forever...♪ Now and forever...♪ Zakuro: Never leave my side♪ Sit and be my guide♪ Zakuro: Forever...♪ Now and forever...♪ Zakuro: Never leave my side♪ Sit and be my guide♪ Zakuro: I look into your eyes...♪ *Kitami-san groped me without a hint of restraint, even as I was trying to sing.* Satoko: Sorry to keep you all waiting! Now it's time to have some fun. Megu: The camera's ready. Zakuro: I'm walking with you... Ah! *As I focused on singing, Kitami-san carefully removed my blouse, making sure not to interrupt me.* Megu: I'll be needing your bra too～ Zakuro: I think of you...♪ Satoko: All right... Wait, whoa, her boobs are huge. Zakuro: Your smile is my... Ah! *Wh-Whoa! Kitami-san took the blouse off and threw it toward Akasaka-san.* Zakuro: You give me water. It makes me―Ah! Megu: Oh, they bounce too! *She put her hand on my bra, pulling it off with one hand and fiddling with the hook with the other.* Zakuro: I'll try everything for our life...♪ *When I got to the interlude, I looked down at my own body, and...* *I was completely naked except for my socks.* Megu: And your nipples are nice and pink too... God damn. Zakuro: No, please stop... Satoko: Hey, don't hide 'em! Megu: Yeah, even we can tell how beautiful you are. Zakuro: But... But! Satoko: We'll put a mosaic in. Don't worry. Megu: Yeah, we'll hide the important bits, so keep going! Zakuro: Ah... Ah... *Time ruthlessly advanced forward, ending the interlude...* *Um... Umm...* *They'll just put a mosaic in, right?* *And I was getting really hot from singing so much...* *So I just needed to take it all off.* *That should help me cool down, right?* * ――♪♪* Zakuro: I whanth 'o walhk nexht 'o you～♪. *Huh? It's so much easier to sing without any clothes...* Megu: That's great, Takashima! Keep swinging your boobs! Zakuro: Fhorevher... Nhow and fhorevher...♪ *Akasaka-san pointed the camera at me and urged me to keep going...* *And Kitami-san was taking pictures with a cell phone.* Satoko: Her camera takes really high resolution pictures... They look great. Megu: I think your phone is just old. Satoko: Maybe... Zakuro: Holhding hanths♪ An' laughin' a' hthe hway♪ *And I can finally talk straight... Ehehe, this is great!* Male Waiter: Sorry to keep you waiting. I have the chocolate waffle and ginger ale you ordered. Zakuro: Nehxt 'o you♪ Sihde by sihde♪ Male Waiter: Well then, excuse me― Ah?! Zakuro: Hthethe ehverlahsting feehlings... *Oh, great! The waiter let out a shocked voice when he looked up and saw me singing like an idol.* Male Waiter: Eh... Ehh?! * ――♪♪...* Zakuro: Ehehehe～ *Yay, Kimika, I finished the song!* Male Waiter: Wh-Wh-Wh-What's going on here?! Satoko: Sorry, Mister. She always gets carried away like this. Male Waiter: But this is too much― Megu: I got your face on tape too. You're an accomplice now. Satoko: So close the door and come over here. Male Waiter: ...Are you threatening me? Zakuro: Ahaha～ Satoko: She gets excited when strangers look at her. Megu: If you don't sit your ass down, we'll tell the police you raped her in here. Male Waiter: What?! Satoko: Like I said, just sit there and watch. Megu: Yeah, and look, she's hot as hell. Zakuro: Haa～? Male Waiter: ...W-Well, yeah. Megu: Okay, next song! Satoko: Are you ready, Takashima? Zakuro: Yheah. Male Waiter: Hmm... I guess I'm stuck. *The young attendant murmered a few words and then sat down next to Akasaka-san.* *...Well, what's one more person?* Satoko: I put the next song on. Megu: Takashima, do something cute! Zakuro: Ohkhay! *I held out my hand, smiled, and took a pose... Perfect!* Male Waiter: Jeez, what am I doing... *　――――♪♪* *　――♪♪* Zakuro: ...and then thime passes♪ Zakuro: We made a lah' of memories...♪ *I'm so lucky! This song is one of my favorites, so I know it really well.* Zakuro: Hand all the kihnd words from my thime with you♪ Zakuro: Come rahshing bahck to meee♪ *I have to do what I can... so Kimika will be safe...* Satoko: Damn, she has such a nice body. What do you eat? Zakuro: Let's talk a walk on the beach♪ Megu: And her skin's so soft. You must be surprised too, huh? Male Waiter: Oh, well, yeah... Zakuro: Hand the shun will right our way♪ Satoko: Hey, Mister, why don't you clean under the table? Megu: I hope you don't mind! She left all the candy wrappers under there from earlier! Zakuro: Shank yoou for this beauchifuw blue thky♪ Satoko: And you'll be able to see her pussy clear as day from down there! Zakuro: A happhy liifee♪ Megu: That's a virgin pussy! You're missing out if you don't get a good look. Zakuro: Hand ihn the darhkness♪ Male Waiter: Jeez, look at all this trash... Zakuro: And you're right here♪ Male Waiter: You shouldn't get the karaoke booth so dirty. Megu: Ahaha, don't say that! *The attendant has to keep the room clean.* Zakuro: By mhy siide♪ Male Waiter: Whoa... *He glanced up at me several times as he cleaned under the table...* Zakuro: Ahh♪ Satoko: All right, Takashima. Keep it up. You gotta cheer on our hardworking waiter. Megu: You don't need us to tell you what to do, right? *I heard him gulp, even over the music.* Zakuro: An' rhat's whyy♪ *...I moved my empty hand to my crotch.* Zakuro: Hafther shcool, hall the shtreetsh are shihning♪ *I stuck my middle finger in my pussy and started moving it back and forth.* Male Waiter: Wow... *Aha... This is nothing compared to earlier...* *My body is so sensitive today.* Megu: Hahaha, you came at just the right time, Mister. Zakuro: Ah' rahmembah it chlearly... *When I felt the pleasure radiating out from my crotch, I smiled and started getting into it.* *I could feel myself getting wet, and there were lewd, wet sounds mixed in with the music.* Zakuro: Two setsh ofh footprintsh...♪ *...Huh? Why are my cheeks wet...?* *I'm having fun... I'm not sad at all, right?* Satoko: Takashima, hold it open so we can all get a good look. Zakuro: Tha reezon why I cry, ahh! *I did as they told me... No, I wanted to do it myself. I put my fingers on my labia and pulled it open.* *I felt myself getting wet, with lines of juice running down my legs.* Zakuro: Whipe my tearsh with yourh shakhing handsh♪ *My body twisted and turned from the intense pleasure, and the song lyrics I was trying to sing grew more and more distorted.* *Aha～ I feel so warm down there～* Zakuro: Ifh I loohk hup at tha blue shky～♪ *I can't believe how turned on I am... Maybe I really do get excited when people are watching. Aha, I wonder if that's true～?* Zakuro: Daays pash by♪ *My clitoris swelled up when I started rubbing it, wiping my mind blank and leaving me drooling.* *He's staring at me... He's staring right between my legs, where I pee...* Zakuro: I whant to dream with yhou♪ *I stuck my middle finger halfway in and then started moving my hand rhythmically, just like I had read about in a dirty girl's magazine.* Zakuro: Evhen when tha shkies aren't blue♪ *Aha～～! This is great. I'm so happy...* *Oh no～ What it would it be like if it was a guy's dick instead of my finger?* Zakuro: Whe walkhed side by shide.♪ *Nyahahaha～ Kimika's missing out～～!* Zakuro: I love you... *Yes... I love you, Mamiya-kun...* *Mamiya-kun, I love you... so much...* Zakuro: I have a dream... Ahh, no more!! *I collapsed onto the sofa, gasping for air.* Zakuro: Ahh... Ah, ah! *But the finger between my legs kept moving, leaving my free hand to play with my breasts.* Zakuro: Ahh, ahh, ahh! *Haa... I don't care anymore.* *The sofa was sticky and wet... I promise I'll clean it up later, so please forgive me...* Zakuro: Ahh... It feels so good, ah, ahh... Megu: Yeah, keep going, just like that! Zakuro: Hehehehe～... Ah, ah, ah! *I wanted to push my finger all the way in, but I resisted the urge.* *But in exchange, I moved my hand on my breasts like it was a man's hand.* *Ahamm... I pinched the nipple, trying to pull the milk out of it...* Zakuro: Ah, ah, it's so hot... Ah, I shouldn't be doing this... Zakuro: Ah, ah, ah... I can't breathe. I'm gonna die. *It felt like I had just run a marathon. I could feel my ragged pulse through the hand on my breast.* *But the heat never rose to my head... In the darkened room, the lights glittered like treasure...* Zakuro: Haa... Ahh... My pussy is so hot. Ah, ah, ahh! Male Waiter: Whoa... Satoko: Hehehe, you can't help yourself, huh?! Male Waiter: Ah... Why would such a cute girl do this? I don't believe it... Zakuro: Ahh, ah... Ehehe, thank you... *No way... A man said I was cute. That made me feel really good, in a different way than the masturbation.* *If only it was Mamiya-kun saying that... Ah, my pussy is so wet...* Megu: Hey, Takashima. You seem to be having a lot of fun over there, but it's about time for you to cum and finish up, all right? Satoko: Huh? You don't have any more batteries? Megu: No, I do. I just want to make this a two part film. This is the end of the first part. Satoko: Oh, sure. Sounds perfect. Megu: So cum for us real good, Zakuro-chan. Zakuro: Ah, ah, I'm gonna cum... *All right, got it...* Zakuro: Ah, mm... Ah, ah, ahh― *I can't hold out any longer... I have to cum now...* Zakuro: Ah, ahh―Ah, ah～～ *I pressed on my clitoris hard and simultaneously played with my breasts. I felt a warmth building in my stomach.* *My pussy was so sensitive that I felt hot waves of pleasure every time I moved my finger.* Zakuro: Ahh, I'm cumming, I'm cumming― *Ah, here it is... I'm gonna fall, it's like I'm gonna fall...* Zakuro: Ahhmmm～～!! *I climaxed harder than I thought possible.* *A bubble popped inside me. My brain boiled over, and all the energy left my body.* Megu: Okay! I got a pretty good video. *Everything I saw melted, and they all started clapping for me, applauding my performance.* Zakuro: Haa... Hehe, hehehe... *...It's like I'm dreaming about Wonderland...* *Ahaha, I never thought I could do this...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... Hehehe... *Maybe I should try it one more time...*

Satoko: All right, this place looks good. *They brought me, tottering along, over to a place by the traffic light in front of the station, in a bit of a blindspot.* *They're really gonna film here...* *Maybe the people passing by won't see us if we're careful doing it here, but...* *I have to do this for Kimika's sake...* *I'll do everything they tell me.* Megu: All right, here's the camera. Satoko: Zakuro-chan, lift up your skirt, slowly. Zakuro: M-My skirt? Um, uh... *The video camera focused in on my lower body. I lifted up my skirt, just like they told me to.* Satoko: That's great, that's great! Yeah, move your hands just like that! *I lifted my skirt. I saw the camera zoom in when I showed them my panties.* Satoko: Hmm... She always acts like such a nice girl, but her underwear is really sexy. That's kind of surprising. Megu: Do you think we should bring some panties for her to wear next time? Satoko: Heh, you have a lot of panties that can hardly be called underwear. Satoko: That pair that's nothing but string. That would be perfect. Megu: Those are designed to make a guy wanna fuck. They have their own purpose. Don't make fun of them. Satoko: Makes perfect sense to me. Megu: It works like a charm, ahaha. *I couldn't understand what they were talking about... I was more worried about all the people I could hear in the train station.* *Why are there so many people around? I can hear all their voices and footsteps, clear as day.* *It's all too loud...* Satoko: Oh, sorry, don't worry about us. Keep going. Megu: Yeah! Put your skirt in your mouth, so you can use your hands. Zakuro: Um, that's... Zakuro: ...Like this? *I bit the end of my skirt, just like they told me. My panties were completely revealed, and my hands were free.* Satoko: That's great. Megu: Hehehehe... It's so surreal. Satoko: Who cares about that? Get to it. Megu: Oh, right. Next, turn on the back massager I gave you earlier. *The back massager started vibrating.* *The sound echoed in my brain.* Megu: What are you waiting for? You know what to do next... Do it just like Tachibana did earlier. *What Kimika did earlier...* *My finger moved on its own, turning the switch back off.* Megu: The fuck did you do that for?! Satoko: Hey, I can't guarantee anything about Tachibana if you do that... *Th-That's right... I have to do what Kimika did...* *I have to do the same thing if I want to save her...* Zakuro: Haa... *I sighed as I turned the switch on. The long, elliptically shaped back massager came back to life.* Satoko: All right, now the props are all set to go. Satoko: We won't be able to guide you anymore. Just do it like you always do at home. Zakuro: Ah... *Like I always do at home?* *I don't do that... I only do it once in a while...* Megu: And I'll get all your cute reactions on tape! Don't hold back, now. Zakuro: Okay... *This is for Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... Kimika's sake... To save Kimika... To save Kimika... To save Kimika...* *To save Kimika... To save Kimika... To save Kimika...* Satoko: Quit talking to yourself, damn... Megu: Don't blame her. She's never done drugs before... She'll calm down once she gets into it. Satoko: Yeah, she looks like she's sick or something. It's creepy. Let's get her going with that vibe already. *I have to do my best...?* Zakuro: Hmm, hmm... Ah, ha, hmm... *When I put the vibrator up to my pussy from over my underwear, my legs shook from the sudden, new sensation.* Megu: Pretty good reaction, huh? Satoko: Yeah... It's pretty nice. *I had my skirt in my mouth, so at least I couldn't moan very loudly...* Zakuro: Haa... Ah, ah... *My underwear's probably going to feel wet and nasty after this, but if I just get through this without anyone seeing us, then there'll be no problem, no problem at all.* *Ahh... But if I can hurry up and cum without getting too wet... Kimika might...?* Zakuro: a, ahh... Mmm～～?! *This is scary.* *Wh-Why does it have to be in a place like this?* *I can't... My head isn't, isn't working, my head, my head's not, it's, ah... Aaah.* *Why? Why? Why? I'm barely touching it, but I'm jumping, jumping, jumping, jumping, jumping every single time I touch myself.* Zakuro: Haa, ah, ahh, mm... *Th-This is... I've really never done anything l-like this...* Zakuro: Haa, ahh, haaa... ah... Megu: Whoa... She just started and she's already doing this. Satoko: We've never been sober when there were other people around doing drugs. Megu: We always take 'em when other people do too... I've never been sober enough to watch anyone else. Satoko: Hehehe, this is just the start. We have a lot more planned. Zakuro: Haa, ah, mm, ahh... Satoko: Takashima, if it feels so good, why don't you pull your panties down? Zakuro: Ahh, ah, ahh... *They said something.* *Can't respond.* *My brain was taken by pleasure... Everything was gone...* Megu: Come on! Drop 'em already Zakuro: O-Okay. *I quickly pulled my underwear down.* *They fell to the ground.* Zakuro: Hhtherre, thheeere,... ah, ahh, ahh... *My eyes were spinning.* *It's so different when I do it directly... So different, too different...* *And more, more importantly... I have to calm, calm down, just calm down a little, little bit so I can...* *Huh?* *Um...?* *What am I doing here?* *This could be bad.* *I can't be doing this right now... No way.* Zakuro: No wwhay, no whaay,... Ah, ahh, haa... *Why am I doing what Akasaka-san told me to? She said I could do it with my underwear on... Ahh... Why?* Zakuro: Hhhhhway, waahyy? Aahhh. *I can't believe I'm naked in a place like this... Why am I smiling?* *I would never do this... My eyes can't focus, I'm sweating... Wow, I'm sweating so much, and that's not all...* *It's like all the fluids are running out of my body.* Megu: Whoa, that's crazy, Takashima... You have a talent for this! Zakuro: Th-Thankkhshh... Y-Yeaauh... Satoko: What's she doing? Megu: She's happy, since I said she was good at it. She's the kind of girl who works off compliments. Satoko: Heh, great... *Regret? But I'm happy because she complimented me??* *Happy? Why? This place, no, should I be happy? No, what if someone sees? Someone I don't know? Eh? There are people watching me? Watching what? Watching what I'm doing? Right now?* Megu: Takashima, are you happy? Zakuro: Yhesh... ah, ahmm, mmm, ah! *When I put it directly on my pussy... No, wh-what's this feeling, like my head is splitting open, no, someone's gonna see me, I'm moaning too, stop.* Zakuro: Ahmm, ah, mm, aaah! *I'm sweating so bad... And my thighs and the ground underneath me are all drenched. It's so wet that I could easily slip and drop the vibrator.* *I can't tell what's going on... What should I do? Is my head broken? Here? Doing this? This? Huh? Doing this?* Zakuro: Ahhh, ah, aah, aahhmm... Megu: Ahaha, this is really gonna be a great video. Satoko: I can smell her. Wow, that's crazy. Megu: These drugs are amazing... Satoko: Well, when you mix it with annaka, it makes you feel even better. Megu: But I've never seen anything like this... Satoko: Ahaha... There are some people looking over here, but I don't think anyone's gonna call the police. Megu: We can just run if they do. Satoko: Yeah, pretty much... Zakuro: Haaa, mm, mmm... *...Hey, K-K-Kimika... I-I'm just fine...* *I-I-I'm j-just fine... Kimikaa, just a little longer...* Satoko: All right, Takashima's trying her best. We have to do our jobs too, right? Megu: Absolutely! Satoko, get to it. Satoko: Aye aye. *I was about to lose consciousness from the pleasure coming over me. I put the vibrator up to my hard clitoris and...* *Akasaka-san yelled orders at Kitami-san, who came up to me and extended her hand to my skirt.* Zakuro: Haa... Aah, ah? *Kitami-san quickly took my skirt off, pulling it down forcibly...* Satoko: Come on, get your leg up. I can't get it off like that. Zakuro: Aah, okay... *I was confused by the sudden commotion, so I just went along with her when she threatened me.* *I couldn't think straight. I was overcome with pleasure.* *N-No, no, I can't, I can't do that...* Satoko: There, how about that? Megu: Oh, it's perfect! *Kitami-san took my clothes and went back over by Akasaka-san.* *I tried to calmly take in my situation.* *My underwear, my skirt, my blouse... I have nothing on. Everyone can see.* *Ah, aaaah, no, no, no, no way. Why are they doing this? This is a crime. Everyone will see. Who's watching? What are they looking at?* Zakuro: Ah, ah, no, no, noo, ahh... mm, ah, aaah, no... *I have to stop, I have to stop this... But there's nothing I can do. Someone might see. The cops might catch us...* Zakuro: No, they're gonna see, they're gonna see, no, no, you can't do that... Aaah, ah, aaah. *What? I don't understand it... What if someone sees? We'll get arrested. The cops will come, and we'll be on the news. No, my parents will be so sad... Aaahh.* *I put the nasty, vibrating tip of the back massager up to my pussy, feeling the sensation on my hard clitoris.* *My eyes were empty, I was drooling, and Akasaka-san got it all on camera...* *Aha? This feels kind of good...* Satoko: You must be willing to talk by now. Tell us, how does it feel? *Eh? Tell them? How it feels? Huh? How it feels? What's it matter to them if it feels good? They want me to say something?* Megu: Come on, say something, anything... How does it feel to do something nasty like this in public? Zakuro: N-Noo, I don't want to do this. Megu: But you are. Zakuro: Y-Yesh... I am. I'm doing it right heeere. Megu: This is a crime, you know? Zakuro: A crime, I shouldn'hth do this, I can't do thiiissh, no, I can't... Megu: But you're doing it. Zakuro: No, noo, it'th not like thaatt. Megu: Does it get you hot because someone might see? Zakuro: Noo, thaht would never happhen... Haa, no... Megu: But you're still doing it... Where does it feel the best? Zakuro: Ahh... I-It h-has to bee... my cliiitt... Megu: Huh? The mic on the camera must be broken. We didn't get that. Satoko: Come on, Takashima. Say it again, so everyone can hear! Zakuro: All hrirght! My clihtoriss... It's sho goodd...? Haaaann, mm... *After admitting it, my hand unconsciously moved to push the vibrator up against my swollen clitoris.* Zakuro: Aaahha! Haaa, ah, aaahh～ *I moved it around my pussy and shook my hips.* Satoko: Wow, she looks like such a slut. Zakuro: Haa, aah, ah, ah... Zakuro: Haa, ha, ah... Megu: Now she's getting into it! Satoko: This is great! She always looks so polite, but just look at her now. I can just imagine the guys jerking off to her. Zakuro: Haa, ahh, ahh... *I realized that I was putting the vibrator up to my anus as well.* Zakuro: Wow, wow, wooow, aah, ah, mmmm... Megu: She's bleeding... Did she put it in her ass without any lotion? Satoko: Oh, don't worry about it. That just means it feels good. Megu: Well, I guess everything feels good when you're on that stuff. Male Student: What's going on over there... Male Student: Quick, get your camera! Satoko: Whoa?! Megu: What?! *It was like a peal of thunder on a clear day.* *A few men saw us in the blindspot and started making a commotion.* *They probably heard my moans and came to look.* Zakuro: Ahh, haa, ahh... Male Student: Hey, what's going on here? Are they filming a porno or something? She's totally naked. Male Student: Seriously? They're really doing it outside, too. *I could hardly make out his shocked face through the overflowing tears clouding my vision.* *But my hand wouldn't stop...* Satoko: Shut up, you fags! If you don't go on your merry way, we'll tell the police you raped her. Male Student: Wh-Why would you do that? Megu: Come on, Satoko-san... The audience makes it feel more realistic, don't you think? Satoko: But they're annoying... and they kind of look like nerds, you know? Megu: All the better. Male Student: That's rude. We're not nerds. Megu: The fuck did you say? If you don't shut your trap, we won't let you watch. Male Student: Oh, I wanna watch, I wanna watch. Megu: Then come over here and get a better look? Male Student: Really? Wow. Zakuro: Nho, hwhy? Nnho, no, ahh, ahh, ahh... Ah! Aah, haa! Male Student: Wow... Does she like people watching her? Male Student: I've heard of that. They're called exhibitionists. Zakuro: N-Nho, nhoo, I, I, aaah, ah! *The place I'd never shown anyone else in my life... was being ogled by men I had never seen before.* *How did this happen?* *I don't understand... I just...* Zakuro: Dhon't, dhon't look! Noo, don't, thtop, ahh! Male Student: Why don't you tell us where you don't want us to look? *Where? That's obvious, the place no one should ever see...* Male Student: Come on, where! Hurry up and say it! Zakuro: D-Dhon't look therhee, don't look therhe, nhoo... Male Student: Where do you mean? Go on, say its name. If you don't, we can't understand you. Megu: He's a fucking genius, lol. Satoko: We have a real prodigy on our hands, lol. Zakuro: R-Rhighht hhere! Don'hth lookh hhere! It'th my pushy, don'hth lookh at my pushy, ifh you do, I, I, ahh. Male Student: What'll happen if we look? Zakuro: I can'ht geth mahried! I can'hth do zhis... Ahh, mm, noo, stop... Ah! Zakuro: Noo, don'th look... Aah, ah, auuh, ah! Zakuro: Hmm, ha, aah, it feelth so good in therhee～ Zakuro: Mm, mmm, ah, aaah～ *I could see the bulges in their pants.* Zakuro: Aaah, ah, ah! Mm, mm... *What? What? Why am I getting turned on by this?* *Come on, Takashima Zakuro-chan... You're not a dirty girl like that, are you?* Zakuro: Haa, it feelth so good! My pushy ith tingling! Megu: Keep it up, Takashima! This is gonna be great, keep it up! Zakuro: Ohhkayh... Ih'll tryrh... Aah, ah, aah! *The camera lens zoomed in again... It was focused on my drooling face.* *It must have been pathetic, but there was nothing I could do to hide it.* Satoko: Now then, Takashima, why don't you cum for us? The camera's batteries are running low. Zakuro: Ohkayh... Ih'm gohnna cum～! *You don't need to order me around... Ahaha... Hehehehe...* Zakuro: Ih'm cummhing, ah, mmm, here it comhes! Nnnooo― *...Look... My whole body feels light...* Zakuro: Haa, haaa, Ih'm cumming～! Zakuro: Ah... Haa... Satoko: She came. She just came, didn't she? Zakuro: Haaa, ha... *Ehehe... I'm surprised. This is too amazing...* Megu: All right, I got it all. Satoko: This'll turn out great. What should the title be? Megu: Let's see, uh... How about 'A Single Raindrop... The Mecha Angel who Descended upon the Station'?! Satoko: That doesn't make any sense. *Haa...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... ah! Haa, haa... *...Now Kimika will be safe, right?* Zakuro: Haa, haa, haa... *...Yuck... I can still feel it in my stomach...* Megu: All right, let's get out the backup battery. Zakuro: Haa, haa... *What did I just do... in front of all these people... I, uh...* Zakuro: Haa... Haa... Ahaaa... *Oh no... My vision is getting blurry...* Zakuro: Ah... *All the strength left my body.* Satoko: Whoa, Takashima! Are you all right? Is she gonna be all right? Megu: Wait a sec... Zakuro: ... Megu: Her heart's still going. She should be fine. I don't think she overdosed. Let's just get her to the karaoke place and let her sleep. Megu: It's probably not the drugs. I guess it's cause she just came. Satoko: Makes sense... Don't scare me like that. I was freaked out! Megu: Well, it's probably no good for her heart. We should let her rest a bit. *.........* *......* *...* *I was conscious the whole time, but my body wouldn't move.* *Time advanced quickly after that.* *The sun moved across the sky faster than I've ever seen it.* *Light in my eyes, sound in my ears.* *Everything in the world moved so fast.*

Kimika: Haa... I should've seen this coming. Zakuro: ...A vase of flowers on my desk. Kimika: I don't know whether to call it a classic... or just say they have no creativity... Don't worry about it, Zakuro. Zakuro: O-Okay... *They looked at us differently.* *The moment we entered the classroom, the atmosphere changed.* *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san sat in the back, smirking.* *No one would defy them...* *Even the guys in the class were afraid of making them mad.* *Kitami-san is incredibly strong for a girl... and Akasaka-san is rich, plus her boyfriend is supposed to be a thug.* *His name is Shiroyama Tsubasa... He hangs out with three other lowlifes.* *It takes pretty high test scores to get into this school, so thugs like them stand out from the rest of the students.* *No one thinks well of them, but at the same time no one dares to defy them.* *No one wants to get involved with them... That's the surest way to avoid conflict.* Satoko: Morning... Tachibana. Kimika: Good morning. You look cheerful this morning, Kitami-san. Just like always. Satoko: What did you say? Kimika: ... Satoko: Are you trying to say I'm some ditz who always has a stupid smile on her face? *Kitami-san grabbed Kimika by the collar... Kitami-san was tall for a girl, and Kimika was petite, so Kimika had to stand on her tiptoes so she wouldn't get choked by her collar.* Satoko: You all heard her. She was trying to pick a fight just now, wasn't she? Megu: Yeah, she was... You all heard her, right? *"..."* *No one answered. No one could possibly answer them.* Satoko: This is slander, you know? *They're not making any sense... She just said hello. Why do they think she was trying to pick a fight?* *But Kimika just laughed.* Kimika: I just said hello. Are you really going to use that as a pretext? Satoko: What'd you just say?! Megu: Hehehehe... Are you misunderstanding something just because we were nice to you for a while? Do you know what happens to people who make Satoko mad? *Kimika is in the track and field club.* *So she should be fairly strong... but in reality she's not at all.* *She joined the track and field club because she was so unathletic and wanted to improve.* *She might be even weaker than me...* *In contrast, Kitami-san is tall, and I heard she's been studying martial arts since she was a child.* *Though she doesn't study them anymore.* *I heard she used to be in a biker gang and wore crazy outfits before she came to this school.* *She's changed since she came to this school, especially since she met Akasaka Megu.* *Akasaka Megu cleaned her up and made her look much more feminine.* *But she hasn't changed at all inside.* *If Kimika got in a fight with her, she wouldn't last a minute...* *There are rumors that Kitami-san was famous for fighting dirty back when she was in that biker gang.* *She never lost a fight. She was especially cruel to the people she beat because she had never experienced a loss herself.* *After she beat someone up so badly that they had lost their will to fight, she would make them strip naked and burn their clothes.* *She would carry around a pair of hair clippers so she could cut the hair off girls she beat.* *It was common for her to shove baseball bats and cans of pop up other girls' vaginas for amusement.* *People say she cut off a girl's nipples with a knife once, too.* *Once, Akasaka-san asked her why she did that... and her answer was shocking.* Satoko: I'll never lose, so why should I care what it feels like to be the loser? Ahahahaha. *That's how Kitami-san thinks... Akasaka-san felt fear and disgust when she heard that, but at the same time she found it refreshing.* *How can she be so confident... Is there anything that she does fear?* *But Kimika didn't budge an inch when confronted by Kitami Satoko.* *She looked almost at ease.* Satoko: Your face doesn't look so good... and class hasn't even started. Kimika: Ugh! *Kimika's body suddenly flew through the air. It took a few seconds for me to even realize Kitami-san had struck her.* *Kimika's body flew through the air and knocked over a few desks.* Satoko: Maybe we should have her, you know, accidentally fall down the stairs. Then she can spend the rest of the day in the infirmary. *The stairs?* *Is that the lie they're going to tell the teacher?* Kimika: ... Zakuro: K-Kimika! *Kitami-san slowly moved toward Kimika, still sprawled on the floor.* Satoko: Now then... I'll punch you till you puke. Kimika: Bitch... Why don't you try it out for once, see what it feels like... Satoko: Agh! *An unnatural sound. A strange sound I had never heard before.* Kimika: A 90,000 volt stun gun... It's really powerful for how small it is. It hurts, doesn't it? Zakuro: Th-That's a stun gun? Kimika: That's right, a stun gun. And.. * the product description said this was a stab-proof vest, but getting hit with this on still really hurts."* Satoko: Stab-proof? Kimika: It's stab-proof all right... I bought it just in case you pulled a knife on me. Satoko: Th-That's why it felt weird when I punched you... Kimika: Probably... Did it hurt? But you were stupid and ignored it out of pride, since you've never lost before. And that's how you ended up in this mess... You let your guard down. Satoko: Tch! Kimika: Unlike you, I'm weak... I'm desperately trying to protect myself... Kimika: I'm so desperate.. * I might just kill you."* Megu: T-Tachibana! Kimika: Don't move.. * I wouldn't want to injure the rich bitch. It would be a pain to deal with, for both of us."* *The classroom was silent.* *It was hard to believe it was homeroom... No one spoke a word. No one even dared to move...* Zakuro: Ah... Zakuro: Kimika! Kimika: O-Oh crap... *Kimika quickly hid the stun gun in her bag.* Satoko: Tch... Megu: ... *The two of them hurried back to their seats.* Senagawa: Good morning, everyone. Senagawa: In homeroom today, we're going to... Megu: Um, Mrs. Senagawa. Senagawa: Huh? Akasaka-san? What's wrong? Megu: Someone's brought something dangerous into the school. Kimika: ... Senagawa: Something dangerous? Megu: Yes, it's some kind of electric shocking thing. Senagawa: Haa, who would bring something like that to school... Megu: No, it's not a toy... It's a real weapon. Senagawa: A weapon? Senagawa: Huh? What's that sound? Kimika: Oh, I'm sorry... I dropped my pencil case. Megu: Th-That's some crap! You just broke it, didn't you? Kimika: Eh? What are you talking about? Megu: Mrs. Senagawa, she has a stun gun! Shouldn't she be suspended for bringing something like that to school? Senagawa: A stun gun? Megu: That's right. Look in that bag! Senagawa: Tachibana-san... Would you show me what's in your bag, please? Kimika: Y-Yes... *The teacher took out the contents of her bag... and found some electronic parts and pieces of broken plastic.* Senagawa: Tachibana-san.. * what is this?"* Kimika: I'm sorry... That's my cell phone. Senagawa: Your cell phone? Kimika: I'm sorry for bringing it to school. I know I'm not supposed to have it in class, but it's broken, so... Senagawa: Why do you have a broken cell phone? Kimika: There's a soldering iron in the science room, so I was going to use that to fix it. I don't have anything like that at home, so I thought I could use the one at school. Senagawa: But... it's in pieces. Kimika: Yes... That's why I thought it wouldn't be a problem if I brought it to school. Megu: Y-You're lying! Kimika: Eh? Why would I do that? Megu: There's no way that's a cell phone! That was a stun gun! Kimika: Hehehe... Why's that * Can you think of any particular reason why I would need to bring a stun gun to school?"* Megu: Ah! Kimika: Why would I need to bring a weapon to school to defend myself? Megu: .. *L-Like I would know that."* Kimika: Then please don't make stuff up... That's ridiculous. Megu: Wh-What?! *That's a good idea... If she asks them why, there's only one answer.* *'Because there's a chance that she'll need to defend herself from violence.'* *That fact wasn't convenient for Akasaka-san.* *She couldn't answer Kimika's question.* *They glared at each other, but neither said anything.* Senagawa: Haa... I don't really understand what's going on * but either way, I'll be confiscating this."* Kimika: I'm sorry about this. Senagawa: Anyway, please don't cause any more problems * Jeez..."* *Homeroom continued like normal after that... The moment of unnatural tension was soon painted over with a facade of normalcy.* *But it was nothing more than a facade.* *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san glared at Kimika all throughout homeroom... Their eyes burned with hate.* *Will Kimika be all right?* *After that incident, she lost her only weapon.* *If the two of them went after her again, Kimika wouldn't have any way of fighting back.* *What's she going to do?* Zakuro: K-Kimika! Kimika: Hmm * What is it, Zakuro?"* Zakuro: U-Um, will you be okay? Kimika: Why? Zakuro: You lost your stun gun... and now that you did that... Kimika: Oh, that.. * Here, take this."* Zakuro: Eh? What's this? Kimika: It's not quite as powerful as the stun gun I had before, but it's small enough to fit in your pocket. Zakuro: What is it? Kimika: It's pepper spray... It's pretty strong. Zakuro: Y-You still have more... Kimika: Of course. If I'm going to fight against those two, I have to go all out. Zakuro: Fighting... Kimika: ...This is war. Zakuro: War? Kimika: That's right. It might just be a game for them, but for the ants underneath the magnifying glass, it's war. Kimika: But I don't want to get you involved, so please don't come near me. Zakuro: I-I can't do that. I'll fight too. Kimika: You can't just run headlong into a fight without a plan * Don't worry. I'm always carrying around weapons to protect myself."* Satoko: Hey... Tachibana. Kimika: Oh, hello... How are you feeling? Satoko: What did you say?! Are you mocking me? Kimika: Hehehe.. * I'm not mocking you. I came prepared, didn't I?"* Kimika: And besides, I noticed you didn't grab me by the collar this time... Are you scared? Satoko: The hell'd you say?! Megu: Knock it off, Satoko... Megu: Really.. * let's stop this, Tachibana... This is dangerous."* Kimika: Stop it, huh.. * Stop what?"* Megu: You still have more, don't you? You have to, if you're acting like that. Kimika: I wonder. Maybe? Megu: We won't come after you anymore, so knock it off, all right? Kimika: Knock what off? I'm not going to do anything.. * so long as you two don't."* Megu: Like I said, we won't do anything to you. Kimika: So what are you trying to say? Megu: You should stop carrying around dangerous stuff like that... Kimika: I'm not.. * carrying anything around..."* Megu: Is that really true? Kimika: Why wouldn't it be? Satoko: You bitch! Quit acting so full of your― Kimika: I wish the guard dog would stop barking. Satoko: Wh-What? Kimika: I don't care if you used to be a gangster or whatever, just knock it off with the barking... Are you a dog or something? *I could see her face light up with anger.* *But...* Megu: Satoko, just shut up! Satoko: M-Megu... Megu: What are you hiding, Tachibana... Kimika: Who knows? What am I hiding? Megu: You're hiding something... You've had your hand in your pocket this whole time. You look like you're about to pull something on us... Kimika: Whatever do you mean? Megu: You know what I mean... Megu: You know damn well what I mean... Stop playing tough. Megu: I don't know what you have in your pocket, but you should know this isn't going to end here. Kimika: I guess so.. * It doesn't look like it's going to end here at all, does it?"* Megu: Hmm... So you understand * You know damn well what you're doing."* Kimika: Yeah, it's not like I didn't learn anything in all the time you two bullied me... I know very well what you two are capable of. Megu: All right then... We've made ourselves clear. We'll have fun, at least. This is a game for us. Kimika: Yeah, you go ahead and have fun * but I'm fighting for my life."* Megu: Of course.. * since you're just a worm."* Kimika: That's right... I'm a worm. But did you know? Megu: Know what? Kimika: Do you know what animal has killed the most humans? Megu: What are you going on about? Kimika: The mosquito. Megu: The mosquito? Kimika: It's a carrier for infectious diseases.. * It carries everything you could imagine. Malaria, filaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, West Nile virus, Chikungunya fever, and encephalitis too..."* Megu: Ha! Are you a mosquito now? Kimika: I'm just a worm.. * Though a wasp would be fine too."* Megu: Well, whatever you want... Give it your best shot * I'll be showing you what hell looks like pretty soon."* Kimika: Yep, I'll be giving it my best shot all right. Satoko: Tch... Zakuro: K-Kimika... Kimika: A... Ah... Aah... Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Th-That was really close... That could've been bad. Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Ahahaha * the truth is... I'm totally defenseless right now."* Zakuro: Y-You are? Kimika: I gave the pepper spray to you, so I didn't have anything... That was scary. Zakuro: R-Really? Kimika: It was a bluff. My heart is beating so fast. Zakuro: So you were scared... I couldn't tell at all. Kimika: After my main weapon broke, I didn't feel safe with just my backup weapon. I was just about to go get another one. Zakuro: This pepper spray was your backup weapon? Kimika: That's right... Ahahahahaha, I made the same mistake as Kitami. I got overconfident just because I won once. Zakuro: But they fell for it... That's amazing. Kimika: Though bluffing was just my last resort.. * Well, I guess it worked out, since they fell for it."* *After that, Kimika retrieved several suspicious objects from the track and field club's locker room.* *I couldn't even tell they were weapons.* Zakuro: There's some kind of liquid in here, isn't there? Kimika: Yeah... Make sure you don't break it open. Zakuro: What is it? Kimika: A weapon. Zakuro: How can a liquid like this be a weapon? Kimika: Don't underestimate it... There are a lot of liquids that are way more dangerous than a blade or a club. Zakuro: This... is a petri dish. Kimika: Oh, that's a culture. Zakuro: A culture? Is it a weapon? Kimika: Of course... A biological weapon can be more powerful than a nuclear missile. Zakuro: Eh? A nuclear missile? I-Is this really that dangerous? Kimika: No way... There's no way I could get my hands on anthrax. Kimika: But naturally occurring bacteria are far more effective poisons than any manmade poison. Clostridium botulinum, for instance. Zakuro: I-Is that what this is? Kimika: No way... The police would arrest me for that in a flash. Zakuro: Then what is it? Kimika: It smells really bad. There's one that makes people itch, too... I have a few different ones. Zakuro: O-Oh, I see. Kimika: Yeah, I have a few to pick from. *We went back to the classroom... The moment we entered, the classroom went silent and everyone stared at us.* Zakuro: Eh? *Kimika grabbed my hand as I was going back to my seat.* Kimika: Let's see... *For some reason, Kimika put her foot on my chair.* Zakuro: Eh? What? Zakuro: Eh? Eh? Wh-What's this? Kimika: They loosened the bolts... Or rather, they removed the bolts all together and put wire in instead. Kimika: And I bet... *Kimika looked inside my desk.* Kimika: Hmm... I was right. *It didn't look like there was anything unusual inside my desk, but Kimika stuck her hand in and pulled out several of my textbooks.* Zakuro: Eh? What's this? Kimika: Just what it looks like... Your books are ruined. You really shouldn't have left them here in between classes, though. Zakuro: Ah... *Thinking back on it, Kimika brought her bag with her when she left the classroom. I thought it was just because she was going to retrieve her weapons, but... she was also protecting her property.* Kimika: Akasaka-san. Megu: What is it, Tachibana? Do you have something to say to me? Kimika: No, not really.. * But I was thinking, your family might not be so pleased to hear about this."* Megu: What do you mean... Are you trying to pick a fight with me? Kimika: Not really... But you know, your father is on this school's board of directors, so things might not all go the way you want them to. Megu: Huh? What are you talking about? Kimika: Nothing... I'm just saying. If this got out to the media, it would be a problem for your parents as well, wouldn't it? Megu: Wh-What's that? Kimika: Hmm, it's a picture.. * What do you think?"* Megu: Huh? *Kimika passed the camera to Akasaka-san and showed her the picture.* Megu: Wha―?! Kimika: How about that... *Akasaka-san's face went pale as she looked at the picture... I wondered what it was...* Kimika: You probably shouldn't be doing this. You might be thinking that the people on the board will protect each other, but... Kimika: But someone famous like your father could lose everything if he got caught up in a scandal like this, you know? Megu: You bitch... So you're threatening me now? Kimika: Threatening you * No way... Why would I do that? I'm just trying to tell you that you're not special."* Kimika: If you want to pull something, you'd better think it through. Hehehe... Otherwise, you'll just end up digging your own grave. Teacher: Come on, what are you standing around for? Class is starting. Kimika: Uh, my chair is broken. Teacher: Your chair? Kimika: Yes, it's broken... By the way, could you touch my chair as well? Teacher: Huh? Touch your chair? Kimika: Yes, just touch it with your hand... Teacher: What do you mean... Whoa, what?! Teacher: Wh-What's going on?! Kimika: It's exactly what it looks like. Teacher: A-Are you trying to pull a prank on me? Kimika: Oh? Why would you think that? Why on earth would I mess with my own chair if I was trying to pull a prank? Kimika: If I was trying to pull a prank on a teacher, there are tons of easier ways to do it. Teacher: Th-That's true, but... Then what is this?! Kimika: I think it's exactly what it looks like. Teacher: What it looks like? Kimika: Somehow the chair ended up like this, where it would break if anyone sat down on it... Do you understand what I'm trying to say? Teacher: Um, in other words... Kimika: Hehehe... Teacher: R-Really? I guess the chairs must be getting old. Kimika: Hehehe... If that's what you think, then I guess that must be it. Kimika: So I trust you won't mind if I go retrieve a chair from an empty classroom? Teacher: Oh, sure. Go ahead... Come back quickly, though. Kimika: All right. Oh, and I know you wouldn't count me as tardy because of this, right? Teacher: J-Just hurry up and go. Kimika: All right * Zakuro, I'm going..."* Zakuro: Oh, okay... Zakuro: Kimika, how did you know? Kimika: Yeah, I figured they would probably try to do something to our desks, so I sprinkled calcium carbonate on them earlier. Zakuro: Calcium carbonate? Kimika: Uh, it's one of the ingredients they use to make chalk.. * It's so common in the classroom that no one even noticed... Or at least those idiots didn't."* Kimika: And I could see a hand print in the calcium carbonate, so I knew someone had touched our desks. Zakuro: And you did all that just this morning? Kimika: Yeah, it comes in a spray can... It comes out like perfume. Zakuro: K-Kimika, you're really amazing... Why have you always been bullied if you could do this? Kimika: It was actually because I got bullied that I imagined all the things I could do. I've been researching this stuff for years... I never thought I would actually do it, though. Zakuro: Then why? Kimika: Because of you. Zakuro: Eh? Me? Kimika: Because I dragged you into this... Kimika: Humans are funny creatures... When they're suffering, they start to go numb. After a while, they can't tell whether their experiences are terrible, or if they're just going through the same stuff everyone else goes through. Kimika: The first time I understood my situation was when you got dragged into this.. * Looking at you was like looking at myself in the mirror, I guess?"* Zakuro: S-So that's what it was.. Kimika: Who knows... I can't speak for other people, but that's how it is for me. I can't really grasp my own situation. I can't tell if I should be upset about something or if I should just let it go... Not at all. Kimika: And the lines you recited... Zakuro: Lines? Kimika: You said they were from a play or something? Zakuro: Cyrano? Kimika: Yeah, that. You declared war on them when you said that... and there's no way I could leave you to fight alone, you know? Zakuro: I-I see... *So really I dragged her into this...* Kimika: If you're thinking that you were the one that dragged me into it, don't. Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: I had to fight this battle at some point... You weren't the one who got me into this. Zakuro: ...Kimika. Kimika: In a way, I'm even grateful to you, Zakuro.. Zakuro: O-Oh... Zakuro: Oh, by the way, what was that picture you showed to Akasaka-san? Kimika: O-Oh, that was, uh... this. *The image was really fuzzy... It was just a picture of a foreigner in the park at night handing something to Akasaka-san.* Zakuro: Wh-What's this? Kimika: She's giving him money, and he's giving her a key. Zakuro: Why? Kimika: After that, she went to a specified location and got the drugs she paid for... That's the next picture. Zakuro: A coin locker? Kimika: Yeah, they divide the drugs up and put a bit in each locker... They can't sell it casually like they used to. Kimika: I spied on her for a few days because I heard she was buying drugs from someone. Zakuro: S-So she really was buying drugs. Kimika: If I wanted, I could just send these pictures to the police, but... Zakuro: But? Kimika: If I could get evidence on all of them, that would be perfect... If they weren't all arrested, then, well... Zakuro: What would happen? Kimika: They would probably try to kill me... If I send this to the police, that's it, I have no more ace up my sleeve. Kimika: The rumors say that the people dealing drugs in this school are Akasaka's boyfriend Shiroyama, Numada, Nishimura, and Iinuma... as well as Mamiya Takuji. Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya-kun? Kimika: That's right. So be careful around him. He hangs out with those guys... Or rather, he's the leader. Zakuro: The leader? Mamiya-kun is their leader? Kimika: Yeah. Well, I've only heard rumors, though... I'm not actually sure just how Mamiya Takuji is related to the rest of them. I heard he was being bullied, too... Zakuro: He's the leader, but he's being bullied? Isn't that the complete opposite? Kimika: Like I said, he's an enigma... Either way, you shouldn't let your guard down around him. Kimika: He might end up being one of our enemies too. Kimika: This school always covers up any incidents that happen... You saw how the teacher reacted just now, didn't you? Zakuro: The teacher... You mean the physics teacher? Kimika: He pretended like he didn't understand that we were being bullied... It's probably not convenient for them to admit there's a bullying problem here. Zakuro: I-I see... Kimika: So most teachers probably won't be any use to us. Senagawa knows about everything that's happened up until now... Zakuro: How would she know? Kimika: Because I told her directly. Zakuro: O-Oh, you actually told Mrs. Senagawa. Kimika: I told her Akasaka and Kitami were bullying me. What do you think she did when she heard that? Zakuro: I don't know... What happened? Kimika: 'I checked with Akasaka-san and Kitami-san, and they said that nothing of the sort was happening.' That's what she told me... More than anyone else, I really want to kill that woman. Kimika: She asked the perpetrators if they had done anything, and they said no... Is she really that fucking stupid? Zakuro: S-So that's what happened... Kimika: And of course nothing happened when I told her it was getting worse... I really started to wonder if I should just kill myself and get it over with. Zakuro: But you didn't. Kimika: It would've been stupid for me to kill myself after seeing you being bullied too. Zakuro: What do you mean? Kimika: Looking at it from afar, I had to think... why should the person who's suffering die while they get to go on with their lives like nothing happened? I couldn't stand it. Zakuro: Oh, I see... Kimika: After all, the law will protect us, since we're still young. Kimika: If it's so bad that I would kill myself, I might as well kill them instead... That's the conclusion I came to. Zakuro: O-Oh, I never knew you were thinking about anything like that. Kimika: Well, it's not like I've talked to you about it. Zakuro: But you were prepared to go that far... I couldn't do that at all. Kimika: Oh, don't worry about it. That's just your personality. You should just keep living your life, oblivious to the rest of us. Zakuro: What do you mean by oblivious?! Kimika: You're always spacing out... Especially lately. Zakuro: Th-That's... Kimika: Well, putting that aside * these pictures are our only trump card... If possible, I'd like to end this whole mess with just these."* Zakuro: Do you think we'll be able to? Kimika: No, it probably won't be that simple... Akasaka has too much pride to just let us go... We'll have to do something else. Zakuro: O-Oh... Kimika: Ah! Zakuro: Eh? What's wrong? Kimika: Crap... It was a trap. Zakuro: Ah! Shiroyama: Oh, there they are... So that's where you were hiding. Iida: Oh wow, they really are walking around the halls during class. Zakuro: Wh-What is it? Nishimura: Oh, if it isn't Takashima Zakuro and Tachibana Kimika... Good, good. Kimika: Wh-What do you want? Shiroyama: Oh, nothing. We just want to talk to you... How about you two come with us for a while? Kimika: Don't you think we could talk here? Shiroyama: Oh, that's right... Kimika: Hmm... So what do you want with us? Shiroyama: Follow us and you'll find out. Kimika: Oh... Well then... Zakuro: Oh? *Kimika covered my eyes with her hand.* *The next moment.* Shiroyama: Agh! Iida: Wh-What? Nishimura: My eyes, my eyes! Kimika: Zakuro! Zakuro: Eh? Ah, sure... *Kimika grabbed my hand and took off running.* Shiroyama: D-Damn it! Get the hell back here! Zakuro: Wh-What was that? Kimika: It was a xenon flashlight! Zakuro: What's that? Kimika: Well, you just need to know it's a really bright kind of flashlight. It won't blind someone permanently, but it'll mess with their vision if they look directly at it. It's perfect for running away. Shiroyama: You bitch! Kimika: Whoa! They're already starting to recover! *Kimika pulled my hand and ran.* Kimika: Take this! *Kimika threw something that looked like a test tube at them.* *It must have been really thin glass, since it broke instantly when it hit one of them.* Shiroyama: The fuck is this shit?! God damn, it smells like shit! Nishimura: Wh-whoa... What the fuck... Is this nattou? Shiroyama: N-Nattou?! Fuck, it smells so bad. Iida: It probably is nattou... It's like rotten nattou. Zakuro: Wh-What was that? W-Will they be all right? Kimika: It'll be fine. They won't die from it. Zakuro: B-But they were yelling... Was that poison? Kimika: It's not poison. It's just Bacillus nattou. Zakuro: Nattou? Kimika: Yeah, it's just a sticky liquid made from cultured nattou bacteria * But those bacteria are really amazing. They're super resistant to heat, salinity, and antibiotics!"* Zakuro: Wh-What do you mean? Kimika: Once they're on your clothes, it's over. Even if you wash your clothes in boiling water for two hours, the bacteria won't die. Even ultraviolet rays can't kill them * And benzalkonium chloride won't do anything!"* *Kimika really does know a lot about this stuff... She keeps saying words I've never heard before.* Zakuro: A-Anyway... It's really amazing, isn't it? Kimika: Yeah, yeah. And I used the bulb from a fluorescent lamp so it would break easily. I even cut notches into the bulb and heated it up so it would break even easier. *Kimika kept explaining as she ran.* *That's probably why...* Kimika: Haa, haa... C-Can we take a break, Zakuro? Zakuro: Oh, sure... *She ran out of stamina around the time we passed through the school's front gate.* Kimika: Haa, haa... Zakuro, you're a pretty fast runner. Why don't you join the track and field club? Zakuro: Y-You think so? *That can't be true. I'm the fourth slowest runner in our class.* Kimika: Haa, I'm pooped.. * Oh, we forgot to grab your stuff!"* Zakuro: It'll be okay... My textbooks are already ruined, and I have a lock on all the stuff in my locker. All that stuff should be okay. Kimika: You know I can open a school locker in a few seconds? That's hardly even a lock. Zakuro: But you're the only one who can do that. There's no way they could manage to do it. Kimika: They could do it in half a second with a crowbar. I hear you can even open safes with a good crowbar. Zakuro: I see... Still, it'll be fine. We can't really go back for it now anyway. Kimika: But what are we going to do tomorrow? It'll pretty much be the same whether we go back now or wait until tomorrow. Zakuro: No, we really shouldn't go back now... Doesn't it smell really bad in the hallway right now? Kimika: Well, I guess so... Zakuro: If we're wandering around the halls, the teachers might figure out it was us. Kimika: I guess... Zakuro: Anyway, do you mind if I photocopy your textbooks? Without a textbook, I can't even go to class. Kimika: I don't mind at all, but you really don't need to go get anything out of your locker? Zakuro: No. I can order more textbooks at school if I need to. Kimika: Oh... All right, gotcha. Zakuro: Ah! Takuji: Eh? Zakuro: Mamiya-kun! Mamiya: ...Who are you? Zakuro: Y-You forgot again? Takashima Zakuro. I'm Takashima Zakuro! Mamiya: Takashima Zakuro... Zakuro... Zakuro: U-Um, you really don't remember? You lent me one of your books. Mamiya: A book? Now that you mention it.. * Oh, right. I remember, or I guess I should say, I understand."* Mamiya: Takashima Zakuro... The girl whose clothes I stole and had to give back, huh... Zakuro: Huh?! U-Um... Kimika: Mamiya... Takuji, was it? Mamiya: ... Kimika: What do you mean stole? Mamiya: I'm not sure what you mean... What are you asking me? Kimika: Does that mean you were bullying Zakuro too? Zakuro: Ah, n-no, that's not it! Uh, Kimika! Mamiya: Hehehehe... Not that I care, but you really do have a lot of those, don't you? Kimika: You.. * Wh-What are you talking about?"* Mamiya: You should think a little harder about which hand you're using to hold the bag and which hand you're using to pull something out... Kimika: Why, you! Zakuro: Mamiya-kun! *She struck out.* *But he easily avoided it.* Mamiya: Simultaneously extending the baton and striking with it. That's what I thought... Well, an amateur wouldn't be able to dodge that, but... Kimika: Tch! Zakuro: K-Kimika, what are you doing?! Mamiya-kun isn't our enemy! Kimika: He just said he stole your clothes! He's one of Shiroyama's cronies! Mamiya: What a pain... Kimika: Ah! Kimika: A-Ahh... L-Let go! Zakuro: Mamiya-kun, don't! She didn't mean to do that! Mamiya: I don't see how you could accidentally whip out a baton and try to hit someone with it. Kimika: D-Don't touch me in weird places! Zakuro: W-Weird places?! Mamiya: Huh? You mean the boobs you don't have? Kimika: I do have boobs! They're just average! Mamiya: Really? Aren't most girls a bit bigger? In magazines and stuff they're always... Kimika: Are you fucking stupid?! Those girls are practically made in photoshop! No one actually looks like that! Zakuro: No, that's a bit of a stretch, Kimika. Mamiya: Whatever you say... Kimika: ... Mamiya: So then, what do you want? Why did you two show up and suddenly start attacking me? Zakuro: Eh? Y-You're misunderstanding. That's not what this is about! Kimika: It's because you're deceiving Zakuro! Mamiya: Deceiving? Kimika: That's right. You're one of Shiroyama's goons, but you keep saying nice things to Zakuro... What are you trying to pull? Mamiya: By Zakuro, you mean... this girl here, the one with bigger boobs than you? Kimika: Wh *What did you just say?!"* Zakuro: Ah, ah, wha―Mamiya-kun! You can't say that! Kimika: I'll kill you! I'll put you ten fucking feet under! Zakuro: K-Kimika! That's a knife! Mamiya: What's wrong with you.. * Hey, Takashima, what's going on here?"* Zakuro: Eh? Uh, this is a misunderstanding! Kimika, stop! Mamiya: Isn't she your friend? Kimika: Take this! And this! You! Little! Mamiya: It's not that I really care, but that is a very nice knife... What is it? Kimika: It's the famous Extreme Ratio BF2 Tactical Tanto! And don't you forget it! Mamiya: Hmm. Kimika: Ow! Mamiya: Oh, wow... This is really cool. Kimika: Eh? Where's my knife? Mamiya: This is too dangerous for you. I'll be confiscating it. Kimika: Wh-What?! I saved up my allowance forever to buy that! Mamiya: Oh, really? What a strange woman... Why would you buy a knife? Kimika: L-Like it matters to you! Mamiya: Then I won't give it back... Kimika: Y-You can't do that! Mamiya: How much was it? Kimika: It was over 20,000 yen. Mamiya: Oh, really.. * Then I'll be taking it off your hands."* Kimika: You can't do that * And besides."* Kimika: Do you really think I'm just gonna let you take it? Mamiya: You really think there's anyone blind enough that they wouldn't see you fishing around for that pepper spray? Kimika: Behind me? Mamiya: I don't know what your problem is, but... I'll let you go for today in exchange for this knife. Go home. Kimika: As if I could go home without my Extreme Ratio! Mamiya: Haa... Sure, sure * Hey Takashima, could you say something to her."* Zakuro: Eh? Wh-What should I say? Mamiya: Isn't it dangerous for a girl to be carrying something like this around? Besides, someone's going to get hurt if a violent woman like this has a knife. Zakuro: U-Um, there's a good reason for all this... Mamiya: No, I'm sure everyone has some kind of excuse. That doesn't mean I'm gonna let her go around pulling knives on people. Zakuro: Of course, but... *Wh-What is it... Today, he's different from normal...* *He's not even close to the same amazing person I know... but he's nothing like the Mamiya-kun that's always in his underground room, either...* Kimika: So you really are our enemy, Mamiya Takuji! Mamiya: Enemy * The hell are you talking about..."* Kimika: Look! This is what he's really like, Zakuro! He's the kind of villain who would steal my knife! Zakuro: Uh, but you did suddenly attack him with... Kimika: He said I had a flat chest! Zakuro: H-He didn't quite say that... Mamiya: No, that would probably be the best way to describe it. Kimika: The hell did you just say?! Mamiya: There's really no reason for you to even wear a bra if you're that flat... You know? Wouldn't you be fine just using a couple bandaids? Kimika: Wh-Wh-Wh-What? * That's what you fucking say after groping a maiden's chest?! There's no way I'm letting you go now!"* Mamiya: Wha―?! *Mamiya-kun was completely at ease before, but this time he was surprised. Kimika pulled out a pistol.* Kimika: Die! Mamiya: A-Are you stupid? That hurt! Mamiya: How stupid are you?! Kimika: Ah! Mamiya: I didn't expect you to pull out an airgun... I thought it was pepper spray again, so I let my guard down. Zakuro: An airgun? Mamiya: I was wondering why you were backing away from me... I can't believe you had an airgun in there too. I'll be confiscating this as well. Kimika: Aaah * A-At least let me keep that! Some of the parts in that gun are authentic!"* Mamiya: I don't care... Anyway * I'll be taking this knife and this airgun as reparations."* Zakuro: U-Um... Mamiya: What? Is there a problem with that? Zakuro: Um, no... She did attack you with a knife, so we should really be glad that you're not calling the police. Zakuro: B-Besides... Mamiya: Besides? Zakuro: Today, you kind of seem different from normal, Mamiya-kun. Mamiya: From normal * Oh, that's right... I like to lay low at school. That's probably why I seem different."* Zakuro: I-I guess so... *But last time I met him outside of school, he wasn't like this...* Mamiya: Oh, wait... You're talking about the times when I read lots of books? Zakuro: Ah, yes. Mamiya: Then you don't need to worry... Pretty soon, you won't be able to meet any Mamiya Takuji other than that one. Zakuro: Eh? Wh-What do you mean? Mamiya: What do I mean? There's no meaning.. * Think of it as a change of personality. I'd like to be a bit more diligent and studious from now on."* Zakuro: Oh, th-that's why you're always reading on the rooftop? Mamiya: Yeah. Zakuro: But that's weird. Mamiya: Weird? How so? Zakuro: I wouldn't call a person diligent and studious if they were skipping class. Mamiya: I guess you're right.. * Not that it really matters."* Zakuro: U-Um, thank you for lending me _Cyrano de Bergerac_! Mamiya: Cyrano? Oh, the play. *Oh, he does know...* *Maybe he really is the same Mamiya-kun that I met on the rooftop?* Mamiya: What, you like stuffy books like that? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Stuffy like a stuffy nose? Zakuro: No, he's talking about sophisticated literature.. * Books that are aimed at intellectuals and high society... Stuff like that."* Zakuro: Hey, wait! You were the one that recommended Cyrano to me, Mamiya-kun! Mamiya: Maybe I did. Did you like it? Then don't mind me. Zakuro: B-But Mamiya-kun, you said you liked it too! Mamiya: Like I said, that's when I'm at school. Zakuro: Th-Then you don't like it? Mamiya: Dunno.. * Why do you care about that?"* Zakuro: Eh? Mamiya: Would you change your opinion and say you liked something just because someone else said they liked it? Zakuro: Th-That's... Mamiya: It doesn't matter whether I like it or not. Zakuro: That's true, but... Kimika: Who cares about that? Give me back my weapons! Mamiya: No way. I'm holding onto these. Kimika: Why, you... Zakuro: S-Stop. If you keep going, he's just going to take more of your weapons away. Mamiya: That's right. You should listen to her. There's no point in fighting me. Kimika: I-I have to try! Mamiya: Are you dumb.. * I thought you hated people like that."* Kimika: Wh-What do you mean? Mamiya: You're not the type to run headlong into a fight without a plan, are you? Mamiya: You're incredibly weak, even for a woman. Your reflexes are slow, too... Kimika: Th-Thats.. * Just how the hell would you know what type of person I am anyway?!"* Mamiya: I can tell. It's a simple deduction. If I see a person who's incredibly weak carrying around that many backup weapons, it's obvious that they're the type to plan ahead. Mamiya: A lot of people like that fail to actually act when the time comes, though... but I can see that you're not one of them. Mamiya: Either way, you came and picked a fight with me... Kimika: You're so cocky. You act like you're some famous swordsman or something... Mamiya: I wouldn't say that * but you know what kind of person I am. You said I was one of Shiroyama's cronies, after all."* Kimika: You're the one pulling Shiroyama and Numada's strings, aren't you? Mamiya: Who knows... I couldn't tell you that. Anyway * I'll let you go for today.* * If this happens again, I'll be taking more of your toys!"* *He laughed and slowly walked off.* *Completely unflustered...* Kimika: If this happens again, you'll be going home in a wheelchair! Mamiya: Hahahaha... I'm looking forward to it. *Why is his personality so different every time I meet him?* *Is he really just acting when he's at school?* *Then what on earth could he have been pretending to be when I met him in that underground room?* *The more I learn about him, the more mysterious he seems.*

*Haa...* *...I always feel bad in the mornings.* *But this morning was way worse than usual.* *After getting a night's sleep, everything that happened last night seemed like a dream... It didn't feel real at all.* *I've never even dated anyone, I've never had sex with anyone, and I haven't even had my first kiss...* *But then yesterday...* Zakuro: Ah! *I wish it was just a dream... I wish it was all a lie...* *I don't want to believe that I'm the kind of a person who would do that.* Zakuro: Please... Please just let today be peaceful *I looked around a few times and then walked toward my classroom, trying not to make eye contact with anyone.* *I just want to disappear.* Kiyokawa: Oh, Takashima-san! Zakuro: Ah! *When the teacher from the next class over said something to me, I jumped and squealed in surprise.* Kiyokawa: Huh? Wh-What's wrong? I didn't mean to scare you... Zakuro: Oh, no... It's nothing. I'm sorry. *Shoot... I can't believe I freaked out.* Zakuro: U-Um, what is it? Kiyokawa: Mrs. Senagawa was looking for you. Zakuro: What? Mrs. Senagawa was *Mrs. Senagawa is my homeroom teacher... Why would she be looking for me?* *She couldn't have found out about yesterday, right...?* Kiyokawa: She seemed a bit upset at you, so you should probably go see her right away. Zakuro: Huh? Sh-She was upset? Kiyokawa: I don't know what you did, but if you just apologize, I'm sure everyone will forgive you... Go on. Zakuro: Oh... S-Sure... *She had a big smile as she passed me, a great contrast to the unease I was feeling.* *She was upset?* *And she was looking for me?* *Could that be...* *About what happened yesterday?* *Did the school find out about what happened at the station, or in the karaoke box?* Zakuro: Wh-What should I do? *If they ever found out about those videos, I would definitely be expelled...* *What do I do now?* *This is the worst thing that could've happened... It's all over now...* *.........* *......* Zakuro: Um, Mrs. Senagawa... Senagawa: Oh, Takashima-san. Good morning. Zakuro: G-Good morning... *Just like Kiyokawa warned me, her face looked pretty severe.* Senagawa: know you've always been a good student, but there are several people who said they saw you... Zakuro: ―! *They really did...* *Someone saw me...* *Of course they did... I can't believe I was naked out there...* *I wish that had just been a dream, but it's all real.* *It's all over...* Zakuro: Um, I... Senagawa: Haa... It looks like you know what I'm talking about. Zakuro: Yes. I'm terribly sorry... Senagawa: So then, why on earth did you dump all that red ink in the old pool? Zakuro: Well, uh... What? Ink? *Ink?* *What do you mean, ink?* Senagawa: Haa... When I got here in the morning, the janitor said there was a big ruckus about the ink in the old pool. Zakuro: Huh? O-Oh, really... Senagawa: I'm really disappointed that you would pull a prank like that. Senagawa: Several witnesses said they saw you throwing red ink all over the pool, like a madman. Zakuro: B-But, yesterday, I was... Senagawa: What about yesterday? Zakuro: Ah! *I can't say that...* *I can't tell her what I was really doing yesterday evening.* Zakuro: Um... Witnesses? Senagawa: Akasaka-san and Kitami-san... But there were a few other boys who also said they saw you. Senagawa: I didn't think a nice girl like you would do that either, but there are quite a few people who saw you... I have to take their word over yours. Zakuro: O-Okay... Senagawa: You were the one who did it, right? Zakuro: Um, I... *When I tried to tell her I didn't do it, she looked at me sharply, as if she didn't want to hear it.* *I didn't know who did it, but I couldn't admit what I was doing last night either... I just froze.* *She just glared at me, not saying a word...* *...* *We stood in silence for a moment.* *I was too weak to protest...* *I picked the safest option. I just wanted to get away from her, and away from the uncomfortable silence.* Zakuro: I-I'm sorry... I did it. *I gave up, just like that...* *I realized... I had gone back to my old self.* *I was finally starting to feel like I was stronger than this... I thought that I was stronger thanks to Mamiya-kun...* *But in reality, I was wrong.* *I'm still the exact same person.* *I haven't changed at all.* *I just let other people decide things, and I let them do whatever they want. I can't even fight back.* Senagawa: But, to be honest, I didn't think you had it in you. *She gave a sardonic laugh as she told me that.* *She was so sure I was the culprit before, too.* *Adults are always like this...* *I know what's happening.* *I've experienced this before.* *Not just in the real world, but over the Internet too. I've seen this same thing happen so many times before.* *Adults just close their eyes and look away from the truth, so they can come up with an explanation that's more convenient for them.* *Adults are always like that. They push their views on anyone weaker than them the second they get a chance.* *And it's the weaklings like me that have to suffer for it.* *Even teachers do it... No, teachers do it more than anyone else...* Senagawa: Well, I heard it's water-soluble, so it shouldn't be hard to get it off. Zakuro: Yes, thank you... *I weakly replied, trying to be polite.* *The same acquiescent response I've shown every time I met conflict.* *I just need to say I'm sorry, or say thank you... If I just do that, the problem will go away.* Senagawa: You still have some time before first period starts. Go clean it out with the hose. You don't need to come to homeroom. Zakuro: Understood. Senagawa: Get going. *She didn't even ask why I did it. She just waved and sent me on my way.* *She didn't want to think about it any longer...* *Or maybe she just hates me...* *She's always had a pretty nasty attitude toward me.* *I kind of feel like... she doesn't like me.* *If you were my age, you would be bullying me too, wouldn't you?* *She's so confident and decisive. She would probably just think I was disgusting and pathetic...* *I know what it feels like to be hated, and I can tell that adults are just as petty as children.* *An ugly bitch is just an ugly bitch.* *Apparently bullying can happen after you get a job, too.* *I heard bullying at the workplace was actually very common.* *They probably do it too.* *I bet some of the teachers bully the weaker ones.* *That's why it wouldn't surprise me to hear Mrs. Senagawa hated me too.* Zakuro: What's this? *I changed into my swimsuit in case I got wet, but when I saw what happened, I was stunned.* *Just like Mrs. Senagawa said, the old pool was absolutely covered in red ink.* Zakuro: It looks like blood... *I wonder if this is what it would look like if a skydiver's parachute malfunctioned and he landed in the pool, spraying blood everywhere...* *Or, for example, if someone jumped off the roof...* Zakuro: But they wouldn't be able to jump this far... They'd probably fall in those bushes and break their legs. *There is concrete directly under the lip of the roof, though. If someone fell and landed on the sidewalk, they'd probably get blood everywhere...* *I shouldn't be wasting time like this.* Zakuro: I'm so pessimistic today. *Of course I was pessimistic after what happened yesterday.* *But I can't think like that.* Zakuro: I-I'm really glad it wasn't oil-based paint. *I tried to force a smile. I just have to count my blessings, keep my spirits up...* *As I unreeled the heavy cleaning hose, I started to feel a little better.* *I connected the one end of the reel to the water supply, and pulled the other out to the pool.* Zakuro: Getting some exercise is a good way to start off the morning. *I was having trouble turning the heavy metal knob, when―* *"...It was a good idea to pick this spot."* *"...I couldn't sleep last night, I was so excited."* Zakuro: What?! *When I looked up, I saw a bunch of men standing there... The ones from last night...* *Why are they here?* Shiroyama: Good morning, Takashima Zakuro... It sure is a nice, sunny day, isn't it? Zakuro: Good... Good morning... *Th-These are the men who had Kimika surrounded... They were thugs that Akasaka-san knew...* Shiroyama: What happened here? It's so dirty... Iida: Why are they making you clean it? *What are they talking about? They're the other witnesses Mrs. Senagawa mentioned, so they know damn well...* Zakuro: U-Um, is there something I can do for you? Nishimura: Ehehe... You look good in that swimsuit, hehehe... Zakuro: Ah! Shiroyama: Woah, Nishimura, you don't wanna creep 'em out. Iida: Yeah, you have to play nice. Gotta be nice, man... Hehehe. Zakuro: U-Um! Shiroyama: What? Zakuro: Kimika... What did you do to Kimika?! Shiroyama: Kimika? Oh, that crazy bitch? Zakuro: I called her over and over last night, but no one ever answered, and― Shiroyama: Look at this bruise, right here. My shoulder looks like a fucking grapefruit... Nishimura: Yeah, I thought she was gonna fuckin' kill me. Zakuro: So where is she? Shiroyama: Who knows... We're nice guys, you know? She's probably fine. Zakuro: What do you mean, probably? Nishimura: More importantly, I have to say, your tits are huge, ahaha. Zakuro: Ah?! N-No! *When they all looked right at my chest, I moved both my hands to cover it.* Iida: I told you, you're being too obvious. It's your fault she's all scared now. Shiroyama: Yeah, gotta play nice.. * That's lesson #1."* Zakuro: ... *They grinned and started walking toward me.* *I backed up...* Shiroyama: Are you scared of us? That's awful... We're all nice guys, you know? Iida: You wanna smoke? I can give you a cig if you want. Zakuro: No, I'll pass... Iida: Really? These ones taste damn good... *He smiled and produced a small box of cigarettes, then returned them to his pocket when I refused them.* Shiroyama: But that's terrible, Takashima... I can't believe they're making you scrub the pool first thing in the morning. Zakuro: Y-Yeah... Shiroyama: I know you don't like tobacco, but you should at least take a few of these. They'll help you work. *Shiroyama pulled a package of pills from his pocket.* Zakuro: Wh-What is that... Shiroyama: It'll make you feel better... You'll feel great. Zakuro: I don't need any drugs like that... Iida: Huh? What, you think this is something dangerous? Tons of people get this prescribed by their doctors, you know. *It certainly did look like the packaging he would get if he had it prescribed.* Nishimura: Ehehehe... *Why is he laughing? It's scary...* Zakuro: ... Shiroyama: You don't need to be on guard around us, y'know! Hey, are you listening?! Zakuro: Ah...! Iida: What, we're being so nice to you and you won't even take it? What's up with that? Come on, you wouldn't do that, right? *His voice made it clear he was getting frustrated.* *He was still smiling, but the tenseness in his body made me feel like he was about to hit me...* Zakuro: Oh, no, I didn't mean it like that... Shiroyama: Then take it. You'll feel better, I promise. Zakuro: ...! Shiroyama: Go on, just one's fine. *They were wrapped individually.* *I'd taken pills wrapped like this before...* *So it must have been prescribed by someone's doctor... It couldn't be a really bad, illegal drug like before.* *I just had an awful experience with drugs yesterday, though.* *Akasaka-san lied to me, saying it would make my skin look better... Whatever that was, it made me feel like an entirely different person, like I was excited all the time.* *Even if it did look like real medicine, it was still scary.* *There's no way that was anything good.* *But at the same time, I didn't know if I could run away... They would catch me in a second.* Zakuro: Ah! *...* *Maybe over there...* *I could see the manhole out of the corner of my eye.* *I couldn't outrun them for long, but if I could get in there, maybe I could get away...* *Yeah, just calm down... Calm down.* *If I just act calm, I should be fine. It'll be fine...* Zakuro: U-Um... Anyway, I have to get rid of all this ink before homeroom ends. Otherwise, Mrs. Senagawa will get mad at me again. Zakuro: So could you just wait until I finish up with this? It'll just take a minute, I promise. Zakuro: I feel perfectly fine right now, so maybe I should take it after I get done, when I'm really tired! Doesn't that sound good? *I spoke all those words in one breath, then stood and waited for their reaction.* Shiroyama: Well, I don't want any teachers out here asking why it's taking so long to clean the pool... Iida: Yeah, we don't want any teachers to see. Nishimura: Fine, whatever. You have three minutes, get going! Zakuro: All right! *As I turned the knob on the hose, they started pulling cigarettes out of their pockets, and then they turned away from me while they smoked.* *I ran, stretching the hose out as far as I could.* *Then I feigned like I remembered something I had to do and dropped the hose. They were still smoking, so they didn't notice that I had run away.* Zakuro: There we go. *The manhole that led underground.* *It was pretty hard to open it by myself, but there was no other way I could get away.* Zakuro: Mm, ha... *I pulled as hard as I could to pry open the manhole cover.* *Once I was inside, I clenched my teeth and pushed to put the cover back in place.* *I was in complete darkness as I clung to the ladder.* Shiroyama: ...Huh? Hey, Takashima's gone! Nishimura: What? No way, really? Iida: Whoa, did she hide somewhere? She's still in her swimsuit, so there's no way she just went back to class dressed like that... Shiroyama: Anyway, find her, quick! Check behind the diving board, and over by the fence. *I heard their angry voices from above, traveling straight through the steel lid and piercing into my ears.* Zakuro: Ugh! Nishimura: Hey, Takashima! Shiroyama: Don't yell, you dumbass. One of the teachers will hear you. Nishimura: But I bought condoms and everything... Shiroyama: She ran away because you were eyefucking her. Iida: Who needs condoms? Just cum inside. Zakuro: C-Condoms? They mean contraception? Then they were going to... *Now that I think of it, Akasaka-san did say something like that when Kimika was fighting back...* *So they were definitely trying to...* Zakuro: Th-That's not funny... *Yesterday was so awful... I can't let that happen again...* Shiroyama: Is she over there? Iida: She's gone... Disappeared in a puff of smoke... *Give up and leave, please...* Zakuro: ...Ow. *The steel rungs were biting into my skin, and my arms were shaking from fatigue.* Iida: She's really gone. Nishimura: You think? Where the fuck did she go... Shiroyama: Jeez, what's going on? That bimbo got away from us... Zakuro: ... *Please, just leave... I can't hold on any longer...* Shiroyama: Whatever... Let's go. I don't want any teachers to see us on school grounds. They'll probably make us clean the pool next time... Iida: Yeah, let's get the hell out of here. Nishimura: What? You're giving up already? Shiroyama: Don't act so disappointed. Either way, Megu isn't a liar, so just chill. *What's that supposed to mean?* *......* *...* Zakuro: Haa, haa, haa―! *I had to press my back against the manhole and push with my legs to dislodge the cover a second time, but I finally managed to get back out.* Zakuro: Ha, haa... I'm so glad they left. Zakuro: Th-Thank goodness... *I was so relieved that I just laid on the cold concrete for a moment.* *The beads of cold sweat running down my cheeks and between my thighs felt really good.* Zakuro: Th-That was really close, but thanks to Mamiya-kun, I got away. *If not for that manhole, I wouldn't have been able to escape.* Zakuro: Oh, homeroom is starting... *But Mrs. Senagawa said I didn't have to go to homeroom.* Zakuro: I have to finish cleaning. *I quickly turned the knob and directed the water at the ink in the bottom of the pool.* *Just like she said, the water-soluble ink washed away easily when I sprayed it.* Zakuro: I need to change and get to class... Zakuro: Huh? What? *When I went back to the locker room and started changing...* Zakuro: My underwear isn't here? *I didn't have any underwear to put on at all.* Zakuro: H-How... could this happen... *Wh-Who would do that?* *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san?* *Or maybe those thugs from before...* Zakuro: Why would they do this? *Well... fine...* *I still had my P.E. uniform in my locker, so I could just wear the bloomer bottoms instead of panties...* Zakuro: I'll have no underwear until I get to my locker, though... *It's not that far from here... That should be no problem, right?* *It felt uncomfortable and breezy without any panties.* *As long as my skirt didn't get flipped up, no one would see.* Zakuro: ...No... Why? How? *I was just starting to feel like things were going to work out, but then this.* Zakuro: Why isn't my P.E. uniform here? Did I forget to bring it to school? *No way... It should definitely be here.* *But no matter where I looked in that cramped locker, I couldn't find either part of my P.E. uniform.* *That's strange... I usually have an extra, even.* Zakuro: What should I do? I'm gonna have to go to class without any... *I didn't have any time to go back and put my swimsuit on underneath, either...* *And there's something else that was really strange.* *I had a sewing kit in my locker before... I usually keep a portable sewing kit around just in case, but I couldn't see it anywhere.* *I hate to think what someone would do with my P.E. uniform, but it's just bizarre that someone would steal a sewing kit.* Zakuro: ...Don't think about it too much... *It's not like worrying about it was going to make it any better.* *My spirits were low as I trudged back to the changing room.* *When I grabbed the swimsuit I had left behind...* Zakuro: Ah! Class is about to start... *I have to run to class!* *I held my skirt down as I ran.* *.........* *......* *...* Male Teacher: The current of the flowing river does not cease, and yet the water is not the same water as before. The foam that floats on stagnant pools... Zakuro: ... *Even as the teacher read a famous section from Houjouki, I had to endure the unpleasant sensation of my privates resting on bare wood.* *At first it was cold, but it slowly warmed up from my body heat. It stopped feeling so unpleasant after that, but it's kind of embarrassing to admit that I got used to it.* Male Teacher: You all passed the entrance exam for this school, so I'm sure you know who wrote this... You, answer the question! Male Student: Huh? Um, was it Tezuka Osamu? Male Teacher: You... Do you think that's funny? Male Teacher: It's from Houjouki, and it's written by Kamo no Choumei. It's a famous essay written in the Kamakura period, an autobiographical account of the world's transiency and impermanence. *At first I was nervous, but the class was perfectly normal.* *It was so boring that for a while I forgot I wasn't wearing any underwear.* *It's not like anyone can see when I'm sitting normally.* *This must be another one of Akasaka-san's pranks.* *I wanted to figure out for sure who did this, but... at the same time, I didn't want to go near either of them after what happened last night.* *I'm really scared of them.* *Snip, snip.* Zakuro: ...Eh?! *Snip, snip, snip.* *I felt a cold sensation on my leg, and then I heard an unpleasant sound from below.* *I heard someone giggling when I started to turn.* *Kojima-san, another quiet girl in my class, though not as quiet as me, sits behind me.* Zakuro: ...H-Huh? *When I turned my head, I noticed Kojima-san sitting in a different seat than usual.* *So then...?* *Snip, snip, snip.* *So then the person behind me, cutting my skirt with scissors, was...?* Zakuro: ...! *I suddenly remembered that the seat Kojima-san was sitting in was Akasaka-san's seat...* Megu: Hehehe... *I heard her muffled giggles as the strange cold sensation made its way up my leg.* *She was cutting my skirt with scissors and then pulling the two sides apart, so people could see.* *I can't believe someone would do that...* *I guess I ended up making them mad last night. I did everything they asked... so why are they doing this?* Zakuro: ... *But I can't tell her to stop... and I can't yell out either.* *If I make a scene, I'll look like the pervert.* *And I don't know what they'll do to me later if I fight back...* Zakuro: ... *Kojima-san should go back to her normal seat in the next class.* *I just have to endure it until then...* *I know that fighting back will just make it worse. That's what my past experiences with her have taught me.* *So I just let Akasaka-san do what she wanted and tried to minimize the damage. Then, after class, I can go to my locker and get my sewing kit―?!"* Zakuro: Oh, that's why... *They stole my sewing kit ahead of time so they could embarrass me like this...* Megu: Hehehe... *She laughed, like she could tell exactly what I was thinking.* *She's ridiculing me...* Female Teacher: And that's why hydrogen sulfide is a very dangerous gas... *When the first period ended, I rotated my skirt 120 degrees, so the cut was over my left thigh...* *I used my left hand to hold the cut closed, so the people around me couldn't see.* *I wished I had a safety pin or hairpin today...* *I have no luck at all.* *Then that bitch Akasaka-san went back to her seat, where Kojima-san had been sitting before.* Female Teacher: It smells like rotten eggs, so turn on the ventilation immediately if you smell it... *I was so frustrated and depressed that I couldn't pay attention to class.* *And the reason they stole my P.E. uniform was so I couldn't change out of this...* *These people are the worst...* *Snip, snip, snip.* Zakuro: Huh?! *I felt my skirt being pulled again, and the same ruthless sound of scissors reached my ears.* *Snip, snip!* Zakuro: Ah... *Stop, please, just stop―!* *I looked at Akasaka-san, who I thought must have been doing it again.* *Then I saw Kojima-san, sitting in yet another seat that wasn't hers, and I was struck speechless.* *...It was Kitami-san's seat.* *Instead of going back to Akasaka-san's seat, she went to Kitami-san's instead.* *Then...* *Snip, snip, snip!* *"...All right, looks good."* *......* *...* Zakuro: Like a crappy China dress... *I turned my skirt again, so that both the slits were covered by my thighs and my crotch was still covered.* *Then I held both of the cuts closed, and I put my head down on my desk.* *I don't even know what class this is anymore, and I don't really care.* *Anyway, once we get to lunch, I can hide the cuts and go to the teacher's lounge. I should be able to borrow a sewing kit or something to fix my clothes.* *They probably won't ask what happened... They're all convinced there's no bullying in this school.* *Mrs. Senagawa doesn't want to dig her own grave...* *Snip, snip... snip.* *The scissors started cutting again... There was no way I could turn my skirt without the cuts showing...* Elderly Male Teacher: Takashima-san, translate the third line on page 174. Zakuro: ......... Elderly Male Teacher: Takashima-san, did you hear me? Zakuro: Ah! Yes, u-um, page 174, line 3, right? *The teacher suddenly called on me. I wasn't ready for it at all, so it was like I had just had a bucket of cold water dumped on me.* Zakuro: Umm... Sam tried to stop the visitors who were going to the swamp. Elderly Male Teacher: Takashima-san, please stand and translate. Zakuro: U-Um, well... *If I stood up and everyone looked at me, there was no way my skirt would protect my modesty...* Elderly Male Teacher: What's wrong? Is there some reason why you can't stand? *He raised his voice and gave me a harsh look.* *Ah... There's nothing I can do... I have to stand up.* Zakuro: As I was saying... Sam tried to stop the visitors who were going to the swamp. Please, there is a ferocious crocodile in the swamp... Zakuro: He warned them that they shouldn't go near it, especially not out of mere curiosity. They had never seen Mother Nature in her full fury before, since they had lived their entire lives in the city... Female Student: ...Hey, look... Male Student: Whoa, are you serious... Female Student: ...Does she have any common sense? *Just as I had expected, everyone started whispering to each other the second I stood up.* *I felt like crying...* *But I couldn't cry now, not here.* *I continued translating, holding back my tears.* Zakuro: They looked down upon Sam and laughed. We have guns. There's nothing left for us to be afraid of! Zakuro: You fools. You'd be lucky to kill a goose with those pistols... Elderly Male Teacher: All right, that's enough. Well done. I knew you wouldn't mix up ducks and geese. *I collapsed back into my seat, burying my face in my notes and trying not to listen to all the whispering around me.* Male Student: Damn it, let her go a little longer... *So they all saw...* *They must have thought that I cut these slits into my skirt myself...* *Who would do something dumb like that?* Elderly Male Teacher: Please, everyone, quiet down! Zakuro: ... *I guess the teacher couldn't see... I can be happy about that, at least.* *It's still way too breezy.* *I can't wait for lunch.* *I'll hold down my skirt and run to the teacher's lounge once this period is over.* *That's my only choice...* Elderly Male Teacher: That's enough for today. *That was quick.* *I quickly got up and left... I was worried about where the boys were looking, but all I could do was hold down my skirt.* *"Hey, wait up!"* Zakuro: Wha―?! *When I got out into the hallway, someone grabbed my hand from behind and stopped me.* *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san were standing there, smiling.* *They knew I would run... They chased me the second they saw me get up.* Satoko: I'm really sorry about today, Takashima. I was just thinking... maybe we overdid it. Zakuro: Huh... What do you... Ah! Megu: Anyway, let's go back to the classroom, all right, Takashima? Zakuro: N-No! Satoko: Hey... Your face is in that video. You know what'll happen if we put it up on the Internet. Zakuro: What? Megu: We won't hurt you... Just come over here. Satoko: Didn't you take ballet, Takashima? Zakuro: Uh, yes... *I reluctantly answered her question.* *I'm like a frog cornered by a snake...* Satoko: Megu has been into dancing lately, but there's something she doesn't really understand... Megu: Yeah, I learned all the basics from a DVD. Megu: I just figured I should work on my fundamentals. Zakuro: Sure... Satoko: And you have experience with ballet. It's perfect! Zakuro: Huh? Megu: Ballet is all about those pretty spins, you know? Like, round and round you go! Satoko: Yeah, yeah, those are really beautiful. Zakuro: Ah! *If I did a spin with this tattered skirt, everyone would obviously be able to see.* *That's why they were so eager to have me demonstrate.* Satoko: Does that sound fine, Takashima? Zakuro: I-I can't do that! Megu: What do you mean? We're friends, aren't we? *How are we friends... These people are scum.* Satoko: Hmm, so you're saying... you don't mind if we upload that video everywhere on the Internet? Zakuro: Ugh! Megu: You'll just be embarrassed for a day if you get this over with, but if that video gets out onto the Internet, it might never go away. Zakuro: Y-You cowards! Megu: Why won't you just cooperate? We'll really do it, you know? Zakuro: B-But... Satoko: This is a pain. Why don't we just upload it? You can do it from your phone, can't you? Megu: That sounds good... You think I should put it up in the personals? Zakuro: I-I'm sorry! I-I'll do it. Megu: Really? It's not like we're trying to force you. If you don't want to, we're not making you do it, all right? *They're the worst... But I didn't have the will to fight back anymore.* Zakuro: No... I want to do it. Please, let me demonstrate. Megu: Really? Well, if you insist... Right, Satoko? Satoko: Wait a sec, I'll make some space. Satoko: Here we go, there we go! *They had me trapped, and I still couldn't get to the teacher's lounge. It was lunchtime, and Kitami-san started moving desks to make space for me to dance."* *All the students around me knew what had happened to my skirt...* *People laughing... People averting their eyes...* *It looked like most of the boys in our class were interested, but I guess they didn't want to be associated with the bullying. They just stood to the side and watched it unfold.* Megu: Show me the turn. The one where you spin around. Zakuro: Yes... All right. Satoko: You don't mind, right, Takashima? Zakuro: No... This is fine... Satoko: Oh, she's getting into it. It's kinda creepy, like we're making you doing it or something. Zakuro: No... Not at all. Megu: Well then, tell everyone you're just doing it because you love to dance. *The worst... She's the absolute worst...* Zakuro: I'm doing this... because I want to... Satoko: What? I can't hear you! Say it louder! 'Takashima Zakuro is going to dance ballet! Everyone, please watch closely!' Just like that! *Despair.* *Endless despair... That's all I can say.* *The bullying last time was awful, but it wasn't like this.* *That video is the reason...* *If I had completely refused that video... They would have just bullied me with violence and rejection, like before...* *I would have preferred that, rather than having it end up like this.* *But now that they had the video, there was nothing I could do.* *I inhaled deeply, desperately...* Zakuro: Takashima Zakuro is going to dance ballet! Everyone, please watch closely! *The classroom was utterly silent... Everyone was completely focused on me.* *No one came to save me...* *Oh, that's right... What happened to Kimika?* *She didn't get hurt, since I cooperated, right?* *But if she didn't get hurt, then why didn't she come to school today?* *The answer is simple.* *Everything's useless.* *All my suffering is just a game, something to amuse them.* *I give up... I'm...* *―A worm―* Megu: Okay, Takashima, show me a good one. Zakuro: All right... This is a basic turn... *I pretended I was alone in my world of white as I took position to do the En Dehors.* *There are lots of movements in ballet, and each one has its own specific name, but I've forgotten all that trivia, and they probably don't care to hear it anyway.* *I moved my other leg like an axle, then opened my arms wide and held my balance. Finally, I curved my leg like a flamingo and spun―* Zakuro: How was that? Megu: Don't stop. Keep spinning so I can see how it works. Zakuro: ... *I started crying.* *I just wanted to run away.* *But I couldn't even do that. I had to do what they said.* *I had no courage left.* *That's why it ended up like this.* *If I had a bit of courage... Just a little bit of courage...* Satoko: Hurry up and do it! Zakuro: Y-Yes! Megu: Oh, you're even better than I thought. Satoko: Yeah, don't underestimate Takashima. *I didn't have my ballet shoes, so I couldn't spin as quickly, but they made me spin as well as I could.* Satoko: Un, deux, trois! Un, deux, trois! Zakuro: ... *I spun as she yelled out the numbers, occasionally making small adjustments to hold my posture.* *Both my eyes were peeled open, but that was just to help me keep my balance.* *My eyes were open, but they didn't see anything... I didn't want to look at anything, so I didn't.* Satoko: Un, deux, trois! Un, deux, trois! Female Student: ...Hehehehe. Female Student: Wow, is she retarded? *There were several quiet, giggling voices mixed in with Kitami-san's jubilant orders.* *Of course they were watching... My skirt was torn wide open for everyone to see.* Satoko: Un, deux, trois! Un, deux, trois! *And without any underwear on underneath, I was completely exposed.* Male Student: Whoa, she's not wearing anything? Male Student: I know how you feel, but you shouldn't get involved with the girls' bullying. Male Student: Yeah, we'll be accomplices... Let's finish up and go outside. *One of the boys who was enjoying the show was quickly hushed by his peers.* *I never expected anyone to stop this farce for my sake anyway.* Satoko: Un, deux, trois! Okay, stop! Zakuro: Huh?! *Kitami-san suddenly stopped the rhythm and ordered me to stop. I had to lift my leg way into the air to stop myself from tumbling from the momentum.* *"Hehe, ahahahaha!"* *I froze in my position, with my leg in the air, and the entire gallery of onlookers burst into laughter.* Megu: Wow, how beautiful. Satoko: Yeah, I was really moved by your performance. *Then Akasaka-san and Kitami-san crouched down and came over to me, looking directly at my exposed genitals.* Zakuro: ...Ah! *I managed to endure it before, but when they did that my face was instantly flushed dark red.* Female Student: Ahaha! This is great! Male Student: ... *I've heard that people can be crueler to their own gender.* *The girls looked at me and laughed openly, but the boys tried to act like they weren't looking (even though they all wanted to see).* *Not that it really made a difference at that point.* Satoko: Okay, you can lower your leg. Zakuro: Was I... able to help? Megu: Yeah, it was perfect! Thanks, Takashima. Satoko: Yeah, it was great. You're really something. Zakuro: Oh... I see. Satoko: ... Zakuro: Good to hear... I suppose. *.........* *......* *!* *...* *Once the humiliating dance was over, I took cellophane tape out of my desk and taped my skirt. Then I left and hid in a stall in the bathroom.* *I wanted to hide until school was over, but I was afraid that would just make Akasaka-san and Kitami-san mad.* *Maybe I just don't care what they do to me anymore...* Female Student: ...Hehehehehehe. Zakuro: ...Huh? *When I dragged myself back into the classroom, everyone started giggling as if on cue.* *...What?* *I expected some of them to react, since they just saw that spectacle, but I didn't expect them to react like this.* *I couldn't tell what they were thinking.* *They just looked at me, then at the blackboard, then back at me... Ah?!* Zakuro: Wha-?! *When I looked at the blackboard, I instantly understood.* Zakuro: Ah! *I jumped and grabbed the white cloth on top of the blackboard.* Zakuro: ...That's awful. *Then I shoved the white scrap―my panties―into my pocket and then grabbed the eraser.* *On the blackboard in big letters...* *"Buy my panties☆ They're still warm!"* *That's what it said...* Female Student: ...Hehehe. *I endured the ridicule as I marched back to my seat, my head down so I didn't have to look anyone in the eye.* *And then, completely fed up with it―If you want to look, then go ahead and look―I put my panties back on...* Zakuro: Huh? *What's this... Would someone actually do that?* *My thoughts were calm, but... I couldn't believe that a human could be so cruel.* *What a roundabout, annoying, perverse way of bullying someone.* *The crotch of my panties had been cut out with scissors.* Zakuro: Die... You fucking cockroaches... *I ground my teeth and murmered that curse to myself, then I put my panties on regardless of the hole.* Female Student: ...Hehehe... Male Teacher: All right, class is beginning... Hmm, what are you laughing at? *When the familiar feeling of compression on my lower body returned, a middle aged teacher came into the classroom and heard the girls laughing.* Male Teacher: What? What is it? Is there something on my face? Female Student: ...Hehehehe... Megu: It's nothing. Go ahead, you can start class. Satoko: Yeah, we don't want to waste any time. Start the class, please. Male Teacher: Huh? You two have never been interested in school before. What, is today a holiday?! Male Teacher: In that case, I'm going back home. But wait, you're all here too... Ahaha! Megu: That's a dumb joke. Male Teacher: Hahaha, well then, I'll be starting class. Open your books to page 85... Zakuro: ... *What... are they?* *What is this place?* *What is that man standing and laughing?* *What are all these people who are sitting and laughing at me?* *Where am I?* *The people in this classroom... can't be human...* *That's the one thing I'm sure of.* *.........* *......* *...* Zakuro: ... *I ground my teeth and watched the students file out of the classroom.* *They all left in an instant... Those cockroaches...* *Why couldn't they all just die?* *Die.* *...The long, difficult day was nearly over.* *Nothing good had happened since this morning...* *During afternoons classes, I just kept my head down and prayed for time to pass quickly. I planned out a different path I could use to walk home over and over in my head, as well.* *The usual road home would be dangerous.* *I have to be careful I don't run across any of them in the future either.* *In a way, the classroom is a safe zone.* Zakuro: ...Everyone's gone... *I need to run home right now.* Satoko: Huh? Isn't your skirt ripped, Takashima? Zakuro: Ah! *When I grabbed my bag and stood up, Kitami looked at me and feigned surprise, like she only just noticed.* Satoko: That's awful! You couldn't focus in class at all, could you? Zakuro: ... Satoko: Oh no, this is just terrible～ Megu: Whoa, that really is terrible. I can't stand to look at it. Satoko: That skirt will just fall apart if you get hit by a strong breeze. *Kitami approached me under that pretext and reached out to my skirt, which was barely being held together with tape.* Satoko: Come on, take that thing off! Zakuro: Wha―?! *I had breathed a sigh of relief and let my guard down when school ended, and that was precisely when Kitami struck. She deftly unfastened the hook on my skirt.* Zakuro: Wait, give that back! Satoko: Don't worry, we'll fix it for you. Zakuro: No way! *Then she circled around behind me and lifted me, forcibly removing my skirt.* Megu: Whoa! Your panties are cut up too. Satoko: Ouch, that's awful * We'll fix those up too, so take 'em off!"* Zakuro: Ah, no― *Kitami held me in place while Akasaka took my panties off.* Zakuro: Stop! Stop, you bitch! Go die! Go fucking die! Satoko: Come on, don't struggle... And don't tell us to die. We're your friends, you know? Zakuro: You're not my friends! Let me go! Don't touch me! Satoko: Ahahaha... Quit your yapping.. * We'll fix them up, good as new. Just wait till tomorrow."* Zakuro: Die! Die! Die! I fucking hate you! Just go die! *I fought back with all my power, but I couldn't do anything to Kitami.* *I thrashed and fought with them, cursing them the entire time, but they just laughed at my pitiful display.* *They enjoyed watching me squirm...* Zakuro: Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! DieDieDieDie... Die... *I yelled until my voice was hoarse.* *A great laughing shadow...* *Massive ears...* *Blackened paws...* *Like beasts tearing their prey into pieces.* *My vitriol, the screams of the dying.* *To the beasts... it was nothing more...* *Than a bit of light music to listen to while they ate.* *Despair is the melody.* *Lyrics torn from a crushed windpipe.* *A heart, ripped to shreds and devoured.* *The two beasts laughed.* *Jubilantly...* *Their teeth tearing into the fruit...* Satoko: See ya tomorrow, Takashima! Zakuro: You cockroaches... Go die... Megu: Ahahaha, cheer up! See ya! *There wasn't anything left to cover my lower body.* *And there was nothing I could do about it.* Satoko: Don't look so down. We're friends, right? Zakuro: ... *......* *...* Zakuro: ...... Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Ah... *I spaced out for a little bit in the classroom, but soon I realized how dangerous that was and ran to the bathroom holding my bag over my crotch.* Zakuro: ...This is the worst. *I went into one of the stalls, closed the door, fastened the lock, and then sat on the toilet and put my head in my hands.* *Then... my tears broke the dam and rushed out.* *The only sound I could hear was that of my own sobbing...* *This is just hell... This place is hell...* *There's no salvation... just despair...* *I sat alone in the bathroom stall and weeped.* Zakuro: Haa... *The sun had already long since set, and the teachers had probably gone home... I felt a little more at ease.* Zakuro: For now... let's go home.. *I went back to the deserted classroom and squinted to find the cleanest dust cloths I could.* *It's really pathetic, but... I had no choice but to fashion a skirt out of rags and some tape.* Zakuro: I'd rather use a curtain, but... *Even after all that, I didn't have the courage to pull down one of the curtains.* *No one would notice if these cloths went missing, but it would be obvious something was missing if I took one of these curtains.* *The rags were smelly and damp, but I couldn't afford to be picky given the situation.* *I tried to pick out the ones that didn't smell too bad. I found enough to at least cover myself.* Zakuro: This is the worst... *I put on the smelly, improvised skirt and left the building.* Zakuro: ...I'm glad there aren't many people around... *It was worth waiting a few hours... There was hardly a soul to be seen on the road home.* *I just hope I don't cross paths with anyone on my way home...* *It would take me more than ten minutes to walk home. It's not usually a long walk, but it felt like an eternity to me.* Zakuro: It's falling off again... *Tape isn't very good for holding fabric together, and it didn't help that some of the cloths were damp.* *The only good thing I could say is that it was better than nothing.* *The ragged skirt only held up until I got to the gate, and then it started to disintegrate as gravity pulled it down.* Zakuro: It's not even staying on my waist. *I wouldn't even call it a skirt at this point.* Zakuro: If I cover my front side with my bag, this skirt should at least cover my back side... *I didn't feel upset about the situation anymore.* *I just hoped no one would see me and report me to the police... That's all I wished for.* *"Oh, Takashima, found you!"* Zakuro: Wha―?! *The second I thought things were going to be okay, someone yelled my name out from behind, making me cringe.* *"So that's where you were... We were looking all over for you."* *I was still only barely covering my front side with my bag as I turned around and saw the two of them walking toward me.* Zakuro: Wh-Why... are you here? Megu: What's wrong? Zakuro: You know damn well what's wrong! How much do you have to bully me before you'll be satisfied?! Megu: Huh? What're you talking about? Zakuro: What... You two... Satoko: Whoa there, think we're gonna mug you or something? Megu: We promised, didn't we? Zakuro: Promised? Megu: Yeah, we were gonna fix up your skirt, good as new... Zakuro: Ah... *Akasaka held my skirt up in the air.* *The cut parts had all been sewed up.* Megu: It was a promise... We said we were gonna fix it, didn't we? Satoko: We went to school looking for you and you were gone. Zakuro: Y-You went back to school...? Megu: Yeah, we felt kinda bad... Like, maybe we overdid it, you know? We never thought you would go outside without a skirt... Sorry. Satoko: Really, we're sorry... We didn't think about our actions at all. Zakuro: Just... give it back... Megu: Yeah, of course. *I snatched the skirt from her hand, threw away the rags, and put on the skirt.* Megu: You must've caught a cold walking around like that. Even if it's summer, that's crazy. Here, take one of these, you'll feel better. Zakuro: ...What? Megu: Don't backtalk me. Just swallow it already! Zakuro: ...This is―?! *The pill in Akasaka's hand was the exact same kind that they had tried to make me take this morning...* Zakuro: ...Don't fuck with me! I'm not falling for that! Zakuro: Do you think I'm fucking stupid?! Satoko: Tch! Satoko: ...Will you quit beating around the bush already? Megu: What... Do you have a problem with my plan, Satoko? Satoko: She's not falling for it at all. Megu: That's weird. I was sure she was gonna cry and thank us, so it would be easy to make her take it... Satoko: Whatever, we'll make it work. Zakuro: Ah―Ow! *Kitami grabbed me by the hair.* Zakuro: Ggh... *When I tried to resist, she used her knee to deliver a painful blow between my legs.* *"Oh, so we're just gonna do it by force?"* Zakuro: Y-Youu... Satoko: Shut up! Quick, get her in the car! Shiroyama: Gotcha. Zakuro: C-Car? Ah?! Mmgh―! *He stuffed a rag in my mouth so I couldn't yell for help.* Zakuro: Mm, mmh, mmgh―! *I tried to yell for help as they dragged me off... There was a white van parked nearby.* Iida: Hurry up! Zakuro: Ahmm, mm― Hhelmph― Shiroyama: There you go, Princess, your carriage awaits you. Megu: We're headed for the Royal Ball! Zakuro: Mmgh, mmm―! *The van door snapped shut.* *It smelled like gas inside.* *I struggled and thrashed in the back of the van, but all I managed to do was bruise my arms and legs.* Iida: Hurry up! Shiroyama: Yeah, knock her out for now. *Several men punched me repeatedly in the darkness.* *I guess... they wanted to make me lose consciousness...* *I just wanted to escape the pain... It wouldn't have been so bad if I had just died right then and there...* *But I had to endure a lot of pain before I lost consciousness...* *　――――――* *　――――* *　――* *"You need to try cumming inside her too!"* *"Ahahaha, this is amazing."* *Voices in the distance.* *How long have I been like this? My whole body is tingling... It feels good...* *My thoughts were running astray...* *The only thing I knew was... that the exact same thing was being repeated, over and over.* Shiroyama: Zakuro-chan, how does your cunt feel? *Shiroyama traded places with Numada, looking down on me and smiling as I gasped for breath.* *I faintly glanced down at my lower body... It was covered in blood.* *Oh... So that's what it was...* *My mind was blank.* Iida: Oh, look at her hands... Here, grab this. Shiroyama: Looky here, Zakuro-chan, this is a penis～ *Two of them forced their penises onto me from both sides... and I didn't have the willpower to resist...* *My entire body was numb, like it was floating in midair, and for some reason I wasn't scared at all... Everything just felt numb and tingly...* Iida: Ahaha～! Look, Zakuro-chan is grabbing my dick. She looks like she's having so much fun! Shiroyama: Don't worry, Zakuro. I'll give you some more ice so it doesn't hurt. *Shiroyama took out a small vinyl container and stuck his pointer finger in, getting a bit of white powder on the tip.* Shiroyama: This is great. My dick wouldn't fit at all before, but now it just slides right in. *Then he rubbed that white powder on my lower body...* *My mind instantly went blank.* *When he spread it on my privates, the pain disappeared, leaving only waves of pleasure to crash into my body.* Shiroyama: Okay, here goes... *He ignored my feeble screams and shouts of resistance as he pushed the tip in.* Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― *I screamed.* *But I couldn't hear myself screaming... There was no scream of pain, sadness, or anger...* *Just weak gasps of air rushing through my vocal cords...* *My soul had been rendered irrelevant... It was just my body reacting to the artificial pleasure of the drugs...* Iida: Wow... She really likes it. Shiroyama: I told you, this stuff can make any girl moan. Zakuro: ―――――――― Iida: Whoa, you must be having a blast... Hey, try saying this: 'My pussy feels so good.' Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Gyahahahaha, look at her face. She looks retarded! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Iida: It's like that's the only thing she even knows how to say, ahahaha. *As he thrust his hips forward, I felt a burning lump searing my insides... His penis swelled inside me, but that swelling only sent waves of searing pleasure to my brain.* Zakuro: ―――――――― Iida: How many times have you cum? Shiroyama: No idea... Iida: Ahahaha, Nishimura is such a dumbass... I can't believe he's missing out. Shiroyama: Not my problem. I guess his old man beat him for taking his car. Iida: He didn't need to go put it back. Why the hell'd he head home? Shiroyama: He thought his parents wouldn't find out if he got it back in the garage before they noticed. He called me, bawling his fucking eyes out. Iida: And he was the one that put this whole thing together, too. Shiroyama: Not my problem. It's his destiny! *Destiny... And this is my destiny...* *If there is a God... then this is my destiny...* *God is omnipotent... He knows everything.* *He knows everything. He's the one who made this happen.* *He probably did it... because I'm just a cockroach...* *To him, I'm no better than a worm dying on the side of the road...* *I'm no better than a worm...* Shiroyama: Mngh, mm, ahh! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Haa... Her pussy is pretty wet now... Iida: Don't you think her pussy is getting loose? Shiroyama: Yeah... I've got a good idea... Shiroyama: Takashima, I'm gonna let you go, so just hang onto Numada, all right? Zakuro: ――――― Shiroyama: Ahaha, good girl... Hey, Numada, stick your dick in. Iida: Sure thing! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: And while Numada's doing that, I'm gonna have some fun down here... Iida: What's that, lotion? You're actually gonna stick it in there, huh? Shiroyama: Of course. I like this hole way better... Oh, could you give me some of that ice? Iida: She's had enough. We don't wanna make her overdose. Shiroyama: Cheapskate... Iida: It's not about the money. We'll be fucked if she dies... Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Ahhh, this is great... Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Ahhh... Hehehe, it's all the way in. I think I'm actually touching your dick, Numada. Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Iida: Whoa, I can actually feel something hard! Shiroyama: Okay, I'm gonna get moving, so follow my lead and fuck her good. Iida: Gotcha. Let's do it! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: That's great. Her face looks so hot... She always looks like such a damn nice girl, too. The kind of girl we'd never be able to fuck. This is really hot. Zakuro: ――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Does it feel good getting fucked by two guys at once? Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Zakuro: ――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Oh wow, you came already. Iida: I started first. Shiroyama: Sure, sure. You lasted longer than I expected anyway... I'll keep going. Shiroyama: Ahh. This is, mm, pretty good! I'm gonna cum too... I can't hold it in. *I had no soul.* *It was just an ugly pile of flesh laying there...* *That wasn't me...* *I wasn't the one laying there...* *I...* *I...* *The moment I awoke.* *The moment time began to move.* *Everything felt distant.* *Is it that way for everyone?* *Or just me?* *What was the first thing that came into sight when I awoke?* *I always forget that.* *A drop of water fell in the distance.* *I heard the sound of a drop of water breaking somewhere in the distance.* *That which is broken imparts its moisture upon the earth.* *Only through breaking can it grant its blessing.* *Because once broken, the blessing is able to soak into the earth.* *A hazy scene.* *A hazy texture.* *A hazy memory.* *Everything is hazy, but... there's just one thing I do know.* *My spirit is unreasonably calm,* *For no reason at all, I can calmly observe all phenomena.* *In this hazy world, the only thing that is clear is my unnaturally calm heart.* Zakuro: ... *I felt a slight chill as I opened my eyes.* *An unfamiliar ceiling...* *This isn't my room...* Zakuro: ...A bed. Zakuro: Money... Zakuro: One 5,000 yen bill... Zakuro: Two 1,000 yen bills... Zakuro: One 500 yen coin. Zakuro: Three 100 yen coins... *7,800 yen in total.* *There was a flyer tucked under the money. It said, "Rooms for as little as 7,800 yen!"* *The money for one night's stay brought me back to reality.* Zakuro: ...All of that actually happened... *I calmly took stock of my situation.* *Then I showered.* *I didn't really care anymore... I just felt like taking a shower.* *The pungent smell in the back of my throat wouldn't go away, no matter how much water I gargled.* *The disgusting smell on my skin wouldn't disappear, no matter how much I scrubbed.* *When I left the building... I was in a familiar place.* Zakuro: It was a love hotel in Suginomiya... *When I came back to this familiar place... it calmed me down...* *Every world returns to its daily routine... Those words flashed through my mind.* Zakuro: Is this the same scene that was always here? *I mumbled that question, as if I was asking an unseen companion.* *And then...* Zakuro: Ah! Zakuro: ...Ukgh. Zakuro: Uegh... Uhhhgheh... *I felt something coming up my throat, and then a second later I vomited right there on the sidewalk.* Zakuro: Ehfgh, egh... *My stomach suddenly spasmed, like it was being squeezed hard by something. I was in so much pain that I collapsed.* Zakuro: Ahhg, oough, ugh... *But no matter how hard my stomach tried to push everything out, very little vomit actually came up.* *It was incredibly painful... My face was distorted with pain and covered in rolling tears.* Zakuro: Ough... Agh, ah... Zakuro: Oughwhaaaaaa―――!! *.........* *......* *...* *I heard someone's phone...* *Oh wait... That's mine...* *A text?* *Why...* *Couldn't everyone just leave me alone for now...* *It was just a message from that nasty guy.* *Fucking worm...* *Just leave me alone.* *Just...* *...* *......* Zakuro: ... *When I woke up, I checked my phone.* *Oh, that's right... There was one thing that I was still curious about.* *Though now I had realized how ridiculous that whole thing was.* Zakuro: What do you mean, something good... What do you mean, a change? That's stupid... *I still had those messages in my inbox.* Zakuro: Let's see just what that 'something good' could be... Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Yeah right... Zakuro: A big change, huh... Something good, huh... *There was nothing...* *I didn't experience any big change, and nothing good has happened.* *I'm just a worm... That's all I'll ever be...* *Even after going through all that, I'm still not dead... and I don't have the courage to go to the police... I can't even talk to my parents about it...* Zakuro: ... *2012/7/09 23:01* *from: Usami* *subject: Thank you for your response.* *Thank you for your response.* *Now that I've received your message, I can confirm it. You are certainly our ally.* ** *"The battle at the stone tower"* ** *You say you don't remember these words, but that's not a problem.* ** *And the large change we predicted would happen to you is a change to your cognizance.* ** *The 'good thing' is a person's death.* ** *Soon, one of your problems will disappear.* Zakuro: ... Zakuro: What's this? Zakuro: What? Is she stupid? Zakuro: A change to my cognizance? And the good thing is someone's death? Is she stupid? Zakuro: What, does that mean someone's going to die? *Just one death won't change anything...* *Maybe if all the men who raped me died... and if those two bitches died too...* Zakuro: Oh, wait... That's what it is... Zakuro: Just one death... That must mean my own death... Zakuro: She's right... If I die, all my problems will be solved. Zakuro: So I'm going to die... Of course, it has to be suicide, right? Zakuro: That's it... Zakuro: Ahahahahaha... Zakuro: What change?! Zakuro: I'm just a worm! Zakuro: I exist to be trampled underfoot! Zakuro: Trampled, stepped on, crushed, destroyed, erased... Zakuro: Ahahahahahaha... Zakuro: Isn't it a worm's fate to be crushed and ground into the concrete? Zakuro: Isn't it?! Zakuro: Isn't it?! Isn't it?! Isn't it?! I at least wanted my first time to―! Zakuro: ...Ahahahahaha... Zakuro: Even a worm like me... wanted my first time... to be with someone I loved... someone who would kiss me tenderly... someone who would hold me close and tell me they loved me... Zakuro: Even if it wasn't romantic... Even if it was just a plain old day... I wanted my first time to be with someone I loved... Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... I wanted it to be Mamiya-kun... Zakuro: I... I―! Zakuro: And it was rape... Rape! Rape! Rape, rape, RAPE, RAPE, RAPE! Zakuro: What the fuck is that?! Zakuro: My skirt and underwear torn to pieces, my body covered in blood! What the fuck is that?! Zakuro: I just had one little dream, and this is what I get?! Zakuro: What the fuck did I do deserve this, God?! Zakuro: Don't you have any blessings for the worms living on this Earth?! Zakuro: Is it a sin for a worm to dream? Zakuro: Hahahahaha... I understand... Zakuro: That's it, huh? I'm just a fucking disgusting, fat, dumb bitch, so why the fuck did I think I had the right to dream?! Zakuro: I understand! I understand perfectly! I pissed you off, huh?! I'm too disgusting for words, aren't I?! Zakuro: You wanted to shut me up. I'm just an ugly bitch who needed to be put in her place, right, God?! Zakuro: That's it, isn't it? Rape is just what an ugly slut like me deserves... I deserved to be raped, huh... Zakuro: I was just conceited, wasn't I? I should've just... stayed out of everyone's way, living my life cowering in fear, right? Zakuro: A worm has to be content with a worm's fate... If I just kept my head down and never piped up, everything would've been just fine, right? Zakuro: Ahahahahahahaha... That's logical. That's the truth. That's God's will! Zakuro: Don't fuck with me! Zakuro: Don't fuck with me... Zakuro: I... want to be human... I don't want to die... Zakuro: Why... I won't cause anyone trouble anymore... I won't fall in love again... So please, just leave me alone... Zakuro: I've had enough... I understand... I know my place... So forgive me... Zakuro: I... don't want to die...

*"You need to try cumming inside her too!"* *"Ahahaha, this is amazing."* *Voices in the distance.* *How long have I been like this? My whole body is tingling... It feels good...* *My thoughts were running astray...* *The only thing I knew was... that the exact same thing was being repeated, over and over.* Shiroyama: Zakuro-chan, how does your cunt feel? *Shiroyama traded places with Numada, looking down on me and smiling as I gasped for breath.* *I faintly glanced down at my lower body... It was covered in blood.* *Oh... So that's what it was...* *My mind was blank.* Numada: Oh, look at her hands... Here, grab this. Shiroyama: Looky here, Zakuro-chan, this is a penis～ *Two of them forced their penises onto me from both sides... and I didn't have the willpower to resist...* *My entire body was numb, like it was floating in midair, and for some reason I wasn't scared at all... Everything just felt numb and tingly...* Numada: Ahaha～! Look, Zakuro-chan is grabbing my dick. She looks like she's having so much fun! Shiroyama: Don't worry, Zakuro. I'll give you some more ice so it doesn't hurt. *Shiroyama took out a small vinyl container and stuck his pointer finger in, getting a bit of white powder on the tip.* Shiroyama: This is great. My dick wouldn't fit at all before, but now it just slides right in. *Then he rubbed that white powder on my lower body...* *My mind instantly went blank.* *When he spread it on my privates, the pain disappeared, leaving only waves of pleasure to crash into my body.* Shiroyama: Okay, here goes... *He ignored my feeble screams and shouts of resistance as he pushed the tip in.* Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― *I screamed.* *But I couldn't hear myself screaming... There was no scream of pain, sadness, or anger...* *Just weak gasps of air rushing through my vocal cords...* *My soul had been rendered irrelevant... It was just my body reacting to the artificial pleasure of the drugs...* Numada: Wow... She really likes it. Shiroyama: I told you, this stuff can make any girl moan. Zakuro: ―――――――― Numada: Whoa, you must be having a blast... Hey, try saying this: 'My pussy feels so good.' Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Gyahahahaha, look at her face. She looks retarded! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Numada: It's like that's the only thing she even knows how to say, ahahaha. *As he thrust his hips forward, I felt a burning lump searing my insides... His penis swelled inside me, but that swelling only sent waves of searing pleasure to my brain.* Zakuro: ―――――――― Numada: How many times have you cum? Shiroyama: No idea... Numada: Ahahaha, Nishimura is such a dumbass... I can't believe he's missing out. Shiroyama: Not my problem. I guess his old man beat him for taking his car. Numada: He didn't need to go put it back. Why the hell'd he head home? Shiroyama: He thought his parents wouldn't find out if he got it back in the garage before they noticed. He called me, bawling his fucking eyes out. Numada: And he was the one that put this whole thing together, too. Shiroyama: Not my problem. It's his destiny! *Destiny... And this is my destiny...* *If there is a God... then this is my destiny...* *God is omnipotent... He knows everything.* *He knows everything. He's the one who made this happen.* *He probably did it... because I'm just a cockroach...* *To him, I'm no better than a worm dying on the side of the road...* *I'm no better than a worm...* Shiroyama: Mngh, mm, ahh! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Haa... Her pussy is pretty wet now... Numada: Don't you think her pussy is getting loose? Shiroyama: Yeah... I've got a good idea... Shiroyama: Takashima, I'm gonna let you go, so just hang onto Numada, all right? Zakuro: ――――― Shiroyama: Ahaha, good girl... Hey, Numada, stick your dick in. Numada: Sure thing! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: And while Numada's doing that, I'm gonna have some fun down here... Numada: What's that, lotion? You're actually gonna stick it in there, huh? Shiroyama: Of course. I like this hole way better... Oh, could you give me some of that ice? Numada: She's had enough. We don't wanna make her overdose. Shiroyama: Cheapskate... Numada: It's not about the money. We'll be fucked if she dies... Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Ahhh, this is great... Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Ahhh... Hehehe, it's all the way in. I think I'm actually touching your dick, Numada. Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Numada: Whoa, I can actually feel something hard! Shiroyama: Okay, I'm gonna get moving, so follow my lead and fuck her good. Numada: Gotcha. Let's do it! Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: That's great. Her face looks so hot... She always looks like such a damn nice girl, too. The kind of girl we'd never be able to fuck. This is really hot. Zakuro: ――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Does it feel good getting fucked by two guys at once? Zakuro: ―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Zakuro: ――――――――――――――――――――――――――― Shiroyama: Oh wow, you came already. Numada: I started first. Shiroyama: Sure, sure. You lasted longer than I expected anyway... I'll keep going. Shiroyama: Ahh. This is, mm, pretty good! I'm gonna cum too... I can't hold it in. *I had no soul.* *It was just an ugly pile of flesh laying there...* *That wasn't me...* *I wasn't the one laying there...* *I...* *I...* *The moment I awoke.* *The moment time began to move.* *Everything felt distant.* *Is it that way for everyone?* *Or just me?* *What was the first thing that came into sight when I awoke?* *I always forget that.* *A drop of water fell in the distance.* *I heard the sound of a drop of water breaking somewhere in the distance.* *That which is broken imparts its moisture upon the earth.* *Only through breaking can it grant its blessing.* *Because once broken, the blessing is able to soak into the earth.* *A hazy scene.* *A hazy texture.* *A hazy memory.* *Everything is hazy, but... there's just one thing I do know.* *My spirit is unreasonably calm,* *For no reason at all, I can calmly observe all phenomena.* *In this hazy world, the only thing that is clear is my unnaturally calm heart.* Zakuro: ... *I felt a slight chill as I opened my eyes.* *An unfamiliar ceiling...* *This isn't my room...* Zakuro: ...A bed. Zakuro: Money... Zakuro: One 5,000 yen bill... Zakuro: Two 1,000 yen bills... Zakuro: One 500 yen coin. Zakuro: Three 100 yen coins... *7,800 yen in total.* *There was a flyer tucked under the money. It said, "Rooms for as little as 7,800 yen!"* *The money for one night's stay brought me back to reality.* Zakuro: ...All of that actually happened... *I calmly took stock of my situation.* *Then I showered.* *I didn't really care anymore... I just felt like taking a shower.* *The pungent smell in the back of my throat wouldn't go away, no matter how much water I gargled.* *The disgusting smell on my skin wouldn't disappear, no matter how much I scrubbed.*

*......* Kimika: Good morning, Zakuro! Zakuro: Ah?! *Someone behind me suddenly called out to me.* Zakuro: O-Oh, Kimika... You surprised me. Kimika: Why are you so surprised * We agreed to meet here, you know? You shouldn't be surprised when I actually show up..."* Zakuro: Uh, a lot happened yesterday... Kimika: But it all worked out fine. There's no need to be on edge like that. Zakuro: Maybe you can say that, but you're a lot stronger than me. Kimika: And I'll protect you, Zakuro, so don't worry! Zakuro: Whoa. *Kimika hugged me as she said that.* Zakuro: Wh-Why are you squeezing so hard? It hurts. Kimika: Ahaha, sorry. Just looking at you makes me want to protect you. I couldn't help myself. Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Hmm? Why are you getting all red? Zakuro: Oh, uh... It's nothing... Kimika: Huh? *Wh-What was that just now?* *My heart skipped a beat...* *Uh, but that's...* Zakuro: I was surprised because someone suddenly called my name from behind me... Look, my heart is racing. *I put her hand on my chest.* Kimika: Ohh, your chest, huh... Zakuro: Wh-What is it? *She suddenly sighed in exasperation.* Kimika: Nothing, it's just.. * Do you really need to show your chest off? Are you trying to say, hey look at me, my chest is bigger than yours?"* Zakuro: Why would I do that?! Kimika: All of you keep talking about boobs, boobs... You, and him yesterday. Zakuro: Oh... Are you still upset about what Mamiya-kun said yesterday? Kimika: Wh-Why would I care about him?! Zakuro: I only said the word chest once, and then you said something about yesterday... Kimika: Hmph! *Kimika got bright red in the face and looked away.* Zakuro: H-Huh? Did... Did I upset you? Kimika: O-Oh, really... So you think I care about anything that jerk said.. * That's what your pretty little mouth is trying to say, huh?"* Zakuro: Aah! Zakuro: Ah, ah, that hurts! Thtop! Thtop pinthing me... *She laughed like it was all a joke, but she pinched hard enough that it really hurt.* Zakuro: That was mean. That really hurt! Kimika: Then you shouldn't say things that don't need to be said. Kimika: Jeez, and you don't need all this fat, either! Zakuro: Ah! Kimika: What's with these boobs? You don't need all this fat! Why do you have all this fat in one spot? Is this where you store all that water for when you're crossing the desert? Zakuro: Wh-What are you talking about?! Are you talking about a camel's hump? Kimika: You don't need all this fat if you're not storing water! Zakuro: I-It's not like I chose to make them this way! Kimika: Jeez! This is a democracy! We should all be equal! In a way, you've been hogging all the nutrition that should've gone to my chest! Give me at least half! Zakuro: What are you talking about? Wait, Kimika! Ah, ah, aah! Kimika: Ah! *Kimika suddenly stopped groping my breasts.* *Like she just realized what she was doing...* Zakuro: Wh-What is it? Kimika: A-Ahaha... Nothing. I just figured I could help you relax. That should be enough. Zakuro: Y-You don't need to do that to help me relax! Kimika: Ahaha... Maybe you could say I took a load off your chest? Zakuro: Jeez... You're acting like a perverted old man. Kimika: Ahaha... I'm just a nasty little girl, after all. Kimika: Well, whatever. Let's go to school. Zakuro: Yeah. Let's go. *Though I really didn't want to go.* *The classroom seems like a battlefield... Though, now that I think about it, it's always kind of felt like a battlefield.* *There were always so many landmines I could step on if I said the wrong thing... I always had to be careful and pick just the right words.* *Watching their reactions...* *If I'm not careful, I'll step on one of the mines.* *That's what the classroom has always been like for the two of us.* *Though now the landmines and bullets might be real. Someone could actually end up getting hurt.* *There's no guarantee we'll be safe at the end of the day.* *So, honestly... I just want to run away.* *But...* Zakuro: I won't run any longer. Zakuro: But... 'Who fights ever hoping for success?' Zakuro: 'I fought for lost cause, and for fruitless quest!' Kimika: Is that more Cyrano? You sure like that play. *Kimika said that resignedly.* Kimika: Literature won't help you defeat your enemies... You need chemistry and physics to do that! Zakuro: Hehehe, but literature never loses. Kimika: Never? Zakuro: Literature won't help you win, but it can ensure that you'll never lose. Zakuro: That's why I can still fight today. Kimika: ... *Kimika looked at me blankly.* *Her cheeks looked kind of red, too.* Zakuro: Wh-What is it? Say something. Kimika: Oh, uh.. * I was just thinking, you haven't fought at all yet, so why are you saying all that..."* Zakuro: Ahaha... I guess you're right. It's just been you protecting me so far. I don't have the right to say anything like that. Kimika: But... Zakuro: But? Kimika: You were the one who gave me the conviction to fight. Kimika: If you hadn't taken my hand and run... I would've never been able to fight. Zakuro: Kimika... Kimika: So... You're exactly right. Kimika: I don't like pompous crap like literature or poems or whatever, but it was really cool listening to you say that to them. Kimika: But... 'Who fights ever hoping for success? I fought for lost cause, and for fruitless quest!' Zakuro: Eh? You memorized it too? Kimika: Oh, no * just that one part. I was sort of interested, so I flipped through it when I went to the library."* Kimika: I was interested in the book you liked so much... or rather, the book Mamiya Takuji picked out for you, so... Zakuro: You still don't trust him? Kimika: Of course not. He's my enemy. Zakuro: But... Kimika: No buts... He's an enemy. I have to fight him. Zakuro: Kimika... *......* *...* *A moment after she started walking, her face hardened and she looked down, as if she was thinking intently about something. I held her hand and guided her since she wasn't looking where she was going.* Kimika: Last night, I was thinking about what would happen today. The teachers will probably search the students' belonging... *She was silent for a moment, and then she looked up at me. There wasn't the slightest hint of cheer in her face.* Zakuro: Because of what happened yesterday? Kimika: Yeah. Senagawa confiscated my stun gun, remember? Kimika: I told her it was a cell phone, but if a teacher who knew anything about electronics saw it, they would be able to tell what it was instantly. Zakuro: Oh... I see... Kimika: So we can't bring weapons in through the front gate. Zakuro: Yeah... Got it. *Just as expected, we couldn't pass through the gate like normal. There were several teachers searching the bags and pockets of all the students coming into the school.* Zakuro: So then, will you be all right, Kimika? Kimika: I expected this to happen, so I didn't bring anything that's obviously made to be used as a weapon. What about you? Zakuro: Me? The only thing I have that might be a weapon would be... a foot long acrylic ruler? Kimika: Okay, good. I don't know what we would've done if you had brought something to defend yourself with. *As expected, the teachers all tensed up as we approached the school gate. Several of them looked at each other, and then they took me and Kimika aside to search us.* Male Teacher: Hmm... She doesn't have anything unusual on her. Okay, you can go. Zakuro: Thank you. *I opened my bag and showed them the inside, then turned my pockets inside out to show I didn't have anything in them. I got through the gate surprisingly easily.* *The real problem was Kimika, who was surrounded by several teachers...* *It's hard to imagine that she would come to school empty-handed after the fight with Akasaka-san and Kitami-san yesterday.* *She said she saw this coming, but will she really be okay?* Kimika: This is everything. Or would you like to feel around in my skirt pockets too? Male Teacher: No, we won't go that far... How's her bag look? Female Teacher: There's nothing here that she wouldn't be able to bring into the school... Hmm. *It's like they were aiming for her from the beginning... They seemed disappointed since they hadn't found any evidence.* Kimika: So can I go now? Male Teacher: Yeah, but don't make any trouble. *Thankfully, she was released. She smiled and ran toward me.* *She mouthed the words "fooled them," silently announcing her victory.* Kimika: Jeez, those pacifists don't understand anything. Zakuro: But Kimika... if you made it through, does that mean you don't have anything to defend yourself with? Kimika: It'll be fine. I thought ahead. You don't need to worry about anything. Kimika: But more importantly, look. *Kimika frowned and looked up at the school building. I followed her gaze.* Zakuro: Ah. *In the spot where Kimika was looking... Akasaka-san and Kitami-san were looking down at us from above.* Kimika: I'll show them. They won't be able to look down on us like that for much longer. *Their eyes were cold and ruthless, but their mouths were curved in disgusting smiles, like they were anticipating the festivities that were about to start.* Zakuro: Hmph! *But I glared right back at them.* *I won't give in to them... I'll fight.* Kimika: Ahaha.. * That's the first time I've ever seen you glare at someone. So you can put on a scary face too."* Zakuro: Of course I can... I'm human too. Of course I can feel anger. Kimika: That's right. *Kimika smiled joyfully.* *The moment we entered the classroom...* *It instantly went from noisy to as silent as the grave.* *And... sharp gazes were leveled at us.* *Much worse than yesterday... It felt incredibly uncomfortable.* *The classroom wasn't just a metaphorical battlefield. It had transformed into a literal one after yesterday's events.* *So it would be a lie to say I was unaffected, but nevertheless, I walked toward my seat unflinchingly.* Kimika: Oh, wait a sec. Zakuro: Huh? *When I was about to pull the chair out and sit down, Kimika stopped me and started checking the desk and the chair.* Kimika: Okay, looks fine. Zakuro: Thank you. *After she made sure my seat was safe to sit in, she checked her own seat and then sat down.* *......* Megu: Hey, everyone, do you smell that? Satoko: You're right. It smells awful. Megu: Yeah, friggin' stinks. I wonder what smells. Satoko: I wonder, I wonder. We need to put a lid on whatever it is. *The other students were frozen like statues. Megu and Satoko exaggeratedly held their noses as they walked around the classroom.* Megu: Whew, it stinks. This isn't funny. Satoko: This is totally rotten... Ugh, it's stinging my nose. Megu: Does anyone have rotten bread in their desk? Zakuro: ... Kimika: ... *They held their noses like pigs and walked around... Then, as if they were planning it from the beginning, they moved toward our desks.* Kimika: Oh, sorry... This might be what stinks... *Kimika's relaxed voice echoed in the strained atmosphere of the classroom.* *Kimika smiled as she stood up and pulled a test tube from her bag.* Megu: Ah! *In that instant, they stopped in their tracks.* Megu: Wh-What is that... Wait. *There wasn't any smell coming from the test tube at all... Of course not. They were just making it all up.* *Their faces grew paler and paler by the moment.* Kimika: Who knows, what could it be... Haven't you already heard from Shiroyama? Megu: Ah... You mean, that's... Kimika: What a brilliant deduction * Naturally, you would be sensitive to his body odor, since you're his girlfriend."* Megu: Ugh... *Megu looked like she was about to jump on Kimika, but she didn't. She kept her distance since she knew what was in the test tube.* Kimika: Oh, I'm terribly sorry. This stinks so bad, you must not have been able to fuck your boyfriend last night, huh... Hehehe, sorry about that. Kimika: How mad was he that he didn't get any last night? He must be pissed... Oh, scary, scary. Satoko: Don't get cocky, you little― Megu: Knock it off, Satoko. You really don't want to get that stuff on you. Satoko: Ugh! *After Megu told her to stop, Satoko didn't dare get any closer to Kimika. She just stood next to Megu, looking disgusted.* Megu: They searched all your stuff at the gate this morning... How did you get that in? Kimika: Oh, that. You've spent so much time with me, and you still don't know anything about me * That's too bad..."* Kimika: You know, I'm in the track and field club, but I'm also the leader of a club that was nearly abolished. *Oh, that's right...* *I haven't ever heard of the club doing anything, so I forgot, but Kimika's in two clubs. I never knew she was the leader, though.* Megu: Wh-What do you mean? Kimika: Tachibana Kimika, the 39th leader of Kita High's Science Club... And don't you forget it * Hehehe."* Satoko: Science Club? Kimika: Why would the teachers be surprised that someone in the science club had a test tube? Do you really think they would confiscate a test tube with decarbonated, deaminated protein in it? Megu: Wh-What are you talking about? Kimika: Would you understand if I said they were rotten amino acids? Megu: R-Rotten? Kimika: Maybe sulfuric or hydrochloric acid would, but there's no way amino acids would attract undue attention. They won't hurt anyone. They just stink... It's the smell of rotting meat. Megu: ... *The two of them glared at her vehemently as they stood there.* Kimika: Now then, there's something else that passed inspection over here. Kimika: It looks like nothing more than a bottle of disinfectant spray! Kimika: It's easy to carry, and the spray nozzle has to be turned before it can be sprayed, so it's not likely to leak. Kimika: But.. * say the contents happened to be highly alkaline sodium hydroxide..."* Megu: Sodium hydroxide? Kimika: Yeah, sodium hydroxide is traditionally stored in a plastic container... It's both a solid and a solution. It should be kept in a plastic or rubber container, not a glass one. Kimika: In other words, it would be possible to put sodium hydroxide in a container like this. Megu: So what? Kimika: Now, just what would happen if I sprayed sodium hydroxide in here... Kimika: If it got on any valuable rings or necklaces... it would eat away at the metal. Kimika: But it would be even worse if you sprayed it on a person.. * I wonder what would happen then."* Megu: Wh-What would happen? *Megu's voice cracked as she asked the question. The smile disappeared from Kimika's face.* Kimika: If you were to spray it in someone's shoes... the person who put those shoes on would first start to feel something slimy. Kimika: Then it would start to itch... and then it would turn into intense pain. Kimika: This is because sodium hydroxide would dissolve the keratin in your skin, turning it into a slimy substance. After a while, it'll eat away so much of your skin that it'll turn to pain... It'll eat right through your skin. Megu: ... Kimika: And if it was sprayed on someone's face... If it happened to get in your eyes, you could lose your sight permanently if you didn't get to the hospital fast enough. Kimika: The point is, if this gets on your skin, it'll fry your skin cells * Pretty scary, huh? It's not something for an amateur to play around with."* Megu: ... *She happily threatened them with her explanation. The two of them couldn't say a word.* *When I looked around, I didn't feel the same pressure from the rest of the class either.* *None of them liked Megu or Satoko either, so they were all silently snickering as they watched.* *Kimika took another test tube from her bag.* *It was different from the others. There was a partition in the middle for some reason, with mysterious white powder on both sides of the partition.* Kimika: Why do you think these two powders... have to be separated? Megu: Wh-What is that... You mean it would be bad if they were mixed? Kimika: Something bad, huh... I wonder if it'd be that easy to buy two substances that'd be dangerous if mixed together... *After that, she chuckled to herself so silently that it was almost inaudible.* Kimika: Oh, but what if it was, for instance, calcium hypochlorite... In other words, bleaching powder. Kimika: It's incredibly common here in the school, since they use it to disinfect the pool water. Kimika: And, this could be ammonium chloride. Until just recently, you could get this at any convenience store... Now you need a license to buy it, but there are still plenty of people who have some just lying around. Kimika: Ammonium chloride is used in fertilizer, as a food additive, in dyes, and plenty of other stuff, so there are plenty of people who can get their hands on it... Oh right, it's also one of the ingredients in gunpowder. Kimika: When mixed with calcium hypochlorite, it becomes an exceptionally unstable substance... With just a little shock, it goes.. * kaboom!"* Megu: Eek! Kimika: A stun gun doesn't even compare to this... The mixture of these two substances is essentially an explosive. Kimika: Oh, and it's fairly easy to acquire potassium chloride. If you boil a battery to get sulfuric acid and then combine the two... Oh, that would explode too, wouldn't it? Megu: Y-You brought all that into school? Kimika: Eh? No, I haven't.. * I thought we were just having a conversation about substances that are dangerous to mix together."* Kimika: Would you like to test out my theory? If I throw this test tube, the contents will mix, and then... Kimika: Boom! Megu: Eek! *As Kimika's voice grew more and more ominous, Megu's face, caked with makeup, tightened into an ugly frown.* Megu: Fuck, what were those teachers doing... They let her bring that crap in? Kimika: Well, your father is the chairman. I figured this would be the first thing you would try. I saw straight through your plan. *The classroom was completely silent.* *All eyes were on the vial in Kimika's hand.* *If it really is an explosive... that means everyone in this room is in danger.* *A brusque voice ripped through the silence.* Shiroyama: Is that bitch Tachibana here?! Kimika: Oh, so he's shown up... Megu: Tsubasa? *A male student that hardly ever shows up in the classroom suddenly burst in, frothing with rage. Even his girlfriend, Megu, was visibly afraid of him.* Shiroyama: I hope you haven't forgotten about yesterday! Kimika: What on earth are you talking about... Of course I haven't. My maidenhood was in danger for a second there. *The other students, who were trying to ignore the tussle before, all gulped in unison when they saw Shiroyama, but Kimika didn't flinch.* Shiroyama: What, you think I won't hit a fucking girl? Bitch, you have about three seconds to get over here and lick the dog shit off my shoes! *His eyes lit up with anger. He looked like he was about to punch her.* Kimika: Hmph, it's only natural that men are supposed to be kind to women... You're not a gentlemen at all, Shiroyama-kun. Kimika: Oh, and I have a few new toys. Would you like to try them out? I'm sure it'd be a thrill. *Kimika held the tube with the divider in it up to eye level and waved it back and forth in front of him, challenging him to do something.* Shiroyama: The fuck does that matter?! There's no way you're gonna hit me with that shit when I can see it coming! Female Student: Ah! *Shiroyama flipped over a desk to intimidate Kimika, completely ignoring the person sitting at it.* *Kimika just smiled...* Kimika: Quit your barking... If that's what you think, why don't you go ahead and hit me? What good does it do to flip a desk or two? Dumbass. Shiroyama: You little bitch! Megu: Whoa, Tsubasa, stop! Shiroyama: Don't get in my way. I'm gonna break her fucking jaw! Megu: All right! All right already! *Shiroyama brushed Megu away and kicked another desk over.* Shiroyama: You know the shit I went through yesterday because of her! Megu: I know, but please, just hold yourself back for now! *He struggled with her, almost looking like he was about to hit her too, but she managed to hold him back.* Megu: That test tube isn't the same as yesterday! Shiroyama: Shut up. That doesn't matter! Megu: It does! It might explode if it breaks! Megu: It'll be way worse than yesterday! It'll be way worse than a few holes in your shirt! Shiroyama: The fuck did you... *When she told him that, the tension in his body slowly faded, though the look of malice never left his face.* Megu: Look at her... She's not scared at all, even after all those threats. If she was bullshitting us, there's no way she would be so calm! Megu: I'm worried about you getting hurt, but more importantly, if there was an explosion here, the police would get called. Even I couldn't protect you if that happened. Do you understand? Shiroyama: ...Tch. *If the police were called, it would be a blemish on our records as well, but it would be much worse for Shiroyama, since he's been arrested several times before.* *He hadn't given in, but he had no choice but to stand his ground and stare menacingly at Kimika once Megu let him go.* Kimika: Hehehehehe... *Kimika, one of the smallest people in the room, stood in the center of the tense classroom and giggled.* Kimika: Dummy, dummy, ahahahaha... Shiroyama: Wha― Megu: Forget it! Homeroom is about to start, so you need to leave! Shiroyama: B-But that bitch... Megu: You can do whatever you want later. If you pull something here, you're gonna be the one who takes the fall. Shiroyama: ...Fucking hell. After she said all that... Remember this, you little shit: I'm going to kill you! *He left without doing what he came for. It was a huge relief to see him him skulk off into the hallway, muttering complaints to himself.* Kimika: ...Ahahahaha. *Kimika's laughter echoed in the silent classroom.* *Everyone was afraid of the person who, until recently, had been the weakest person in the room.* *......* *...* Teacher: Martin Luther was a religious reformer who challenged the authority of the Catholic church... *I was able to participate in class normally, since I had copied Kimika's textbook yesterday, but...* Megu: ... *Megu glared daggers at us throughout the entire class.* Teacher: He wrote many hymnals, translated the New Testament from Latin to German, and accomplished many other things in his life... *But Kimika didn't even seem to notice. She just paid attention to class, highlighting important parts in her textbook.* *"No matter what happens, don't let them get to you."* *"Even if it's just acting, you can't show them weakness."* *Kimika told me that over and over while we were on our way to school, but... I can't stay calm like her.* *She really is amazing.* *When morning classes ended, Megu and Satoko left the classroom. The other students started moving their desks together to eat with their friends.* *And of course... I probably don't even need to say it, but they all turned their backs toward us and ignored us as they ate.* *Kimika moved her desk over next to mine.* Kimika: We survived morning classes, huh... Zakuro: Yeah, we did... Kimika: I was having so much fun showing off my toys, too. Tough crowd, though. Zakuro: Of course. They're all afraid of Akasaka-san and Shiroyama-kun. Kimika: So they ignored us? What cowards. *They're not cowards... Not everyone can be as strong as you, Kimika.* *Not everyone has so many weapons to defend themselves from violence.* Zakuro: Hey, do you want to eat somewhere else? I don't feel very comfortable here. Kimika: Yeah, that might be nice... Those bitches over there are staring at me. Satoko: The fuck did you say?! Kimika: What? Megu: Knock it off, Satoko... Zakuro: Kimika! Kimika: Oh, sorry, sorry... I guess I didn't need to say that, ahaha... Kimika: Let's go then? *Kimika smiled agreeably and then moved her desk back to its original position with her skinny arms.* Kimika: So where do you want to go eat? Zakuro: Somewhere no one else is. Somewhere wide open, not penned in... Kimika: The field? Zakuro: Ah, no... I was thinking about the rooftop. Kimika: Oh, the rooftop, huh? If you want, I'll follow you to the ends of the earth. Zakuro: What do you mean by that... Well, if that's fine with you, then let's go. *I smiled at her and nodded. We went to the vending machine to buy some milk first, then headed to the rooftop.* *......* Kimika: Whoa, it's hot! *The Building A rooftop gets way hotter during the day than I thought.* Kimika: Do you really want to eat up here, Zakuro? At this rate, they're going to find two dried out corpses on the roof tomorrow. Zakuro: Yeah, that's why no one else comes here. Kimika: So you knew it would be like this. Zakuro: It'll be okay... Let's go. Kimika: Go where? Kimika: Oh, wow... This rooftop is a lot cooler. Zakuro: The angle of the sun and the way the wind blows through make this spot a lot cooler. Mamiya: ...You again? Zakuro: Ahaha... Excuse me. *Mamiya-kun frowned when he saw me, and then he shook his head back and forth like he was denying something.* Kimika: So why are you here? Mamiya: That's my line... Why are you two here? Zakuro: U-Um... sorry, but would you mind if we stayed here for a little while too? Mamiya: Hmm, then what about her? Her attitude doesn't make me want to do her any favors. Kimika: Zakuro and I will be eating here... You need to get out. Mamiya: Why do I need to leave? I was here first. Kimika: Would you rather I forcibly removed you? I still haven't gotten you back for last time... Mamiya: So you have more toys hidden away, huh? Kimika: Yeah, I figured I'd beat you with a police baton or pepper spray, so... Zakuro: K-Kimika! U-Um, Mamiya-kun, I'm so sorry! Kimika: Why are you apologizing, Zakuro?! Zakuro: Uh, well... common sense says that we're the ones who should be apologizing right now... Kimika: He's deceiving you! Mamiya: Haa... It's not like anyone owns this spot.. * If you want to hang out, then go ahead. If you want to pick a fight with me, then I'll play along with that too."* Kimika: Hehehe... I'll take you up on that offer. Zakuro: Kimika! Kimika: Ugh! Zakuro: Apologize! Kimika: Eh? B-But, uh... Zakuro: No! You're the one at fault here! Apologize! Kimika: B-But... I-I didn't... Zakuro: Mamiya-kun, I'm so sorry... Come on, Kimika. Kimika: Why do I have to do that? I-I was doing it for your sake... Zakuro: Come on! *Kimika looked like she was about to cry... And she looked so strong when she was arguing with Megu and Satoko just a moment ago, too...* Kimika: Do you like him that much?! Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: You're gonna choose him over me?! Zakuro: U-Um... Kimika. Kimika: Waaah! I'm trying so hard, too! Mamiya: I can't handle this. So loud... Kimika: Shut up! Quit acting all high and mighty! This is a duel! Duel me! Mamiya: If you really want to fight, go ahead and try to hit me... I'm not going to lose to an amateur like you. Kimika: Wh-Wh-What did you say? * You cocky little brat!"* Zakuro: W-Wait, what are you doing with that?! That's the one you said would explode! Kimika: Don't stop me, Zakuro! I'm going to kill him! Mamiya: Haa... You know.. * your boobs might grow if you learn to act like a lady."* Kimika: Th-Th-The fuck did you just say?! Mamiya: I said, if you learn to act like a nice girl like Takashima over there, your boobs will probably grow too. Mamiya: Girls hormones can get messed up when they cuss all the time. That's why you don't have any boobs... Kimika: That's just superstition! You think you're all smart and shit. Go find me the book where you read that crap! Show me your data! Where's your bibliography?! Zakuro: U-Um... Kimika, calm down. Kimika: But, but, Zakuro! Zakuro: Haa... Kimika: Eh? *I gently embraced Kimika.* *When she gets worked up like this...* *She looks like a little puppy.* *So I wondered if she would calm down if I hugged her, just like I do with puppies...* Kimika: U-Um, Z-Zakuro... Zakuro: It's all right... No one ever said that he's more important than you are. Kimika: So then, does that mean you like me more? Zakuro: N-No... That's not the problem here... Mamiya: What's wrong with you two... Are you practicing some comedy routine? Are you two gonna become stand up comedians after graduation? Kimika: You're the stupid one here, not me * I'm gonna go to a first rate university! Then I'll be a mad scientist when I grow up! And if that doesn't work out, a NEET!"* Mamiya: ...Your dreams are retarded. Kimika: What? * Don't make fun of mad scientists!"* Mamiya: Why would you want to be a NEET?! Kimika: What?! Don't make fun of NEETs! Zakuro: Come on, Kimika... Let's eat already. Lunchtime is going to end if we keep this up. Kimika: Oh! You're right... Kimika: Tch.. * Fine. Mamiya Takuji, I don't want to waste Zakuro's precious time, so I'll postpone your execution."* Mamiya: Oh, really... Glad to hear it. *Kimika immediately sat down and got her lunchbox out of her bag.* *I sat down next to her and looked over at Mamiya-kun. He didn't complain or glare, but just ignored us instead.* Kimika: Hey, trade me your fried eggs for my hamburger like we did yesterday. Zakuro: Sure. Your hamburgers are really good. Mamiya: Hehehe... *Mamiya-kun suddenly laughed when we opened our lunchboxes and started trading food back and forth.* Kimika: What do you want? I hope you don't expect me to give you any. Mamiya: I don't want any... Hehehe. Kimika: What's so funny?! Mamiya: Nothing... I just didn't see you as the motherly type. I was laughing because you made such cute little shapes with it. Kimika: What's funny about that?! Dumbass! Zakuro: Kimika, come on... Zakuro: You shouldn't say that either, Mamiya-kun. Kimika is pretty good at cooking. Mamiya: Oh, so you're really gonna eat it? It probably has a bomb in it. Kimika: I'd be happy to put a bomb in yours... Zakuro: Kimika! Zakuro: Um, have you had lunch yet? You could have some of mine. Mamiya: No, I― Kimika: No way * Didn't your parents ever tell you not to feed wild animals?!"* Zakuro: Kimika, I just told you... You shouldn't say things like that. *Mamiya-kun ignored her completely as he fished through his pocket.* Mamiya: ...Oh. *Then he looked disappointed.* Mamiya: Tch... They're all gone. I was the one who bought those, too... It must have been Yuki. Zakuro: What were you looking for? *He looked even more restless than before.* Mamiya: I'm out of cigarettes. Zakuro: Cigarettes?! Y-Y-You can't do that! That's not good for you! Mamiya: Oh, really... Well, good. Zakuro: That's not good at all. Kimika: What? You want some cigarettes * Here."* *As she finished chewing her food, she pulled her bag closer and grabbed a small white box.* Zakuro: Eh... Eeh?! *I jumped when I saw her pull cigarettes out of the last place I would've expected them.* Zakuro: Why do you have those? Wait, Kimika, you don't smoke, do you? Kimika: Don't worry about it.. * So, do you want them?"* *She dodged my question and held out the box to Mamiya-kun. The cigarettes all had feminine designs printed on them.* Mamiya: I don't like that minty crap. Kimika: So you don't want them? Mamiya: I didn't say that... Kimika: Oh, so you do want them? Then I'll give them to you... Here. *He took one cigarette from the box, put it in his mouth, and lit it with an austere metal lighter.* *Flick.* Mamiya: Haa... *His face softened as he exhaled the white smoke.* Kimika: What a dumbass... You know that stuff's not good for you... Mamiya: ...You're the one who had them in the first place. Kimika: I don't smoke them... They're poison. Zakuro: Then why did you have them? Kimika: The nicotine in tobacco leaves is useful for a lot of things. Zakuro: Oh... What would you do with that? Kimika: You could put it on a desk or a doorknob... It's possible to make almost anyone confused and light headed with it. Zakuro: B-By lots of things, you just meant making people confused? *Bang, flash, boom!* Mamiya: Hmm?! Zakuro: Ah! *The burning tobacco suddenly flared up and started exploding like a firework.* Mamiya: Agh―!! Kimika: Ahahahaha. Mamiya: Owch―?! Zakuro: Wh-What's happening?! Mamiya: Pthoo! Ow, ow, ow! What the hell is this?! *Even Mamiya-kun couldn't stay cool after that. It looked like he kept it in his mouth and endured the heat for a moment because he didn't want to spit it out.* Kimika: Gotcha! Mamiya: I-Is this a prank? Kimika: I pulled the tobacco out of that cigarette and put nitrocellulose in the second half Kimika: And I used magnesium powder so it would flash brighter. Mamiya: I see... So the menthol was there to disguise the smell of the explosives. Now that's something... *He wore an expression of utter resignation as he crushed the box of cigarettes.* Zakuro: Are you okay? You're not burnt, are you? Mamiya: Well, I should've seen it coming... Mamiya: So why would you make something like this? Kimika: For you, of course... What would it accomplish if I gave these to Shiroyama? Mamiya: So what were you trying to accomplish with this? Kimika: I was trying to get revenge! Mamiya: Revenge for what? Kimika: What? * 'Revenge for what?'* * The fuck is wrong with you?! How can you say that after what you did yesterday?!"* Mamiya: What I did yesterday? What are you talking about? Kimika: Anyway, give me back my Extreme Ratio BF2 Tactical Tanto, right now! Mamiya: No way. Kimika: Why not?! Mamiya: I told you, those were my reparations. You're the one who attacked me with a knife, after all. Kimika: Then give me back my Colt Government M1911A1! Mamiya: That's part of the reparations too. Kimika: Huh * What kind of dumbass would want a Tanto and a M1911 for reparations?!"* Mamiya: The dumbass standing in front of you. Kimika: Why, you! * That's your friggin' answer?!"* *Her entire body shook with anger. She took one step forward and locked eyes with Mamiya-kun.* Mamiya: Well, this knife is pretty well built for a folding knife. The blade is thick and just long enough. It feels nice just holding it... *Mamiya-kun pulled the knife out.* Kimika: Of course! It's the one I picked out! Mamiya: What's the blade made of? Kimika: N690 Cobalt Stainless Steel. Mamiya: Oh, it's not even ATS-34? Kimika: Shut up you nouveau rich bastard! Only trust fund babies have knives like that! Mamiya: But those knives are higher quality. Kimika: They're not better! Function over form! Zakuro: ...What? Huh? *What? What are they talking about?* *I felt really lonely, like I had been excluded from something.* Mamiya: You modified that Colt with a backless rear sight, an extended thumb safety, and a straight grip stock, didn't you? Kimika: That's right. I put a lot of money into that! The grip safety is a beavertail, too! Mamiya: Hmm, I see... Those certainly are very practical modifications.. * Not bad."* Kimika: I'm not giving it to yo * just because you gave me a compliment or two!"* Kimika: I've been shooting for a long time. I love my Colt. Kimika: If I'm gonna use a gun, then it has to have a magazine and a thin frame like the M1911. *She got really happy for a second when he complimented her gun, but then her face turned sour and she started yelling at him again.* Kimika: Anyway, please give it back already! I put so much of my allowance into that! Mamiya: Sucks to be you, huh? I'll be sure to take good care of it for you. Kimika: Stop fucking with me * I can't sleep at night unless I have a gun and a knife under my pillow!"* Mamiya: Oh, really... Why don't you try some Vick's VapoRub instead? Kimika: I'm not a baby! Why would I need something like that to help me sleep?! Zakuro: N-Now, now... Let's calm down, Kimika. *We must have gotten on his nerves. He got up and started to walk away.* *And I thought all three of us would be able to eat together for once. What a shame.* Kimika: What? Are you running away? Mamiya: Yeah, I guess so. Kimika: And you're gonna admit it? Where are your balls?! Mamiya: Haa... You know * you really should try being a little more ladylike... You're never going to find a husband at this rate."* Kimika: What do I need a husband for?! Mamiya: Well, at this rate, you'll definitely grow old without ever finding a husband. Kimika: What? * Just how low are you gonna stoop?!"* Mamiya: Well, if that's what you want... *Mamiya-kun kicked the box of cigarettes and slowly walked toward the stairs.* Hasaki: H-Hello. Mamiya: Ah! Zakuro: Oh, Hasaki-chan. Hasaki: H-Hello... *Hasaki-chan looked at me and bowed politely. Then she stood in front of Mamiya-kun and blocked his path.* Hasaki: So you really were up here, Tomo Nii-san... Mamiya: Haa... Who are you calling Tomo Nii-san? Hasaki: Ah... Nii-san... *For some reason she looked at us and then changed the way she addressed him... But now that I think of it, why would she call Mamiya Takuji-kun, "Tomo Nii-san"?* Hasaki: Here, I packed lunch for you. Mamiya: ... *She thrust the wrapped package at him before he could say no.* Mamiya: I don't want to eat right now. Take it back home. Hasaki: Why? Mamiya: I-I'm on a diet... Hasaki: That must be it... It's because there are people around, right? Mamiya: Wh-What is? Hasaki: Nii-san, you always try to look cool, so you don't want them to see you eating your little sister's packed lunch. Mamiya: Wha― Kimika: Heh, is she right? Mamiya: As if! Hasaki: Then why? You haven't eaten yet. Mamiya: No, I ate earlier. Zakuro: He hasn't eaten yet. Mamiya: Wh-Why you, Takashima! Hasaki: I thought so... Hasaki: All right... Please, just eat it so it doesn't go to waste. Mamiya: ... Kimika: Are you gonna let a little girl talk to you like that? Mamiya: Shut up! Kimika: Wow... Did you make all of this, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Yes... I don't know if it tastes that good, though... *The lunchbox Hasaki-chan had brought was so large and garish that we were both surprised. Our lunchboxes looked pathetic by comparison.* Hasaki: If you two would like some... Mamiya: Don't feed the wild animals. Kimika: What?! Mamiya: It's the same thing you said earlier... Zakuro: Uh... Then I can't have any either? Hasaki: You don't need his permission... He didn't want it anyway. Mamiya: B-But that was... Hasaki: Okay, okay... Everyone, please go ahead and eat. Kimika: How can two siblings be so different * Why does this piece of trash have such a wonderful little sister?"* *We all sat under the blue sky and shared a noisy meal together. Kimika and I had to wipe the smiles off our faces and put on stoic expressions when we walked back into the classroom.* Male Student: ...... Female Student: ... *It was practically expected at this point. The moment we walked into the room all conversation stopped and everyone looked uneasy.* Megu: ... Satoko: ... *I took a deep breath and walked to my seat. I checked the chair and the desk before sitting down, just like Kimika told me to.* *Nothing wrong with them...* *I was worried they would do something, but they didn't try anything during class.* *Though they glared at us all throughout the class...* *Kimika yawned out of boredom... Though that must be a bluff... But then...* Kimika: Hmm, mmm... Zakuro: Huh?! *She's really sleeping!* *Soon, afternoon classes ended too.* Kimika: Now then... Let's go home, shall we? Zakuro: Yeah... Zakuro: Um... Kimika: Yeah, I know, I know... *If they were going to come after us today, it would be after school... The walk home is the most dangerous part of the day.* *There are lots of places they could wait to ambush us... and if we waited around after school, it would just get darker and more dangerous.* Kimika: Well, I doubt anything will happen before we leave school, at least. Zakuro: Y-Yeah, probably... *They had already had plenty of chances to attack us if they wanted to do it here at school.* *If they were going to do something, it would happen after we left the school gates.* Kimika: Which means... once we leave, you can't let your guard down even for an instant. Zakuro: O-Of course... Kimika: All right then... Let's go home. Carefully. *Splat.* Kimika: ...Or not... Zakuro: I guess we were wrong... *As soon as we stepped outside, we heard a strange whizzing sound for a moment, and then a second later we were covered in broken eggs.* Kimika: We let our guard down, huh... Zakuro: These are rotten eggs, aren't they? They must have been waiting for us to come out. Kimika: Well, an egg or two is better than a brick or a flower vase. *We looked up at the roof, but we couldn't see anyone up there.* Kimika: Damn it... This is the oldest trick in the book... *These white uniforms are pretty expensive, so that was actually really bad...* Zakuro: Anyway, let's go wash our hair and faces, then we can go change in the locker room. We can't go home like this. Kimika: Do you have a change of clothes? Zakuro: Well, my P.E. clothes... *Everyone watched us as we walked over to the water supply and washed our hair and faces with soap. We went to the locker room right away when we were done.* Zakuro: What?! My locker door is broken? *My locker had been bent into a strange rectangular shape.* Kimika: We should've been more careful... There was plenty of time for them to do this, since they didn't want to do anything to us directly after what happened this morning. Zakuro: Yeah... but I never expected them to drop eggs on us. Kimika: I should've seen this coming... This isn't just my problem anymore. Kimika: I decided I was going to protect you, so I can't mess up like this. If something happened to you, just saying sorry wouldn't fix it. Zakuro: B-But I should be able to help you too... Kimika: You dummy. You were the one who saved me... Zakuro: Kimika... Kimika: I was the one who was always bullied by everyone in the class, and you were the one who saved me. I still haven't repaid my debt to you... Kimika: So I'll protect you, no matter what happens. Zakuro: Kimika... *Her locker was fine, maybe because it was locked. My locker, on the other hand, was almost comically warped, since I didn't expect them to attack us like this and never locked it.* *The only thing left in my locker was a swimsuit. I don't know if that was an act of kindness or yet another form of bullying.* *Did they want to laugh at me walking home in a swimsuit?* Zakuro: Just a school swimsuit... Kimika: You have a pretty nice figure. Why don't you just wear that home? Zakuro: Why would I do that?! Kimika: I'm joking... I guess we'll have to wait until our uniforms dry. That's probably what they wanted, though... Zakuro: What they wanted? Kimika: At night, they can do whatever they want without getting caught... That's probably why. Zakuro: Then we should go home right now... Kimika: The curtain of night doesn't play favorites. They're not the only ones who can move more freely at night. Zakuro: ...Really? Kimika: Yeah, so let's wait until our uniforms dry... Besides, there's something we can do while we're waiting. Zakuro: While we're waiting? Kimika: Yeah... My locker's awfully tough, isn't it? *When she opened up her locker... There was something almost the same size inside it.* Zakuro: Wh-What's this? Why do you have a safe in your locker? Kimika: The locker is made of thin steel, so I put a sturdy safe inside it... Kimika: And inside of that... *She pulled out a lot of different chemicals.* *Where does she keep her P.E. clothes?* *I was kind of curious about that, but...* *......* *...* Zakuro: It's definitely nighttime now... Kimika: But we're dry at least. Zakuro: Haa... That's right. *The sun set as we hid and waited for our uniforms to dry.* Kimika: Ah! Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Haa... I was waiting for you. You must have a lot of free time. *"Nah... It's totally dark outside."* *"What are you doing? You shouldn't be in the school this late at night... It's pitch black outside..."* *"We're all afraid of the dark... It's dangerous, you know?"* Kimika: Hmm, that's a bit odd... Well, I was ready for this anyway... or rather... Zakuro: Huh? Kimika...? *I was confused by her actions. She put her hand up her skirt and started feeling around for something on her waist.* Nishimura: What? Are you going to strip naked and beg for forgiveness? Kimika: You're so naive... Nishimura: Agh, ow, fuck, ow! Kimika: It hurts, huh... Kimika: A real whip can flay the skin off your back. *The whip in her hand was clearly different from the kind used to give orders to animals or the kind used in acrobatics. It was designed to be used as a weapon.* *She wrapped it around her waist like a belt and hid it under her clothes...* Kimika: I can take you all on at once with this. Iida: Th-This could be bad... Iinuma: I heard that a real whip can cut a beer can in half. Nishimura: It hurts... It fucking hurts. Iida: Jeez, I don't doubt it... This really hurts... Kimika: Yeah, it sure looks painful! *The sound of the whip cutting through the air gave Kimika courage and made the men back off warily.* Shiroyama: Sure, that's scary, but either way, it's just a couple girls. Shiroyama: This should be fun. Let's see how long she can tangle with us! Kimika: ...Why, you! *As Shiroyama moved forward unflinchingly... Kimika knocked him to the ground with the whip.* Shiroyama: Agh! *His clothes were ripped and bloody...* Shiroyama: I-It's not that bad... Hey, guys! If we all go at the same time, we can get her easy! Iida: Whoa... No way, man. You're covered in blood. Nishimura: God damn it... Now you've done it, you bitch. I'll rape you, I swear! Iida: That's all you think about, isn't it... Iinuma: She only has a whip. If we all go at once, she can't stop us. We might get hurt, but it's not like we're gonna die from it. Kimika: Hah! Iinuma: Agh! Kimika: Zakuro! Run! Zakuro: Y-Yeah! *The sound of the whip was the signal for me to run... and then she followed right after me.* Shiroyama: You can't run for long! *......* *...* Zakuro: Haa, haa― Kimika: Keep going! Get outside the school gates! Zakuro: Okay! ―Haa, haa― Kimika: Women don't like stubborn men, you know?! *As I ran through the gate, I heard the sound of Kimika's whip behind me.* *We desperately ran. She turned around once in a while to ward off our pursuers.* Kimika: Haa― haa, haa― *But Kimika doesn't have much stamina. She couldn't keep this up for much longer.* Zakuro: Haa, haa, haa―! *I grabbed her hand and pulled her along as we ran through the night streets.* *There was hardly anyone around in the residential district.* Kimika: Haa, haa― They're still coming― *I heard the whip cutting through the air several more times, but the situation didn't improve at all.* *What should we do? Where should we go?* Kimika: Haa, haa― Are there more people than before? Zakuro: Why are they chasing us too... Haa, haa! Kimika: It must be... haa, haa, ha, some guys Akasaka got together... *The situation just got worse.* Kimika: Haa, haa― Ah?! Zakuro: Ah, Kimika! *As she was nearing the limit of her stamina, she tripped and fell. I went down with her, rolling several times before we regained our bearings.* Shiroyama: Haa, haa... We finally caught you, and at such a convenient place, too. Kimika: Haa, haa... I wonder about that. No one will hear us here, you know? Shiroyama: That's right... No matter how much you scream, no one will hear you. *I finally saw all the people who had been chasing us. As I looked at their sheer numbers and the weapons they were holding, the blood drained from my face.* *Shiroyama stood there, trying to catch his breath, with a wooden sword in his hand.* *The other men had large knives, metal bats, and even steel pipes with the ends cut off.* *Any of them could easily kill a person...* Kimika: Haa... I guess you won't be satisfied till you see some blood, huh? Zakuro: Ah, Kimika! *Kimika, her breath still ragged from running, stood in front of me to protect me. She stared down the laughing men that were eyeing us...* *Even though she was hardly able to stand.* *She took several test tubes out of her bag.* Kimika: Well then... I didn't think I'd actually get to use this... Shiroyama: Hehehe... Are you sure you should be holding that up like that? Kimika: What? Zakuro: K-Kimika... *When I looked closer, I noticed that several of the men were pointing airguns at Kimika.* Shiroyama: Which will happen first... You throwing it, or the airguns blowing it up in your hand? Kimika: ... Shiroyama: I don't know how powerful that is, but either way, you probably won't be the only one hit by the blast. Shiroyama: The broken glass might even hit Takashima over there... Kimika: ... Kimika: Zakuro! Run away from here! Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: If any of you move, I'll throw it, but if you let Zakuro go... Shiroyama: If we do? Kimika: You can do whatever you want with me... Shiroyama: Hahahaha! That's your plan?! You must be great friends, huh... Kimika: How about it? If you don't promise to leave Zakuro alone, I'll throw it... If this hits you, you'll be in a wheelchair! Shiroyama: Oh, scary, scary... All right then. So you're prepared to do anything for her, huh... Kimika: Well? Shiroyama: All right... We won't touch Takashima. Zakuro: Kimika! Kimika: Haa... You heard him * Now run, Zakuro."* Zakuro: There's no way I could do that! Kimika: Zakuro... Don't do this.. * Ah!"* Zakuro: Kimika! Shiroyama: Hehehe... How careless of you... *Several men jumped out of the bushes and pinned her down.* Shiroyama: Dumbass... As if we would do that. We're the ones giving the orders here. Kimika: Ugh... Shiroyama: Now then... How about the two of you have a little fun with every single person here? Kimika: Ah! Shiroyama: You're cute when your mouth is shut. If only you'd been a good little girl and become my toy like I wanted... Too bad, huh? Kimika: Ah... Agh... *Shiroyama gave a crude smile as he pulled Kimika by the hair and held her down. He brought his face so close to hers that their lips were almost touching.* Shiroyama: This is what you get for fucking making. me * RUN!"* *Shiroyama threw her to the ground and pushed her down into the dirt with his foot.* Zakuro: Let her up! *Pound, pound.* *I lost control of myself, punching Shiroyama in the chest several times.* Shiroyama: Huh? What's she doing? Zakuro: Stop it! You can't do such horrible things! *Pound, pound.* Zakuro: Ough... You little... You little... Shiroyama: Is she trying to hurt me? Huh? I can't even call this a massage. Zakuro: Grrr! Shiroyama: Hey Numada, I have the right to defend myself now, don't I? Iida: Of course. She just punched you. Shiroyama: Guess I'll have to.. * do this!"* Zakuro: Ugh! *Shiroyama smirked and then punched me in the stomach. My vision instantly went black and I lost my sense of balance.* Zakuro: ... *I couldn't breathe.* *My entire body was numb. I couldn't move.* *It was like the entire world had been shifted 45 degrees―* Kimika: Ugh... Dummy... *Kimika was on the ground a few feet away, looking at me and crying.* *Kimika and I were looking at each other at the same angle... I must have fallen to the ground.* Megu: Haa... What a pain in the ass... Satoko: Jeez... Why couldn't you just give up? *The hateful, disgusting, unforgettable voices of our tormentors entered our ears.* *They must have been giggling as they waited somewhere safe and watched us fighting for our lives.* *They looked at us and grinned.* *They looked down at us with glee, as if we were idiots for even trying to resist.* *But...* Megu: Hahaha! How fucking pathetic! Zakuro: ... Satoko: Oh, it looks like she can still stand. *I mustered all my strength to pull myself off the ground and stand on my own two feet.* *My head was spinning, my stomach was convulsing, and I couldn't see straight.* Megu: It's too late to apologize now. Zakuro: Akasaka... Megu. Megu: The fuck do you want?! What do you want now, bitch?! *As if I was possessed by all the loathing and anger that had built up within me―* *I forgot about the pain in my wrists long enough to lash out at Megu, but sadly she avoided my blows.* Zakuro: Don't run away, you bitch! Megu: Huh? * What, has she lost her fucking marbles?"* *Megu's voice and expression changed. She was honestly shocked.* *She had me labeled as a simple, docile sheep who could never fight back. She never expected me to act like this.* *That made me want to rip her face off even more―* Satoko: Take this! Zakuro: Ah! *I was hit in the stomach even harder than before. I collapsed like a marionette whose strings had been cut.* Satoko: What? She's so weak... Zakuro: Ack! Satoko: What? Hey * Fight some more!* * Come on!* * Come on!* *"* *Unlike Shiroyama, Satoko didn't pull her punches.* *Maybe people of the same sex really can be crueler to you than those of the opposite sex...* *Satoko pulled me back up and kept punching me.* Megu: Ahahaha... This is a pretty good show. *"Yeah, I love a good show..."* Megu: Wha―?! *"You're right... This show is great."* *A voice in the dark suddenly agreed with her, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps.* Mamiya: This is really amazing... There are so many people, too. This is really something. Kimika: M-Mamiya... Takuji... Mamiya: By the way, could I ask who gave you permission to touch my women? Well? Kimika: Wha―?! Zakuro: Eh? Iida: Huh? These women are your property? *The men who seemed so threatening a moment ago all changed their tone and looked nervously at Mamiya-kun, as if they didn't want to upset him.* Mamiya: Yeah, both of them are my toys. Iida: Oh, no, I didn't say anything... *Numada looked anxious and uncomfortable when Mamiya-kun looked at him. He scratched his head, laughed, and looked down.* Megu: How did you know to come here?! *When she saw Numada back down, she raised her voice and asked Mamiya-kun that question.* Mamiya: Well... I just knew, I guess. Mamiya: They're my toys, after all. It's only natural to search for something when it goes missing. Am I wrong? Megu: Tch, you nasty fucker. Mamiya: I'd say the same about you... *Megu glared daggers at him, but Mamiya-kun didn't flinch.* *Megu is so prideful that she hates people like Mamiya-kun.* Mamiya: Anyway, would you refrain from touching my property in the future? Megu: What? Mamiya: I'm saying... I want you all to go away. You're not welcome here. Other School Student: Is this the Mamiya Takuji I heard about? Iinuma: Yeah... That's right. He kicked our asses when we went after him with like twenty people. Other School Student: Is he that strong? He doesn't look it... Iinuma: It's ridiculous... He's not normal. Kimika: You dumbass, Mamiya! Quit acting tough. This is serious! Mamiya: ...Huh? Kimika: And when the hell did I become your toy? Is this some comedy routine? Is this some stand-up routine you came up with? Mamiya: What are you talking about... You're nothing more than a toy. Kimika: Wh-Wh-Wh-What? * I'll fucking kill you!"* Zakuro: Ah... Uh... Ahh... Shiroyama: M-Mamiya! Mamiya: Oh, it's been a long time... since I've heard you call me that. Iida: Come on, Shiroyama, haven't you learned your lesson? How many times does he have to kick your ass before you learn? Megu: Wh-What are you so afraid of, Tsubasa?! He's unarmed, and he's just one guy! Look at how many people you have... A ton of people came today, look. Satoko: Th-That's right! Why are you afraid of him? Shiroyama: Th-That's right... Fuck you, Mamiya! You can't act tough when you don't even have a weapon! Mamiya: A weapon? Shiroyama: Yeah, that's right... There are fifteen of us here, and we have weapons! Nishimura: Uh... Wait, what? I only see eleven. Iida: Oh, you're right... There are only eleven. *They started to panic when they realized they were missing four people.* Mamiya: You know, I happened to... take care of a few people on my way. And there were a few others that ran when they saw me, you know? Shiroyama: Shut the fuck up! It doesn't matter. There are still plenty of us, and we have weapons. You don't stand a chance. Mamiya: Oh, weapons... Something like this? *Mamiya-kun casually pulled a knife out of his pocket and flipped the blade out.* Kimika: That's my Extreme Tanto! Mamiya: Knives are very important items for disgusting nerds like me... You know that, Shiroyama-kun... Shiroyama: Tch... Iida: Whoa, this is bad... We can't fight Mamiya-kun. We can't. Mamiya: Haa... Oh look, it's just Shiroyama-kun. No one else wants to fight. That's just boring. Mamiya: Then how about this? Zakuro: Wha― Why?! *Mamiya-kun threw his only weapon into the darkness behind him.* Shiroyama: You trying to mock me, you little shit?! *Unsurprisingly, Shiroyama's eyes lit up with anger, like Mamiya-kun had poured oil on the fire.* Kimika: Mamiya... That's just reckless! *Just like Kimika, I had no idea what he was thinking.* Nishimura: Heh, this might actually work out. Megu: Then go fuck him up already! It should be easy to take this guy out! Satoko: Yeah, he doesn't look strong at all. Iida: No... You two can only say that because you've never seen him fight. He threw his knife away because he's confident. Iinuma: No, if we don't get him now, we're just gonna keep getting knocked around by him for the rest of our lives! Iida: I guess so, but... Hmm. Mamiya: You shouldn't be having a strategic meeting right in front of your enemy. Make up your mind. Are you gonna do it or not... Megu: You look pathetic. Show us that you have some balls! He's fucking mocking you. Megu: Come on, Tsubasa. Don't take that shit from him! Shiroyama: Y-Yeah! Mamiya, you little fucker! Mamiya: Hurry up... I only have today left. Starting tomorrow, it looks like someone a bit more peaceful is gonna take the role of Mamiya Takuji. *Today? Role? Peaceful? What's he muttering to himself about?* Mamiya: Come on, if you want to get revenge on me for all the pain I've inflicted on you, now's your last chance. Shiroyama: Yeah, let's do it! We'll beat you to a fucking pulp! Mamiya: Then quit acting tough... and come at me― Shiroyama: Take thiiis! *Shiroyama swung the wooden sword at Mamiya-kun before he even finished his sentence.* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun! Kimika: Ah! Mamiya: Haa... Shiroyama: Agh! *The downward slash of the sword carried through and struck the ground.* *It was a powerful attack, but it also left him open for a long time after he missed.* *Mamiya-kun moved his upper body just enough to dodge the attack, putting him in arm's reach of his opponent.* Shiroyama: Agh! Mamiya: You need a bit more practice with that. Only an amateur would put his whole body into a single swing. Kimika: No way... Zakuro: W-Wow... Mamiya: One must fight to live... It wouldn't hurt you to remember that. *He thrusted his finger into Shiroyama's throat... Shiroyama collapsed on the spot.* Shiroyama: Agh, aahgh... Ah... Gguah, aaogh... Mamiya: This is a real fight, so I won't aim for any point that won't end the fight instantly. Iida: Look... There's no way we can beat him. Nishimura: Damn it! We have to attack him all at once! Iida: I'm out... Mamiya-kun, I wasn't planning on fighting you in the first place. Mamiya: Yeah, no problem... So then what about you, Iinuma? Yokoyama? *Mamiya-kun looked a little disappointed―though still as intimidating as the Devil―as he asked that question.* Nishimura: W-Wait, Iinuma! Kiyoshi! You guys are men, aren't you?! Iinuma: Huh? W-Well, yeah, but... Nishimura: It'll work if we all go at once... Even Mamiya can't stop us all. Mamiya: That's right, you should all attack me at once... What's there to be afraid of when you have all those weapons? Look, I'm totally unarmed. Nishimura: Since you asked so nicely, I'll go ahead and smash your face in! *The frightened men regained their composure. When they signaled each other to attack―* Lowlifes: Aagh! Zakuro: That's Kimika's...? *Just before he was attacked, he pulled a flashlight from behind him and shined it in their eyes.* Mamiya: You really believed I was unarmed? You shouldn't believe everything your opponent tells you. Nishimura: Shit, I can't see... Aaagh! *I heard a loud crack, and then Nishimura, who was standing closest to Mamiya-kun, fell to the ground, howling in pain.* Zakuro: Eh? Just like that? *Mamiya-kun only twisted Nishimura's hands lightly, and yet Nishimura went flying through the air.* *And it wasn't just Nishimura. One by one, the blinded men were taken out. An unpleasant sound rang through the air every time one of them fell to the ground.* Iida: This always happens... Does he study martial arts or what? Mamiya: Yeah... Something like that. *I was shocked to hear his voice so calm as he cut through his enemies, knocking them to the ground one by one.* Mamiya: Looks like the rest of you have your vision back... Iinuma: Huh?! *Iinuma couldn't stop himself from yelling in despair.* *Mamiya-kun had pulled a sword from somewhere to fight the rest of his opponents. He took a flawless defensive stance as he stood in front of them.* Iinuma: W-Wait a second... Is that real? That's not funny... Mamiya: Don't worry. It's real, but the blade is too dull to cut anything. Iinuma: Agh! Mamiya: Look, that didn't hurt at all, did it? *Mamiya-kun slashed diagonally down onto the terrified Iinuma, knocking him to the ground in an instant.* *Even if it doesn't have a blade, hitting someone with forged steel that hard could seriously hurt.* *Iinuma's skull might have broken...* Mamiya: Don't hold back now. Come get your fill, all of you... *Mamiya-kun snickered and waved them closer. The men with weapons charged at him, one after another.* *.........* *I couldn't bear to look at it. I silently looked away.* *......* *I could still hear the merciless sound of human bodies being broken...* *...* Mamiya: Hmm? It's over already? All bark and no bite, huh? *The music of violence came to a stop. When I heard Mamiya-kun's dissatisfaction, I finally turned back toward him.* Zakuro: Ah! Zakuro: Th-This... Mamiya: I gave Shiroyama my special treatment, but I went easy on all the others. Zakuro: But... they're all covered in blood... Mamiya: I guess so. Still, if I didn't do that... *Mamiya-kun smirked.* *His smile sent shivers down my spine.* Megu: No... No, no... No way... Mamiya: Now you two are the only ones left. *Mamiya-kun strode over to the two women who were quivering in fear.* *His expression hadn't changed the entire time. The scariest thing of all was that he could do something like this without even cracking his veneer of elegance.* Mamiya: Now what should I do with these two... *He calmly put away his gleaming sword, took one look at the pale faces of Megu and Satoko, and then asked us what he should do with them.* Mamiya: I could give them the same treatment as Shiroyama, or I could stuff their noses and mouths full of sticks and beat them to a pulp... Mamiya: Or maybe stuff sticks in their ears and punch them... Just remember, whichever way you fall, that's the eardrum that will be ruptured. Megu: Wha―?! Mamiya: I've never had a chance to do it, but I've always wanted to try playing that game with someone. Zakuro: ...... *...What's going on? He was calm before, but I could see his expression changing now.* *It made me feel like he was criticizing himself internally, calling himself useless, even as he fought and crushed all his enemies.* *Just looking at him... felt agonizing. I could hardly breathe.* Zakuro: No, that's enough. Mamiya: ...Takashima. Zakuro: That's enough... You don't need to hurt anyone else. Mamiya: There's... no need? Mamiya: Then I have a question... Is there ever a good reason for a person to hurt another person? Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: You've been bullied for years. You know it better than anyone... And you, Tachibana. Kimika: ...Mamiya. Mamiya: Haa... I lost my cool there, huh? Mamiya: Well, whatever. If you're satisfied, then that's good enough. Oh, and― *Mamiya-kun turned around like he remembered something. Something small danced across the ground and landed near Kimika's hand.* Kimika: My Extreme Tanto... *That was definitely the same folding knife he stole from Kimika.* *But it was open when he threw it away. He must have closed it with his hand as he threw it, since it was shut now.* Mamiya: It has our fingerprints on it, so we don't want to leave it laying around. Kimika: Oh, yeah. *Kimika slowly reached out and grabbed it, then she put it in her pocket without a second glance.* Mamiya: See ya. *He had already turned away from us and started walking when he said his goodbye.* Zakuro: ... Kimika: ... *I should have said something back to him, but... I hesitated to say farewell. I just silently watched as his form disappeared into the darkness.* Megu: Ah... Ah... Satoko: Ah... Ahhh... *Megu and Satoko had fallen to the ground. They looked at the two of us, trying and failing to convince their mouths to form words.* *They were unharmed themselves, but they were terrified after they watched all the men fighting for them crumple like dolls.* Zakuro: Kimika, can you stand? Kimika: I'm okay... Zakuro: All right. Let's go home together. *She looked unsteady on her feet, so I moved closer and wrapped her arm around my shoulders.* Kimika: Ooh... I was so powerless... Zakuro: What are you talking about? Kimika: In the end, I couldn't protect you... I couldn't do anything... Zakuro: That's not true... That's not true at all... *I tried to soothe her as she looked away and cried. I had to stop myself from embracing her right there.* *I would probably just hurt her if I hugged her now, since she was injured, and I didn't want to hurt her pride either.* *Until now, I've always felt like my life was a living hell, as if I was about to be crushed by my perpetual fear. But now, that's all changed. I've made a wonderful friend.* *.........* *......* *...*

Zakuro: I'm... human... I'm... human... Zakuro: I'm sorry... I'm sorry, God... Zakuro: I know I'm an eyesore... I'll try not to draw attention to myself, so... Zakuro: I know I'm an eyesore... I'll try not to draw attention to myself, so... Megu: What's with her? Is she acting like she's broken? Satoko: Whoa... I think she really is. Zakuro: Ah... I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I won't do anything... Satoko: But... couldn't this get us in trouble? Megu: How? Satoko: Just look at her... This could be bad. Megu: Like I said, what's the problem?! Satoko: If anyone finds out about yesterday... That was totally a crime. Megu: What are you talking about? We didn't do anything. Tsubasa and those idiots did it all. Besides, you saw her, that was totally consensual. Satoko: ...Yeah, it looked like she was enjoying it, but it might be a problem if someone finds out we drugged her, don't you think? Zakuro: I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm just... Megu: It'll be fine. She came to school and everything. Satoko: I guess so, but... she always comes to school, even if she's sick. Maybe her parents are real tightwads? Megu: Then her parents probably just think she caught a cold or something, you know? Megu: Yeah, let's leave it up to her parents. I'm sure she'll be fine tomorrow. People are surprisingly resilient, after all. Satoko: Yeah, I've heard that. Megu: Yeah, sometimes I get like crazy depressed. It just hits me like a brick and I can't do shit. Just makes me want to off myself or something. Megu: But after a few days, I get over it. Satoko: She'll be fine if she just hangs out with her friends for a few days. Megu: Yeah. My first time was with some random guy I didn't know too, but I'm still alive. Satoko: Yeah, I heard you got fucked by some of the guys in your club, right? Megu: Yeah, a whole bunch of them all at once, and I was still a virgin, too. Zakuro: I won't ask for anything again... I won't dream anymore... *Nothing...* *I won't ask for anything...* *Never again...* *Mamiya-kun...* *Mamiya-kun...* *I...* *I'm worthless now that I'm not a virgin, right?* *I can't ask for anything...* *I can't ask for anything.* *A worm doesn't deserve anything.* *I won't ask for anything.* *I'm just a filthy bug... A pile of shit...* *I'm nothing more than a moist hole. I should've known I was going to get raped...* *Mamiya-kun will never want to touch me now...* *Because I'm filthy.* *Because I've been dirtied.* *Because I stink.* *Because I'm a whore.* *Because I'm diseased.* *Because I'm a worm.* *I should have never loved.* *I'm just here to be raped.* *I might as well go satisfy some other guy's sexual desires.* *I might as well die.* *I might as well rot and die.* *So maggots can eat my flesh.* *So I can rot and disappear.* *I should just rot...* *And die.* *A moist hole...* *Go die...* Zakuro: No... I don't want to die... *Your life has no value. Go die.* Zakuro: I'm sorry, I'm sorry... I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I don't want to die... *Are you still talking?* *Gross.* *You're just a hole.* *Go die.* *Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die Die* Zakuro: I don't want to die... Why me? *Because you're a worm.* *Because you're a moist hole.* *Because you're an ugly bitch.* *Because you're a worm, because you're a moist hole, because you're an ugly bitch, because you're a worm, because you're a moist hole, because you're an ugly bitch, because you're a worm, because you're a moist hole, because you're an ugly bitch.* *Because your life is worthless.* *　　 Because you're gross.* *　　　　　　　　　　 Because you're not human.* Zakuro: I'm human... I'm human... I'm human I'm human I'm human I'm human I'm human I'm I'm I'm I'm... *Shut up.* *Gross.* *Nasty whore.* *uglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycuntuglycunt.* *ugly cunt lol* *　　　　　　　　　　nonvirgin lol* *　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　fleshy hole lol* Zakuro: I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I... I'm sorry... I, I, I... Zakuro: Please, God... God: What? Zakuro: I, I... God: Jesus fucking christ, what's stinking this place up? God: Is that you? God: God damn. Zakuro: I... I... I... I, I- God: I'm God. God: I'm the amazing all-powerful God. God: I can answer your questions, doubts, Copernicuses. Zakuro: I won't... I won't ask you for anything ever again... I, I... God: Oh, really? So you're done coveting your neighbors, then?! Zakuro: So, so, so... God: Then would you stop breathing in all my damn air *For fuck's sake!"* God: God damn! Zakuro: I don't want to die. I don't want to die... I don't want to die... I won't ask you for anything else. I don't want to die... God: Hoo boy～ God: I liiieeed, teehee, teehee～ God: What's wrong, Takashima Zakuro-chan? If you keep crying, something might pop out and GET YOU! WHEELCHAIR! RELIGIOUS REVOLUTION! God: That'll be 30 yen. Zakuro: I-I can't... I... God: If you pay me 30 yen, I'll save your soul. Zakuro: Y-You'll save my soul? God: Sow you want me to shave your soul?! God: Sell your soul, just 30 yen! God: You already sold your body! Zakuro: I didn't sell it... I didn't sell my body... I... God: You whore! Zakuro: That's not true... That's not true... I, I... That's not true... God: Yes, it's not true, is it? God: I totally agree with you. God: I would totally make a new pedigree with you. God: And by that I mean I'd have sex with you! God: And sex is a metaphor for me fucking you! God: Fuck! Come on, you love to get down, right? You're a dirty girl, love to shaaaagggg! Scream for me, tell me you want your little cunt filled! Zakuro: I don't... I hate that stuff... I don't want any of that... God: I understand. God: But you wanted to fuck Mamiya-kun, didn't you? Zakuro: I-I didn't want... I... God: You liar! God: He got your pussy nice and wet, didn't he?! Zakuro: That's not true! I just liked Mamiya-kun, that's all. I, I― God: Calm down, calm down. God: It'll all be okay. I know you're a pure girl at heart. God: I know everything. For instance, I know that your cunt smells like rotten fish right now. Zakuro: That's awful... Don't say that... I can't take it... God: Don't worry about it. I mean, anyone's cunt would smell after that. Zakuro: I don't smell... That's not me... God: Of course it smells. You had like ten guys put their dicks in you last night! It's probably the nastiest cunt in all of creation! Zakuro: Wha―?! God: You were a pure girl with a cunt that didn't smell until last night. Your cunt is probably going to reek for the rest of your life now, though. God: It's a new show, airing at 11! Takashima Zakurero, the girl with a smelly cunt! God: I liieeeed, teehee, teehee～ God: Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha! *Now my entire life is...* *There's nothing left for me...* *So now I... I can't... I can't...* God: That's not true! God: There's an infinite array of possibilities laid out before you. God: As God, I can assure you. God: There are unlimited possibilities within your grasp! God: 30 yen! *It felt like my head was going to split open.* *It's because I didn't get any sleep... Because I didn't get any sleep... Because I didn't get any sleep... That's why this is happening...* *It's not like I'm going crazy or anything.* *My head...* *My head... My head... My head...* God: 30 yen for head! 30,000 yen for the body! That's just common sense for a whore! God: The cost of living is too high! Who the heck is running this place? God: But your body only costs as much as a room at the love hotel! So cheap! Better buy now before it's gone! God: You just love to fuck! God: Why don't you try saying it? It's wool. Zakuro: I don't love to fuck... I don't love to fuck... I don't love to fuck... God: All the cool kids call it the bedtop sport for indoor types. I'll have to write that one down, GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. God: On the roof.. * GUESS WHO'S HERE!"* God: The sky's so far up! Smoking is so much fun! The special express is a NO SMOKING ZONE! Zakuro: Ah! Mamiya-kun! *I ran over to the other rooftop.* Mamiya: ...Huh? You're... *Mamiya-kun looked up at me with a kind smile.* Zakuro: I'm Takashima Zakuro! I love you, Mamiya-kun! Mamiya: But you're not a virgin, are you? Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: I'm not interested in used goods. Mamiya: Someone needs to take out the trash. Mamiya: You're garbage! Zakuro: U-Um... Cyrano de... Mamiya: Oh, that book I lent you stinks to high heaven. Stinky, stinky, stinky, stinky, stinky. It smells like whore. Zakuro: N-No, I bathed over and over last night. Mamiya-kun... I washed and washed. Mamiya: Then I guess it was worth lending it to you, huh? Mamiya: Go ahead... Say Cyrano's line... Zakuro: U-Um... A poet! Mamiya: A slut! Mamiya: A whore! Mamiya: A worm... Mamiya: And... a slimy, wet hole... God: I'm God. Zakuro: Ah... Aaah... God: I can see right through you! God: You think you're special cuz you read Cyrano de Bergerac?! I bet you spend all day reading porn on your cellphone! God: I bet Cyrano's smooth, flowing prose gets you wet like a Catholic schoolgirl! Zakuro: That's not true... That's not true... I'm... I'm not... Zakuro: That's a lie, that's a lie, that's a lie... Don't say that, don't say that, don't say that... Zakuro: N-No... Nooo... *"Yo, Mamiya."* *"Sh-Shiroyama-kun..."* *"What are you so scared of?"* *"No, i-it's nothing..."* Zakuro: ... *That's Mamiya-kun...* *Someone was bullying him.* *"We're friends, aren't we?"* *"So lend your good ol' friend a few bucks."* *"B-But I just gave you some money yesterday..."* *"Yeah... I really appreciated it too."* *"He was almost there, didn't you see it? Then he fell from his fucking horse. That race was totally fixed. Don't you think so?"* *"Uh, yeah..."* *"He would've won if they hadn't fixed the race... So gimme some more."* *"B-But, I..."* *There was no way for him to rebuff the bully.* *He couldn't do anything.* *He looked pathetic...* *Just like me.* *"Your buddy is having some financial trouble... You can help me out, right?"* *"..."* *"I'll give it back once I win... Haven't you heard about this baby? I bought this Rolex with my winnings last time."* *"What are you trying to say?"* *"You've, uh... been saying you were gonna pay me back for a while now."* *"Huh? The fuck did you say?"* *"Nothing, sorry, sorry, it was nothing..."* *"Shut up and give me the money already."* *"Um... Wouldn't that girl have money too? I think her name was Takashima Zakuro?"* *"Wow, she has stonking big tits."* *"She's only good for fucking. It's your job to pay up. You're my wallet."* *"Oh, sorry..."* *He's the worst...* *He's the same...* *Just like all the others...* *That's right...* *This is how they treat the one person I really like.* *That must be it...* *The fake one was the cool, smart Mamiya-kun.* *I couldn't make that Mamiya-kun into the real one.* *Just like that, weak people live their entire lives being stepped on by the strong.* *That's the worst...* *Everything here is awful...* *"Wouldn't it be easier if you just jumped?"* Zakuro: ... *"But... you should open your eyes."* Zakuro: ...Shut up. *"It's right in front of you. If you just open your eyes, you'll understand..."* Zakuro: ... *"If you don't..."* Zakuro: Just... leave me alone... Zakuro: I don't care... do whatever you want... *"You'll die..."* Zakuro: No! Ayana: Have you opened your eyes? Zakuro: You're... Ayana: Otonashi Ayana... Zakuro: Why... Zakuro: Have I been... dreaming this whole time? Zakuro: Th-That's it... That was all a dream... It must have been. God: Stick a prick in her! Zakuro: Ah! Ayana: You don't need to listen to that... It has no power. God: I have way too much power. I am God. Ayana: It can't do anything, so it crawls inside people's hearts like that. It's completely powerless. Zakuro: Y-You're... Ayana: Otonashi Ayana. Zakuro: What is this? Am I insane? Why is he so big? He's taller than a skyscraper! How is that possible? Ayana: Who knows? I'm not a doctor, so how would I know? Zakuro: But... You can see him too, right? Ayana: Then the answer is simple... Ayana: 1... Neither you nor I is insane. Ayana: 2... You and I are both insane... Ayana: Which would you prefer? Zakuro: Don't screw with me! God: Yeah, just stick it in! Zakuro Cutter! God: Oh, it's in your pocket, by the way. Zakuro: ... *When I searched my pockets, I found a box cutter.* God: That's right! The infamous Zakuro Cutter can even cut through paper! What an amazing weapon! Good luck! Ayana: You can't kill someone with a box cutter. Zakuro: I never asked if you could... God: Aim for the eyes! That's the weak spot! Zakuro: Answer me! Zakuro: Why does this only happen to me?! Why?! Why?! God: And this is the Zakuro Ear! God: Extract the information from her with your Zakuro Ear! Zakuro: Zakuro Ear...? Zakuro: Why is this happening to me?! God: Maybe you should... check your inbox! Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: I got a text. Ayana: ...Why don't you read it? *...* *―――――――――――――――――――――――* *2012/7/10 12:52* *from: Usami* *subject: PS* *―――――――――――――――――――――――* *You've probably suffered for a long time.* ** *But the only reason you're suffering is because your existence is correct.* *You suffer because you're correct.* *But the incorrect person who is tormenting you will die.* ** *Soon, one of your problems will disappear.* Zakuro: This is... God: I think so too. God: You won't die because you're the one who's correct! God: Evil will be destroyed. Zakuro: ...The person tormenting me... Zakuro: The person tormenting me... Zakuro: Is really... Zakuro: It's because you're all wrong! Zakuro: All of you! Zakuro: Akasaka and Kitami... and Kimika... and Mamiya-kun, too... Zakuro: And you, Otonashi Ayana! Are you here to torment me too?! Ayana: Why would you think that? Zakuro: Just talking to you... makes me feel like I'm going insane. Ayana: But you've been like that since before you met me. Zakuro: Ah! Ayana: Didn't it all start when you got raped by those men? Zakuro: Huh? Ayana: Wasn't it because you got raped? Zakuro: ...Ra...ped... Zakuro: I... got... Ayana: Spread out on the bed like a sex doll... They could do whatever they wanted... Zakuro: Ah... Aah... God: Now! Aim for the eyes! Zakuro: NOOOOO!! Zakuro: I, I, I, I... Zakuro: That's right... I was raped... by those men, by those men... I, I, I... Zakuro: Defiled, defiled, defiled, defiled, defiled, defiled... defiled, defiled... Zakuro: Filthy, filthy, filthy, filthy, filthy, filthy, filthy... Zakuro: I... I, I'm... Zakuro: Huh?! Zakuro: What? Zakuro: What is this? Zakuro: What is this ominous thing? Zakuro: This is... God: Take a good look out the window. God: Look out the window. Zakuro: ...This is... *A great, black shadow... covering the sky...* *An endless black gloom...* *Like the world's twilight...* *A gloomy scene...* Zakuro: I've seen this before... Zakuro: In a dream once... Zakuro: Or... Zakuro: Much further in the past... God: End Sky. *A silhouette fell from the sky.* *The shape of a human.* *A silhouette, shaped like a human, fell from the sky, just like that.* *And broke upon the ground...* *A terrible sound...* *He must have literally been full of shit.* *That was what it sounded like.* Female Student: Aaahhh! Male Student: Someone jumped off the roof! Zakuro: He... jumped... Zakuro: Someone fell from the sky... and died. Zakuro: Fell from the sky... and splattered on the ground... Male Student: Seriously?! Zakuro: Yes, seriously... I saw it... Male Student: Huh? What happened? Female Student: Where, where? Zakuro: Everyone crowded at the window... Zakuro: Like flies to carrion... Zakuro: They're all so happy... Zakuro: They love the smell of rotting flesh... Zakuro: They're all insane... They're all so filthy... They all look like worms... Zakuro: That's why... they're all having so much fun... Zakuro: Because they're just bugs... Zakuro: Because they're the cockroaches... that are tormenting me... Male Student: That's... Male Student: Is that... Shiroyama, from class three? Male Student: That's him! That's Shiroyama! Female Student: Why did he jump? Male Student: Like I know! Zakuro: Shiroyama? Zakuro: Oh, Akasaka Megu's boyfriend... Zakuro: He died... Zakuro: So that's who... Zakuro: That's it... That makes sense... Zakuro: He was one of the people who raped me, after all. Zakuro: He was one of the people who trampled me underfoot. Zakuro: I'm the one who's correct... Zakuro: He's a cockroach... He couldn't forgive me for being better than him... Zakuro: So will the others die too? Zakuro: The ones that were with him... What about that guy called Numada? And of course, Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko... Zakuro: They'll all die, right? Zakuro: Hehe... Hehehehehe... Die... Die... Zakuro: Smear your brains across the sidewalk... Break every bone in your body... Not like it'll be a big loss. All you fuckers have are cockroach brains, after all. Zakuro: Your bodies are full of excrement. Zakuro: We don't need you... You just stink. *'One of your problems will disappear tomorrow.'* *One of my problems...* *He was one of my problems...* *But it's not enough...* *I have more than one problem...* *I have far more than that.* *Far more people... have to die.* *Far more worms have to be crushed.* Zakuro: Ah... I have to send her a response. Zakuro: Um... Oh, here it is. Usami-san's message... Zakuro: Um... Zakuro: Thank you very much... Thanks to you, one of my problems has been solved. Zakuro: But I still have many more problems. Will they be solved too? Zakuro: If they aren't solved, I might just go crazy. Zakuro: I'm eagerly awaiting your next message. Zakuro: Ehehehe... Ayana: Takashima-san... Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: You're... Otonashi Ayana-san... Ayana: Takashima-san, are you going that way? Zakuro: Where do you think I'm going? Ayana: Down the wrong path. Zakuro: Huh? What are you talking about? Now you're telling me I'm wrong too... Ayana: Shiroyama-kun's death isn't what you think it is. Zakuro: Then what is it? Ayana: Numada-kun and Shiroyama-kun always do chin-ups on the roof. Zakuro: Chin-ups? Hmm, really... Zakuro: So then... what do you think I believe about his death? Ayana: That was just an accident. It would be better if you just believed it was an accident. Zakuro: Is there such a thing as just an accident? Can't you come up with plenty of reasons leading to any accident? Ayana: If you don't stop here... everything will begin to move. Zakuro: Begin to move? Ayana: Your choice is probably... incredibly dangerous. Zakuro: Dangerous? Ayana: Yes... Your choice will affect the fate of many other people. Zakuro: So I really can influence people's fates... Zakuro: That's it. It must be because I'm different from these cockroaches. Ayana: You're wrong. Zakuro: No, I'm not. Ayana: ... Zakuro: I'm correct! Zakuro: That's why he died! Zakuro: That's it! That's why he died! *I'm correct.* *I'm not wrong.* *In a world of cockroaches, only I am human.* *That's why I suffer.* *They should all die.* *Die painfully...* Zakuro: A text... Zakuro: A text message... Zakuro: Ah! *I quickly pulled out my phone.* *Usami had already replied to my message.* Zakuro: Um... Oh, it really is from Usami... Zakuro: ... Zakuro: What's this? Zakuro: Takashima-san, you're wrong... Zakuro: Wha―?! *This again...* *So she's... the same.* *...* Zakuro: ... *Then I skimmed over the rest of the message.* *...* Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: So that's... my mistake... Zakuro: I... *So...* *I was mistaken... That's all...* *I have to meet her...* *I have to... meet my allies...* *I must.* *I must meet them.* *So that I can learn the true reason behind my mistake.*

Kimika: Everyone's looking at us... Zakuro: Ahaha, they are... *The atmosphere in the classroom was as uncomfortable as ever.* *But the hate from before had disappeared. It had been replaced with confusion and ostracization.* *Of course, the confusion stemmed from the incident last night.* *It was huge... We could only thank our lucky stars that we were alive today and that the police hadn't gotten involved.* Kimika: It's different from before, but the atmosphere here still doesn't feel very good. Zakuro: Ahahaha... You might be right. *It didn't feel like we were being bullied anymore, but... it was like we had become objects of fear, like Akasaka-san and Kitami-san had been before.* *After the two of us checked that our seats were safe to sit in, Kimika whispered in my ear.* Kimika: Satoko and Megu aren't here today, huh? Zakuro: You're right... Maybe they're just not here yet? Kimika: Not yet, huh... Do you really think they'll come to school after that? Zakuro: They weren't injured or anything... Kimika: They weren't injured, but their pride definitely took a hit. They brought together all those people and they still couldn't beat one guy. Zakuro: Yeah... Kimika: Mamiya Takuji really was strong. I'd heard rumors, but... Zakuro: Yeah, but I heard rumors he used to get bullied too... Kimika: I wonder which one it is... Though, there's no way he just took up martial arts recently. He must have been practicing since he was a child to do that. Zakuro: I guess so... Kimika: Yeah... It was almost like Aikido, but Aikido isn't useful in an actual fight unless you do it for fifty years. Zakuro: Fifty years? Kimika: Yeah, no matter how talented you are, you can't use Aikido in a real fight without tons of training. Zakuro: Then what about Mamiya-kun? Kimika: He must have been doing it since he was really young... and he's obviously been in a lot of fights too. Kimika: I don't think it's possible he was ever bullied... I bet he spread that rumor himself so people wouldn't know he was such a thug. Zakuro: He spread it himself? *I wonder... He definitely was strong last night, but the Mamiya-kun I've always known wasn't like that.* *I don't know how to describe it...* Kimika: Haa... You've been thinking about him all day, haven't you? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: No surprise, I guess... He was the one who actually saved you, after all. Of course you'd be thinking about him... *Her face looked really sad for some reason.* *She must really hate Mamiya-kun...* Zakuro: But he's a good person. He even gave you back your knife. Kimika: Yeah, I guess so. Zakuro: I don't think he was a bad person like you said. Kimika: I know, I know... I know that much. Sorry, I guess I said something weird. *She still didn't have a good impression of Mamiya-kun, even after he saved us... It was like she hated him even more for doing it.* Zakuro: Do you still hate him? Kimika: Hate him, huh.. * I still don't like him. I know that sounds strange, since he just saved us... and besides that..."* Zakuro: Besides that? Kimika: I'm just frustrated by my own impotence. Kimika: Oh, it's nothing... That's not important.. * More importantly, he called you his toy. He's the worst."* Zakuro: Oh, uh... That was probably just a figure of speech. Kimika: I still can't forgive him... All men are total pigs, not just Mamiya. After last night, I know that better than ever. Zakuro: Haa... *Why does she dislike him so much? It always looked like they were getting along when they talked, too...* *Actually... is Mamiya-kun at school today?* *He wasn't injured after the incident last night, so there's no reason for him to skip school.* *Though he did say something strange.* Mamiya: Hurry up... I only have today left. Starting tomorrow, it looks like someone a bit more peaceful is gonna take the role of Mamiya Takuji. Mamiya: Come on, if you want to get revenge on me for all the pain I've inflicted on you, now's your last chance. *What did he mean by that?* *Those words seemed out of place.* *Why would he say it's their last chance?* Kimika: ... Kimika: If you're that worried, why don't you go look for him? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: He's probably on the roof, right? Kimika: You have a lot you want to ask him... A lot you want to talk to him about, right? *Kimika smiled gently.* Zakuro: Yeah... Thank you. *But I wonder why her expression looks sadder every time I look at her.* Zakuro: Y-Yeah... Kimika: You probably want to know what he meant when he said 'last chance,' right? Zakuro: Yeah... I can't stop thinking about it. Kimika: Ahaha... You're so honest, Zakuro. Kimika: Shouldn't you go ask him right now, then? You have to do it before it's too late. There are too many things in this world that can slip through your fingers if you don't grab them when the opportunity presents itself. Kimika: I think... there's something you need to say to him before it's too late. Zakuro: ... Kimika: Ahaha, don't look at me like that. I'm just talking in generalities. I'm not telling you to do anything. I just thought there might be something like that you wanted to say. Kimika: Anyway, you should go see him... Go talk to him. Kimika: And... Kimika: He's the one who can really protect you... There's no guarantee Akasaka and Kitami won't try to get revenge again. Zakuro: But then what about you? Shouldn't you go too? Kimika: I don't want him to save me again! I'll manage on my own! Zakuro: Ah! Kimika: Oh, sorry.. * Why did I just shout like that? Maybe I'm still on edge because of what happened yesterday..."* Zakuro: Kimika... Kimika: Anyway, just go... It's gonna be lunchtime soon. Heck, if you two want to go the infirmary for fifth period, I'll cover for you. *After she said that... she looked down, avoiding eye contact with me.* *Why?* *We're finally free from the bullying... What's she so upset about?* *I was a bit confused...* *Akasaka-san and Kitami-san didn't come to school that morning... All of the students who got beaten up by Mamiya-kun were absent.* *I heard rumors that some of them were hospitalized.* *At noon, Kimika went to buy some bread. She didn't say a word to me.* *I decided to take her suggestion and head to the rooftop.* Mamiya: ... *He was reading, like always.* Zakuro: Hello... *I was always frightened when I talked to him before, but this time I managed to say hello in a calm voice.* Mamiya: Haa... You again? *He looked at me like I was a pest... He seemed like the Mamiya-kun from last night.* Zakuro: Is today's Mamiya the version that's not acting? Mamiya: ...What do you want? Zakuro: I don't want anything... I just wanted to say thank you. Mamiya: I don't need your thanks. That was just a game to me. You could say that's one of my hobbies... Zakuro: That's one of your... hobbies? Mamiya: Yeah... My hobby is hurting people. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: Yeah... Zakuro: But you didn't hurt me. You actually protected me... Mamiya: It's no fun hurting someone like you. You're already powerless... It's more fun to beat up the strongest people I can find. That's all. *I looked at the book he was reading...* *As always, it looked like a really hard book to read.* Zakuro: What are you reading today? Mamiya: What's it matter... It has nothing to do with you. Zakuro: Um... It's says, 'On Learned Ignorance'... Mamiya: Haa... Yeah, that's right. It's by Nicolaus Cusanus. Zakuro: What's it about? Mamiya: It's a theology book... Zakuro: Theology? Like Christianity and stuff like that? Mamiya: Yeah... Something like that. Zakuro: Um, are you a Christian, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: Why would you think that? I hate religion... *He spoke without a hint of emotion in his voice until he got to the word 'religion,' which he spoke with disgust.* *Does he really hate religion?* Zakuro: Y-You hate it? Ahaha, I'm sorry... I just thought that might be why you're reading that... Mamiya: Is there any reason someone who hates religion shouldn't read theology? Zakuro: Oh, no, I don't think that at all... S-So, is it fun reading stuff you hate? Mamiya: Not at all. Zakuro: It's not? Mamiya: It's too complicated. I don't know what any of it means... Zakuro: Too complicated? But you're still reading it? Mamiya: Yeah. Zakuro: What kind of book is it? Mamiya: Just what it says on the cover... Zakuro: Then it's about learned ignorance? Mamiya: That's right. Zakuro: Is that so... *This hardly even qualifies as a conversation...* *He keeps analyzing everything I say... He's totally different from the Mamiya-kun I met here before.* *How can I make this conversation work? We have to have a real conversation if I want to talk to him about anything.* *...Maybe if I ask him some questions?* Zakuro: Um, what parts don't you understand? Mamiya: Pretty much all of it... Zakuro: O-Oh... B-But, specifically... Mamiya: ... *Mamiya-kun glared at me.* *Sh-Shoot... I guess I was too persistent.* Mamiya: For example, let's say there's a circle on a plane. Zakuro: Okay... Mamiya: Take any point on the perimeter of the circle and expand the circle from there... What would happen? Zakuro: It would be bigger than the first. Mamiya: Yes... The edge of the new circle would look like a curved line, right? But what would happen if the circle was infinitely large? Zakuro: Eh? An infinitely large circle? Um, the curvature would gradually decrease... Mamiya: Yeah, that's right. As the circle grows larger, it comes closer to being a straight line. Mamiya: But what would happen if it was infinitely large? Zakuro: What would happen? Mamiya: Cusanus said it would become a perfectly straight line. Zakuro: Would it? Mamiya: Yeah, mathematically it has to be a straight line. If you take any two points AB on the perimeter of a circle and call the midpoint C and the point within a tighter circle D... Well, I guess it would be easiest to think of it as the curvature becoming infinitely small. Zakuro: R-Really? Mamiya: You probably learned it in class, when we learned about repeating decimals. Zakuro: Um... did we? Mamiya: Well, there are a lot of students who can't understand that 0.999 is equal to one. The teachers hate teaching it because so many students refuse to accept it. Zakuro: 0.999... is a number with an infinite number of nines, right? Is it really equal to 1? Mamiya: The theory behind it is kind of complicated, but it's not hard to understand intuitively with fractions... For instance, 1/3 = 0.333... Zakuro: Yes. Mamiya: Then 2/3 is of course equal to 0.666... Mamiya: Then if we multiply 1/3 by 3, 3/3 = 0.999... That should make sense. Zakuro: H-Huh? I guess so, but that's really strange... 3/3 is supposed to be 1. Mamiya: Then what part was wrong? Zakuro: What part was wrong... Uh... Mamiya: You won't be able to come up with anything. There's no mistake. Mamiya: If you accept that 1/3 = 0.333..., then you have to accept that 3/3 = 0.999... Mamiya: Then the only way to solve the contradiction of 3/3 being equal to both 1 and 0.999... is to accept one simple thing: that 0.999 is equal to 1. Mamiya: In other words, the repeating decimal 0.999 is in fact not slightly smaller than 1, but actually identical to it. That's what infinity means. Mamiya: Cusanus' example of a circle follows the exact same pattern if you think of it as the distance between C and D... Zakuro: I-I see... *I don't get it at all... I heard his grades weren't good, but I guess he really is smart.* *And besides...* Zakuro: When I asked you, you said you didn't understand that book at all... You wouldn't be able to give that kind of explanation if you didn't understand it. Mamiya: Yeah, you're right. Zakuro: Wh-What don't you understand about it? Mamiya: Well, I just find that stuff really interesting... He was a Cardinal, a mathematician, and a philosopher, and he had a great influence on the philosophers that came after him. Mamiya: According to him, his idea that the curvature of an infinitely large circle forms a straight line is perfectly consistent with the logic of our finite world. Mamiya: Infinity can solve any contradiction within our world. Zakuro: Within infinity, all contradictions cease to be contradictions... Mamiya: So then, this is the problem... Why was he so fascinated with infinity? What was the infinity that he spoke of? Zakuro: Um, he was a theologist. Does that mean he was talking about God? Mamiya: That's right. This book basically says there's only one God. A single infinite being... In other words, it's a book that tried to prove that God is infinite. Mamiya: Just like 0.999 is equal to one, God is one and everything... *O-Oh... I don't get it.* Zakuro: Um, that's kind of hard for me to understand, but... it seems like you understand it just fine, doesn't it? Mamiya: No, I don't understand it at all... Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: For instance, Cusanus says there's one single infinity... But that's a lie. Zakuro: It's a lie? Mamiya: Yeah, there are different kinds of infinities... Georg Cantor discovered that 400 years after Cusanus' death. Mamiya: Infinities have density... It can be proven with the diagonal argument. Mamiya: Cusanus said that there is one infinite God... but in reality there are different kinds of infinity. Mamiya: And more importantly, his book doesn't even prove the existence of God. Mamiya: His claim that all contradictions cease to become contradictions within infinity doesn't prove his claim that God exists. Mamiya: And he used a triangle to prove the justice of the Trinity... *Um... Um... I can't follow his explanation.* *He was a theologist and a mathematician, and he tried to use math to prove the existence of God... Is that right?* *Then what's a Cantor?* *Calm down... Calm down and think...* *First of all...* Zakuro: Um, what's a Cantor? Is it some kind of software? Did you install it? Mamiya: Haa... *Oh, no... He doesn't look happy...* Mamiya: What do you want? I've been trying to drive you away by going on and on about stuff you wouldn't understand... Mamiya: And yet you still keep trying to continue the conversation? Zakuro: Um, do you mind if I sit next to you? Mamiya: Yes, I do. *Oh, he rejected me just like that... But I won't give up.* Zakuro: Then what about across from you... Mamiya: Don't sit across from me either. Zakuro: Then how about... behind you? Mamiya: Are you gonna stare at my back? That would be creepy. Zakuro: Huh? You don't mind? Mamiya: Of course I mind... That's even worse than the others. Zakuro: Um, do you really want nothing to do with me? Mamiya: Haa... You really are a stubborn woman. Zakuro: I'm sorry... I just wanted to know more about you... Mamiya: Why do you need to know more about me? Zakuro: I don't need a reason just to learn about you, do I? Zakuro: And besides, why are you reading a book you don't like? Mamiya: I don't read books I don't like... Zakuro: That's a lie! Earlier, when I asked if you were having fun reading that book, you said, 'Not at all'! *When I used a much stronger tone than before, Mamiya-kun looked surprised for a moment, and then he laughed.* Mamiya: Hehehe... You're a strange woman. Why are you taking me so seriously? *Mamiya-kun looked up at the sky.* Mamiya: All right. It might be nice to talk to someone at the end. Zakuro: A-At the end? Are you going to transfer to a different school? Mamiya: No, I'm not transferring. Zakuro: Th-Then... *He shouldn't say 'the end' like that... It sounds like he's sick, or he's going to commit suicide. He shouldn't say that.* Mamiya: Don't worry. Mamiya Takuji won't die. You'll probably be able to meet him any time you want... and he'll probably be much kinder than I am now... Mamiya: So nothing bad is going to happen... Zakuro: I-I don't understand what you mean. Or rather... Zakuro: I don't understand anything about you! Mamiya: You don't, huh... Zakuro: Yes, you leave me with a different impression every time we meet... Mamiya: A different impression, huh... I guess so. Zakuro: Yes, your personality, your hobbies, your actions... everything about you changes too much from time to time. Mamiya: ...I guess so. Zakuro: Now that I think of it... the Christian that Roxanne knew looked like one person, but in reality had the body of Christian and the mind of Cyrano... Zakuro: He wasn't one person... He was acted out by two different people. Zakuro: Neither the handsome Christian nor the intelligent Cyrano could attract the attention of Roxanne, who was both beautiful and smart. Mamiya: Cyrano de Bergerac, huh? Zakuro: Oh! We have our pockets full. Our lady-loves,―phantasms of our brains,―Dream-fancies blown into soap-bubbles! Zakuro: Come! Take it, and change Zakuro: feigned love-words into true. Zakuro: I breathed my sighs and moans haphazard-wise; Call all these wandering love-birds home to nest. Zakuro: Come! Take it. You'll see that I was in these lettered lines, Zakuro: ―Eloquent all the more, the less sincere! Mamiya: So you read it enough times to recite it from memory... Zakuro: Yes, I read it over and over. Mamiya: Why would you read the same book so many times? Zakuro: You read it over and over too, didn't you? Mamiya: ... Zakuro: So I wanted to find out what you were really thinking when you said you liked this book. Mamiya: I see. So you want to know what he thought when he read Cyrano de Bergerac... So I've read it over and over, huh? Mamiya: And? When you read Cyrano... what did you think? Zakuro: I thought a lot of things, but there were a ton of things that applied to you... or rather, places where you overlapped with the text. Mamiya: Overlapped, huh... Okay, for instance, what? Zakuro: There were two men who changed feigned love words into true... It was the one imaginary man who Roxanne loved. Mamiya: And how does that overlap with Mamiya Takuji? Zakuro: U-Um, do you have a twin, Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: A twin? Zakuro: Th-That happens sometimes in manga, right? It seems like there's someone who looks exactly like someone else... and it turns out it's that person's twin, for instance... Mamiya: Hehehehehe... I see, a twin, huh? So your theory is that Mamiya Takuji has a twin... Zakuro: Oh, but... *The Mamiya-kun I met underground was completely different too, so that would make three of them...* Zakuro: Excuse me, I want to revise my theory. Mamiya: How so? Zakuro: Are you triplets? Or maybe there's one real Mamiya-kun and two lookalikes? Mamiya: ... Mamiya: All right... Triplets, or two lookalikes. That would be pretty convenient, wouldn't it? It would make it really easy to skip school. Zakuro: Are you saying... I'm completely wrong? Mamiya: Who knows? Maybe you're on the right track... Mamiya: Okay, then... In order to get closer to the beautiful woman, Roxanne, they needed two personalities, one who was handsome and one who was intelligent. Mamiya: Hmm, I think you've convinced me... I think now I can understand why she loved reading Cyrano so much. Zakuro: She? Mamiya: That's right... Me, and her, and finally, Mamiya Takuji... Maybe it was necessary for us to accomplish something. Zakuro: To accomplish something? *Accomplish something... So Mamiya-kun needed a body double to accomplish something?* *In other words, there's more than one Mamiya-kun.* *That must be it.* Zakuro: Um, Mamiya-kun, do you all have different names? Mamiya: ... *He didn't answer. He just looked at my face...* Zakuro: Would you tell me the name of today's Mamiya-kun? Mamiya: I can't do that... Zakuro: Why? I want to know your real name. Mamiya: My real name, huh... Mamiya: Let me ask you this, since you read Cyrano so many times you can recite it from memory. Did Cyrano, who acted as Christian's mind, wish for Roxanne to know who he was? Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: When Cyrano died, Roxanne found out that he had been the source of Christian's wit, but it was completely unexpected. It was like an accident... Mamiya: Cyrano hid it until the moment of his death. Did he wish for Roxanne to find out who he really was? *Did Cyrano wish for it?* *...* *I slowly recalled Cyrano de Bergerac's plot.* *Christian and Cyrano both loved Roxanne. They worked together to act out a single person and attract the attention of Roxanne.* *But since Christian acted as the pair's outward appearance, he was the one who Roxanne fell in love with.* *It's only natural... Intelligence has no physical form, whereas a handsome face does.* *People don't fall in love with shapeless ideas but rather physical people.* *Roxanne couldn't love Cyrano's immaterial intelligence. She could only love Cyrano's intelligence when it was given the form of Christian's outward appearance...* *Cyrano himself is immaterial... That's why Roxanne fell in love with Christian, not Cyrano.* *So Cyrano had to play the fool in front of Roxanne...* *Cyrano could never be anything to Roxanne.* *Even after Christian had died...* *He had to keep playing the fool in front of Roxanne.* *"I breathed my sighs and moans haphazard-wise; Call all these wandering love-birds home to nest."* *There's a deep significance to those words.* *The person who dreams and the person who acts.* *The fantasy is ended by action.* *A fantasy can exist only in its unfulfillment.* *Our lady loves, the phantasms of our brains, dream fancies blown into soap bubbles... It is the lover of our fantasy that we fall in love with...* *Cyrano's love was fantasy only because it was unfulfilled...* *Christian's death is irrelevant.* Mamiya: Even after Christian died, Cyrano never told Roxanne that he had acted as Christian's wit... Mamiya: But the truth was revealed when Cyrano read Christian's farewell letter in front of her; though in truth, it was Cyrano's farewell letter. Mamiya: Roxanne remembered his voice reading the letters... Zakuro: But Cyrano denied his own existence... He denied that he had been Christian's intelligence. Mamiya: That's right... What do you think of that, Takashima? Zakuro: ... *Cyrano's feelings... Maybe he really didn't want Roxanne to find out his true identity...* *He definitely acted to keep it secret from her...* *He always, always kept it hidden from her...* *Mamiya-kun compared Cyrano to himself... There's only one thing he could possibly mean by that.* Zakuro: ...All right. I won't ask anymore. Zakuro: For now, at least. Mamiya: Haa... For now, huh? Zakuro: Yes, just for now. Mamiya: Hehehe... Zakuro: Wh-What's funny? Mamiya: No, it really is funny... The Takashima I knew wasn't like that. You've changed. Zakuro: H-Have I changed that much? Mamiya: Yeah, you're completely different from before... I never would've imagined you acting like this after seeing the way you were always so scared before. Zakuro: Maybe so, but... it's not like I was scared when I was talking to you. Mamiya: You weren't? Zakuro: Yes... I was nervous. Mamiya: Hehehe... Really? Zakuro: Yes, I always looked forward to coming here and talking to you. Mamiya: I see... Glad to hear it. Zakuro: What's with your reaction? I'm saying it to you! Mamiya: Oh, really... I guess you are. Zakuro: So, for now, I won't ask anymore, but... please tell me someday. Mamiya: Someday, huh... I see. Zakuro: What do you mean, you see? Please, just tell me your name. Mamiya: ... *Mamiya-kun was silent.* Zakuro: Now that I think of it... you said there was something you had to accomplish, didn't you? Mamiya: Yeah, I did... Zakuro: What did you mean by that? Mamiya: It's something that can't be done alone... so we took on multiple forms. That's all. Zakuro: Are you talking about Cyrano? Mamiya: Nah... I'm talking about God. Zakuro: God? Mamiya: God takes the form of the Trinity... Cusanus said that was because the triangle was the smallest polygon. Zakuro: Cusanus? That's the book you were reading, right? Mamiya: That's right... He said the triangle was the smallest constituent element of all other polygons... In other words, it is one. Mamiya: God is the Trinity because the triangle is the smallest. According to his theory, the smallest is equal to infinity. Mamiya: Even God needed three forms to accomplish something... so naturally, so do humans. Mamiya: Creation... Harmony... Rebirth... Humans also need each form. Zakuro: Are you talking about the Christian God? Mamiya: No... That's a personal matter. The Christian God doesn't have a privileged position. Zakuro: A privileged position? Mamiya: He's not privileged over others. Well, that's not important... Zakuro: Ah... Mamiya: Look, lunchtime is over. Zakuro: You're right. Mamiya: We didn't even get a chance to eat. Zakuro: Yes... We were talking the whole time. Mamiya: Here. Zakuro: Ah... *He threw some bread at me.* Mamiya: You can have that. Zakuro: Uh, but... Mamiya: It'll be fine. Just take it. Zakuro: Okay... Zakuro: U-Um... Mamiya: What? Zakuro: Um, what did you mean by 'the end'? Mamiya: I didn't mean anything. Forget about it... Mamiya: Tomorrow will be the same... A normal, peaceful day. See ya, Takashima Zakuro. Zakuro: Oh, uh... sure. *A peaceful day... A normal day... It seems like I haven't had one of those in a long time.* *Lately I haven't been able to take anything for granted. That's just how we've been living recently...* Zakuro: Hey, Mamiya-kun! Mamiya: What? Zakuro: Will you still be friends with me, even if our days are peaceful? Mamiya: ... *He looked troubled for a moment, and then he said...* Mamiya: Of course... Come here anytime you want ――――――... *I couldn't hear the last words he said...* *But I think he said he would be happy to talk to me anytime.*

*This is where she told me to meet her... This is the right place, right?* *I looked around for her.* Zakuro: I don't see anyone that could be her... *Maybe I just got here early...* *Or...* Zakuro: ...I was tricked. *Tricked by the cockroaches again...* *Just to tease me...* Zakuro: No... *That's not true.* *There's so much grace and elegance in these sentences...* *Her writing is different from that of the cockroaches.* *I have to see through the deception.* *If I don't... I'll just suffer...* *Hahahaha... I was fooled.* *Those messages were just a prank.* *That's all...* *That's...* Zakuro: One of my problems will disappear... *I wanted to believe that it was just a coincidence.* Ayana: But you came here anyway. Zakuro: You're... Zakuro: Otonashi... Ayana-san. Ayana: Good evening. Zakuro: What do you want? Ayana: Nothing... Zakuro: ... *Why does she always show up in places like this?* *She always shows up at weird times.* *Now that I think of it...* *She was there before, too. Just before I was kidnapped.* *And... that time I witnessed Shiroyama's death...* *And now...* *Why is she always there?* Zakuro: A demon will whisper in your ear. Zakuro: Please be careful. Zakuro: The demon will attempt to block your path. Zakuro: You must not listen to the demon's words. Zakuro: ...That's it. *This person is...* Zakuro: Ah! *My head ached.* *That image again...* *The same image as before.* *This must be...* *Just like the letter said... My memories from the previous world?* *No way... That doesn't exist.* *That was just...* *That was just... what?* *If it wasn't my memories from the previous world...* *Then this person that's always following me...* Zakuro: What are you? Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: Who are you? Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: Ah! *Are these my memories?!* *Why is she always following me?* Zakuro: Ugh! Zakuro: My head hurts... My head... Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: Who are you?! Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: No! That's not what I'm asking! Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: No! Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: No! You're―! Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: You're just a― Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: Demon... *She's...* *A demon?* *Is that it?* *Then... the others must really be out there, too.* *The demon trying to block my path is proof that my allies really do exist.* *Will they really come?* *Will they... Will my allies...* *My allies, the ones who saved the world in their past incarnations, really do exist.* *Then this woman...* Zakuro: You're... Ayana: Otonashi... Ayana. Zakuro: What are you doing here? Ayana: What are you doing here? Zakuro: I... I'm the one asking the question! Answer me! Ayana: I'm looking at you... I'm looking at your form. Zakuro: You're looking... at my form? Ayana: Yes * I'm looking at you."* Zakuro: Huh? What's that? Is that fun to you? Do you like looking at people? Or do you just like watching me suffer? Zakuro: Then I'm sorry, but my suffering is over. Ayana: Really... Zakuro: Yes, really. Ayana: So then... what are you doing here? Zakuro: What's it matter to you?! It has nothing to do with you! Ayana: Nothing to do with me... Zakuro: That's right... So go away! Ayana: Hehe... Then maybe it has nothing to do with you whether I'm here or not... Zakuro: Ah! *This demon...* *She really is the demon... That's why she's challenging me.* *Then the answer... The answer is obvious.* *I can't rise to her challenge.* *I have to ignore the demon.* *The demon's whisper...* Zakuro: ... Ayana: Have you made your decision? Zakuro: ... Ayana: The way in which you relate to the world. Zakuro: ... Ayana: Hehe... So that's it. Zakuro: Disappear... Zakuro: Demon. *I closed my eyes.* Zakuro: I won't listen to your lies. *"Um..."* Zakuro: I won't listen to your lies. *"Excuse me!"* Zakuro: Wha―? *Huh?* *When I opened my eyes, Otonashi Ayana was gone.* *"Are you Takashima... Zakuro-san?"* Zakuro: Huh?! *"Y-You're Takashima Zakuro-san, aren't you?"* Zakuro: Y-Yes... I am, but... who are you? Usami: Nice to meet you. My name is Sukikawa Usami. Zakuro: You're the person who sent me all those messages? Usami: Yes. *She's the person who sent those texts.* *She's my ally from the previous world, but she just looks like a normal person.* Usami: Ehehe, were you disappointed because I look like a normal person? Zakuro: Huh? *D-Did she just...* Usami: Did you think I read your mind? Zakuro: C-Can you actually read my mind? Usami: No. My memory from the previous world has returned, but my power has not. That's why... Zakuro: O-Oh... Usami: Ehehe, and it was written all over your face. *Oh...* *Is it that easy to read my expressions?* *That's kind of embarrassing...* *But...* *But she was honest when she told me that she just read my expression, not my mind.* *If she was trying to deceive me, she would've claimed to have supernatural powers like mind reading... She didn't lie, though...* *Maybe I can trust her?* Usami: If you've come here, does that mean you've recovered your memory as well? Zakuro: No... I haven't, I just read your message, and I was curious... Usami: Your memory still hasn't returned? Zakuro: Yes... Or rather... Usami: You're still doubtful, right? Zakuro: Well... Usami: No, it's a bit unbelievable, isn't it? Zakuro: ...I'm sorry. Usami: But you were curious, so you came. Zakuro: U-Um, a lot has happened since I got your first message. Usami: It looks like one of your problems disappeared, right? Zakuro: Well, I guess it has... Usami: What else? Zakuro: W-Well... Usami: You saw something, didn't you? Zakuro: Huh? Usami: You saw something, and that's why you came... Am I wrong? Zakuro: Why do you... Usami: I infused that message with my power. Zakuro: Your power? In that message? Usami: Yes. So if you're our ally, you should have experienced a change. Zakuro: ... *A change...* *I don't know if you could call it a change, but a lot of weird stuff had happened.* *That man died, and I saw those images... and... Otonashi Ayana...* Usami: What did you see? Was it a dream? Zakuro: Yes... I saw it in my dreams several times, but I don't really remember it all that well. Usami: Then how do you know you saw it in your dreams? Zakuro: U-Um... There was an accident at school, and someone fell from the roof... The second I witnessed that, suddenly the image from my dream... Zakuro: When I saw that image, I knew I had seen it in a dream... No, maybe it wasn't a dream. Maybe I saw it a long time ago, in a place very far from here... Usami: What kind of image was it? Zakuro: Um... There was something really big falling from the sky, and it seemed... Usami: It seemed sinister... Zakuro: What was that? *"...Har Megiddo."* Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: Y-You are? Usami: Oh, Ayumi-chan. Zakuro: Um, Usami-san... Who is this? Usami: Excuse me... I'll introduce her. This is Mizuo Ayumi-chan. Ayumi: ... Zakuro: U-Um... Nice to meet you, my name is Takashima Zakuro. Ayumi: Uh, hello... *Her cheeks flushed... She looked nervous.* Usami: Sorry about that. Ayumi-chan isn't very good at talking. Zakuro: Not very good at talking... Ayumi: I'm... sorry. Zakuro: No, I'm not much better. Ayumi: O-Okay... Zakuro: By the way, what was that Har Megiddo you mentioned? Ayumi: ... Usami: Ayumi-chan, it seems Zakuro-san's Brain Reverse still isn't complete. Ayumi: ... Zakuro: B-Brain Reverse? Zakuro: U-Um, what's that? Usami: Oh, right.. * Ayumi-chan, what do you think we should do?"* Ayumi: ... *Ayumi-san slowly pointed somewhere.* Usami: Oh... That would be a good spot. Usami: Zakuro-san, do you want to go somewhere else? Zakuro: Oh, no problem... Usami: I don't want to stand around talking here... We never know who's listening. Zakuro: S-Sure... Zakuro: U-Um... This is... Usami: Yeah... For now, we can only talk in private places like this... Zakuro: Th-This is where people come to drink alcohol, isn't it? Usami: Yeah, I guess so, but they call themselves a cafe, so they have coffee and tea too. Zakuro: Oh... Sure. Usami: Do you want something to eat? Zakuro: Oh, no thanks... *Being at a place like this so late at night...* *If my parents or the school found out, I would be in big trouble.* Zakuro: ... *Why do I care about that?* *Why should I care? They don't do anything for me... None of them ever came to save me...* *If I think about it, it's really ridiculous.* Zakuro: Um... This... *I took out my cell phone.* Zakuro: To be honest, I don't understand what all of this means. Usami: You don't understand, but you still came. Zakuro: Th-There was a prediction... Usami: Rather than a prediction... I would call it a certainty. Zakuro: A certainty? Usami: Yes... You were tormented by the demon... and by the people who were manipulated by the sealed nevus' Specialized Physics Bug. Zakuro: That nevus... and the Specialized Physics Bug... Usami: Oh, before that... Here. *Usami-san took out her own cell phone and showed me a picture.* Zakuro: Ah! Zakuro: Wh-Why? This place... Usami: What do you think... about this place? Zakuro: I don't like it. Usami: Yeah, it must be a really awful place for you. Zakuro: How do you know that? Usami: I... We know almost everything about you *Almost everything...* Zakuro: Wha―?! *They know what happened to me...* *That I was defiled in this place...* *That's why she showed me this picture...* Usami: Please don't be afraid. Usami: We're not looking to harm you. Usami: We just want you to remember. Usami: And we want you to help us. Zakuro: ...Help you? What do I need to do? Usami: Just like I told you before, we were allies in our previous lives, fighting to save the world. Zakuro: Huh?! Zakuro: U-Um, you mean... Usami: It's unbelievable, isn't it? Zakuro: ... Zakuro: No... Not at all. Usami: Huh? Zakuro: A lot has happened since then. That man died... and God appeared before me, and the demon... Usami: God and a demon? Zakuro: Yes... God was a half naked, middle-aged man... He was several hundred times as tall as a normal person. Usami: W-Wow... Zakuro: The demon... has possessed one of the girls at my school, and now she's tormenting me... Usami: ...Yes. Zakuro: That's what you said would happen. The demon has appeared, and she's trying to lure me astray. It actually happened... Zakuro: That man's death... and I saw the image of a sky shrouded in gloom, like a terrible flashback... Zakuro: If I hadn't gotten your message before all that happened... Usami: If you hadn't... Zakuro: I would've completely broken. I wouldn't have understood anything... No one else could explain all this to me... I, I... Usami: So in the end, the Specialized Physics Bug in Tokyo's 23rd district attempted to eliminate the weakest of us, Zakuro-san... Zakuro: What's the Specialized Physics Bug? Usami: Before that... I should explain everything from the beginning. Zakuro: From the beginning? Usami: In the distant past, deep in outer space, there was a nebula cloud... and within that nebula, a planet called Elhimuro. Zakuro: Outer space... Usami: Yeah, it was an external universe... Unlike this universe, it was very peaceful. Usami: The inhabitants of Elhimuro were especially peaceful people... Usami: But regardless of that peace, the people fell to corruption, and evil lived within their hearts, ultimately calling forth a great disaster. Zakuro: A great... disaster... Usami: Athers... Zakuro: Athers? Usami: The lord of all things... The primeval chaos living within the core of infinity... The unknowable, the shapeless, the heart of darkness... The chaos that wells up from within. There are countless ways to name him. Usami: The corruption within the people's hearts woke that which was confined to the depths of chaos. Usami: When he awakes, the world will end. The world is only permitted to exist while he dreams. Zakuro: The world only exists... while he dreams... Usami: Yes, and the end of that dream is synonymous with the end of the world. Usami: But the denizens of Elhimuro, overly accustomed to the long peace, did nothing to stop it. Usami: Even with the end of the world before their very eyes. Zakuro: That's just like... Usami: Yes, just like our own world. Usami: The three of us were the only ones to stand and fight before. Usami: We were each given our own powers and titles as warriors... Usami: Angel Remover, Angel Night, and... Zakuro: And? Usami: The Crimson Hyperspace... You are... Angel Advise! Zakuro: I'm... Angel Advise... Usami: Yes... I was saved by your prodigious powers more than once. Ayumi: Me... too. Usami: I'm the Golden Light, Angel Remover, and Ayumi-chan is the Azure Twinkling, Angel Night. *I'm Angel Advise...* *I saved Ayumi-san...* *I saved Angel Night...* Zakuro: Angel Night, watch out! Zakuro: Ah! *I was injured when I moved to cover Angel Night with my own body.* Usami: Angel Advise! Zakuro: ...A-Are you okay, Angel Night? Ayumi: You fool! Why would you do that just to protect me?! Zakuro: Because... Because we're friends, aren't we? Ayumi: Angel Advise... Zakuro: It's all right. I'm fine... We have to hurry and dispense with them... Ayumi: Understood. Evil Person: It's your turn next, little lady. Ayumi: I'll never... I'll never forgive you for hurting my friend! Usami: I will defeat you... so that the denizens of this world may live in peace! Ayumi: Let's go! Golden Light, Angel Remover! Usami: Yeah! Azure Twinkling, Angel Night! Zakuro: Huh? *Why?* *Why?* *This happened long in the past...* *I was sure I had completely forgotten the events of that day...* *But now I remember it like it was yesterday.* *The pain...* *The joy...* Zakuro: Huh...? Zakuro: What was that? *These are...* *Tears?* *Could I be... crying?* *For some reason... I had tears streaming down my cheeks.* *For some reason... the tears wouldn't stop.* Zakuro: That's right... Back then, you two were really worried about me. Usami: Zakuro-san? Have you remembered it? Zakuro: A little... Just a little, but... Zakuro: You were both so worried about me when I was injured. Ayumi: The battle at the stone tower... Zakuro: That's right. That was the battle at the stone tower. I definitely saw that tower behind us. Usami: The seal is being dispelled! Zakuro: ...The seal? Usami: Yes. The great disaster feared our power after having failed in its attempt to destroy the world, so it put a seal on our souls when we were reincarnated in this world. Zakuro: Why a seal? Usami: That's because... Ayumi: Once again, Har Megiddo is... Zakuro: Har Megiddo? Usami: Yes, the final confrontation... The battle at the hill of Megiddo. Usami: We fought to prevent the world's destruction... That was a long battle, a series of tribulations... Usami: And then, in the last days... we faced Har Megiddo... Zakuro: The last days... Har Megiddo... Usami: We fought and fought, no matter how many times we were injured, no matter how many times we fell. Usami: And we saved the world from Har Megiddo. Zakuro: We... saved the world... Usami: But... its power was too strong. We failed to destroy it. Usami: The great disaster was confined in the hyperspace at the core of chaos, but... Usami: It will certainly return someday. Usami: In preparation for its revival, we chose the path of reincarnation to increase our powers, but... Usami: In the moment of our reincarnation, the great disaster cast this cursed seal upon us to frustrate our efforts. Zakuro: A cursed... seal... Usami: Yes... So that we would be reborn as powerless human girls. *That's right... That powerful seal is the reason why I never remembered it before...* Zakuro: But... then how can we recover our memories? Usami: That would be... the Brain Reverse. Zakuro: Brain Reverse... Usami: Oh, sorry. That's how we refer to the recovery of our past memories, but... there's a reason why the Brain Reverse isn't complete. Zakuro: But we have to recover our memories... If Har Megiddo is going to happen again... Doesn't that mean the great disaster is coming back?! *In response, Usami-san and Ayumi-san both silently nodded.* Zakuro: Then we have to do something! *But what can I hope to do?* *I still haven't recovered all my memories, and I don't have any superpowers like before.* Usami: We've thought the same thing for a long time, but the reality is that our power hasn't returned either. Zakuro: What?! Usami: Ayumi-chan and I have only recovered a small portion of our power. That's how we were able to find you, but we don't have enough power to save the world. Zakuro: But didn't we reincarnate in this world to attain even more power? Usami: Yes, we did... Usami: But Har Megiddo has attacked us in more ways than just the seal. Usami: The great disaster has sent its vanguard to ensure that we never recover enough power to save the world. Zakuro: Vanguard? Usami: The vanguard possesses humans in order to get close to us and plant evil thoughts within us. Zakuro: Evil thoughts? Usami: Haven't you experienced them too? Haven't you wished the world would just end, or that you could just disappear? Zakuro: Huh?! Zakuro: That's right... I've thought things like that many times... Zakuro: I thought all of those things until just yesterday. I even wanted to kill myself... Usami: You weren't the only one. Ayumi-chan and I both thought much the same until our powers returned... Zakuro: R-Really? Usami: Yes... *So that's the truth...* *The great disaster is the reason why I had to suffer!* Usami: Athers, the great disaster, was concerned that the seal wouldn't suffice. Usami: It prevented the Brain Reverse from occurring, but there's always the possibility of it happening so long as we're alive. Usami: That was the thought process behind its next move. Zakuro: ... Usami: Zakuro-san... Does some particular event come to mind? Zakuro: ...Some event? *...* *......* Zakuro: NOOO! Usami: Yes, the tragedy that you would rather forget for all time... That's it. *That's what it was...* *They were the great disaster's vanguard...* *Damn it!* *I was defiled by those bastards...* Ayumi: I understand how you feel, Zakuro-chan... Zakuro: Huh?! Usami: Me too... and Ayumi-chan... We were... *It happened to both of them too.* *Just like me... they were defiled.* Usami: ... Ayumi: ... Zakuro: ... *Ayumi-san grabbed my hand.* *In that moment,* Zakuro: Th-This... *Ayumi-san's memories flowed into me...* Female Student: Come on, masturbate for us. Ayumi: Th-That's... Female Student: Hurry up already. Ayumi: ... Female Student: You little... Female Student: You don't want to make us angry. Female Student: We'll burn all your fucking hair down there, then make you walk home naked. Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Hurry up and do it. Ayumi: ... *Shlick...* Female Student: Come on, do it for real. Female Student: No one's gonna want to watch this shit. Ayumi: Watch? Female Student: Don't worry about it. Just do it. Ayumi: ... *Shlick, shlick...* Female Student: Moan for us. Ayumi: Okay... Ayumi: Amm... Female Student: Ahahahahahaha. Female Student: She said 'amm.' Female Student: The fuck was that?! Ayumi: ... Female Student: Don't stop already. Ayumi: Okay... Ayumi: ... *Shlick, shlick...* Ayumi: ... Ayumi: Huh?! Ayumi: Th-That's my phone... Ayumi: Wh-Why are you... Female Student: I'm taking pictures. Ayumi: Pictures?! Female Student: Yeah, then we can sell them on the Internet. People pay tons for this stuff. Ayumi: B-But... Female Student: Don't worry. Female Student: We'll make sure to erase our phone numbers. Ayumi: B-But... Female Student: Shut up... Female Student: Why don't we just force her to do it? Female Student: Yeah. Ayumi: No! Female Student: What, you're getting wet too? Ayumi: No! Ayumi: Just... Just leave me alone. Female Student: Shut up. Female Student: Why you! Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Just keep your trap shut. Ayumi: O-Ow... Female Student: I just told you! Female Student: Isn't this great? It's like BDSM. Female Student: Yeah, it kinda is. How about this... *Trickle.* Ayumi: Noo! Female Student: Oh? *Trickle, trickle...* Female Student: Wh-What's wrong with her... Female Student: She pissed herself when I stepped on her. Female Student: Quick, take some pictures. Female Student: Yeah, there are people into that shit. Ayumi: ... *Trickle, trickle...* Female Student: Did you get it? Female Student: It's perfect. Female Student: Ahahahaha. Female Student: Wow, Ayumi, you're going to be so popular with the perverts. You'll be their idol! Female Student: Yeah, yeah. Ayumi: ... Female Student: What should the next scene be? Female Student: Hmm. Female Student: That's it! Female Student: We'll take her virginity! How about that? Ayumi: Wha―?! Ayumi: A-Anything but that. Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Shut up. Female Student: I wish you would just shut up and take it instead of bitching every three seconds. Ayumi: Please... Let me go... Please let me go... Female Student: So then, who's gonna fuck her? Female Student: This... Female Student: What's this? Female Student: It's the janitor's dog. Female Student: Wh-Why did you bring this thing along? Female Student: Hehehehehe. Ayumi: NOOO! Ayumi: It hurts! Female Student: Ahahahahahahaha. Female Student: This is amazing. She looks great! Female Student: Wow, wow! Ayumi: I-It hurts... Ayumi: L-Let me go... Female Student: Take some pictures. Female Student: Oh, yeah. *Snap, snap...* *...* *......* Zakuro: ...That's terrible. *I wasn't the only one...* *I wasn't the only one suffering...* *We've all suffered the same fate...* *But I...* *I thought I was the only one who had to bear this burden...* Zakuro: ...I'm sorry. Zakuro: Until today, I thought I was all alone... I thought I was the only one suffering. Usami: No... It's not your fault. It's the great disaster's fault. *Yes...* *That's right.* *It was all the great disaster trying to destroy the world.* *That's the source of all my problems.* Usami: ...The great disaster wanted to seal our power away by planting its evil directly within our bodies. Usami: It succeeded in sealing our powers, but it was only through this experience that we recovered our memories... You haven't completely recovered your memories, but that's just a matter of time. It's rather ironic that the great disaster worked against itself in this case. Ayumi: Thanks to that... we finally found you. Zakuro: ...Yeah. *These people are my allies.* *No, they're my true friends!* *To think that my true friends were waiting for me...* *I'm so happy!* *I've never been this happy before in my life!* *Yes...* *I was...* *I was born to save this world!* Zakuro: Usami-chan... Ayumi-chan... Usami: Yeah... Ayumi: ... *We embraced and cried together.* *The tears of joy wouldn't stop.* Zakuro: By the way, you said there was something else you needed me to help with. Usami: ...Yes. *Usami-chan wiped away the tears and began to talk.* Usami: You remember when I said the revival of the great disaster and Har Megiddo was approaching? Zakuro: Yes. Usami: We want to stop it... We want to save the world! Zakuro: You want to save the world? Usami: That's right... It's true that our hearts were clouded with evil, that before we wished for this world to be destroyed, but there are many innocent people in this world. Many in this world are kind―even compassionate! *Kind people...* *Someone like that...* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... Usami: I... I want to save those people! Ayumi: Save... those... people... Zakuro: Yeah... Yeah, that's our mission! Usami: That's right! Our mission is to save all those people! *That's right...* *I'm the warrior, fighting to save the world!* *If I don't do it, then who will?* Usami: And the evil people who attacked us were originally human before they were possessed... If we vanquish the great disaster, they'll return to normal! *That's why...* *If we save the world, all those people will return to normal...* *Then why did he have to die?* *Wasn't he another person possessed by the evil?* *Then he should have gone back to normal once the world was saved...* *Why?* *Why?* Usami: The being posessing these humans is... the Specialized Physics Bug... Zakuro: Specialized Physics Bug? Usami: A bug created from a material exempt from the laws of conventional physics. Usami: It's an insect that infests a person's mind and eats their thoughts, memories, and emotions. Zakuro: A person's mind... Usami: Yes, the people who have been possessed by this insect are no different from insects themselves. Zakuro: Insects... So that's all they are... Just bugs... Zakuro: That's why I was... Usami: Yes, it planted Specialized Physics Bugs in the people around all three of us in order to induce a low energy state in us, the three angel warriors. Zakuro: That's... why they bullied me... Usami: That's right. Usami: If a person is infested by a Specialized Physics Bug for a long period of time, their brain almost completely disappears. Usami: Yesterday, Angel Night and I used our powers to create a barrier field in Tokyo's 23rd district, thereby exterminating the Specialized Physics Bug. Zakuro: ... Usami: So the person whose brain had been eaten by the Specialized Physics Bug went mad once the bug disappeared. Usami: The person who tortured you destroyed himself. Zakuro: Destroyed himself? Usami: Yes, so you don't need to worry about that. Zakuro: But, he... He was just possessed by the evil. He wasn't originally... Usami: Yes... He was originally human. Usami: But... the bug is especially compatible with people whose hearts are already evil. The person who was infested had an evil heart to begin with, and gradually that person fused with the bug. Zakuro: Compatible... Usami: He was compatible with the Specialized Physics Bug because he was evil at heart. Usami: He fused with the bug to the point where almost all of his brain was eaten. That's proof that he was evil at heart. Usami: In a way, his death was just retribution for his sins. Usami: Even if they hadn't been infested, they would have committed some other crime eventually. Usami: And... why should they get off scot-free after defiling us? They should accept their retribution. Zakuro: They should accept their retribution... *Th-That's right...* *That's right... That has to be it... It was their just recompense...* Zakuro: That was just their inevitable retribution... Zakuro: They were evil at heart; they were beyond salvation... Usami: Yes, this is divine retribution... We couldn't have hoped to save them. Zakuro: Wait... Weren't our powers sealed away...? *Right...* *It's our mission to save the world, but we can't do anything without our powers.* Ayumi: ...There's one way to recover our powers. Zakuro: Huh? Usami: t's just as Ayumi said... There's a way to recover our Extradimensional Powers. Usami: To do it, we have to complete the ritual known as Spiral Matai. Zakuro: Spiral Matai? Usami: Yes... Spiral Matai. Usami: If we complete this ritual, we can recover our powers. Usami: But bravery is required for this ritual... Zakuro: Bravery? Usami: We reincarnated ourselves in this world in order to gain greater powers... In order to recover our powers, we have to go through an experience similar to reincarnation once again. Zakuro: An experience similar to reincarnation? Usami: We have to have a near-death experience. If we survive, we'll be able to recover our Extradimensional Powers. Zakuro: A near-death experience? Usami: Yes... That's what the Spiral Matai is. Ayumi: ... Zakuro: ... Usami: In truth, we wanted to wait until you fully recovered your memories before doing it, but... Usami: But the world's destruction, Bick Hazard, is approaching. Ayumi: July... 20th... Zakuro: What? *Did she just say July 20th...?* *July 20th...* *That's just nine days from now!* Zakuro: No way...?! Ayumi: ... Usami: ... Zakuro: But that's... Usami: It's true... July 20th is the day of Har Megiddo... Usami: The Bible tells of Armageddon, and Nostrodamus predicted that it would come in the seventh month of the year... Usami: It's July 20th... *Armageddon is coming in just nine days...* *I can't believe it...* *I finally met my friends and now...* *In just nine days...* Zakuro: ...When are we going to do it? Usami: Zakuro-chan.? Zakuro: Let's do it... Let's complete the Spiral Matai. Usami: You'll do it with us, Zakuro-chan? Zakuro: If we don't do it soon, we can't recover our powers! *And...* Zakuro: And... if we don't recover our powers, the world will be destroyed. Zakuro: If that happened... Zakuro: If the world was destroyed... Zakuro: I would... I would never see any of you again! Usami: Zakuro-chan... Ayumi: ... Zakuro: I'm ready for it. Zakuro: If we're all together, we can do anything! Zakuro: We're... We're allies. We'll always be there to help each other! Zakuro: What's more, we're true friends! Ayumi: Za...kuro... chan... Usami: That's right... We're true friends! Zakuro: When do you want to carry out the ritual? Usami: Ayumi-chan, when do you think we should do it? Ayumi: ... *Ayumi-chan closed her eyes and thought for a moment.* Usami: Ayumi-chan has the power to read the stars. It was through her powers that we finally found you. Zakuro: How does she have her powers...? Usami: Actually, Ayumi-chan got hit by a car a few months ago. Zakuro: A car? Usami: Yeah... Right now it's hidden by her hair, but she has a really bad scar on her head. Zakuro: O-Oh... Usami: She recovered a small part of her power after that. Usami: So she's the only one who has any power right now, and even that is just a fraction of her full power. Zakuro: But... it was that power that put up the barrier field and found me... *Wow... If our full power comes back, then we could...* Ayumi: The star of Ganjima... That building... The star of Mande... is appr...oaching... Zaroboi... Hiding in the shadow of... Elhimuro's... power... Zakuro: Huh? Usami: So soon... *Ayumi-chan nodded silently.* Usami: Tomorrow evening... We'll be most closely attuned to Elhimuro's energy at 6:42... Usami: At that time, upon this Earth... Zakuro: This Earth? Usami: Roughly the height of this building... Ayumi: A little to the right... The apartment complex next door would be... ideal. Usami: Yeah, that'll be our position. Zakuro: That's where we'll carry out the Spiral Matai? Ayumi: ... Usami: ...Yes... Zakuro: Tomorrow, at 6:42... *When that time comes...* *My power will return, and I'll be able to save the world!* Usami: ...Are you scared, Zakuro-chan? Zakuro: Scared? Why? Usami: We're going to have a near-death experience... Zakuro: That is scary... but if we don't do it, we can't save the world. Zakuro: And we'll all be together... Zakuro: If we're all together, we'll be fine, no matter what! Ayumi: Za...kuro... chan... Usami: Zakuro-chan... Zakuro: Then we'll meet here tomorrow at 6:30. *Usami and Ayumi didn't say anything. They simply nodded their approval.* Zakuro: We're true friends... No matter what happens, we'll stick together... *That's right...* *I'm not wrong!* *The one who was wrong...* *The one who was wrong―!* *Why I was born...* *Why I exist at all...* *Today, I found my raison d'etre.* *Yes...* *I'm the warrior, sent here to save the world!* *Along with my allies...* *Allies...* *Friends...* *True friends...* *Usami-chan... Golden Light, Angel Remover.* *Ayumi-chan... Azure Twinkling, Angel Night.* *I've finally found my true friends.* *I've never been so happy before in my life.* *I'm as happy as any human could ever be.* *I wonder if anyone else has ever been this happy?* *I want to share this happiness with everyone...* *That's how happy I feel.* Zakuro: Ah! *I can see it clearly...* *The time of the world's destruction...* *The world will end in nine days.* *I can't let that happen...* *I just met my friends...* *I can't let my happiness end so soon...* *A great, black shadow... covering the sky...* *An endless black gloom...* *Like the world's twilight...* *A gloomy scene...* Usami: ...Spiral Matai... *Spiral Matai...* *If we just finish the Spiral Matai, I'll be able to recover my Extradimensional Powers!* *And then...* *Then I'll be able to save the world, and I'll be happy like this forever!* Zakuro: I... Zakuro: I have to save the world! *But I wonder what my Extradimensional Powers were like?* Zakuro: Will I be able to shoot pink energy blasts from my hands? Zakuro: Like, pew pew pew...? Zakuro: Ahahahaha... *Could I really save the world with something like that?* *No way...* *It's gotta be something really amazing...* *There's no way it's something boring like shooting energy blasts.* *Once I recover my power, I can save everyone.* *Then they'll all be kind to me.* *My mother, and my classmates, and... Mamiya-kun, too.* *It must have been the Specialized Physics Bug making him act like that when he was in the underground room.* *Once we save the world, Mamiya-kun will go back to his smart, caring self.* *And then...* Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Kyaa! *We might finally be united.* *Now that I think back on it... I'm pretty sure Usami-chan said something like this.* Usami: The memories of that experience will never go away... Usami: But... your body can be purified. Zakuro: What do you mean? Usami: Spiral Matai allows you to transcend your physical form... You'll be able to leave your incomplete human body behind and be reborn as a full-fledged angel warrior. Zakuro: You mean... Usami: That's right. The body that they defiled will go back to normal. The only thing that will remain will be the memories. Usami: We'll know no more pain after that moment... when we're reborn... Zakuro: Reborn... Usami: Yes. Zakuro: Oh... Usami: You have someone you love, don't you, Zakuro-chan? Zakuro: Huh? H-How do you know? Usami: Before, when you said everyone would go back to their kind selves... you hesitated for just a moment. Usami: I thought you were probably remembering someone you loved. Zakuro: Th-That's, uh... Usami: Ehehehe... That's normal. Zakuro: Usami-chan... Usami: There's someone I love too... It was our fate to be united, but... Zakuro: Fate? Usami: Ahahaha, in the past world, that is. We were engaged. Zakuro: Engaged? Usami: Yeah, we were going to be married in Elhimuro... Usami: But... Usami: I had to fight the great disaster before we could be wed... and in the final battle, I gave my life to save the world. Usami: After that, he... he chased after my spirit for millions of years... Billions of years... Trillions of years he reincarnated, time and time again, searching for me... Zakuro: Trillions of years... *That's longer than the universe has existed...* Usami: Yeah... and we finally met again in this world, but the evil people tore us apart once again. Zakuro: The evil people... Usami: Yeah... Takanobu-kun is being tricked! It's that evil woman's fault! She's pure evil, and she seduced him! Zakuro: Oh... Usami: So... once this battle is over... he'll remember everything... Zakuro: Yeah. Make sure you invite me to your wedding. Usami: Yeah. Zakuro: You've been waiting to get married for trillions of years... We have to win this time! Usami: Yeah! Zakuro: Yeah, once this battle is over... Once everything is peaceful, then we'll get married too... Usami: We'll return to our true bodies... and be able to face our loved ones again... Ayumi: ...Yeah... we will... Zakuro: My dirty body will be clean again... Usami: I'm sure it will. Zakuro: Let's do our best. *After this all ends, I'll be able to...* *I'll be able to face Mamiya-kun again.*

*Ayumi-san grabbed my hand.* *In that moment,* Zakuro: Th-This... *Ayumi-san's memories flowed into me...* Female Student: Come on, masturbate for us. Ayumi: Th-That's... Female Student: Hurry up already. Ayumi: ... Female Student: You little... Female Student: You don't want to make us angry. Female Student: We'll burn all your fucking hair down there, then make you walk home naked. Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Hurry up and do it. Ayumi: ... *Shlick...* Female Student: Come on, do it for real. Female Student: No one's gonna want to watch this shit. Ayumi: Watch? Female Student: Don't worry about it. Just do it. Ayumi: ... *Shlick, shlick...* Female Student: Moan for us. Ayumi: Okay... Ayumi: Amm... Female Student: Ahahahahahaha. Female Student: She said 'amm.' Female Student: The fuck was that?! Ayumi: ... Female Student: Don't stop already. Ayumi: Okay... Ayumi: ... *Shlick, shlick...* Ayumi: ... Ayumi: Huh?! Ayumi: Th-That's my phone... Ayumi: Wh-Why are you... Female Student: I'm taking pictures. Ayumi: Pictures?! Female Student: Yeah, then we can sell them on the Internet. People pay tons for this stuff. Ayumi: B-But... Female Student: Don't worry. Female Student: We'll make sure to erase our phone numbers. Ayumi: B-But... Female Student: Shut up... Female Student: Why don't we just force her to do it? Female Student: Yeah. Ayumi: No! Female Student: What, you're getting wet too? Ayumi: No! Ayumi: Just... Just leave me alone. Female Student: Shut up. Female Student: Why you! Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Just keep your trap shut. Ayumi: O-Ow... Female Student: I just told you! Female Student: Isn't this great? It's like BDSM. Female Student: Yeah, it kinda is. How about this... *Trickle.* Ayumi: Noo! Female Student: Oh? *Trickle, trickle...* Female Student: Wh-What's wrong with her... Female Student: She pissed herself when I stepped on her. Female Student: Quick, take some pictures. Female Student: Yeah, there are people into that shit. Ayumi: ... *Trickle, trickle...* Female Student: Did you get it? Female Student: It's perfect. Female Student: Ahahahaha. Female Student: Wow, Ayumi, you're going to be so popular with the perverts. You'll be their idol! Female Student: Yeah, yeah. Ayumi: ... Female Student: What should the next scene be? Female Student: Hmm. Female Student: That's it! Female Student: We'll take her virginity! How about that? Ayumi: Wha―?! Ayumi: A-Anything but that. Ayumi: Ah! Female Student: Shut up. Female Student: I wish you would just shut up and take it instead of bitching every three seconds. Ayumi: Please... Let me go... Please let me go... Female Student: So then, who's gonna fuck her? Female Student: This... Female Student: What's this? Female Student: It's the janitor's dog. Female Student: Wh-Why did you bring this thing along? Female Student: Hehehehehe. Ayumi: NOOO! Ayumi: It hurts! Female Student: Ahahahahahahaha. Female Student: This is amazing. She looks great! Female Student: Wow, wow! Ayumi: I-It hurts... Ayumi: L-Let me go... Female Student: Take some pictures. Female Student: Oh, yeah. *Snap, snap...* *...* *......*

*Chirp... Chirp, chirp...* *The sound of... birds...* *Y-Yeah...* *Morning?* *Is it morning already?* *Oh, right... Last night I was up late. I spent all night warning people on the underground message board.* Zakuro: But no one would listen to the truth. Zakuro: I can't blame them, though. Zakuro: Ah... *So bright...!* *It was morning already.* *It was the day when I would recover my power...* *The day I would be reborn.* Zakuro: Mm... *I hadn't felt this good in a long time.* *For a long time, I didn't feel anything.* *I never knew the morning could feel so good...* *It feels good.* *I have to protect this happiness...* *I have to protect this world.* Zakuro: Today, I will be reborn... *School...* *A lot has happened here...* *I came to school since I had a lot of time before we were supposed to meet up.* Zakuro: It's Sunday, so there aren't many people here... *I walked into the school building.* Zakuro: Even this place, where so many bad things happened, will be given new life after the great disaster passes. Zakuro: The world will be kind again... *Looking at it like that, even this school building holds a place in my heart, oddly enough.* *The last time I looked out this window...* *...* *If he had been born with a kinder heart... he wouldn't have been eaten by the Specialized Physics Bug.* *Poor thing.* *He won't be born into the new world.* *...* *This place holds my most treasured memories...* *All my memories of Mamiya-kun linger here.* Zakuro: Hehe... Zakuro: I guess Mamiya-kun's not here now, though. *Of course not... Today is Sunday after all.* *But...* Zakuro: I guess I still hoped he would be. *If we're fated to be together... It wouldn't be strange at all if we had met here today...* Zakuro: Hehehe... I shouldn't be thinking about boys just before battle. *I'll soon be reborn... and then I'll fight for this world.* *I can't waste my time thinking about the boy I used to like.* Zakuro: But... Zakuro: Once it's all over... Mamiya-kun... *I'll... come find you...* *Once this is all over...* Zakuro: Then... *The two of us... in the new world...* Zakuro: ...Yeah. *...* *That's right...* Zakuro: Huh?! *A strange presence...* *I'd never felt this before.* *Was that the first sign of my powers returning?* Zakuro: Huh... Zakuro: You're... Otonashi Ayana. Ayana: ... Zakuro: Why are you here... *Why is Otonashi-san here...?* *Could it be...* Usami: The vanguard possesses humans in order to approach us and interfere with our mission... *...* *Which means... Otonashi-san came here to interfere with the Spiral Matai.* *That's the truth of it.* *That has to be it!* Zakuro: What are you trying to do? Zakuro: I know all about your evil scheme! Zakuro: You're here to interfere with the Spiral Matai, aren't you? Ayana: You've already chosen your fate... There's nothing I can do to change it. Zakuro: O-Of course not... I'll never let you evil people interfere. Ayana: I won't interfere. Ayana: Either way... people aren't capable of accurately distinguishing between the coincidental and the inevitable. Ayana: All swans are white... That was the truth. Ayana: Until they found one black swan anyway. Ayana: The black swan... One fact can overturn a theory that was previously thought impregnable. Ayana: Some men believe that the Sun dies at the end of every day. They pray for its rebirth every night. Ayana: They believe themselves to be the only reason the Sun rises at dawn. Ayana: No one can deny their claim... Ayana: Not so long as they continue their prayers. Ayana: So no one can deny the truth you've found. Zakuro: You can't confuse me with your nonsense. Ayana: Oh, really... But there is one thing I'd like to say. Zakuro: What? Ayana: Do your best... at the Spiral Matai. Zakuro: Shut up! Zakuro: I don't want to hear it from you! Ayana: ... *I never should've come back to school...* *I never wanted to see this person ever again...* *Now she's spoiled my good mood.* Zakuro: Haa... I still have time left... Zakuro: What should I do? Zakuro: Huh? *That person...* *I recognized him.* *I thought I heard a voice... and I turned around...* *Ah...* *This must be fate.* *To think that we would meet here... just before the end...* Zakuro: Mamiya-kun... *Seeing him felt... incredibly nostalgic.* *We last saw each other a few days ago, but in the span of just a few days, we had grown so distant.* *No... We could still be separated until the end of time.* *Just like Usami-chan was... That could still happen to us.* *Mamiya-kun noticed me staring at him.* *A kind smile... That's definitely the real him.* Mamiya: Takashima... Zakuro, was it? Zakuro: Yes. Hello. Mamiya: Ah, hello. Zakuro: Why are you here today? Mamiya: "Oh, uh, there's no particular reason. I was buying something, and now I guess I'm just walking around." Mamiya: I mean, for someone living near the train station, Suginomiya is the most convenient place to go shopping, right? I suppose you could go all the way out to Shinjuku if you wanted, though. Zakuro: I see. I'm glad. Mamiya: Glad? Zakuro: Yes. I'm glad I got to meet you. Mamiya: Okay. I-If you say so. Zakuro: Yes. This might be divine providence. Mamiya: Divine providence? Mamiya: Um, we've never really talked much, so... Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: Huh? Have we? *Is this...* *The Specialized Physics Bug.* *That's probably it... It infects a person's brain and eats their thoughts, memories, and emotions...* *Damn it... That bug ate my precious memories with Mamiya-kun...* *I won't forgive them.* *Bick Hazard... I won't forgive you!* Mamiya: U-Um, is something the matter? Zakuro: Ah, no. You're right. You're probably right, but I knew you very well. Mamiya: Oh, r-really? Mamiya: Did I do something to tick you off? Zakuro: Why do you ask? Mamiya: Well, if someone I don't remember all that well says they remember me, it means they're holding some kind of grudge, right? *Even after the bug ate his memories... he's still such a kind person...* *He really is a nice person.* Zakuro: A grudge against you? Heheh. I'm not holding any grudge. Mamiya: I see. Well, that's good to hear. Zakuro: I don't have a bad impression of you. Mamiya: That's... good to hear. Zakuro: Not a bad impression at all. Mamiya: At all? Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Ah. I hope we can have cordial relations. Mamiya: Huh? Mamiya: Huh? Mamiya: Mmmgh?! Zakuro: Mm... *I'll definitely come back to you... my beloved...* *I'll definitely come back...* *Next time, I'll tell you how I feel.* *I'll become a new person...* *And then I'll come back to you.* *Mamiya-kun...* *So...* Mamiya: Wha―? Zakuro: I'll give you some of my power. Mamiya: Power? Wh-What do you mean? Zakuro: Soon, something amazing will happen. Mamiya: S-Something amazing? Mamiya: You mean, like, tribadism? Zakuro: Tribadism? Mamiya: Ahahaha, nothing * By the way, what is that 'something amazing' you were talking about?"* Zakuro: Well, it's... Zakuro: The sky is really, really full. Mamiya: Full of what? Zakuro: Anxious words. Mamiya: ... Zakuro: The sky is full of anxious words. *...* *I told him about the scene I saw...* *The endless black gloom...* *The world's twilight...* *The gloom... covering the sky...* Mamiya: Um, not full of anxiety, but full of anxious words? Mamiya: That's kind of a cool expression. Zakuro: Heheh. It's not a metaphor. Mamiya: So, what about it? Zakuro: The process of absorption has begun. Mamiya: Who's doing the absorbing? Zakuro: The world. Mamiya: Wanjuku Kei! Zakuro: Hm? Mamiya: It's V Kei! Zakuro: Wh-What is? Mamiya: It's Visual Kei! Zakuro: Yes, I know that, but... Mamiya: Ah, well, I was just wondering if you liked it. Zakuro: ... Zakuro: Anxious words, and the world that has absorbed them. Zakuro: Do you know what those are? Mamiya: Uh, not really. Zakuro: The heart of the person who will soon die. Zakuro: Therefore, the world... Zakuro: Will end. Mamiya: ... Mamiya: What? Mamiya: ... Mamiya: U-Um... Zakuro: Sorry. I'm sorry. You probably can't believe it, right? But I'll protect you. *"Zakuro-chan!"* Usami: Who is this? Usami: What are you doing with an outsider? Zakuro: Sorry. But this person should be fine. Ayumi: I'm not all that impressed. Zakuro: Yeah, I understand. Usami: Please be more careful, Zakuro-chan. Zakuro: Yeah... Sorry Mamiya: Ahahaha, well then, I'd better be off... Zakuro: Hey! Mamiya: Yes?! Zakuro: I'll protect the world, so... Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Okay? Zakuro: I won't fail. I can do it. Usami: Zakuro! Zakuro: Coming... *The moment approached.* *It was 6:30...* *We quickly walked to the apartment building.* *The apartment building would be the best place for us to receive energy from Elhimuro.* *Soon it would be time for the Spiral Matai.* *It approached, second by second.* Zakuro: Now... it's finally time... Usami: Y-Yeah... Ayumi: ...Ah... Auh... Zakuro: Hmm? *What's wrong?* *Ayumi-chan has never been talkative, but why is Usami-chan so quiet all of a sudden...?* Zakuro: What's wrong, Usami-chan? It's kind of... Usami: ... *What's wrong?* *Is she trembling?* *Why?* Zakuro: Today's the day we finally recover our power so that we can save the world. Usami: ... Zakuro: Huh? *I couldn't hear what she said.* Zakuro: What's wrong, Usami-chan? Usami: I-I'm... scared... Zakuro: Huh? Usami: I'm scared... *Usami-chan started crying out of fear.* *Why is she so terrified?* *Why is she crying?* Zakuro: What are you saying? Hey... Usami-chan? Usami: We might just die, you know?! Zakuro: Wha―?! *Die?* *Did she just say we might die?* *Why would we die?* *Why would that happen?* Zakuro: What do you mean, Usami-chan?! *She continued crying. She wouldn't answer me.* Ayumi: Spir...al... Ma...tai... Zakuro: Spiral Matai? *Spiral Matai...* *I heard it was a ritual to recover our Extradimensional Powers...* *I heard we would have a near-death experience...* *But... just what kind of ritual is it? I still hadn't heard the details.* Zakuro: Usami-chan... what kind of ritual is the Spiral Matai? *She just kept crying in fear.* Zakuro: Don't just cry! Tell me! Usami: In order to recover our powers, we have to come close to death, so we have to... Zakuro: Have to what? Usami: We have to... jump from the roof of this building. Zakuro: Huh?! *What?* *What... did she just say?* *Did she just say... we have to jump?* *Jump off the roof?* *From the top of this building?* *This building is at least fourteen stories...* *If we jumped from that height...* Zakuro: Ah! *Just like that...* *Our bodies would crash against the ground, just like him...* *No... This building is three times as tall as the one he fell from, so it would be much worse.* *It would probably be a lot worse.* Zakuro: I-If we do that... we'll definitely... Usami: No... If we do it, our powers will be awakened the instant before we reach the ground. Zakuro: ...Awakened? Usami: Yes... Our power will never come back until we're faced with certain death. Zakuro: Faced with certain death... Usami: ...B-But... But, I'm scared... I'm so scared! *Scared...* *Scared of...* *Jumping from the top of this building...* *Jumping off the roof...* *Hehe...* *Hehehehehe...* Zakuro: Hehehehehe... Usami: ...Zakuro-chan? *I grabbed Usami-chan and Ayumi-chan's arms.* Ayumi: Ah, auh... *I dragged the two of them into the elevator.* *They were both crying now.* Usami: Nooo! I don't want to die! Zakuro: It'll be all right, Usami-chan. What do we have to fear? Usami: ... Zakuro: There's no way we'll die like he did... Zakuro: We're angel warriors! It's our destiny to save the world! Zakuro: What do we have to be afraid of? Zakuro: We definitely won't die. Zakuro: We won't die, because we're the ones who are right! Usami: But... Zakuro: All right? Usami-chan... right now, the world is sitting upon the cusp of destruction. Zakuro: If we don't stand up and fight, who will save the world in our stead? Usami: ...But... Zakuro: Just like before... Zakuro: If we don't fight back, the world will be annihilated. Zakuro: Usami-chan, do you understand? Zakuro: The end is approaching. Zakuro: Look at it, Usami-chan! Zakuro: Come on... Can't you see it? Zakuro: The great disaster is coming... Zakuro: Just like before... Zakuro: Like before... Zakuro: We said these words... Zakuro: We won't lose! Zakuro: As long as we stand united, we can accomplish even the impossible! Zakuro: Usami-chan, have you forgotten? Zakuro: If we don't fight back now, the world will be destroyed! Usami: I can't see it... I can't see any great disaster! Zakuro: Open your eyes! Usami: Nooo, no! Zakuro: Usami! Usami: Eek! Zakuro: Usami-chan, listen to me! Zakuro: Fear is a shapeless monster! Zakuro: It clouds the mind and beckons the worst possible outcome! Zakuro: If we falter here... Zakuro: The world will be destroyed! Zakuro: Could you let that happen? Zakuro: Usami-chan! Usami: I could! Zakuro: Wh-What? Usami: I don't care if the world is destroyed! Usami: I don't want to die! Usami: Ow! *I slapped Usami-chan without even thinking.* Zakuro: I'm sorry... Zakuro: But we don't have time... Zakuro: Ayumi-chan, what time is it? Ayumi: Ah, auh... *Ayumi-chan silently backed away.* Zakuro: What time is it?! *I grabbed her wrist and pulled her over to us again.* *She was trembling.* *So she's afraid too...* *They're both scared...* *Then I have to be strong.* *If I don't keep calm, the world will be destroyed!* Zakuro: ...What time is it? Ayumi: Six... forty... Zakuro: We don't have time! Quick! Zakuro: Come on, find your courage! Usami: I don't need courage! Zakuro: Usami-chan, yo * idiot!* * Idiot,* * idiot,* * idiot!"* Zakuro: Show me your strong heart! Zakuro: Your panache! Zakuro: The crest of courage upon your heart... Your panache! Zakuro: Now, Le Bret! Today, we travel to the moon! Usami: Huh? What? Zakuro: I have no need for a machine's assistance. I'll simply dive off this building. Usami: Wh-What are you saying? What? Zakuro: That's right! That world upon the moon is...! Zakuro: A world fashioned just for me! Zakuro: The souls of all those I admire wait for me upon the lunar surface... Zakuro: Socrates! Galileo! Zakuro: The soul which comprises the fundaments of physical matter is― Zakuro: This is truely a problem... Quoth Copernicus! Zakuro: That's right. Why hath the whole been tempted by the devil? Zakuro: Why hath the whole been tempted, lured onto that galley? Zakuro: A philosopher! Zakuro: A scientist. Zakuro: A poet. Zakuro: A swordsman. Zakuro: A musician. Zakuro: And now a traveler flying across the sky. Zakuro: You will feel the sting of your own words. Zakuro: He has become all. Zakuro: He has become supreme... and... Zakuro: Has become the sky... Zakuro: But... I must go. I cannot keep him waiting. Zakuro: Look... The moonlight has come to welcome me... Usami: Nooooo! Ayumi: Eek! *The two of them convulsed, trying to run away.* *But I grabbed them both by the wrists so they couldn't run.* *That's right...* *You can't run away now...* *This is our only chance!* Zakuro: Don't be afraid... Zakuro: I'm here with you... Zakuro: It'll be all right. Zakuro: Don't worry. Zakuro: We've made it through every crisis before, haven't we? Zakuro: So... Zakuro: So we definitely won't die! *I dragged the two of them along as I stepped over the handrail.* *The sky was close.* *It felt like I could reach out and touch the heavens...* Zakuro: You strip from me the laurel and the rose! Zakuro: Take all! Despite you there is yet one thing I hold against you all. Zakuro: One thing that is left, that, void of stain or smutch, I bear away despite you. Zakuro: Mon panache! *I took one step out into the air.* *The two of them tried to hold their ground.* *But I took one step out into the air.* *That's all.* *Let me dance for this new world.* *For this new power.* *For this new truth.* *I took that one step.* *I felt the two of them trembling.* *It'll be all right...* *I'm here with you!* Zakuro: To the sky! Usami: Nooooooo! Ayumi: Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!! *I entrusted everything to the sky.* *My body travelled from sky to Earth in an instant.* *I grabbed their wrists, bringing them along with me into that abyss.* *I saw their faces...* *Laughing, but crying...* *Terrified, and yet... happy...* *Those were the emotions upon their faces.* *Ah...* *It's like we're flying.* *It's like we're angels already.* *So fast...* *So windy...* *But there was no sound.* *The world rotated in the silence.* *Soon we'll reach the ground.* *Pioneers in aerodynamics...* *Everything was the rotating sky.* *The Earth knew me as it reached up to envelop us.* *Just a little ways until we reach the world...* *Just a little ways until we reach the Earth...* *The growing shadow.* *I saw my shadow upon the ground.*

*Just like he said, the next day was peaceful, and the day after that, and the day after that... They were all peaceful days.* *After that day, all the bullying stopped.* *Not only Akasaka-san and Kitami-san, but the rest of the class stopped looking at us so coldly as well.* *Though Akasaka-san and Kitami-san kept avoiding us.* *Mamiya-kun acted normally after the incident as well.* *One thing did bother me, though...* *Mamiya-kun was the person from before. He wasn't the Mamiya-kun who protected us.* *He was the kind, sociable person... The one who seemed to light up the world.* *He never again showed me the same expression from that night.* *Actually... this happened, too.* Zakuro: Uh, this... is the book I borrowed from you. Thank you very much. I shouldn't have kept it so long. Mamiya: Huh? Oh, really? Zakuro: Huh? Mamiya: Oh, sorry, sorry... I guess I forgot that I'd lent it to you. Ahaha, I thought I'd lost it. Zakuro: Really? Mamiya: Ahaha... Sorry, I have a really bad memory. I always forget stuff like that. Zakuro: ...So you're 'laying low' again? Mamiya: Eh? Zakuro: Oh, nothing. You told me you talk like that when you're 'laying low'... Mamiya: Huh? What are you talking about? Zakuro: Oh, uh, it's nothing. Zakuro: Oh, and what about the others... How are the other two triplets? Mamiya: Triplets? Mamiya: I don't know any triplets... The twins seem to be getting along fine, though. *Twins?* *Who are they?* *I don't remember Mamiya-kun talking about twins before...* Zakuro: You've really changed, haven't you? Mamiya: Have I? Zakuro: Yes... *From the Mamiya-kun I last met here on the rooftop...* *From the Mamiya-kun I met in that underground room...* *And even from the Mamiya-kun I first met here on the rooftop... This one was different from them all.* *The peaceful days will continue on... Maybe that's why Mamiya-kun wants to keep acting like that incident never happened...* *Maybe that's why the Mamiya-kun from that time doesn't show himself...* *The days when Kimika and I fought against Akasaka-san and Kitami-san... and the night in the park where it all ended...* *Maybe it really is an unnecessary past for the peaceful days of the present...* *Maybe that's true for Mamiya-kun, too...* *There were always bad rumors about him floating around before, but now his reputation is getting better. He's cheerful, and his grades are good, and people like him...* *People seem more open to me and Kimika as well, since we were friends with Mamiya-kun before this happened...* *Kimika just seems troubled by the attention, though, since she doesn't get along with people very well.* *But, mysteriously enough, Kimika's aloof attitude actually made people like her more.* *Now that I think of it, she was always cute... She's no good at sports, but she's pretty smart, too.* *There was never any reason for so many people to dislike her.* *Bullying is just like that...* *There doesn't need to be a good reason... Depending on the circumstances, sticking out can either cause someone to be bullied or cause them to be adored.* *As Mamiya-kun's reputation changed, so did ours...* *But eventually, the popular Mamiya-kun grew distant from us.* *Peaceful days.* *Ongoing peaceful days...* Kimika: Were you thinking about Mamiya Takuji again? Zakuro: Ah... Kimika: Seems like you haven't talked to him lately, huh? Zakuro: Yeah... Or rather, it doesn't feel like I can talk to him. He's so popular... Kimika: What happened... He was always so awkward before, but now he's completely different. Zakuro: Yeah... You might be right... Kimika: You like him, don't you? Zakuro: Ahaha... You're still saying that? Kimika: B-But... Zakuro: Dummy... *I took her hand.* Zakuro: Do you want to skip class? Kimika: Eh? Zakuro: Let's skip... Kimika: B-But... Zakuro: But what? Kimika: Z-Zakuro, that's kind of... *Kimika's face went bright red...* *I pulled her hand...* Kimika: Wait, uh... Zakuro, that's kind of bold... *I grabbed my bag and pulled her hand...* Kimika: Ah, I have to get my bag too... Zakuro: Ha, ha, ha... Kimika: Ha, ha, ha... Z-Zakuro! Zakuro: Hehehe, the teachers were chasing us. Kimika: Well yeah, you tried to walk right out the front gate! Zakuro: But Akasaka-san and Shiroyama-kun did that before, didn't they? Kimika: B-But you're supposed to be a good student! Zakuro: Not at all... I just couldn't decide anything by myself. Zakuro: I obeyed the rules just because someone else had decided them... But― Kimika: Ah! *Just like Mamiya-kun had changed... there were a lot of things inside me that had changed...* *The most important thing to me had changed...* *Before, the most important thing to me was simply not upsetting anyone, but the person I was before had disappeared.* *When did that happen? When I first started to like Mamiya-kun?* *Mamiya-kun certainly did change me.* *Mamiya-kun gave me the courage to move forward under my own power...* *But, oddly enough, once I took that step... the wonderful future I had envisioned suddenly changed.* *His form, which had been foremost in my mind, changed... once I took that step forward.* *...This might be a rude way of saying it, but I didn't think he should be the most important thing in my life anymore.* *Because he was splendid enough on his own. He had everything he needed on his own...* *I didn't feel anything for him anymore.* Kimika: Ah! Zakuro: What are you so scared of? Kimika: Zakuro! Th-There are so many people around... Zakuro: You don't need to worry about that... Mm... Kimika: Mm, mm... ah, mm... *When I took that step forward, the scenery changed.* *The unusual became usual, and the usual became unusual.* Kimika: What are you doing all of a sudden? *Kimika complained, her eyes wet with tears.* *Kimika is always like this...* Zakuro: Would you rather I asked first? Kimika: Th-That's not the problem! Kimika: Jeez... I thought you were supposed to be a bullied girl. You're supposed to be the submissive one. Zakuro: I'm not a bullied girl anymore. Kimika: That's not what I mean! Kimika: Mm, I thought you were a masochist, but I guess you were really a sadist. Zakuro: Hehehe... I don't know about that. Zakuro: After all, you were the one... that suddenly attacked me that day. Kimika: Th-That was―! Zakuro: You didn't want Mamiya-kun to take me away from you? Kimika: Th-That's, uh... Zakuro: Jeez... You took my virginity just like that, and yet you get worked up about a kiss... Kimika: Th-That was, uh... I was kind of desperate... Zakuro: Desperate? Kimika: Um, I just wanted to stop you from going off with him... and I got carried away... Zakuro: You got carried away... and did it with me. Kimika: Ahhh! *Kimika's face turned bright red as she turned away.* Zakuro: Isn't that right? Kimika: ...I'm sorry. Kimika: Hey! What's this? * Are you teasing me?!"* Zakuro: Not at all... I'm just asking you a question. Kimika: U-Ugh.. * Zakuro, you're kind of a bully..."* Zakuro: I'm not bullying you... If that's what you think I'm doing, would you rather I never kiss you again? Kimika: Th-That's―! Zakuro: That's what? Kimika: Awww! *Oh no... This again...* Kimika: Jeez! I hate you! Go die, you piece of shit! *Oh, now I've done it... She's so cute, I can't help but bully her...* Zakuro: Ah, I'm sorry, Kimika! *Ahaha... It's like the reverse of our relationship before.* *People are funny...* Zakuro: Ha, ha, ha... Kimika! Kimika: Ha, ha, ha... Y-You're just as fast as ever, huh? Zakuro: No... It's not that I'm fast, but rather... Well, more importantly, I'm sorry! Kimika: ...Zakuro. Kimika: Hey, how many times have we repeated this same pattern?! Zakuro: Ahaha... I can't help bullying you sometimes. You're too cute. Kimika: How many times have I heard that excuse... Zakuro: Ahaha... Sorry. Kimika: ...Then promise me. Zakuro: Promise you what? Kimika: Y-You won't bully me or say you won't kiss me anymore... Zakuro: Heh! Kimika: Whoa, don't hug me! Zakuro: Yes, yes, I promise, Kimika! Kimika: Whoa, what are you doing?! Are you trying to show off your boobs? *A lot changed after that...* *Every day was different.* *Actually...* *At the end, this happened...* *That was July 19th... The last day before summer break.* *At the end of the semester... I went up to the rooftop to talk to Mamiya-kun.* *And when I got there...* *Ah...* Ayana: akashima... Zakuro-san? Zakuro: Your name was... Ayana: Otonashi Ayana... *Oh, right... I think I've seen her before.* Ayana: Did you come to see Mamiya Takuji-kun today? Zakuro: Yeah... I did, but... *How did she know that?* Ayana: Mamiya-kun won't be coming to school today. Zakuro: Really? Did he catch a cold? Ayana: He didn't catch a cold... Today is the day before the 20th. Zakuro: The day before the 20th? Ayana: Yes... Therefore, the two will have their final battle... Zakuro: Their final battle? Ayana: Yes. The Mamiya-kun from the underground room was supposed to be the victor, but... because of your choice, his soul has changed directions. Zakuro: His soul? Ayana: Yes... The world of souls. The repitition of souls... Ayana: His soul's string has been severed from the repeating world's model... He's now fated to walk a different path. Zakuro: Um, what does that mean? Ayana: Hehehe, it just means that you made the correct choice. Ayana: Everything is as desired... Takuji the Creator and Takuji the Destroyer died together, and Takuji the Harmonizer alone remained. Ayana: Everything is as he desired... Ayana: ...As Tomosane-kun desired. Zakuro: Tomosane-kun? Ayana: Hehehe... The soul is endlessly reincarnated in the same world. That's why I'm here. Ayana: Now, you too must move forward. The promised land awaits you. The Wonderful Everyday is beginning. Zakuro: U-Um, do you know all of Mamiya-kun's secrets? Ayana: Secrets? Zakuro: Just now, you were talking about Mamiya-kun the Creator, Mamiya-kun the Destroyer, and Mamiya-kun the Harmonizer. Zakuro: What is that?! Ayana: Hehehe... Yes, but the answer is not for you. Ayana: You've obtained The Wonderful Everyday, and you've lost everything besides... Ayana: That's why you can't obtain that answer... Or maybe. *Ayana-san grinned.* *I felt a chill run up my spine.* Ayana: Would you like to give up all you have now? Ayana: Would you like to see the soul take a different direction? Zakuro: ... Zakuro: I-I... *I made my choice...* Zakuro: I can't give up what I have now. I've sworn to live my life to the fullest! Ayana: All right... *Ayana-san gave another, smaller smile, and then looked at the sky.* Ayana: That sky is no longer here. Ayana: The lost sky... The world of just one soul erased that sky. Ayana: The girl who has decided to live her life... has obtained The Wonderful Everyday. *I still don't know what she meant by that.* *I never saw Ayana-san again after that.* *I heard rumors that she had transferred or dropped out, but I never knew for sure.* *To be honest... it seemed irrelevant to me.* *The question I asked Ayana-san on that day...* *Even that question seemed irrelevant to my life.* Kimika: Hey... Zakuro. Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: What's wrong? Zakuro: Oh, sorry... Kimika: Lost in thought again... Jeez, Zakuro, you're always like that. Zakuro: Ahaha... Not at all. Zakuro: More importantly... summer is ending, huh... Kimika: Yeah... It's starting to get a bit chilly. Zakuro: The summer will end, fall will come, winter will come, and then it'll change to another warm spring. Kimika: Yeah... *I walked through the chilly park.* *I moved forward.* Zakuro: ... Kimika: Huh? What's wrong? Zakuro: Oh, no, it's nothing. *What is this feeling?* *It's a strange unease, like I feel uncomfortable about something... It's really strange.* Kimika: What's the hold up? Let's go. Zakuro: ...Let's go. *Let's go.* *When I heard her words, I understood.* *I see... So that's what it was.* *This feeling is probably the same feeling I felt when I took my first step.* *I just forgot the feeling until now.* *This is probably what my first step felt like.* *It's not just me, either. Everyone felt this when they took their first step. It's the same feeling animals must have felt when they first started to walk on land.* *I felt nervous about my first step.* *There's no mistaking it.* *After all, it's my first step...* *It's the beginning of a new scenery.* *But eventually that single step...* *Becomes an everyday experience.* *The single step into tomorrow that I so feared...* *That was a common scene.* *It became an everyday routine.* *It became easy. It became incredibly normal.* Kimika: Wh-What is it? Zakuro: Nothing... Hey, Kimika. Kimika: Wh-What? Zakuro: Thank you! Kimika: Eh? Zakuro: Thank you for walking by my side! Thank you for helping me take this step! Kimika: Eh? Uh... *Kimika hesitated... Of course she did. I was a bit too sudden. I've always been like that, though I never had the courage to say what I was thinking.* *That's why she hesita...ted?* Kimika: Yeah... *Kimika laughed cheerfully as she responded.* Kimika: Thank you, too. Kimika: For walking by my side!

*That day.* *What Kimika always called 'that day'...* *I don't remember the exact date... Well, that's actually a lie.* *I even remember the exact time when it happened.* *But I pretend like I don't remember.* *I like to mess with Kimika by playing dumb.* *Kimika wants me to feel responsible for it until I die.* *She doesn't want me to abandon her until I die...* *She wants to be together... until the end.* *Well, that's not important right now.* *This is, in my opinion...* *The most important day for us.* Kimika: Ah... Zakuro. Zakuro: Kimika... I was looking for you. Kimika: Looking for me * I was at my club. You could've come to the clubroom if you wanted."* Zakuro: But you're in two of them, so I didn't know which one to go to. Kimika: Okay, but more importantly, what have you been doing while waiting? You're not in any clubs. Zakuro: I... I, uh... *I laughed and tried to play it off...* *Though it's not like I needed to hide it.* Kimika: The rooftop again, huh? Zakuro: Rooftop? *The rooftop? Oh, so she thinks I went to see Mamiya-kun...* Kimika: ... *I don't really understand her.* *At first she was always telling me to go see him...* *But since summer break started, she's gotten really upset any time she's heard about me talking to him.* *Which one is it... That's what I want to ask her.* *Jeez...* Zakuro: What's wrong? Are you in a bad mood? Kimika: Not at all. *O-Oh... She really is in a bad mood...* *Jeez, Kimika... What's the problem?* Kimika: I'm not mad, but... it's like, we can finally see each other again now that summer break is over, but you're... Zakuro: You don't like me talking to Mamiya-kun all the time? Kimika: Th-That's not it, i-it's just... I know how you feel about him, so I know why you're prioritizing him, but... *She was misunderstanding something. She must have thought that my relationship with Mamiya-kun changed over the summer.* *But nothing like that happened. I just had a normal summer.* *I never met up with Mamiya-kun... I just spent my summer studying.* Zakuro: If you wanted to see me that badly, you could have called me during the summer. Kimika: Maybe, but.. * I-I was trying not to get in your way..."* *I don't feel that way about Mamiya-kun anymore.* *Why would she need to worry about getting in my way?* Zakuro: What did you do during your summer break? Kimika: Nothing... I went to summer school, and I studied at home. Zakuro: I see... Well, graduation is pretty soon, but still, you must really like to study. Kimika: I-I don't like studying * It's just something I have to do. Learning about science has been particularly useful, you know..."* Zakuro: Ahaha... I know exactly what you mean. Kimika: Though the humanities aren't good for anything. They're useless even after graduation. Zakuro: What? Are you making fun of the humanities? Kimika: Yeah, more or less * Mamiya-kun likes that crap, doesn't he?"* Zakuro: Math seems to be his forte... Kimika: What forte? All his grades are bad*. **Mamiya-kun's grades certainly were bad at the beginning of the semester.* *But his grades had been way better than Kimika's on all the tests since this semester started, especially in math.* Zakuro: Well, your grades are good, but... Kimika: What is it? Zakuro: I don't like it when you make fun of people like that. Kimika: Wh-What do you mean * It's not like I'm making fun of you..."* Zakuro: That's not the problem. Kimika: Oh, I guess you don't like to hear me say bad things about Mamiya-kun, huh? Zakuro: That's not it... You shouldn't say bad stuff about anyone else either. Kimika: Why? Zakuro: Because you're so kind, and yet you always talk like that... Everyone assumes you're a bad person because you do that. Kimika: Who cares... They can think whatever they want. Zakuro: Does that mean I can think whatever I want too? Kimika: Wh-Why would you say that? Zakuro: You're saying you don't care if I dislike you, right? Kimika: Th-That would be a problem... for me. Zakuro: For you? Kimika: Ah! Kimika: A-Anyway, I don't care what strangers think, but you're not a stranger! Zakuro: Then what am I? Kimika: Eh * U-Um..."* *Wh-Why is her face getting all red?* Zakuro: We're... friends, right? Kimika: Oh, y-yeah, that's right * We're friends, so we can talk bad about other people! Or rather, I can't help talking like that! That's just my nature!"* Zakuro: Of course you can help it. You can't get rid of bad habits if you don't work to correct them. Kimika: ... Zakuro: So let's try to fix that bad habit. Kimika: All right... If you insist, I'll be more careful about what I say. Zakuro: Why are you acting so rude? You really must be in a bad mood after all. Kimika: Why would I be in a bad mood?! Zakuro: It's pretty obvious right now... Kimika: But we haven't seen each other for so long, and you... Zakuro: You're in a bad mood because I went to see someone else even though we haven't seen each other in a while? Kimika: Y-You went to see someone?! Kimika: S-So you did... You were with him... *No, it's not like I was with him... Is that what Kimika thought? I kind of wanted to ask what she's thinking.* Kimika: Haa... So * How was it?"* Zakuro: How was what? Kimika: I'm talking about Mamiya, of course. Zakuro: Uh, nothing really happened. Kimika: Wh-Why? You two have kissed by now, right? *She really was misunderstanding something.* *I didn't feel that way about him anymore.* Zakuro: You know... I've said this a few times already, but I don't really... Kimika: Like I said, you should stop trying to hide it. You're just making excuses for yourself. *Wh-What? I'm not making an excuse... And just what does she think we did?* *She's starting to get on my nerves...* *I should tease her a bit.* Zakuro: But I've never kissed anyone before. I don't even know how you're supposed to do it... Kimika: You just have to put your lips together... It's simple! Zakuro: Oh... So you've done it before? Kimika: Eh? M-Me? Zakuro: Yes, you... You could only say that if you've kissed someone before, right? Kimika: Eh, um... Well... Zakuro: Oh? Were you showing off even though you had never done it yourself? Kimika: D-Don't underestimate me * I've had at least one kiss before, or at least half a kiss..."* *What's half a kiss? You're getting ahead of yourself, Kimika...* Zakuro: Oh... So you have kissed someone... Kimika: Y-Yeah, I have... Zakuro: Then show me. Kimika: Eh? Zakuro: Show me how it's done. Kimika: Like I can show you that! Kimika: I happen to be single right now, for complicated reasons. Zakuro: That's right... But I wonder if you're telling the truth. As far as I've heard, you've never had a boyfriend before. Kimika: Ugh... Zakuro: What kind of person were you dating? You should be able to tell me that, if you've kissed someone before, right? Kimika: Uh... I-I can... Zakuro: Oh... What kind of person was it that you kissed? Kimika: Kind of... Kind of like... a boy * And why do you care?! Why should I tell you that?!"* Zakuro: It just seemed like you were lying... That's all. Kimika: N-No way! That's rude! Zakuro: Hmm, okay... I understand. Kimika: What? You don't believe me at all, do you?! Zakuro: That's not what I mean. I'm just saying you can't prove it. Well, don't worry about it. Zakuro: Now I understand... You're always going on about science, science, but you don't care about actually proving the things you say. Kimika: What?! Do you want to do an experiment to prove me wrong, then?! Zakuro: Prove you wrong? Kimika: ...Ah. Kimika: Oh, no, it's nothing... Forget I said anything. *Her face suddenly reddened.* Zakuro: Hmm? What? Kimika: Oh, uh... It's nothing * Really, it's nothing... Ahaha."* *She looked away.* *What's she thinking?* *Wait...* *O-Oh... By experiment, she means...* Zakuro: U-Um, I'm sorry. I said too much... *I felt embarrassed too.* *Then Kimika...* Kimika: Um, Zakuro, are you sure you don't want to, uh... do a kissing experiment, or maybe practice? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: Oh, uh.. * you said something about an experiment, so I just wanted to ask... Ahaha. Don't worry about it."* Zakuro: A kissing experiment... *Practice kissing... No, it's not like I'd be practicing to kiss someone else, so I can't really call it practice.* *Kimika doesn't know, but that would be my first kiss. It's not just practice for me.* *She said it so casually, too...* Zakuro: A-All right... Show me, then. Kimika: Eh? W-With you? Zakuro: Is there someone else you'd like to kiss to demonstrate? Kimika: No way! Kimika: I-If it's you, then... Zakuro: Then you can do it? Kimika: Y-Yeah... *There's no way we could actually do it, though... We're both girls. She's just being stubborn.* Kimika: Y-You really don't mind? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: L-Like I said, is it really okay if I kiss you? Zakuro: Uh, s-sure... *Huh? It wasn't just a joke?* *Or is she still being stubborn?* Zakuro: U-Um... Kimika: Eh? Wh-What? *Huh?!* *Why is she tearing up?* *Um, could she be...* *There's no way she's really going to kiss me, right?* Zakuro: U-Um, are you being serious? Kimika: Eh? Oh, uh... *Ah, uh, um...* *Wh-What? Why are we talking about this?* *Um, um...* *We were talking about practicing or experimenting, or something like that... I only egged her on because I thought there was no way we would ever actually do it.* *N-Now my heart's thumping too... Why's that?* *W-Wasn't it all a joke?* *A-After all, this is my best friend, and she's a girl... She was my ally when we fought the bullies, and... uh...* *I shouldn't be getting nervous about this.* *But a kiss?* Zakuro: Um, an experiment? You mean, you're going to kiss me? Kimika: Oh, uh.. * I'm just saying, sometimes people practice with their friends. Something like that, ahaha..."* Kimika: Oh * Haven't you ever read any magazines like that? They always talk about girls practicing with their friends. Ahaha, it's not a big deal at all."* Zakuro: W-Well, I've heard of it before, but I wonder if that's true. Kimika: Wh-Who knows... I'm kind of curious myself... Zakuro: Yeah... *I'd definitely read about it in a magazine before.* *There was a reader submission where someone said they practiced kissing with one of their friends...* *So maybe it's not that strange after all...* *Kimika certainly is my best friend... Maybe it wouldn't affect our friendship at all if we did something like that...* *And yet...* Zakuro: U-Um... Uh. *My heart was beating wildly in my chest. What... What is this feeling?* Kimika: Sorry... That's pretty gross, huh? Zakuro: Eh? N-Not at all! Kimika: Eh? Zakuro: Ah... *We were alone in the evening classroom, but my voice echoed in the hallway.* Zakuro: Uh, I really like you, so it's not really gross at all... We're friends, aren't we? Kimika: A-Ahaha.. * Y-Yeah, we're friends."* Zakuro: A-And I was the one who brought it up... Kimika: Um.. * Can I take that as an okay?"* *I could hear her heart beating in her chest.* *Her face was red, like she had just run a marathon.* *Maybe my face looks the same...* Zakuro: Probably... Zakuro: It's just an experiment, right? Kimika: Oh, y-yeah * It's just an experiment... I didn't even need to ask, huh..."* Zakuro: Ah, yeah. Kimika: W-Well.. * is it okay if I go ahead and do it?"* Zakuro: Yeah... Kimika: Well then... I'm beginning the experiment. Zakuro: Oh, s-sure... *Her hand touched mine... I could feel it quivering, and it was covered in sweat.* *We looked into each other's eyes.* Kimika: U-Um, could you close your eyes? Zakuro: Eh? Kimika: I don't think I can kiss you if you keep looking at me like that... Zakuro: Oh, o-okay... *You're supposed to close your eyes when you kiss someone... I shouldn't have stared like that.* Zakuro: A-Ahaha... This is the first time I've ever seen your face from so close. Kimika: Y-Yeah... I've never seen your face this close either... *As I looked at her, I couldn't help thinking... She really is cute, isn't she?* *She probably got bullied by Akasaka-san specifically because she was so cute... There's no other explanation.* Kimika: U-Um, could you close your eyes? Zakuro: Oh, okay... *I closed my eyes, just like she told me to.* *Her fingers dug into my hand.* *I felt her breath... I'd never felt anything like that before.* *My teeth started chattering out of nervousness.* Kimika: Mm... Zakuro: Ah... Kimika: U-Um... Zakuro? Zakuro: Wh-What? Kimika: I-I can't kiss you when your mouth is so tightly closed. Zakuro: Should I... open my mouth? Kimika: No, you don't need to open it, but if you could let go of the tension in your lips... I think it would work better that way... Zakuro: Oh, sure... Got it. *It would work better that way, huh?* *I slowly parted my lips.* Kimika: Mm... Mm... Zakuro: Mm! Mm... *Her tongue darted into my mouth.* *I'd never felt anything like that... I couldn't believe a kiss could feel so good. Her tongue was so warm and soft.* Zakuro: Mm, ah... Kimika: H-How was it? Zakuro: Eh? U-Um... *It's over already?* Zakuro: I'm... not sure yet... Kimika: Really? Zakuro: Yeah. I know it feels good, but I'm not sure if I understand how you're supposed to do it yet. Kimika: O-Oh, I was pretty much just kissing you, huh? Okay then, you kiss me this time. Zakuro: Kiss you? Kimika: Yeah... You kiss me... Zakuro: S-Sure... *I slowly moved my face closer to hers.* *She closed her eyes...* *Maybe I was supposed to close my eyes at this part too, but I wasn't used to this. It seemed like we're going to hit noses if I wasn't careful.* *I looked at her face until the last moment.* *Soft skin, and beautiful lips... I wanted to kiss her more.* *Our lips came together again with a muted sound.* *The soft sensation of our lips touching.* *Our bodies drew closer.* *As we pressed our lips and bodies together, our warmth seemed to melt into one.* *Kimika's tongue danced and twined itself around mine... I heard the sound of our saliva mixing and the sound of our tongues caressing each other.* Kimika: Mm... Mm... *She pushed her tongue deep inside my mouth.* *Her lips didn't show any sign of drawing away from mine.* *Quite the opposite... We began to kiss even more violently than before.* *I wanted to feel her more... I wanted to be closer to her... That's what my instincts told me.* *At the very least, in that moment, I didn't know what to call my feelings for her.* *My instincts just urged me to keep going, to keep kissing.* Zakuro: Mm... Mm... Kimika: Mm... Mm.. *We kissed and kissed, seemingly for an eternity...* Kimika: Z-Zakuro... are you... Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: Ah, i-it's just... Kimika: I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry. I can't stop myself. Zakuro: Eh? Y-You can't stop yourself? Kimika: I-I've... been holding myself back. I told myself I could never do this with you, but now I can't stop. Zakuro: Whoa, w-wait, Kimika! Kimika: Sorry, I know you have Mamiya, but... I know you have him, but... I'm sorry. I'm sorry, but I've always... Zakuro: Um, th-that's not the real problem here... Kimika: I'm sorry... You'll probably hate me for this, but I can't keep holding myself back, Zakuro. Zakuro: Mm?! Mm... Kimika: Mm... Zakuro, I love you. I love you... Mm... Mm... I'm sorry... *I always thought she was small and weak, but when she held me down, I couldn't stop her.* *She was crying... Why would she cry while doing this?* *There's nothing to cry about...* *Kimika... what were you holding back?* *What is it you always wanted?* *I wanted to ask her that, but her lips never left mine.* *She didn't even let me ask that question.* *Kimika, you don't need to cry... I don't understand, but if you were holding back for my sake, I'll do anything for you.* *Because you're... the best friend I've ever had.* *We kissed for a long time. I felt her tears running down my face...* *I just closed my eyes and let her do as she pleased.* *She put her hand on my blouse.* *She kept touching my chest.* *She kept fondling my chest, even though she always seemed so upset about it before.* Kimika: Zakuro... I'm sorry... *She started undoing the buttons on my blouse... and her other hand moved toward my thighs.* *She moved her hand up my thighs, almost touching my underwear, then lifted my skirt.* *She wanted to touch my body...* *But I wanted to be closer and closer to her. I wanted to touch more of her body as well.* *Her hand slowly, intently moved from my thigh to the bottom of my underwear.* *Like she was checking the feeling of my body, over and over...* Kimika: Your boobs really are big, aren't they? *She buried her face in my chest.* Kimika: I don't want to give you away to that bastard Mamiya... Kimika: I might not be as strong as him, but someday, I'll be stronger. Someday I'll be able to protect you, so... so... Zakuro: Ah, ah. *She put her lips on one of my nipples.* Kimika: Mm... Your chest is so big... and soft... and you smell good... Mm... Zakuro: Ah... N-No, Kimika... D-Don't touch me there... Kimika: No way. I'm not stopping now... I want your everything. Not just your chest, but here too. Zakuro: Ah! *Her hand touched my underwear.* *A strange feeling I'd never felt before resounded throughout my brain.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika: Your thighs, and your underwear... I can't believe how soft they are... and warm, too... I love you, Zakuro. I won't let anyone else have you. *Kimika brought her face back to my breasts and started licking them.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... No... *Her tongue really felt good. It was soft and warm.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... *I could tell that my nipples were hard.* Zakuro: Haa... Ahh... Mm... *My body just reacted to the pleasure... I could tell that Kimika felt the same way from the warmth of her body and her hot, ragged breathing.* *Kimika took my empty hand and placed it on her thigh.* *I felt her smooth skin on my palm.* *Her thighs felt wet... and when I moved my hand further up, I felt an incredible heat radiating from her crotch.* *Then...* *She pressed my hand into her crotch.* *She guided my hand... and my finger moved in from the side of her underwear.* *It was unbelievably wet. My finger slipped in without any resistance at all.* *Then I touched her clitoris...* Kimika: Mmhaa! *Her body trembled at my touch.* Kimika: Look, I'm already so wet. I can hardly believe it. *When I looked down at my hand... I noticed that her crotch was so damp it looked like she had wet herself.* Kimika: Sorry I'm such a freak... I'm sorry your friend is such a pain... Sorry... Kimika: Pch... Mm... *She didn't give me a chance to reply at all. I actually enjoyed it, but she wouldn't let me say that. I wanted to tell her not to cry, but... but...* *Warm liquid dripped from her crotch every time we kissed.* *Kimika grabbed my wrist and pushed it into her crotch again.* *I felt her sticky wetness and soft flesh on my fingers.* Kimika: ... *She kept kissing me, never letting up. We were connected by our lips, and by my hand at her crotch.* Kimika: Ah... N-No, I'm going to, ahh... *She looked at me, tears welling up in her eyes.* *She was moving my fingers herself, but soon after I started touching her, she was already close to climax.* Kimika: Oh no... I'm going to cum... Ah, sorry, I'm really sorry... I'm sorry your friend is such a freak. Zakuro: ...You dummy... *She finally moved her lips so I could speak.* Kimika: ...Zakuro. Zakuro: You're acting like you're the only one who wants to... Look... *I gently touched her pussy.* Kimika: N-No way... You're touching me... With your finger, you're touching me... Ahh! *She could've just told me she wanted to this. You're such a dummy, Kimika.* Kimika: Ah, I'm sorry... Zakuro, ah, for making you do this, I'm so sorry... Ah, no, no, I'm really going to cum. I'm going to cum! Kimika: Aaaaah! Aaammhaaaaa!! *Kimika convulsed with waves of pleasure... and then a moment later, she froze, as if her batteries had died.* Kimika: Haaa, haa... Haa... Kimika: Next time I'll... Zakuro: Don't worry about it, Kimika... Ah, no! *Kimika put her hand under my skirt, and then...* *I was so embarrassed... I suddenly realized that my underwear was wet, and it was dripping down my thighs too...* Kimika: Whoa... Are you wetter than me? Zakuro: Don't ask me that! Kimika: Ah... Zakuro, Zakuro... Zakuro, you're... Zakuro: Ah? Wh-What? Kimika: Y-You're so wet... It's bright red... Zakuro... Zakuro: Ahhh! Kimika: Mm... Ah... Zakuro: Haa... Wh-What? Kimika? Wh-What are you doing? N-No, wait... Kimika? You can't do that... *I experienced a pleasure I had never felt before.* *I felt the same warm touch that was previously in my mouth and on my breasts.* *She pulled down my panties and put her mouth to my pussy.* Zakuro: N-No, Kimika! No... You shouldn't, you shouldn't be licking down there! Kimika: Mm... Zakuro, you're such a dirty girl... You're soaked down here... I can't help it, I want to feel your body more, more... Zakuro: But... No, you're a girl, you shouldn't... A girl shouldn't be doing that... Kimika: Haa... Haa... Sorry, I'm really sorry, but you're so wet, I... I can't hold myself back... Sorry. Zakuro: No... D-Don't say that, aaaah... Don't, not there, aah... No, Kimika, not there. Wait, not my clitoris... Kimika: J-Jeez... I'm not stopping now... I want to feel your entire body... Mm, you can't stop me now. Kimika: Aauh... I'm actually licking your most precious place... Ahh, ahh, I'm sorry, I'm such a pervert... I'm just a freak that likes other girls, I'm sorry... Zakuro: Ah, aah... Kimika, you dummy, dummy, dummy, dummy! Kimika: Zakuro... You taste so good, mmm... I'm so happy right now. Zakuro: No, no... Really, Kimika, I'm... Zakuro: Kimika, wait, not there... We can't ever go back if you... Kimika: I don't want to go back... Besides, I just came earlier. You're twitching down here, and you're soaking wet... Zakuro: Ah... Kimika... Why are you acting like this? Kimika: Because I love you... I'm so happy just being able to do this with you... Zakuro: Kimika... You dummy... You pervert... Kimika: I'm sorry... I'm sorry, mm... But I'm still happy that I'm able to do this... Zakuro: B-But... No, don't suck there, ah... Kimika: Zakuro... Mm... Zakuro... Zakuro: Pervert! Pervert! Pervert! Aaaah! Zakuro: Pervert! This isn't fair! You should show me yours too! Kimika: Huh? Zakuro: ...It's not fair that you're doing everything... I want to feel your body too... Kimika: Zakuro... Zakuro: So please! Kimika: B-But... I couldn't make you do that. I'm doing this because I want to... I could never make you do this to me. Zakuro: You pervert! I want to touch yours too! You stupid pervert! Kimika: Ah, ahh... Zakuro... Zakuro: You're amazing, Kimika... You're just using your tongue, but it feels so... Kimika: But, but... I've always been holding it back... I've always wanted to do this, and I couldn't hold myself back... Zakuro: Then why didn't you say something... Mm... Kimika: Ah! Wh-What? A-Are you... Are you really licking me down there? Zakuro: You pervert! Pervert! You're soaking wet... I don't understand you at all! Zakuro: I told you to stop, but you kept going... If I don't do something to return the favor now, then it's just like before. Kimika: Zakuro... Ah... W-Wait, Zakuro... Mm... Ah... *Kimika and I went down on each other in the evening classroom.* *If anyone saw us, we wouldn't just be suspended... we'd probably be expelled...* *And we're both girls, too... If someone saw, who knows what would happen...* *Those thoughts flashed through my mind, but I didn't care.* *My brain wasn't working right anymore... My thoughts wouldn't line up.* *The waves of pleasure rushing through my body dominated me.* *Kimika and I held each other.* *Our skin touched, our bodies overlapped...* *I couldn't believe how warm and soft her body felt.* *So people really are mammals... Nonsensical thoughts like that flashed through my mind...* *Maybe that's why it's so nice to feel another person's warmth.* *I love feeling her warmth... It's so wonderful... I want to get even closer with her... I want to become one with her...* *That was my only desire.* Kimika: Haa... N-No way, Zakuro, you're actually... I can't believe it... Zakuro: Mm... You're so warm, Kimika... Kimika: Haa... Zakuro, your lips are so soft... Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika, Kimika, Kimika... I want your body more... I want it so bad... Kimika: Haa, ha... I want you too... I want to feel your body more... Zakuro: Yeah... I want to feel your warmth... I want to feel everything you have... Kimika: Ah... More, more... *Kimika arched her back like a bow.* *Her thighs were dripping wet, like she had pissed herself.* *Big drops of it dripped on my face, but it was like I was completely numb. I didn't mind at all.* *Or maybe... I didn't mind because I loved her...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... It feels so good, Kimika... Kimika: Me too... It's amazing... Ahh, Zakuro, I never would've thought you could do this... I, I... Zakuro: Pervert... You pervert, Kimika! Kimika: Aahh... N-No, I'm... I'm going to cum... I'm... Zakuro, what about you? Zakuro: Me too... Soon. Kimika: Ah... How long? Ah, I can't hold it... Mm... Zakuro: You don't need to hold back! Kimika: N-Noo... Ah! I-I'm going to... Your tongue feels so good... Kimika: Ah, no, I can't hold it... Zakuro, ahh! Zakuro: It's okay... M-Me too... Soon, I'm going to... Mm... Kimika: Aah! Wow... Mm, Ahh, aaaah... I-I'm cumming! I'm cumming! Kimika: Haa, I'm cumming! Aaaah... Aaaaaahh!! Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika... Ahh... M-Me too... Kimika... Zakuro: Ah!! *My body started convulsing just a couple seconds after hers.* *My body trembled in waves of pleasure.* *I couldn't even tell what was going on.* *I guess I came... Every contraction sent dopamine racing through my body.* *...* *For a few minutes... we just held each other, still naked, but our wits returned to us when we heard voices in the hallway.* Zakuro: K-Kimika, quick, your clothes! Kimika: Huh? O-Oh! Zakuro: I-If someone sees us, we'll get expelled! Kimika: Ah, y-yeah, I know! Kimika: Ahaha... Zakuro: What's so funny, Kimika? Kimika: Ahaha... I'm sorry... Zakuro: Weren't we just supposed to practice kissing?! Kimika: Y-Yeah... Zakuro: Then how did it end up like this? Kimika: M-My bad... Zakuro: Is that all you have to say?! Kimika: Uh... Sorry... Zakuro: Kimika... I'm not going to forgive you for this. Kimika: U-Um, what? Are you going to press charges for sexual assault? Zakuro: Oh, right... I definitely could do that. Kimika: Wait, you're going to do that?! Zakuro: Is there a problem with that? Kimika: W-Well, I dunno how long I'd last in jail. Zakuro: Right... So then are you going to take responsibility? Kimika: ...Huh? Kimika: Responsibility? Zakuro: That's right. Responsibility. Kimika: You're not going to report me to the police? Zakuro: You need to take responsibility. Now, how are you going to do that? Kimika: R-Responsibility... What exactly do you mean by that? Zakuro: It was because you were suspicious of me and Mamiya-kun... That's why you did this. Kimika: Oh, uh.. * Well, I mean, I know about you two and all, but..."* Zakuro: There's nothing between us. Kimika: Huh? Zakuro: There's nothing between me and Mamiya-kun. I haven't even seen him once all summer. Kimika: R-Really? Zakuro: That's right. There's no reason for us to meet up. Kimika: Huh? But... Zakuro: ...No buts! Now take responsibility! Kimika: Um, yes ma'am! Zakuro: I don't have any feelings for Mamiya-kun... Kimika: D-Does that mean... Zakuro: That's right. *And that was the end of that.* *Or maybe I should say, that was the beginning?* *One month later... Time passed so quickly, and summer was already over.* *The seasons changed.* *From summer to fall.* *From fall to winter.* *From winter to spring...* Kimika: U-Um... Zakuro: What? Kimika: What were you muttering about just now? Zakuro: Oh, sorry about that. I was just thinking about something. Kimika: Thinking about something? Zakuro: Yeah... *And that's how my perspective, the scene that Takashima Zakuro sees, comes to a close.* *The two of us lived happily ever after...* *But this is the end.* *Goodbye.* *Farewell to days past.* *And to a new future.* *The two of us together, from here on out.* *Hello.*

*I closed my eyes, just like she told me to.* *Her fingers dug into my hand.* *I felt her breath... I'd never felt anything like that before.* *My teeth started chattering out of nervousness.* Kimika: Mm... Zakuro: Ah... Kimika: U-Um... Zakuro? Zakuro: Wh-What? Kimika: I-I can't kiss you when your mouth is so tightly closed. Zakuro: Should I... open my mouth? Kimika: No, you don't need to open it, but if you could let go of the tension in your lips... I think it would work better that way... Zakuro: Oh, sure... Got it. *It would work better that way, huh?* *I slowly parted my lips.* Kimika: Mm... Mm... Zakuro: Mm! Mm... *Her tongue darted into my mouth.* *I'd never felt anything like that... I couldn't believe a kiss could feel so good. Her tongue was so warm and soft.* Zakuro: Mm, ah... Kimika: H-How was it? Zakuro: Eh? U-Um... *It's over already?* Zakuro: I'm... not sure yet... Kimika: Really? Zakuro: Yeah. I know it feels good, but I'm not sure if I understand how you're supposed to do it yet. Kimika: O-Oh, I was pretty much just kissing you, huh? Okay then, you kiss me this time. Zakuro: Kiss you? Kimika: Yeah... You kiss me... Zakuro: S-Sure... *I slowly moved my face closer to hers.* *She closed her eyes...* *Maybe I was supposed to close my eyes at this part too, but I wasn't used to this. It seemed like we're going to hit noses if I wasn't careful.* *I looked at her face until the last moment.* *Soft skin, and beautiful lips... I wanted to kiss her more.* *Our lips came together again with a muted sound.* *The soft sensation of our lips touching.* *Our bodies drew closer.* *As we pressed our lips and bodies together, our warmth seemed to melt into one.* *Kimika's tongue danced and twined itself around mine... I heard the sound of our saliva mixing and the sound of our tongues caressing each other.* Kimika: Mm... Mm... *She pushed her tongue deep inside my mouth.* *Her lips didn't show any sign of drawing away from mine.* *Quite the opposite... We began to kiss even more violently than before.* *I wanted to feel her more... I wanted to be closer to her... That's what my instincts told me.* *At the very least, in that moment, I didn't know what to call my feelings for her.* *My instincts just urged me to keep going, to keep kissing.* Zakuro: Mm... Mm... Kimika: Mm... Mm.. *We kissed and kissed, seemingly for an eternity...* Kimika: Z-Zakuro... are you... Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: Ah, i-it's just... Kimika: I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry. I can't stop myself. Zakuro: Eh? Y-You can't stop yourself? Kimika: I-I've... been holding myself back. I told myself I could never do this with you, but now I can't stop. Zakuro: Whoa, w-wait, Kimika! Kimika: Sorry, I know you have Mamiya, but... I know you have him, but... I'm sorry. I'm sorry, but I've always... Zakuro: Um, th-that's not the real problem here... Kimika: I'm sorry... You'll probably hate me for this, but I can't keep holding myself back, Zakuro. Zakuro: Mm?! Mm... Kimika: Mm... Zakuro, I love you. I love you... Mm... Mm... I'm sorry... *I always thought she was small and weak, but when she held me down, I couldn't stop her.* *She was crying... Why would she cry while doing this?* *There's nothing to cry about...* *Kimika... what were you holding back?* *What is it you always wanted?* *I wanted to ask her that, but her lips never left mine.* *She didn't even let me ask that question.* *Kimika, you don't need to cry... I don't understand, but if you were holding back for my sake, I'll do anything for you.* *Because you're... the best friend I've ever had.* *We kissed for a long time. I felt her tears running down my face...* *I just closed my eyes and let her do as she pleased.* *She put her hand on my blouse.* *She kept touching my chest.* *She kept fondling my chest, even though she always seemed so upset about it before.* Kimika: Zakuro... I'm sorry... *She started undoing the buttons on my blouse... and her other hand moved toward my thighs.* *She moved her hand up my thighs, almost touching my underwear, then lifted my skirt.* *She wanted to touch my body...* *But I wanted to be closer and closer to her. I wanted to touch more of her body as well.* *Her hand slowly, intently moved from my thigh to the bottom of my underwear.* *Like she was checking the feeling of my body, over and over...* Kimika: Your boobs really are big, aren't they? *She buried her face in my chest.* Kimika: I don't want to give you away to that bastard Mamiya... Kimika: I might not be as strong as him, but someday, I'll be stronger. Someday I'll be able to protect you, so... so... Zakuro: Ah, ah. *She put her lips on one of my nipples.* Kimika: Mm... Your chest is so big... and soft... and you smell good... Mm... Zakuro: Ah... N-No, Kimika... D-Don't touch me there... Kimika: No way. I'm not stopping now... I want your everything. Not just your chest, but here too. Zakuro: Ah! *Her hand touched my underwear.* *A strange feeling I'd never felt before resounded throughout my brain.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika: Your thighs, and your underwear... I can't believe how soft they are... and warm, too... I love you, Zakuro. I won't let anyone else have you. *Kimika brought her face back to my breasts and started licking them.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... No... *Her tongue really felt good. It was soft and warm.* Zakuro: Ah, ah... *I could tell that my nipples were hard.* Zakuro: Haa... Ahh... Mm... *My body just reacted to the pleasure... I could tell that Kimika felt the same way from the warmth of her body and her hot, ragged breathing.* *Kimika took my empty hand and placed it on her thigh.* *I felt her smooth skin on my palm.* *Her thighs felt wet... and when I moved my hand further up, I felt an incredible heat radiating from her crotch.* *Then...* *She pressed my hand into her crotch.* *She guided my hand... and my finger moved in from the side of her underwear.* *It was unbelievably wet. My finger slipped in without any resistance at all.* *Then I touched her clitoris...* Kimika: Mmhaa! *Her body trembled at my touch.* Kimika: Look, I'm already so wet. I can hardly believe it. *When I looked down at my hand... I noticed that her crotch was so damp it looked like she had wet herself.* Kimika: Sorry I'm such a freak... I'm sorry your friend is such a pain... Sorry... Kimika: Pch... Mm... *She didn't give me a chance to reply at all. I actually enjoyed it, but she wouldn't let me say that. I wanted to tell her not to cry, but... but...* *Warm liquid dripped from her crotch every time we kissed.* *Kimika grabbed my wrist and pushed it into her crotch again.* *I felt her sticky wetness and soft flesh on my fingers.* Kimika: ... *She kept kissing me, never letting up. We were connected by our lips, and by my hand at her crotch.* Kimika: Ah... N-No, I'm going to, ahh... *She looked at me, tears welling up in her eyes.* *She was moving my fingers herself, but soon after I started touching her, she was already close to climax.* Kimika: Oh no... I'm going to cum... Ah, sorry, I'm really sorry... I'm sorry your friend is such a freak. Zakuro: ...You dummy... *She finally moved her lips so I could speak.* Kimika: ...Zakuro. Zakuro: You're acting like you're the only one who wants to... Look... *I gently touched her pussy.* Kimika: N-No way... You're touching me... With your finger, you're touching me... Ahh! *She could've just told me she wanted to this. You're such a dummy, Kimika.* Kimika: Ah, I'm sorry... Zakuro, ah, for making you do this, I'm so sorry... Ah, no, no, I'm really going to cum. I'm going to cum! Kimika: Aaaaah! Aaammhaaaaa!! *Kimika convulsed with waves of pleasure... and then a moment later, she froze, as if her batteries had died.* Kimika: Haaa, haa... Haa... Kimika: Next time I'll... Zakuro: Don't worry about it, Kimika... Ah, no! *Kimika put her hand under my skirt, and then...* *I was so embarrassed... I suddenly realized that my underwear was wet, and it was dripping down my thighs too...* Kimika: Whoa... Are you wetter than me? Zakuro: Don't ask me that! Kimika: Ah... Zakuro, Zakuro... Zakuro, you're... Zakuro: Ah? Wh-What? Kimika: Y-You're so wet... It's bright red... Zakuro... Zakuro: Ahhh! Kimika: Mm... Ah... Zakuro: Haa... Wh-What? Kimika? Wh-What are you doing? N-No, wait... Kimika? You can't do that... *I experienced a pleasure I had never felt before.* *I felt the same warm touch that was previously in my mouth and on my breasts.* *She pulled down my panties and put her mouth to my pussy.* Zakuro: N-No, Kimika! No... You shouldn't, you shouldn't be licking down there! Kimika: Mm... Zakuro, you're such a dirty girl... You're soaked down here... I can't help it, I want to feel your body more, more... Zakuro: But... No, you're a girl, you shouldn't... A girl shouldn't be doing that... Kimika: Haa... Haa... Sorry, I'm really sorry, but you're so wet, I... I can't hold myself back... Sorry. Zakuro: No... D-Don't say that, aaaah... Don't, not there, aah... No, Kimika, not there. Wait, not my clitoris... Kimika: J-Jeez... I'm not stopping now... I want to feel your entire body... Mm, you can't stop me now. Kimika: Aauh... I'm actually licking your most precious place... Ahh, ahh, I'm sorry, I'm such a pervert... I'm just a freak that likes other girls, I'm sorry... Zakuro: Ah, aah... Kimika, you dummy, dummy, dummy, dummy! Kimika: Zakuro... You taste so good, mmm... I'm so happy right now. Zakuro: No, no... Really, Kimika, I'm... Zakuro: Kimika, wait, not there... We can't ever go back if you... Kimika: I don't want to go back... Besides, I just came earlier. You're twitching down here, and you're soaking wet... Zakuro: Ah... Kimika... Why are you acting like this? Kimika: Because I love you... I'm so happy just being able to do this with you... Zakuro: Kimika... You dummy... You pervert... Kimika: I'm sorry... I'm sorry, mm... But I'm still happy that I'm able to do this... Zakuro: B-But... No, don't suck there, ah... Kimika: Zakuro... Mm... Zakuro... Zakuro: Pervert! Pervert! Pervert! Aaaah! Zakuro: Pervert! This isn't fair! You should show me yours too! Kimika: Huh? Zakuro: ...It's not fair that you're doing everything... I want to feel your body too... Kimika: Zakuro... Zakuro: So please! Kimika: B-But... I couldn't make you do that. I'm doing this because I want to... I could never make you do this to me. Zakuro: You pervert! I want to touch yours too! You stupid pervert! Kimika: Ah, ahh... Zakuro... Zakuro: You're amazing, Kimika... You're just using your tongue, but it feels so... Kimika: But, but... I've always been holding it back... I've always wanted to do this, and I couldn't hold myself back... Zakuro: Then why didn't you say something... Mm... Kimika: Ah! Wh-What? A-Are you... Are you really licking me down there? Zakuro: You pervert! Pervert! You're soaking wet... I don't understand you at all! Zakuro: I told you to stop, but you kept going... If I don't do something to return the favor now, then it's just like before. Kimika: Zakuro... Ah... W-Wait, Zakuro... Mm... Ah... *Kimika and I went down on each other in the evening classroom.* *If anyone saw us, we wouldn't just be suspended... we'd probably be expelled...* *And we're both girls, too... If someone saw, who knows what would happen...* *Those thoughts flashed through my mind, but I didn't care.* *My brain wasn't working right anymore... My thoughts wouldn't line up.* *The waves of pleasure rushing through my body dominated me.* *Kimika and I held each other.* *Our skin touched, our bodies overlapped...* *I couldn't believe how warm and soft her body felt.* *So people really are mammals... Nonsensical thoughts like that flashed through my mind...* *Maybe that's why it's so nice to feel another person's warmth.* *I love feeling her warmth... It's so wonderful... I want to get even closer with her... I want to become one with her...* *That was my only desire.* Kimika: Haa... N-No way, Zakuro, you're actually... I can't believe it... Zakuro: Mm... You're so warm, Kimika... Kimika: Haa... Zakuro, your lips are so soft... Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika, Kimika, Kimika... I want your body more... I want it so bad... Kimika: Haa, ha... I want you too... I want to feel your body more... Zakuro: Yeah... I want to feel your warmth... I want to feel everything you have... Kimika: Ah... More, more... *Kimika arched her back like a bow.* *Her thighs were dripping wet, like she had pissed herself.* *Big drops of it dripped on my face, but it was like I was completely numb. I didn't mind at all.* *Or maybe... I didn't mind because I loved her...* Zakuro: Haa, haa... It feels so good, Kimika... Kimika: Me too... It's amazing... Ahh, Zakuro, I never would've thought you could do this... I, I... Zakuro: Pervert... You pervert, Kimika! Kimika: Aahh... N-No, I'm... I'm going to cum... I'm... Zakuro, what about you? Zakuro: Me too... Soon. Kimika: Ah... How long? Ah, I can't hold it... Mm... Zakuro: You don't need to hold back! Kimika: N-Noo... Ah! I-I'm going to... Your tongue feels so good... Kimika: Ah, no, I can't hold it... Zakuro, ahh! Zakuro: It's okay... M-Me too... Soon, I'm going to... Mm... Kimika: Aah! Wow... Mm, Ahh, aaaah... I-I'm cumming! I'm cumming! Kimika: Haa, I'm cumming! Aaaah... Aaaaaahh!! Zakuro: Ah, ah... Kimika... Ahh... M-Me too... Kimika... Zakuro: Ah!! *My body started convulsing just a couple seconds after hers.* *My body trembled in waves of pleasure.* *I couldn't even tell what was going on.* *I guess I came... Every contraction sent dopamine racing through my body.* *...*

*Twas brillig, and the slithy toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe;* ** *All mimsy were the borogoves,* *And the mome raths outgrabe.* *"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!* ** *The jaws that bite,* *the claws that catch!* ** *Beware the Jubjub bird, * *and shun* ** *The frumious Bandersnatch!"* *He took his vorpal sword in hand: Long time the manxome foe he sought* *So rested he by the Tumtum tree,* *And stood awhile in thought.* *And as in uffish thought he stood,* *The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,* *Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,* *And burbled as it came!* *One, two!* *One, two!* *And through and through, the vorpal blade went snicker-snack!* ** *He left it dead,* *and with its head* ** *He went galumphing back* *"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?* ** *Come to my arms, my beamish boy!* ** *O frabjous day!* *Callooh!* *Callay!"* ** *He chortled in his joy.* *All mimsy were the borogoves,* ** *And the mome raths outgrabe.* ** *Twas brillig,* *and the slithy toves* ** *Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;* *All mimsy were the borogoves,* ** *And the mome raths outgrabe.* *"Jabberwocky"* * by Lewis Carroll* *The mysterious monster called the Jabberwock...* *It is a nameless man who defeats that monster.* *Why did that nameless man feel compelled to slay the Jabberwock?* *It was a poem written by Lewis Carroll in nonsense verse. The greatest nonsense poem is told as a parody of an epic.* *A mysterious monster.* *A nameless hero.* *Many words that never existed before.* *A parody of an epic.* *It's just like my own existence...* *I walked through the city as the sun began to set.* *A city bathed in evening sunlight.* *The sky took on shades of orange and yellow, and buildings were dyed a dark purple.* *The time when the world sinks into darkness... When the lights come on.* *The lights in people's lives come on.* Master: Oh, you're early today... Um, you seem like Tomosane, right? Tomosane: Yes, I'm Tomosane. Also, it doesn't really matter, but I'm not early at all. It's already after 6:30. Master: Oh, you really are Tomo-chan. Tomosane: Would you stop that? Call me Tomosane, or Yuuki... Master: It's getting close to seven. The days really have gotten long. It's still light outside. *Haa... Ignoring me, huh? I even came to see him...* Tomosane: It's the second of July, after all. The days will just keep getting shorter from now on. Master: Really? Tomosane: Days are longest at the end of June. Once you get into July, the days start getting shorter. The summer solstice is in June, you know... Master: You're right. Still, don't the days feel longer in July and August? Tomosane: But the days are almost an entire hour shorter in August compared to the summer solstice... Master: Seriously? It's that much of a difference? Why's that? It feels like the days have to be shorter in June. Tomosane: Well, I don't know the details, but I think it feels like it gets darker earlier in June because the clouds are thicker. Master: The clouds? Oh, so the weather makes it feel like the days are shorter. Tomosane: Probably. During June, this city has clouds covering the sky even in the best of weather, so it never really gets all that bright. *The June sky is always dark.* *A person would know that well if they had nothing to do besides look at the sky all day.* *You could even start to think there's no such thing as a blue sky in June.* *Actually, there's a saying about May skies being the finest of all, and that was in the old calendar. It would actually be June in the modern calendar.* *And the cliched May showers are the same.* *The phrase "May sky" isn't just referring to good weather.* *The phrase actually refers to the rarity of a blue sky in the rainy season of June.* *That's how precious a clear sky in June is.* *Now that I think of it, I knew a dumb girl who liked the June sky...* *The same place as always.* *That idiot is always here.* *She said it was because this place is closest to the sky.* *It's kind of ridiculous to say the roof of an apartment store is the closest place to the sky...* *After all, even the apartment building on the other side of the street is bigger.* Tomosane: It's raining, you know... Why are you up here on the roof? *"Huh? The rain's nice. I like it."* Tomosane: That's not an excuse. You're gonna catch a cold up here. *"Do you hate the rain?"* Tomosane: Yeah, I'm in shock right now, since I just heard someone say they actually liked it. I can't believe anyone would actually want to look at such a dreary sky. *"A dreary sky, huh? I guess you could call it that."* Tomosane: The June sky is always dreary. *"Oh, really... I actually like the May sky, though."* Tomosane: May, huh... I guess it's sorta poetic if you use the old calendar, but that doesn't change the fact that it's dreary. *"But, you know... the June sky hides that which hangs overhead."* Tomosane: Hangs overhead? What are you talking about? These dreary clouds are all that's hanging overhead. *"It's a matter of perspective. To me, it's the ridiculously huge blue sky extending into infinity that seems dreary."* Tomosane: A ridiculously huge sky, huh... You're like a poet, but with childish delusions. *"You sound stupid when you throw around the phrase 'childish delusions' all the time like that, Tomosane."* Tomosane: Wha― Tomosane: Y-You're the one who's always saying it to me! *"Hahahaha, that's not important. Try picturing this. Just imagine how much easier life would be if we could hide away that endless sky lurking above our heads."* Tomosane: ...I don't see it. The cloudy sky is a lot drearier. Tomosane: Why don't you try picturing this instead? Hasaki could have just washed some clothes and can't put them out to dry. *"June! Dirty clothes smell like Summer Comiket!"* Tomosane: Huh? *"Sometimes the air conditioner smells like it too... I wonder if they're holding an itty bitty comiket in my air conditioner."* Tomosane: What's that comiket thing you're talking about? *"You haven't heard of it? It's when all the funny looking people with funny hobbies and funny glasses get together to talk to each other in their nasally voices and laugh it up, kinda like Sabbat."* Tomosane: I don't know about any of that, and what's Sabbat? Well, it must be some kind of manga festival, right? *"Yeah. Apparently he goes to those kind of events a lot. It's a real pain when he suddenly passes the baton to me out there."* Tomosane: Hmm... That's never happened to me. *"You're lucky for that. It's hell. It's cold in the winter, hot in the summer, and it always stinks."* Tomosane: Oh, that must've sucked. *"You could at least try to sound interested. Who knows, it could end up happening to you next time."* Tomosane: I don't know what I would do to all those people if that happened. I'm sure it would never happen to me... I made sure of that. *"Oh wow... So you don't think it's a problem when it happens to me?"* Tomosane: Who knows... Not my problem anyway. *This conversation really got off track... Well, that's what always happens when I talk to her.* *I unlocked the piano and put my hands on the keys.* *The sound of the keys... Did it get tuned? It was done really well.* Tomosane: ... Master: How's the piano? It got tuned this afternoon. Tomosane: Dunno. Master: You should... You're the one who said it sounded nasty because it was out of tune. Tomosane: Then it's fine... It doesn't sound nasty right now. Master: What's that... Tomosane: It was probably Yuki who said that, not me. Master: Oh, really? Tomosane: I don't remember that. Plus, Yuki's normally the one who worries about small stuff like the piano's tuning. Master: Oh... I kind of had a feeling that's what it was. She's always been picky about that kind of stuff. Tomosane: She won't shut up about the piano... Also, Master, did Hasaki come by? Master: Hmm? She said she would come again tonight, after she went to her mother's place. Tomosane: Her mother? Again? That idiot... Tomosane: Well, whatever... So she's going to come back tonight. I'll make sure to leave before she comes. Master: No you won't. This is your job. Do it right. Hasaki: Hello. Tomosane: ... Master: Oh? Welcome back. Tomosane: ... Master: What? I didn't lie. It's already night out, you know? *The time was 6:58... The sun hadn't even set. Could you really call this night?* *Though complaining to Master wouldn't really help much at this point.* *More importantly, Hasaki was in front of me.* Hasaki: You were about to leave... Tomosane: ...Yeah, I was. Hasaki: Why would you do that? Tomosane: Because I knew you were coming. Hasaki: Hmph! *It was pretty easy to understand her personality... She disappeared into the kitchen with a sullen look.* *Mamiya Hasaki...* *Mamiya Takuji's little sister...* *And of course, since I share the same body with Mamiya Takuji, she's my little sister too. Physically, at least.* *But only physically...* *I've never even shared the Mamiya name, so she's nothing more than a stranger to me.* *So I, Yuuki Tomosane, don't like to get involved with her more than I have to.* Master: Don't make Hasaki-chan too mad. Tomosane: How so? Master: Don't you feel bad for her? Tomosane: I should feel bad for her? Master: That's right. Tomosane: Then you could be nice to her so I don't have to. Master: You're still spouting that crap? Master: You know, if you make her too mad... Hasaki: Ah... Master: Look... She can't focus when she's like that. She can't even do her job when she's like that... Hasaki: U-Um, Master, I'm sorry... I broke a plate. Master: I heard it. Make sure you don't cut yourself. Tomosane: ...I'll leave Hasaki to you. I'm leaving. Master: Huh? You have a job to do. Tomosane: I'm going home. Master: You're really leaving now? Tomosane: Sorry... I got a headache all of a sudden. I probably have the flu. Tomosane: I don't want to give it to you guys, and this store does sell food after all. Master: Hehehehe... Tomosane: Ngh! *He got behind me in an instant.* *Faster than I could believe...* Master: Oh, you don't have a fever at all? Tomosane: I-I'm sure I'll wake up with a really awful fever tomorrow morning... Master: Then you should be okay till tomorrow morning, don't you think? Tomosane: N-No, uh... Master: Besides... You have to work to pay me for that plate. Tomosane: B-But Hasaki broke that! Master: She broke it because you upset her. Tomosane: U-Um, if you squeeze any harder, I― Master: Oh, do you think you'd be more compliant if I made you faint? Tomosane: Wait, a-ah, Master, ngh! *This fag's skills are beyond those of any normal martial artist... He was an instructor at the jujitsu dojo that Mamiya's grandfather used to run.* *He's a fag, so he's not really the kind of person I like to hang around with, but there's no denying his strength.* Tomosane: Haa... Haa, haa... Master: Don't underestimate me. If I tell you to work, then you have to work. *He really is good.* *He's completely different from all the other people around here.* *He had me the second he got hold of my arms...* Tomosane: Heh... Master: What are you laughing about? Go get changed. Hasaki: Nii-san. Tomosane: I'm not your Nii-san... I'm Yuuki right now. Yuuki Tomosane. Hasaki: So Tomosane Nii-san... Tomosane: You know... My last name is different than yours, so you shouldn't be calling me that. Master: What are you talking about? You can call someone Onii-chan even if you're not related to them. Master: And besides, the two of you are related by blood, Tomo-chan. Tomosane: That's not it... And please don't call me Tomo-chan. Master: Shut up. Why are you worried about junk like that? Tomosane: It's not junk... That's really unpleasant. Master: Is that why you've got nothing but junk down here? Tomosane: Wha-?! Master: Look, just a tiny piece of junk. Tomosane: S-Stop... Y-You're going to break it... Stop! Master: Ahahaha, it's you're fault you're so vulnerable. You should learn the value of an hour of training every day of your life. Tomosane: I'm not a martial artist. Master: Oh, really? I guess you're just a punk who thinks it's all right to beat up amateurs. Tomosane: Th-That's not... Master: You act tough, but you're still a child, especially down here. Right, Hasaki-chan? *Hasaki just...* * shook her head, like she was saying...* * 'Don't ask me, don't ask me.'* *She had no idea what to say when Master suddenly asked her a question like that.* *I played one of my favorite songs.* *...Le poisson reveur.* *A composition by the French composer Erik Satie.* *Though I just copied it by ear, so it's a little different from the original.* *The antithesis of tonal music...* *It ignores traditional harmonic progression. The score includes copious examples of unusual counterpoint and chord progression.* *This strange music is called furniture music.* *In actually playing Satie's music on the piano... there are parts where I can understand what he intended the music to sound like, and other parts where I can't understand at all.* *Music is a mysterious phenomenon.* *The music my hands are playing was originally a melody in someone's head a long time ago in a distant land.* *Whether the composer would admit it or not, that melody was made up through an amalgamation of his thoughts, his emotions, and his life.* *And now I'm reproducing one tiny part of that... No doubt, an incomplete fragment.* *Was the original melody in his head the same as the melody in my ears now?* *How well does the sound of my own playing overlap with the melody Satie first conceived?* *A colorful sound.* *The melody paints a scene.* *Could this melody blend into the background music of his life?* *These aimless thoughts ran through my head as my fingers struck the keys.* Tomosane: ... *That's a bad habit... When I get lost in my own head, I can't see the customers.* *I'm playing for the customers... I'm being paid to do this.* *I have to focus on the music.* *But still...* Customer A: Kyaa, Tomosane-kun, you're so cool. Customer B: Wow! You're so sexy! *The old men flirted with me in shrill voices... They weren't listening to the music at all.* *They were just making noise.* *No... That's what Satie intended this music to be anyway, I suppose.* *There's a composition by Satie that's actually titled Furniture Music, after Satie's style of composition.* *Apparently the program for the concert where it was first played told people that they needn't listen to the music playing during the interlude.* *But of course, when the audience heard the player begin to perform during the interlude, they sat quietly and listened.* *Satie told them, 'Please continue talking!'* *So maybe... this is exactly how Satie wanted his music to be performed?* Customer B: Tomo-kun, you're so cute! Customer A: Especially between your legs! Customer B: I wonder if he really is cute down there. Customer A: Of course he is! Customer A: Let me suck on your cute little guy! Tomosane: Huh?! *There's no way Satie wanted this.* Customer A: Ahh! That hurt. Customer B: Kyaa! Hit me too! Hit me too, Tomo-kun! Tomosane: D-Don't crowd me, you fags! How am I supposed to play?! Master: Come on, don't touch the dancer, don't touch the dancer. And you, don't hit the customers. Tomosane: I'm not a dancer! Tomosane: Haa... Master: Good work. Your next performance is in two hours... Be ready at ten. Tomosane: I don't mind playing the piano, but can you get rid of those fags for me? They're really creepy. Master: Oh now, you can't say that about our best customers. Tomosane: I don't care if they're customers, they're nasty. All those fags are nasty. Master: It almost sounds like you're talking about me too when you say that. I'm one of those fags that doesn't care if the person I do it with isn't gay, you know. Tomosane: ...Wh-What do you mean by that? Master: Maybe I should help you out with that cute little guy between your legs... Tomosane: ... Master: Oh, you've got goosebumps all over. You're so innocent. Tomosane: It has nothing to do with innocence... It's creepy as hell when a monster like you says that. Master: Oh, really? You're at such a difficult age. Just talking about your little Johnny gets you all embarrassed. Tomosane: No... My age has nothing to do with it. Master: Then what is it? Tomosane: Because you're a nasty old man. Master: I'm not an old man! That's mean, Tomo-chan! Tomosane: ...Like I care. Tomosane: Look... You're gonna make her break another plate. Master: Oh? I'm sorry... You're a bit young to be hearing about all that, Hasaki-chan. You know, all that talk about two men licking each other's cute little guys. Hasaki: C-Cute little guys?! Master: Yeah, right here. Let me show you. Tomosane: Knock it off! Hasaki: Th-That's all right! I-I'm not upset at all! Please, continue with your conversation! Tomosane: Oh, and... there's no such thing as too young to be hearing about fags blowing each other. That's wrong, no matter how old you are. Master: Oh, really? But it's not all that uncommon at all... you know? Tomosane: S-Stop! Whoa, stop, get your hands off my fly! Master: Hehehe... You know I love popping little straight boys' cherries. Hasaki: N-No, no, no! Hasaki: You can't do that, you can't do that! Not to Tomo Nii-san! *Hasaki was almost in tears as she stepped in to stop him.* *Which is fine, but...* Hasaki: No! Go find someone else to do that with! Master: Huh? I've done that so much I'm about tired of it. Hasaki: Not my problem. Who cares? Go suck your own for all I care! Master: But my body isn't soft like his is. Hasaki: Who cares?! Anyway, Tomo Nii-san is off limits! You can't lick him or suck him or anything! *Hasaki was on the verge of tears and rambling about terrible things... Is she all right?* Master: But, you know, he has to find someone to give him a good blowjob eventually. Hasaki: Y-You don't need to worry about that! I'm sure we can solve that problem here in the family! *No, Hasaki... I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to solve that problem in the family.* Tomosane: More importantly, Master... It's not like I actually have to find someone to do that. Hasaki: Ah, ah, auuhh... *Hasaki finally realized what she had been rambling about the entire time. Her face went bright red, and then turned terribly pale.* Master: Hasaki-chan, you're like a stop light... Tomosane: That's your fault, you know... *This is the crap I put up with every day.* *I'm utterly stunned at how stupid it is.* *It's not all that bad, though.* *I shouldn't be experiencing these days, but... they're not all bad.* *But I mustn't forget.* *My life here could crumble and disappear at any moment.* *My whole lifestyle is precarious... It's built upon a foundation that could collapse without warning.* *I might appear normal to an outsider, but my life is completely different from that of other people.* *Someday... No, soon... I'll disappear.* *That's just how it is.* *So I have to be prepared for the moment when I'm cut out of the picture, when I won't be able to experience these days ever again.* *Because I can't stay here long... I have to be ready for my own disappearance, no matter when it comes.* *"You mustn't covet your possessions, for you may never know what could happen in the future."* *Those were the words of a genius who conducted the Leningrad Philharmonic behind the Iron Curtain.* *Despite his fame, he lived a very simple life, filled with nothing more than nature, music, and art.* *You musn't covet your possessions...* *That applies not just to physical possessions, but also those of the heart.* *I mustn't have too much in this world.*

*I was on the roof.* *The roof of Building B.* *This is a great place to be alone, since you can only get here by crossing over from the Building A roof.* *Though I feel like all the other lowlifes avoid coming here since it's where I usually hang out.* *Either way, I don't have to deal with anyone else if I come here.* *Of course, I don't like to see Mamiya Takuji's face, but I'm not really fond of chatting with anyone else either.* *So I prefer deserted places.* *Though the roof is kind of hot...* *Like always... the sky was clear and blue.* *A clear summer day in summer is the same as a sweltering hot one.* *Especially up here on the roof, where the sun heats the concrete to the point where it could burn you.* *Over on the Building A roof, where there's no shade, you could get a farmer's tan (where only the uncovered parts of your skin get sunburnt) in just minutes.* *That's why this is such a nice spot.* *The Building B roof is lower and provides more shade than the others. A nice breeze blows in from the nearby copse, too.* *It's not as cool as indoors, where it's air-conditioned, but for being outside in the sun, the heat and humidity here are about ideal.* *But it's still a really hot day...* Tomosane: ... *It's like a sound... or maybe, like a slight pain... A unique, characteristic texture.* *It's not an external stimulus... It's the signal of a change within me.* Tomosane: This feeling... I don't think this is Mamiya Takuji... *Each of us feels different from the others.* *It's a subtle difference, but there's definitely a difference depending on who's about to appear.* *"Heeere."* Tomosane: Long time no see... Can I say that here? *"Why not?"* Tomosane: Yuki... Yuki: It's been a while, hasn't it? I'm not entirely sure, though... What's today? What day in what month of what year? Tomosane: There's a phone in your pocket... Why don't you look yourself? Yuki: Oh, right. I forgot... Whoa * No way, it's already summer. That's why it's so hot, huh?"* Tomosane: Yeah, it's hot out today. Yuki: Oh yeah, give me a cigarette. Tomosane: Yeah right... Yuki: Don't be cheap... I'm your big sister, you know? Tomosane: I'm smoking one right now. That means there's one in your mouth too... Yuki: Hmm? Yuki: Oh, you're right... Is this Never Knows Best?! Tomosane: You just realized that? It should be obvious... Yuki: It wasn't obvious to me. Well, you're right. You picked out my favorite brand, just for me. Yuki: You're such a nice kid, picking out an obscure brand like this just for your big sister. Tomosane: I didn't buy them for you... And what do you mean, big sister? Yuki: You're awfully slow to notice that one... But isn't it basically true? I was born before you, after all. Tomosane: Is being born first really enough to make you my big sister? In that case, the old lady at the corner store and that old woman who directs traffic are both big sisters to me too... Yuki: And we're related by blood too. Tomosane: Yeah, I suppose we are... And we also happen to be related by our blood vessels, muscles, brains, and the fat on our asses. Yuki: Oh, perfect. I'm more than just a big sister, then... Do you think that makes us lovers? Tomosane: I don't even want to hear a joke like that... Besides, I'm not a narcissist. Yuki: So do you hate yourself? Tomosane: No... I don't love or hate myself... Yuki: Oh, really... I happen to be rather fond of myself. I think I'm a pretty awesome person. Tomosane: Well, of course you are... You're the person Mamiya Takuji most wanted to become. There'd be no point if you hated yourself. Yuki: Hmmm... I wonder about that... Tomosane: So what do you want? Yuki: Nothing... I just woke up, and I was here. Yuki: If anything, I should ask you why we're out here in the heat... under the clear blue sky. Tomosane: Sorry about that... Unlike you, I prefer my skies to be clear. Yuki: What's that supposed to mean? It's not like I don't like clear skies. Tomosane: What are you talking about... I'm sure I heard you say you liked cloudy skies because it covers up the awful blue sky spreading out into the infinite... Yuki: Yeah, I like the rain. Rainclouds are really great. Yuki: But when it rains, the water puts out my cigarettes... That's kind of a bummer. Tomosane: If you're smoking it, it won't go out... Yuki: Really? It always goes out before I even notice... Yuki: So maybe clear blue skies are all right too. Tomosane: Don't ask me... You're the one who said you didn't like them. Yuki: But isn't it really hot out here in the sun? We gonna die out here or something? Tomosane: Hell no. It's not even that hot here. We're in the shade... Yuki: Oh, you're right... The shade is nice and cool. The breeze feels good too. *Yuki sat down next to me.* Tomosane: ...Don't sit there. It's too hot, even if you don't really exist. Yuki: I'm afraid your big sister can't respect that opinion. It's no different than claiming it's a violation of human rights when a 2D girl in an eroge gets raped. Tomosane: It's totally different... And you're not my sister. Yuki: Oh, come now... That's cold. *It's kind of odd. The Yuki next to me doesn't actually exist. Though, from her perspective, I guess I'm the one that doesn't actually exist.* *But regardless, when she sat next to me, I clearly felt the warmth and texture of her skin.* *In other words...* Tomosane: Don't sit next to me! I don't care if you're not really there! It's too damn hot! Yuki: I am actually here! You're awfully rude, you know? To me, you're the one that's not actually there! Tomosane: Anyway, get away from me... You're annoying. Yuki: Don't order me around. You're annoying. Tomosane: What?! Yuki: Haa... You try to act like you're so cool, but then you go and act like that. Maybe you should work on staying in character a bit more... Tomosane: The hell are you talking about? Yuki: Oh, you're wearing your glasses. Does that mean... Oh, you're reading something. What's this? Tomosane: A book. Yuki: That's not what I meant. What's the title... Huh, what's this? Wow, The Squirrel Cage? This looks like some scifi book! It's kinda creepy too... Tomosane: Shut up... Don't touch it, stupid. Yuki: I'm not hurting it. Don't be such a brat. Tomosane: I'm not a brat! Who the hell do you think you are?! Yuki: What, you don't remember? I'm Minakami Yuki. It's just your name backward. Tomosane: Is not... Yuki: Sure it does. You can read the kanji in Tomosane like Minakami, and Yuuki sounds just like Yuki... Look! It's basically the same name. Tomosane: It sounds like you're just making up readings. Yuki: Yeah, I guess so... It is awfully arbitrary. Tomosane: No kidding... That's really arbitrary. Yuki: ... Yuki: Also, I think it's happened... a few more times. Tomosane: What are you blabbering about all of a sudden? Yuki: My memory has gotten a lot more fragmented... and I haven't seen Hasaki-chan much at all lately. Tomosane: Oh right, you mentioned that before... That Hasaki's rabbit doll looked like a human to you... Yuki: I'm sure he really doesn't want to see that doll. Tomosane: Doesn't want to see it, huh? Giving her that doll was one of the few times he was actually nice to her... Yuki: He was nice to her at least once, huh? Tomosane: Well yeah... Yuki: That might be it... Maybe Mamiya Takuji doesn't want to see it because it reminds him that he's supposed to be nice to his little sister... Tomosane: A boy's love for his little sister... Yuki: ... Tomosane: ... Yuki: And I heard Hasaki-chan's doll was actually named Kagami. Now that's a crazy name if I ever heard one. Tomosane: You think? Yuki: And Hasaki-chan's name is Tsukasa. Tsukasa and Kagami are the names of the twins from the anime that jerk likes to watch, you know? Tomosane: Oh really? I wouldn't know... More importantly, Hasaki and the doll really look like twins? Yuki: Hahahahaha, yeah, they do. Hasaki-chan and the rabbit doll look like twins. I can't believe the kind of delusions that guy has. Yuki: Oh, and they look just like two sisters from some game he was playing. Tomosane: I see. Pretty much what I would expect from him. Even his fantasies are self-loathing. Tomosane: Self-loathing fantasies, huh... The first thing that pops into his mind is self-loathing. Yuki: I guess so... And the two of us are products of that same self-loathing imagination too... Tomosane: At least he's consistent. Yuki: I wonder about that... I'm not really sure, to be honest. Yuki: ... Yuki: ...We might not see each other again. Tomosane: That came out of the blue... Yuki: Yeah... Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Well... keep up the good fight... Yuki: No, we might be able to see each other for a bit longer! Tomosane: Which one is it? Yuki: Which one do you think? Tomosane: Uh, that's what I just asked you. Yuki: Could you at least sound a little disappointed? What if you never see your big sis ever again?! Come on! Aren't you sad?! Tomosane: Not at all. Yuki: Yes, you are! You're completely heartbroken! Yuki: ... Yuki: ...At least, I'm sad about it... Tomosane: About what? Yuki: That I won't see you again... Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: Don't make that face. You should be happy that a girl is saying this to you. Tomosane: You call yourself a girl, anyway. Yuki: What? Do you wanna test that hypothesis? Tomosane: Wha― St-Stop! Yuki: Here, here, feel my chest. Tomosane: K-Knock it off! Are you some bitch in heat?! Yuki: Oh, come on. It's your own body. Go on, touch it. Tomosane: No, thank you. Tomosane: Why do you have to feel so real?! It's nasty! I can even feel your body heat! Yuki: Usually they call this phenomenon a phantom limb... The human brain really is full of mysteries. Tomosane: It's not a mystery, it's just a malfunction. That much should be obvious. Yuki: A malfunction that lets you feel up a woman whenever you want. Isn't that perfect? Here, feel my boobs. Tomosane: I told you to knock it off, dumbass! Yuki: Oh? What... would you prefer to get under my skirt? Tomosane: D-Don't lift your skirt, you retard! Yuki: What's the matter? I thought I was just an illusion. What are you getting so worked up about? Hehehehehe... Tomosane: It's not funny... Have you no shame? Yuki: Shame? Of course I do. Tomosane: Then don't lift your skirt up in public! Yuki: Who cares? Not like anyone but you can see. Tomosane: But I can see you just fine! Yuki: Who cares about that? Tomosane: I'm telling you, I care! Jeez... Knock it off already. You're annoying. Yuki: You don't seem to like me much, Tomosane. Tomosane: You're the personality Mamiya Takuji desired... I don't care for people like you at all. Yuki: Ahahaha... That hurts. Tomosane: Dumbass... Tomosane: ... Tomosane: So why do you think we won't ever see each other again? Yuki: Oh, that. Yeah, the times when I forget about you, and about Hasaki-chan... Those times are getting longer. Tomosane: That's happened a lot in the past, hasn't it? Yuki: It's about the frequency. It's completely different from before. Tomosane: So you're saying it's way worse than the other times it happened... Yuki: Yeah, way worse... And at the same time, I can't remember people's names or faces very well. Tomosane: Well, if a doll looks like a person to you, I can understand why you'd have trouble remembering faces. Yuki: I wonder if I'll get cut off altogether... Tomosane: Cut off, huh? Tomosane: Then I guess my job is about over too... I need to finish up soon. Yuki: ... Yuki: Hey, Tomosane. Tomosane: What? Yuki: Um, Tomosane... *Yuki, always one to tease and play around...* *For some reason she looked awfully serious.* *She's never said anything good when she looks like this.* Yuki: It would be better if you didn't spend so much time thinking about why you exist... Yuki: It's not like your only purpose in life was to erase Mamiya Takuji. Tomosane: It's not like I came up with that myself... It's just the truth. Yuki: There's no way that's the truth. Tomosane: It is... That's the reason why I was made. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji isn't God... Just because that's what he wanted you to be doesn't mean your life's purpose is set in stone. Tomosane: Then what about you? Tomosane: You're the personality Mamiya Takuji desired. He wanted to be erased and killed by me, leaving you as the sole remaining personality. Yuki: I told you, that's not set in stone. Tomosane: Isn't it? Tomosane: Then do you think all three of us should continue living within one person? Tomosane: Do you think something so unnatural is even possible? Yuki: W-Well... Tomosane: It's just natural that you should become Mamiya Takuji... The two of us are nothing but noise... Yuki: That's just messed up! I'm a girl, you know! And Hasaki-chan looks like two people to me! That's not natural at all! Tomosane: About that... Have you ever heard about glasses that flip your vision vertically and horizontally? Yuki: What are you talking about? I'm trying to be serious here. Don't change the subject. Tomosane: I'm not changing the subject... I'm just responding to your doubts. Yuki: How is that a response? Tomosane: When you first put on those glasses... you feel downright nauseous... Yuki: Well of course you do... What about it? Tomosane: But interestingly enough... you can get used to it in just a day's time... Yuki: Get used to it? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. If you think about it, it makes sense. When you try to grab hold of something, you can't even move your hand properly because the directions are inverted. Tomosane: But once you get used to it, that inverted world becomes the normal one Yuki: What does that have to do with our situation? Tomosane: Even if you're looking at a completely different world from everyone else, so long as your actions aren't noticeably different, no one can tell there's any discrepancy. Tomosane: Even if you think you're acting like a woman... anyone else who looks at you thinks you're acting just as any other man would. Yuki: Really? Tomosane: Yeah... Do you know what you sound like when you talk? Yuki: Huh? I don't notice anything weird... Tomosane: Did you know that you sound like a guy to other people? Yuki: S-Seriously? That's kind of gross. Tomosane: No, like I said... Mamiya Takuji and I are the only ones who see you as anything but a normal male. Yuki: What? That's scary. Tomosane: Dumbass... You know damn well our perceptions are different... Tomosane: Everyone calls us Mamiya Takuji, but based on which personality it is at that moment, our brain automatically changes it to Yuuki Tomosane or Minakami Yuki. Tomosane: Plenty of other words are conveniently changed depending on which one of us it is... Tomosane: It doesn't matter how we perceive the world. Our brain automatically takes care of that, thereby eliminating any discrepancies in our behavior. Yuki: Ugh, I always act perfectly feminine too... That's terrible. Tomosane: Apparently there are some words that our brain simply can't reconcile with reality, or in some cases words we never want to hear. Those words aren't even recognized as sound... Yuki: Apparently, you say... Well, I guess there's no way to test it, but I've experienced that before and I kind of figured that was the reason. Yuki: Those inconsistencies in perception are always following us around. Tomosane: Yeah, so long as there are multiple personalities... Once our personalities merge into one, though, it shouldn't be a problem. Yuki: Tomosane, I told you... You don't know what's going to happen in the future― Tomosane: Someone's coming... Coming... Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: You deal with her. Yuki: Huh? Why? Tomosane: I'm no good at talking to women... Yuki: Huh? What woman? *A girl opened the door to the rooftop.* *I think her name was Takashima Zakuro... I talked to her once, but I'm not good at dealing with that type of person.* *She looks at me with disgust in her eyes, the kind people usually reserve for Mamiya Takuji...* *Maybe we hate each other because we're so similar?* *Well, either way, Yuki can probably handle her a lot better than me.* *Her social skills are really amazing.* Yuki: Umm... Who are you? Zakuro: U-Um... I-I'm Takashima Zakuro. I'm in the next class over. Yuki: Takashima... Zakuro? Tomosane: Yeah... You've seen her in the hallway, haven't you? Yuki: I told you... My short term memory is really bad. How am I supposed to remember something like that?! Zakuro: Huh? Um, i-is something the matter? Yuki: Oh, don't worry about it.. * It's nothing, ahahahahaha. Sorry... I'm really bad at remembering faces."* Zakuro: I see... Yuki: What are you doing in a place like this? Zakuro: Oh, uh, nothing in particular. Yuki: Are you cutting class? Zakuro: W-Well, I guess so. *Wow...* *Her personality is exactly what Mamiya Takuji wanted. Her social skills are really great, totally different from mine.* *The girl's already starting to calm down.* *She would be grimacing in seconds if I tried to talk to her. Probably out of fear, too...* *So I can just leave this to her...* *She can handle this...* Tomosane: Huh?! Tomosane: M-My room? *Everything changed in the blink of an eye.* *The time and place were both different from before.* Tomosane: This is Mamiya Takuji's... No... *I looked over to the side of the bed... The room was partitioned in the middle, so it looked like two separate rooms, but in reality it was just a single large one.* Tomosane: I suppose... it's Minakami Yuki's room too. *Either Takuji or Yuki... One of them came home.* Tomosane: Haa... I'll never get used to this. It's like all that time just disappeared in a puff of smoke. *My personality was completely swapped out for someone else... and my consciousness was locked away deep within the subconscious...* Tomosane: Even sleepwalkers don't have it this bad... This is really ridiculous... *These strange leaps in time and place... Takuji has to be experiencing the same thing. Doesn't he notice these abnormalities?* Tomosane: Actually, I think Yuki said he didn't notice them at all... *Until just recently, Yuki was aware of these sudden changes in time and place, just like I am.* *No, the personality known as 'Minakami Yuki' was created long before I was. She was the first to experience this.* *In truth, I've learned a lot from her. It's only thanks to her that I've come to understand what I am...* *But she's being gradually cut off from the truth that she's just one of Mamiya Takuji's personalities, so she doesn't notice the inconsistencies like she used to.* *At first, she simply didn't think it was odd when she noticed one of those inconsistencies, but now she doesn't even realize there are any inconsistencies.* *She said that on rare occasions she could even feel the remnants of her own falsified memories.* *If that's true, then perhaps she'll eventually start to attribute my actions and Mamiya Takuji's actions as her own?* *Or worse, she might be trapped in an entirely fabricated reality.* *I wonder if that could actually happen.* *That's just what Yuki told me... I'm not sure if that's actually possible.* *Our memories are discontinuous, and Yuki can't even spot the inconsistencies anymore, so she has no way of determining how far gone she is.* *Maybe it's just her gut feeling.* *When lost within such a labyrinth of cognizances, you can't truly be certain of anything.* *And Yuki is lost within that maze right now...* *I'll never know what her world is like.* *We perceive the world with the same eyes, the same ears, the same brain, and yet... honestly, I never know just what she's looking at.* *I lose track of time and place in the blink of an eye.* *That's my world.* *My memories are never supplemented or falsified... I just experience gaps in time.* *What nonsense... My world is discontinuous.* *I alone exist within this discontinuous world inside Mamiya Takuji...* Tomosane: A discontinuous world, huh? Well, I guess it's fitting for someone in my position. *Fitting. That's the best word for it.* *Mamiya Takuji created us so he could run away from reality... That's why he changes reality when it pleases him.* *Minakami Yuki is the personality that Mamiya Takuji desired. She's the personality that he will ultimately acquire.* *So she doesn't need to know the truth of what's happening. Rather, she should forget it all.* *The disappearing memories are the unnecessary ones... They won't be needed in her new life.* *He's forcibly instilling consistency in her memories so that she might be the one to live on in the future.* *That's Minakami Yuki's situation right now.* *Minakami Yuki will be reborn.* *Once she's reborn, she'll lose all her memories up until now and live on as the wonderful personality that Mamiya Takuji desired.* *But what about me?* *He's leaving behind all the inconsistencies and disharmonies as memories.* *That's why... I don't have any memory at all of the times when I'm unconscious.* *That's my intended state.* *Simply because I'm the Destroyer, not the Creator or the Harmonizer...* *The Destroyer ends his life with his own destruction, for the sake of the new world.* *That's all...* *So there's no need for me to have memories.* *It doesn't matter if I'm a discontinuous existence.* Tomosane: There's nothing I need to have... *"But you should eat something..."* Tomosane: ... Hasaki: ... Tomosane: How long have you been there? Hasaki: I was hiding... Tomosane: Hiding? Hasaki: Yeah... I couldn't tell who it was. Tomosane: Oh... So do you know who it is now? Hasaki: Tomosane Nii-san... Tomosane: Don't call me that... Call me Tomosane-san. Hasaki: Welcome home. Dinner's ready, so... eat whenever you want. Tomosane: How about you actually listen to me for once... Hasaki: But Tomosane Nii-san, you're always telling me I can't do things. I can hardly keep track of them all. Tomosane: There aren't that many things you can't do... Besides, I'm not your brother. Hasaki: But you look like my brother, and... Tomo Nii-san, you're the only one I can talk to anymore. Tomosane: Hey, don't call me that. That's even worse. Hasaki: But it's easier to say... Tomosane: There's no way you can call me that. Hasaki: Then we'll compromise with Tomosane Nii-san... That should be fine. Tomosane: No... Don't just go deciding that on your own. Tomosane: Besides, it's not like I'm the only one you can talk to. You can talk to Minakami Yuki, can't you? Hasaki: Yeah, but she's getting further and further away... I can't really talk to her properly anymore. Tomosane: Properly? Hasaki: I guess we can talk, but... I see her every day, but... she can't see me anymore. Tomosane: She can't see you, huh? *Now that Yuki's isolation has begun, she's started to see Hasaki and the rabbit doll as two twin girls.* *Despite that, there aren't any discrepancies in Yuki's actions... Her perceptions and actions differ from those of the real world.* *And yet... Hasaki can still tell.* *That Minakami Yuki can't see the real Hasaki anymore...* Hasaki: So now you're the only one I can really talk to. Tomosane: Oh... Still, don't call me that. Yuki: Be nice to her. Tomosane: Wha-?! Hasaki: Wh-What's wrong? Tomosane: N-No, it's nothing... Hey, didn't you already show up once today? Yuki: What, do you have a problem with me showing up more than once a day? Tomosane: That's not what I'm talking about. Hasaki: Wh-Who are you talking to? Yuki: Long time no see, Hasaki-chan. Hasaki: Oh, Yuki-san? Yuki: Yeah, sorry about the way I've been acting. I haven't really been able to talk to you... Hasaki: You don't need to apologize... Does that mean you swapped places with Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: No, we're both here... It's just creepy seeing an illusionary person standing there next to someone who's real. Yuki: I told you, I'm in the exact same boat here. Hasaki: Yuki-san... you can tell it's me? Yuki: Yeah, it seems like it's been a few weeks since I last saw you... Is that right? Hasaki: ...It is. Yuki: Ahahaha... So I was right. Well, I'm never aware that I'm doing it. It just felt like the days flew by. Tomosane: What's going on? You said those times when you forgot everything were getting longer, didn't you? Yuki: Yeah, I did... And they are. Tomosane: Then how did you appear twice in one day? Yuki: They say a lightbulb is brightest just before it goes out. Tomosane: Just before it goes out... So the only reason you're appearing so much is because you're just about to be cut off... Yuki: I already told you that. Hasaki: Um, does that mean you won't be able to see me anymore, Yuki? You'll just see... those twins? Yuki: Yeah, Wakatsuki Kagami and Wakatsuki Tsukasa.. * Ahahahahaha... I'm really sorry. I'm trying my best, but I'm forgetting more than I'm remembering lately."* Yuki: I just wish I was convincing enough to fool you after I got cut off, though. Tomosane: You can't fool her... She can tell the difference. Yuki: I guess no one else can tell, though... I guess it's just because we're so close. That's why she can tell that I'm seeing something completely different from what she is. Hasaki: But... I'm glad to see you again after so long, Yuki-san. Tomosane: Hey, Hasaki. Hasaki: Yes? Tomosane: Why do you call her Yuki-san? By your logic, she should be Yuki Nee-san or Yuki Nii-san, shouldn't she? Hasaki: Yuki-san is Yuki-san... She's always been Yuki-san... Tomosane: You're not even trying to give me a real explanation. Yuki: You can't blame her. I'm a girl on the inside, but I look like a guy on the outside. How's she supposed to call me Nii-san or Nee-san? Tomosane: On the outside... huh? *That makes sense. To Hasaki, that's what Yuki looks like.* *To me, it looked like Yuki was standing next to Hasaki.* *Of course, that Yuki was an illusion. It was nothing more than an image created by my brain.* *But that illusion was laughing and talking animatedly with Hasaki. It was hard to shake the feeling that she was actually there.* *But Hasaki can't see the Yuki I see at all... She just hears Minakami Yuki's voice from Mamiya Takuji's mouth... It's the same when I talk, too.* Tomosane: That's still no reason to call me her brother. Yuki: Meanie... Why are you so stubborn? You're making your big sister sad. Tomosane: And for the record, you're not my sister either! Yuki: Do you want to be lovers, then? Hasaki: You can't do that! Yuki: Oh? Hasaki: U-Um, well... Hasaki: The Yuki-san that you see is really pretty, isn't she? Tomosane: Who said that?! Yuki: I did. Tomosane: Don't make stuff up! How would you know what you look like to me?! Yuki: Well, I am Mamiya Takuji's ideal woman. Why wouldn't I be beautiful? Tomosane: You might be what Mamiya Takuji's likes, but I'm not into girls like you at all! Yuki: What, so you prefer petite little girls like Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Huh? U-Um! Tomosane: Are you dumb? Hasaki's my little sister, isn't she? Yuki: Oh really? Tomosane: Shit... Yuki: You just said it yourself. So she's your little sister, huh? Tomosane: N-No, I mean physically... Physically, she's my little sister. Yuki: Physically brother and sister? That sounds kind of erotic. Tomosane: -No! Genetically! She's only my sister genetically! I'm a different personality from Mamiya Takuji, so in that way she's not my sister! Hasaki: ... Hasaki: How convenient... Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: ...In other words, you want to treat me like your sister when it's convenient, and like a stranger when it's not. *Wh-What? She's getting really upset for some reason.* Hasaki: If you're just a stranger... then make your own dinner, Yuuki-san! *Hasaki suddenly turned and walked toward the door.* Yuki: Look... You could be a little nicer to her, Tomosane. Hasaki: Wha-?! Tomosane: Hey! *Yuki pushed Hasaki toward me.* *Hasaki lost her balance and fell into my arms.* Hasaki: U-Um, um, uuh, um... Tomosane: I-It wasn't me! *In reality, it probably looked like I had suddenly embraced Hasaki from behind.* Tomosane: Y-Yuki did that! Hasaki: U-U-Umm... It kind of hurts when you squeeze so tightly. Yuki: Come on, you could afford to give her a hug once in a while. You're brother and sister, so it's perfectly normal. Tomosane: No, it's not! I don't know what world you live in, but over here it's not normal to hug your sister like this! Hasaki: Y-Yuki-san, is that you? Yuki: Yeah. Does it feel like I'm pushing you two together? Tomosane: Wh-What exactly are you making us do?! Yuki: You two should get along... as brother and sister. You're gonna make your big sister sad. Tomosane: I told you, you're not my big sister! Yuki: But you know... you're gonna be the only one left who can be nice to Hasaki-chan. Tomosane: No, that's not true... That's not true, Yuki. Yuki: Yes, it is! *Usually, Yuki is perfectly laid back, but this time she was pretty angry.* *I guess Yuki didn't say that to anyone but me... Hasaki just looked at me, apparently not hearing Yuki's outburst.* Yuki: You're the only one who can protect Hasaki-chan. Yuki: Why can't you understand that? Tomosane: That's just what you want to believe... Yuki: Why do you think that?! Tomosane: You're just isolated... You know damn well why that's happening. Tomosane: We were created to protect Hasaki... We each have our role to act out, for Hasaki's sake. Tomosane: For Hasaki, who has nothing, we must kill Mamiya Takuji's existence... and create a new Minakami Yuki personality. Yuki: I told you, that's not set in stone! How am I supposed to protect Hasaki once I'm completely cut off?! Tomosane: You will protect her. Even if she thinks she's protecting Wakatsuki Kagami and Tsukasa, Minakami Yuki will still do anything to protect Tsukasa, who is Hasaki... That's how it's was designed. Yuki: That's not the same as protecting Hasaki-chan! Tomosane: Who cares if it's the same? The end result is that you'll be protecting Hasaki. Isn't that good enough? Yuki: What about Hasaki-chan's heart? If I can't protect her heart because I've been cut off from the real world, am I really protecting her? Tomosane: What more can we do?! Yuki: I told you to just try being nice to her for once! Tomosane: My existence is going to disappear. It's your role to protect Hasaki... My role is to destroy the personality known as Mamiya Takuji. Yuki: You're just assuming that's true! Tomosane: Are you dumb? It's not just an assumption... Even you know that this was all determined ahead of time. Tomosane: I'll kill Mamiya Takuji, and then I'll disappear... You'll be isolated from that ugly truth, and you'll be the one to protect Hasaki. Yuki: You don't understand anything. You're no better than Takuji... You're just a little brat. Yuki: Do you think the end result is all that matters in life? Tomosane: You're the little brat! You're constantly jabbering on about nonsense. Yuki: ... *For a moment it looked like Yuki was about to say something, but then she just smiled.* Yuki: Haa... All right, all right, I said a little too much. I apologize. Yuki: But... you can't protect Hasaki-chan if you never try to understand her feelings. Yuki: Even if you really are going to disappear... you're the only one who can truly talk to her right now... Yuki: So... just try being a little nicer to her. *Yuki disappeared like a mirage.* *As that happened, Hasaki moved away from me.* Hasaki: U-Um, Yuki-san! Tomosane: If you're looking for Yuki, she's not here anymore. Hasaki: Huh? Really? Tomosane: Yeah... We got into a bit of a fight. I dunno if I ticked her off or what, but she just disappeared. Hasaki: Oh... Hasaki: I wonder if I'll get to see the real Yuki again... Tomosane: Well, she's always had a strong sense of responsibility * I'm sure she won't let that be our final farewell... She'll come back soon."* Hasaki: ...Yeah. Hasaki: Oh no, dinner... is probably cold by now. Tomosane: Yeah, probably. Hasaki: I'll warm it up again. Give me like ten minutes... Sorry! *Hasaki dashed out of the room.* Tomosane: Haa... *Yuki wanted to say something...* *At the end, she held something back.* *Even though we're the same person... I can't tell what she's thinking.* *Though to be honest, I don't understand myself all that well either.* *There isn't very much I know about myself...* *I learned of my own existence through pain.* *The smell of rusting iron in my nose.* *A decaying structure... A condemned building... Those were the kinds of things I could smell...* *Ow...* *Pain ran through my jaw.* *The smell of iron, and... this pain...* *Did I bite down on a thumb tack?* *No, that's not it...* *That's not it...* Tomosane: What's... going on? Numada: What's wrong with him? You give him a concussion or something? Nishimura: Hahaha. Mamiya, the world of fighting is kill or be killed. Tomosane: Fighting... *Two unfamiliar men... One was grabbing my shirt by the lapels.* *When I saw that, I noticed my shirt was pretty dirty.* *The buttons were torn off... and there was slobber and dried blood on it.* *The other two men's shirts were completely clean.* *A one-sided fight...* *Are these guys really that tough?* *Even if they are...* Tomosane: It doesn't matter. Shiroyama: Huh? Tomosane: Right... *I grabbed him by the wrist.* *I then used my left hand to drive his wrist into his chest... and my right hand to grab his arm and twist it upward.* *My body moved with those ingrained motions.* Shiroyama: Agh?! *When I broke his wrist, he crumpled helplessly.* Tomosane: ... *They're not strong at all...* Tomosane: What... That's... Shiroyama: Gyaaaah! Tomosane: That's a disappointment. *It was so easy to grab him by the wrist... How did I get beaten up before?* Numada: Y-You bastard. Tomosane: ... Numada: Ugh! *He clutched his midsection as he fell.* *I stomped on his face as he laid on the ground.* *He lost consciousness after the first stomp, but I kept stomping his face into the dirt anyway.* Shiroyama: Ah! *When he saw what happened to his friend, the man with the broken wrist screamed.* *I guess he lost the will to fight...* *I put all my weight into a kick and got him directly in the jaw.* *He tried to use his other arm to block it, but he wasn't fast enough, so he fell backward onto his ass.* *I straddled him on the ground.* Tomosane: You thought I would let you off with just the arm? Tomosane: My hands are fucked up... *My fists were covered in a thick layer of blood.* *Not just other people's blood, either. My hand was covered in multiple lacerations, each more than ten centimeters long.* *Flesh was protruding from the gaping holes.* Tomosane: I must have cut myself on their teeth. *I'm sure there were more efficient ways of dealing with them if I just wanted to defeat them.* *At the very least, I wouldn't have punched them in the face so many times.* *The blood just rushed to my head.* Tomosane: Well then, cleanup time... Shiroyama: S-Stop! Numada: F-Forgive me! Numada: Agh! Shiroyama: Eek! *I stuffed branches in their noses and mouths, and then punched them like that.* *Blood flew everywhere.* *There was too much blood to see how bad his face looked, but... he would probably need stitches in and around his mouth.* Shiroyama: S-Stop... Tomosane: You never stopped when anyone asked you to, now did you? Tomosane: But... *My legs kind of feel breezy...* *It was really easy to move, but... it kind of felt like I was wearing a hakama.* Tomosane: Why am I wearing a hakama? *Maybe this was a match... That's why I was wearing clothes for martial arts...* Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Ah! Tomosane: Wh-What is this?! *It didn't feel breezy because I was wearing a hakama... It was just a regular skirt.* Tomosane: Wh-Why am I wearing a skirt?! Tomosane: Y-You bastards, what the fuck is this?! Shiroyama: S-Sorry! Shiroyama: Eek! Tomosane: You think you can apologize for this?! *Why would they make me wear something like this?* *This is a girl's uniform. Why am I wearing a girl's uniform?* Tomosane: Y-You little punks! Shiroyama: E-Eek! Numada: P-Please! You'll kill us! Tomosane: Ugh! *Fearing the worst, I... checked my underwear.* *The underwear was...* *Incredibly soft... and very tight.* *The parts that felt kind of rough... were probably lace...* *This isn't anything a man should be wearing.* Tomosane: Y-You bastards... What did you make me put on? Numada: Eek! *I was more than just angry... I was desperate...* *Why am I...* *Wearing this...* *What the fuck was happening up until now?* *Wearing girls' clothing...* *And they even made me put on girls' underwear... Is that why it feels so wet down there?* Tomosane: Y-You bastards... Numada: Eek! *I inflicted as much pain as possible without killing them.* *This time I focused on inflicting pain on parts of their body other than their faces.* *They might not be able to hold a pencil for a while...* *I took one of their uniforms.* *It was a bit loose, but it was better than nothing.* *I couldn't do anything about the underwear, so I just didn't wear any.* *It's not like a man has anything to be embarrassed about if they don't want to wear any underwear.* Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: I can't believe this... *Even if I had no recollection of the event... I can't believe they would do that to me. What utter humiliation. It makes me want to hurt myself...* Tomosane: Disgusting... *I was too scared to ask what happened before.* *If I asked, I would have killed them when I heard the answer.* Tomosane: I wiped it off with a tissue, but... *That sticky stuff on my body must have been semen.* *Well, my ass doesn't hurt, so at least the worst thing possible didn't happen... I'd like to believe it didn't, anyway.* Tomosane: Is getting fucked in the ass really the worst thing possible? *Thinking about it, it wouldn't be odd if they had done that... I'm getting depressed just thinking about it.* Tomosane: What the hell did they do to me? *Just to be safe, I rinsed out my mouth too. I didn't know what the hell happened.* Tomosane: Well, whatever... I'll just torture these fuckers until they want to die. Numada: Ahh... Shiroyama: I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry... *"..."* Tomosane: Hmm? *"Uuuhg... Uahhh..."* *What?* *That sound... isn't one of the guys from before...* *This voice...* *I heard someone's voice from the clothes I took off.* Tomosane: What is this? *This whimpering voice... I think I've heard it before...* *I think I heard it... before I came to exist...* *The discarded clothes rose up and filled out.* *After the process was complete...* Takuji: Please stop... Don't hit me anymore... Tomosane: ...Mamiya... Takuji... *The discarded clothes on the ground... turned into Mamiya Takuji.* *Mamiya Takuji was still wearing that female uniform as he lay there on the ground, curled into a ball and bawling his eyes out.* Tomosane: Haa... *Somehow, I understood everything once I saw that.* *Where I was... Where I should be going...* *I instantly knew what I was and why I existed.* Tomosane: In a way, maybe I'm blessed. *Do other people have such a clear raison d'etre?* *No, they suffer because they don't...* *But I have been blessed.* *Because I was born with a reason to exist, no matter what that reason is, it is a blessing.* Tomosane: Hey! Takuji: I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! Tomosane: What are you doing? Takuji: I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. Please don't hit me anymore... Takuji: Eek! Tomosane: Hey, you... I didn't ask for an apology. I asked what you're doing. Takuji: Ah, I'm so sorry! Tomosane: Why are you wearing girls' clothes? Takuji: U-Um, these are... Tomosane: That's nasty... Is that some new fad? *Every time I hit him... I felt the same pain.* *It was completely different from when I was hitting those other guys.* *I share the same body as this nasty fucker.* *I'm a separate personality born within this disgusting human being.* *And my raison d'etre is...* Tomosane: Hey, you... How about you give me a good explanation for this... Takuji: Eek! *To erase Mamiya Takuji...* *To eradicate Mamiya Takuji's personality and purge him from this body.* *That's what he wanted me to do.* *He made me for the purpose of his own destruction.* *That's why...* Tomosane: Come on! *I felt intense pain every time I punched him... Every punch lit my brain up with pain.* *I have pretty good technique...* *Even I'm impressed... I never would've thought this tiny body was capable of inflicting so much pain.* Tomosane: Do you get turned on when you wear those clothes?! Fucking disgusting! Takuji: I-It's not like I wanted to... Ah! Tomosane: Yes, you did! *It was through pain that I first came into existence.* *That pain turned into light... and then when my vision cleared...* *The pain sewed together the world's seams.* *But the world isn't light.* *The world isn't vision.* *I experienced that firsthand.* *Existence isn't only defined by vision.* *Then is it defined by the five senses?* *Sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell... Is the world the totality of the things which one can sense?* *Is it enough to simply see the world?* *Is it enough to simply hear the world?* *The world's texture.* *The world's taste.* *For instance, the taste of dirt.* *The smell of grass.* *The feel of the wind.* *The sound of trees swaying in the distance.* *And the great blue sky above.* *I saw the clouds racing across the blue sky, I heard the sound of the city, I felt the wind, and I tasted saliva.* *That is the world.* *The things I can feel make up the world.* *Everything that has been given to me is the world.* *Most people understand it to be so.* *But is it truly so?* *...No.* *I didn't believe that for a second.* *As one who exists only momentarily, I won't accept lies such as 'the world is everything you can perceive in a given moment.'* *Everything I can perceive is neither the world nor the world's limits.* *I learned that fact.* *I know a world that I can't see, hear, touch, or taste.* *Beyond the edge of the world... I know things that I'll never see, never touch, never feel.* *It's simple.* *I was born in this moment.* *I should know nothing more than what I can perceive at this moment.* *I know nothing.* *And yet, this building that I'm looking at right now... Even if I can't see its interior, I know its interior.* *I can imagine what lies on the other side of that wall... I can imagine what lies beyond the sky...* *What's more, I know the meaning of many things impossible to experience.* *That's perfectly natural.* *For instance, say someone passes a house every morning on their way to school. It doesn't matter who it is.* *A normal house that doesn't stand out in any way.* *That someone sees the house's door every morning.* *Not a door that anyone would pay attention to.* *Why don't we fear what lies on the other side of that door?* *Beyond that door...* *That could very well be the edge of the world.* *At the very least, we've never seen what lies on the other side.* *We can't deny the possibility that the world's limit lies on the other side of that door.* *And yet.* *We know.* *Nothing unknown to us lies on the other side...* *There's no way the edge of the world could lie on the other side of that door.* *If one doesn't fear when turning a corner they've never turned before, then they have no reason to fear that door.* *I know that the world also consists of scenes we will never see in our lifetime.* *Sight is not the world.* *Hearing is not the world.* *Neither is touch, taste, or smell...* *It can't even be pain.* *Then what is the world?* *The answer isn't actually very complicated.* *The world... is everything that can be put into words.* *The world... is everything that has meaning.* *Truth... and fiction.* *There is such a difference...* *But it's not so complicated...* *There's no need to make it sound complicated.* *There's no need to dwell upon the unknowable.* Takuji: Agh... Ahh... *...* Tomosane: My hand... won't open anymore... *I punched too much... I beat three people to a pulp in such a short time...* *If I truly wanted to destroy them... I could've done it with a tenth as much effort, but my goal was to inflict pain.* *I used my fist more than necessary.* Tomosane: Take that off... It's nasty. Takuji: Huh? Tomosane: Don't question me. Tomosane: Take it off! Takuji: The underwear too? Tomosane: Of course! Take off all those girls' clothes! Takuji: Hhk! *I took the female uniform away from him.* *When I looked at the nametag, it said Takashima Zakuro.* Tomosane: Haa... *I cleaned the dirty underwear in the sink and used some tissues to get the dirt off the uniform.* Tomosane: This girl is such a pain... *Maybe I could've just washed it in the laundry, but that girl was probably in quite a bind without her uniform.* *I found a bag to stick her uniform in and headed to her classroom.* *...* *That one...?* *There was one lonesome student still in her P.E. uniform.* *It looked just like someone had bullied her and hidden her uniform...* Tomosane: Haa... These guys are such a pain in the ass. *Even if those bullies made him do it, it was still Takuji who actually stole these clothes... It's really not a good situation.* *I walked up to the crestfallen girl anyway.* Zakuro: Huh? Zakuro: Wh-Who are you? Tomosane: These were stolen, right? Zakuro: Huh? Tomosane: Your uniform... is in here... Zakuro: Wh-Who are you? Tomosane: Me? I'm... *I almost said Yuuki Tomosane, but I managed to stop myself in time.* *No one by that name exists.* Tomosane: I'm Mamiya Takuji... I'm in the next class over. Zakuro: Wh-Why? Tomosane: Who knows... Anyway, I'm giving them back. Zakuro: U-Um... Tomosane: What? Zakuro: Um, it looks like you're really hurt... Tomosane: Hmm? Really? *I touched my own face with my hand.* *It was covered in cuts and bruises.* Zakuro: U-Um, did you get this back for me? Tomosane: No, that's not it... Zakuro: But you're hurt. Tomosane: Haa... I was threatened and forced to steal it. I came to return it. Zakuro: Huh? Tomosane: That's all... Zakuro: U-Um... *I quickly left without saying anything else.* *Partly because I didn't want to associate with anyone Mamiya Takuji didn't know...* *But more importantly, I'm no good at dealing with women.* Tomosane: Haa... What a mess... *It's after school... The sun is low in the sky.* *I was alone in the hallway, puzzled...* *People know nothing at the moment of their birth.* *A newborn infant can't even look out at the world.* *At the moment of birth, the only thing they see is light.* *Their eyes can't even decipher shapes or colors.* *I was just... less than an hour ago, born into this world.* *And yet I could already differentiate colors and objects, and I had high level language skills (compared to an infant, anyway)... Common sense (at least enough to tell where I am)... and on top of that, I apparently had some skill in martial arts.* *I had far greater knowledge, intelligence, and skill than an infant.* *But on the other hand, there were many things I didn't know.* *For instance, who I was...* *No, I knew my name was Yuuki Tomosane.* *I also understood that I was an alternate personality created by Mamiya Takuji's unstable mental state.* *But other than that... For instance, Mamiya Takuji's family, grade, friends, etc. I didn't know any of those.* *I didn't even know where Mamiya Takuji's house is.* Tomosane: Now then... *What should I do from here on out?* *There was a lot I knew, but also a lot I didn't.* Tomosane: ...What should I do now? *"...What are you gonna do?"* *That was a completely unknown sensation.* *No... It reminded me of one thing...* *It was close to the feeling of my birth... A pain that somehow felt like a sound.* Tomosane: Who's there?! *I turned to face the voice I heard, but no one was there.* Tomosane: Ugh! *This pain... No, is this the voice?* *The voice resounded inside my head...* *"What... You're totally useless..."* Tomosane: Wh-Who are you?! Agh... *It was the same voice...* *Every time I heard the voice, a sensation almost like pain raced through my brain.* Tomosane: Damn it... *I looked for the owner of that voice...* *I surveyed the hallway. I didn't see anyone.* *What is this... This is so annoying...* Tomosane: What is this feeling? *"Look at me... Yuuki Tomosane-kun."* Tomosane: Wh-What? *Just now... they called my name...* *How would anyone know my name?* *"Huh? Did I get your name wrong? But Yuuki Tomosane fits, I think... You're not Mamiya Tomosane, are you?"* Tomosane: Who are you? *My eyes had lost their focus.* *It was like I was listening to a radio that wasn't quite tuned in to a station... That was the only way to describe that strange feeling.* *"Jeez, you're no good at this... Well, whatever..."* Tomosane: Agh... *Someone hit me with a powerful blow in the chest, knocking me back.* Tomosane: ... *I had felt the same thing sometime in the past... Or maybe that was just my imagination.* *I was just born into this world today. I didn't have any memories of my own.* *Then are those memories of Mamiya Takuji's past?* *Is this someone who Mamiya Takuji has been struck by in the past?* *No, now's not the time to be thinking about that.* *The direction of the next attack.* *I took up a defensive stance facing the direction the attack had come from.* *Someone definitely just hit me. That's all.* *There's no way my attacker could be invisible...* *They have to be hiding somehow.* Tomosane: ... *I sharpened my senses...* *"Good, good... You're one to pay attention in battle, I see. I like kids like you, Tomosane."* *I turned to the voice.* *A person that wasn't there before...* *I was shocked to see her standing there, calm and composed, as if she had been there the whole time.* Tomosane: Wh-Who are you?! Yuki: I wonder... Who am I? *She wasn't tall.* *Her body was thin too.* *And more importantly... she wasn't a man.* *Was it really this woman that just hit me?* *That's hard to believe.* *More importantly... Why is she attacking me?* *No reason came to mind.* *The reason my body remembered these attacks was probably because Mamiya Takuji had experienced a similar attack.* *If so...* Tomosane: Are you with those thugs from earlier? Yuki: What thugs? Oh... those guys? Shiroyama, Numada, and Nishimura, you mean? Tomosane: So I was right... Did you come to pay me a personal visit because I trashed your lackies? Yuki: ...What? Haha, your big sister is really disappointed, Tomosane. I didn't think you were stupid... Well, have it your way. Tomosane: Wha-?! Tomosane: Ugh! Yuki: Whoa! Yuki: Oh, scary, scary... You're really fast... *What's the meaning of this... She's so strong... She's nothing like those guys I fought earlier.* *I can't believe this woman is beating me...* Yuki: Oh my, you look positively stunned. The world's a big place, you know? There are bound to be a few people stronger than you... maybe even a few women. Tomosane: The world's a big place, but the school not so much. *What's going on?* *I wouldn't lose to amateurs no matter how many of them came at me at once, but against this woman...* *She's strong... Maybe even stronger than me...* Yuki: Well, I'm sorry to do this in the middle of battle, but let me introduce myself. I'm Minakami Yuki, your big sister. Tomosane: Big sister? Yuki: You're open! Tomosane: Uck! Tomosane: Guh! Yuki: Ahahahahaha, you're so naive, Tomosane! But I'll give it to you, that was a good block. Tomosane: Th-That was dirty! Yuki: You had such a dumb look on your face that I just couldn't stop myself from going in for at least one cheap shot. Tomosane: What do you mean, one?! You tried to hit me four times, you bastard! Yuki: I'm not a bastard. I'm a girl, you know. Tomosane: Shut up! Tomosane: Haa, haa, haaa... *What's with this woman... It's like she knows what I'm going to do before I do it...* Tomosane: Who the hell are you? Yuki: I told you, I'm your big sister. Tomosane: Our surnames are completely different! Yuki: Maybe it's possible for your sister to have a different surname. Tomosane: Oh, so you're my stepsister, then... Yuki: Nope. Tomosane: Then what are you? Yuki: I already told you, I'm your big sister. Tomosane: Don't toy with me! Yuki: I'm not toying with you. Can't you trust anyone, Tomosane? Tomosane: Shut up! Why should I trust you after you attacked me and then bullshitted me with your lies?! Yuki: What's your problem? You should trust me. I'm just trying to be a nice big sister! Tomosane: I don't think I would call anyone nice after they assaulted me! Tomosane: Guh... Yuki: That's because you wouldn't trust me. Tomosane: What the hell do you mean, trust? You're the one who hit first! Yuki: But I'm a girl. You have to give me a handicap... Tomosane: A handicap has nothing to do with it. No one would attack their own brother out of nowhere like that! Yuki: Sure they would. Tomosane: You're not my fucking sister! Tomosane: After all, I only exist inside Mamiya Takuji's mi―! ...Wait. Yuki: Oh, you finally figured it out? Tomosane: Are you... Yuki: That's right... I was born before you, so you should be looking up to me. I'm your big sister, Minakami Yuki. Tomosane: Before me? Yuki: Yeah, we're two souls sharing Mamiya Takuji's body. Tomosane: An alternate personality... Yuki: Yeah, though I guess since he has three souls in one body, most people would probably just say he's possessed or something. Tomosane: I don't think so... They call that dissociative identity disorder. Yuki: Dissociative identity disorder... I suppose we're both products of his dissociation and mental trauma, then. Yuki: Not that it really matters. Why don't you take a look at your own body? Tomosane: My body? Tomosane: Wha-? The bruises?! *The bruises where she hit me earlier were disappearing... while the ones from my fight earlier were still there...* Tomosane: Wh-Why? Yuki: It's not like we actually fought just now... You weren't punching yourself, you know? Yuki: That was just a mock fight... Well, we could fight for real if we really wanted, but it wouldn't accomplish much. You'd hurt yourself just as much as you'd hurt me. Tomosane: We'd hurt ourselves with every blow? Yuki: Yeah. Anyone else watching us would just see someone hitting himself... Yuki: And for the record, if anyone saw that battle just now, it would look like we were just standing there, lost in thought... Like we were spacing out, I guess? Yuki: This whole conversation would pretty much be the same too. Tomosane: This conversation too... Yuki: Yep. If you think of it like a telephone, it's the difference between an internal line and an external line. Or maybe it's closer to the difference between LAN and an Internet connection? Tomosane: I see... So everything that just happened was inside my head... Yuki: That's why I can do all that without worrying. Tomosane: ... *It feels like this is the same conversation...* *But something's a little different...* Yuki: Do you understand? Tomosane: This is... Yuki: Now you're actually using your body and speaking the words. That's fine and all, but I don't really recommend it. You know, just in case someone's watching. Tomosane: It would look like... I was talking to myself... Yuki: Yeah, pretty much... Well, not like it really matters when it's just the two of us. Yuki: And that's about all. Once again, nice to meet you. I'm your big sister, Minakami Yuki. Tomosane: ...No, how does that make you my big sister? Yuki: We were both made by the same person, and I came first. That makes me your big sister, right? Tomosane: No, not really. Yuki: Call me Yuki-nee from now on. Tomosane: Yeah, right... Yuki: Oh, you're getting better. Tomosane: You gave away your secret. Now I know what you're doing, what you know, what you're thinking... Yuki: Oh my, so you've figured out how I'm fighting? Tomosane: Yeah, we share the same body... We can feel each other's movements just before each attack. Tomosane: If you just follow the movements of my body, you can react much faster than if you were reacting by sight. Yuki: Exactly. Well, it'll only be useful against me and Takuji, though. Tomosane: But... it's not that easy to react to the movements of your own body. Yuki: Exactly... For a moment, our brain treats it as our own body's movement. There's a time lag in recognizing it as the other's movement. Tomosane: Hmm... So then, what are you... Yuki: How many times do I have to tell you? I'm Minakami Yuki... I'm a personality that was created before you. Tomosane: By Mamiya Takuji? Yuki: I guess so... Well, he's not aware of it himself, so maybe I shouldn't say he made me. Tomosane: So then, why are you still attacking me? Yuki: Hehehe... You seem like a brat is all. I just wanted to make it clear that I'm your superior. Tomosane: Hmph... I already know everything you try to do. Yuki: Hehehe, you're so dumb... I'll show you the fruits of years of labor. Tomosane: Wha-! Tomosane: Guh... Yuki: How about that! Tomosane: The fuck do you mean! Are you dumb?! Why are you flashing your panties everywhere with that high kick?! Yuki: It hit, didn't it? Tomosane: I was surprised, you dumbass! Of course it hit! Yuki: Oh, what? Are you interested in my underwear? Tomosane: As if. Tomosane: Huh? *She held her leg up like in the last kick, and then she grabbed my arm.* Tomosane: Wha-?! Yuki: Fighting dirty... Tomosane: S-Stupid... You lifted up your leg for that... Ugh?! Yuki: It's elementary～ Tomosane: Guh! *That dumbass... She made it look like she was going to do the same kick, and then she went for an arm lock instead.* *In a place like a hallway... that's dangerous...* *And with her panties on display, too...* *In her own words.* Yuki: Who cares? No one but you can see them. Tomosane: That's exactly the problem! Yuki: We're siblings, so I don't really care about that. Well, if I didn't have any panties on, we might have a problem, though. Tomosane: Of course we would! *Minakami Yuki has never had much common sense, but either way, she taught me a lot of things.* *This first fight taught me how to use my body.* *Particularly, it taught me how to align the channels of my perception.* *The way to meet Mamiya Takuji and Minakami Yuki (though it only works when I exist at the same time as either of them).* *And how to avoid meeting Mamiya any time he comes into existence (though it doesn't work on Yuki, since she knows how to align the channels as well).* *There were plenty of other things she taught me.* *About Mamiya Takuji.* *About Hasaki, his little sister.* *About Mamiya's family.* *About the Wakatsukis.* *About Hakushuukyou Bar and Master.* *Plenty of other things...* *She's the only reason I have to live.* *Though I would never admit it to her.* *Anytime she brought it up, I changed the subject.* Tomosane: I never told her that... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, I warmed up your food. *Hasaki called for me from downstairs.* Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: I told you to stop calling me Tomo Nii-san! *I yelled back down the stairs at her.*

Tomosane: Ah... *The sky...* *It was there when I awoke.* *There was something I needed to do first...* *Organize my memory.* *It's become a habit because of the way I live.* *"You finally waking up?"* Tomosane: Yuki...? Yuki: Don't worry. It's just me. Tomosane: Oh... Tomosane: Not that I really care, but lately you've been showing up every day. Yuki: I guess so. I didn't see you for a few weeks before, too. Well, it's gotta be because I'm about to be isolated. Maybe I should be thankful for this chance... Tomosane: It's just a pain in the ass if you ask me. *Yuki just smiled back at me as if she hadn't heard what I just said.* Tomosane: What are you grinning for? You're creeping me out... Yuki: Oh, nothing. *Yuki laughed and looked up to the sky.* *What's up with her?* Yuki: Hey, Tomosane. Tomosane: What? Yuki: The blue sky is nice too, isn't it? Tomosane: ...Huh? What are you talking about? Yuki: It's nice seeing the great blue sky spread out overhead, stretching into the distance... Tomosane: What's with you, all of a sudden... Yuki: All of a sudden, huh? You know, I've been thinking a lot while I was away, and I've been experiencing a lot of new things. Tomosane: What about it? Yuki: Oh nothing... It's not so bad sitting under the blue sky and looking at your dumb face. Just the two of us, you know? Tomosane: My dumb face? Why, you little... Yuki: Don't get mad at me... You showed up a while ago, but for a long time you were just sleeping there next to me. Tomosane: I did? I was sleeping? I-Is that possible? *Normally, while we're sleeping... or rather, while we're not conscious, we can't see each other.* *Being unconscious is the same as not existing.* *Or so I thought...* Yuki: It's the first time I've seen it happen, too. Until now, we've always disappeared any time we were sleeping, so we couldn't see each other. Yuki: It... might be another sign that a big change is happening. Tomosane: An omen, huh... Yuki: Well, either way, I had fun watching you sleep. Tomosane: You're such a freak... You really think it's fun watching someone sleep? Yuki: It was fun. I've never seen your sleeping face before... I was really happy. Tomosane: Anyway, don't do that again. Yuki: Oh, now, I don't know if I can promise that... Tomosane: Shut up! If it happens again, wake me up! Yuki: Ahahahaha... That would be such a waste. Tomosane: The hell are you talking about? Yuki: ... *Yuki looked a little troubled, but she still laughed.* Tomosane: ... *I hadn't seen her wear this expression very often.* *It left me a bit confused.* Tomosane: Wh-What are you laughing at... Yuki: Ehehe... Oh, nothing... Yuki: It's not important. Anyway, it's really a pain losing memories left and right like this... It's like getting carried off somewhere while you're sleeping. Tomosane: Yeah... Maybe this is how sleepwalkers feel. Yuki: It's way worse than just sleepwalking... Someone else is controlling your body while you're sleeping. Tomosane: Yeah. Sometimes we overlap, though, like we are now... So what were you doing on the rooftop? Yuki: Well, it's kinda like... You remember that girl who came up here yesterday? Tomosane: Yesterday... Oh, Takashima? Yuki: Yeah, she came here again today. Tomosane: Hmm, I see... Well, not like I care. Yuki: You're the one who asked. You should care! Tomosane: Are you friends with her? She's kinda gloomy... Yuki: She's not that gloomy. I just met her yesterday, though... I didn't even know her name. Tomosane: That's probably because of the holes in your memory... Well, putting that aside, that's two days in a row we've come across Takashima up here. What's that mean? Yuki: Maybe it's a coincidence? Tomosane: No, I don't think so. I've been staking out this area for quite a while yet I've never seen her come here. Yuki: Oh... Then I wonder what it could be... *The answer was simple. That woman was interested in Yuki... Interested in her as a member of the opposite sex.* *Minakami Yuki's personality would definitely endear her to a girl like that.* Yuki: Oh, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: ... *Hasaki stared at us.* Hasaki: U-Um, is that you, Yuki-san? Yuki: Uh, yeah... Sorry, am I in the way? I'll just disappear... Tomosane: Can you really disappear at will? That would be really convenient. Yuki: Ahahaha... Nope, not really. Hasaki: Oh, Tomo Nii-san, you're there too... Tomosane: Is that a problem? Hasaki: Not at all... I came to see you, Tomo Nii-san. Yuki: Oh, so I really am in the way? Hasaki: Oh, not at all * I'm really glad to see you more often, Yuki-san."* Yuki: Really? That's nice to hear.. * but wouldn't it be better if I left you alone with Tomosane?"* Hasaki: N-No, no, not at all! Not at all! Yuki: If you say so... Oh, did you pack him lunch? Hasaki: Ah, yeah, I came to bring Tomo Nii-san his lunchbox. Tomosane: How many times do I have to tell you? I can just buy bread, so I don't need you to make me lunch... Besides, it's Saturday. And don't call me Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: It doesn't matter if it's Saturday. I'm not gonna be home today, so you'll need something to eat. Hasaki: And there's no nutritional value in bread. It doesn't have anything but carbs, fat, sugar, and salt in it. Yuki: She's right. Come on Tomo, you should be happy your cute little sister made it for you. Tomosane: Why are you calling me Tomo... Yuki: It's just a nickname. Don't worry about every little detail. Tomosane: Don't make up nicknames for me... Jeez. *Damn her... It's bad enough that Hasaki calls me Tomo Nii-san for some reason...* Tomosane: Hmm? What's this? Why are there two lunchboxes? Hasaki: I'm going to be working at Hakushuu pretty late tonight, so I might not be able to make you dinner. Tomosane: Hakushuu? You're gonna be late tonight? Hasaki: Yeah. I'm not really sure, but Master said it might take some time. Tomosane: What's that about? I didn't hear anything about that. Hasaki: He didn't call you too? Tomosane: Yeah, I'm not working today... He should've called me first if he was short on workers. Hasaki: Who knows? Maybe there are some jobs he doesn't think you can do? *Jobs that Hasaki can do that I can't?* *...Are there any jobs like that?* *Well, not like I care. Either way, Hasaki will be working late tonight...* *All right.* *Good, good... So she's not gonna be home...* Hasaki: ... Tomosane: Huh? *Wh-What? She's glaring at me...* Hasaki: You sure seem happy about something... Tomosane: Wh-What do you mean? Hasaki: You're hiding something. Tomosane: Wh-What? Now you're accusing me of something... Yuki: An accusation, huh? Tomosane: What's your problem, Yuki? Hasaki: Haa... You must be happy because I'm not going to be in the house, right? Tomosane: N-No way... Tomosane: A-And besides, you shouldn't be walking around the school by yourself, Hasaki. You're not even a student here, you know... Hasaki: You're dodging the question... Yuki: Tomosane-kun, just what could you be getting up to when you have the house to yourself? Tomosane: Wh-What are you trying to say?! Yuki: Oh, nothing, but I am kind of curious why you're getting so worked up about this. Tomosane: I am not. Yuki: Liar. Your pulse is going up too. I wonder why that would happen. Tomosane: N-No, that's just... Hasaki: Hmm, so you want to do something alone since I'm not going to be home... Tomosane: N-No, I don't... Stop making crap up, Yuki! Tomosane: M-More importantly, you really shouldn't be hanging around at school anymore. Hasaki: You changed the subject again... Tomosane: No, I'm being serious. Hasaki: You don't need to worry about that. I'm making sure I don't stand out. Tomosane: How do you not stand out? You're carrying that rabbit doll around... Hasaki: I hide it. Tomosane: It's too big to hide... Yuki: It'll be fine. It's never been a problem before. Tomosane: But... I'm a problem child, and Hasaki is related to me. Everyone just pretends to have not seen her. Yuki: Which means it's not a problem, right? Tomosane: Of course there's a problem. Yuki: Oh right, your rabbit has gotten pretty beaten up, hasn't it? Hasaki: Ah, yeah... Yuki: Let me see... I can do something about that... Yuki: Ah, Tomosane, grab the sewing kit out of my bag. Tomosane: It's the same whether I do it or you do! Yuki: Just play along... Look, it's in that small pouch there. See it? Tomosane: You actually carry this around with you? Yuki: Don't worry about it. Now, where's the white thread... Here it is. *Yuki fixed the frayed spots on Hasaki's doll... She's really talented. Even I can't deny it...* Tomosane: You can sew too? Yuki: So can you. You've just never tried it... It's one of the skills this body had to begin with. Hasaki: Yeah... Nii-san could sew too... Tomosane: Now that I think of it, Mamiya Takuji made that doll for Hasaki, didn't he? Yuki: Mamiya Takuji-kun, huh... Tomosane: Hmm? What's wrong? Yuki: Oh, uh, I guess so... This body's owner made the stuffed doll for her. Yuki: Ahaha... He didn't have the money to buy it, so instead he went to the store every day and took measurements so he could make one of his own... He messed up the first few times he tried, though. Yuki: Rabbits are white, so it always looked like a squid when he messed up... The ears, hands, and legs all looked like tentacles. Ahaha. Hasaki: Back then... I really wanted that doll... Tomosane: I can't imagine Mamiya Takuji doing that now. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji-kun, huh... Yuki: Well, nothing we can do about it now. This body's original soul believes he hurt Hasaki-chan and his mother, Kotomi-san, because he was too competent. Tomosane: His mother? She's the cause of this whole mess, isn't she? Yuki: Yeah... I guess you could say Kotomi-san is the original cause... Yuki: But... there was an incident that happened because he was too competent. Tomosane: Hmm... I can hardly believe that Mamiya Takuji was good at anything. Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san was... good at everything. Not just studying, but reading, art, and music too.. * But..."* Tomosane: But? Yuki: Well, you know... The truth is that he destroyed everything because he was too competent. You can't say Kotomi-san was the only one at fault. Yuki: The original incident didn't happen because of any single person. Yuki: It happened because of a combination of factors. Tomosane: Yuki... *The original incident...* *In the end, it all comes down to that.* *The reason his mother became an empty shell that only stares into space.* *The reason the competent Mamiya Takuji became a weak, rebellious person.* *And the reason Mamiya Takuji made separate personalities like me and Yuki within himself.* *Apparently there was one incident that caused it all...* *The reason I say 'apparently'... Well, this is kind of pathetic, but...* * In truth, I don't know very much about it.* *Of course, Hasaki knows everything, but I can't really ask her about it.* *That incident is the reason for everything.* *It gave birth to this insane situation... and it's a memory that pains Hasaki to remember.* *Not just Mamiya and his mother, but... after the incident, Hasaki too was mentally scarred for a long time.* *No... Not just mentally, but physically scarred as well.* *After the incident, Hasaki was hospitalized for a long time.* *She spent several months in intensive care, and after that she was in a psychiatric hospital.* *It left her with large scars.* *After such a huge incident, do I really have the right to know everything that happened?* *The reality is that I was born long after it happened. It has nothing to do with me.* *Hasaki's darkest memories... Do I have the right to know about those?* *I'm just someone who will disappear...* *Like a person passing by on the street.* *Does the personality named Yuuki Tomosane... have the right to know?* *Yuki acts like she knows something about it, but I have no idea how much she actually knows.* *I'm sure Yuki's personality was only born after the incident as well...* *So neither of us know the truth...* *All I know is that there was a single incident that caused the situation we have today.* *After that incident, Mamiya Kotomi lost her mind, and Mamiya Takuji's mental state was severely altered... creating us.* *Hasaki bore great scars.* *In order to protect Hasaki...* *And in order to create a new Mamiya Takuji...* *I exist.* Yuki: Why do you look so serious? Were you thinking about something? Tomosane: Yeah, I guess so... A lot of things, actually. Yuki: Haa... Like I said, you should be grateful to your past self. The reason you're so strong in fights is because of the skills your body originally had. Tomosane: I've continued my training ever since then... It's not because of Mamiya Takuji's hard work. Yuki: Yeah, I guess you have... That was back when he was just a brat. Yuki: I know you've been training with that faggot Master for a long time now... It's almost entirely thanks to you that I'm so strong. Tomosane: Of course it is... Mamiya didn't create everything. Yuki: Hahahaha... You really hate Mamiya Takuji, don't you, Tomosane? Tomosane: If he hadn't created me like that, I wouldn't want to kill him. I'm a blade he created to kill himself... Yuki: I'm just a blade he created... Jeez, that's dark. Aren't you getting a bit carried away there, Tomosane? Tomosane: ...You're really annoying... Yuki: Come on, it's painful just looking at you when you're trying to pretend to be all cool and dark. Tomosane: I'm not pretending to be cool! Yuki: It wouldn't hurt... if once in a while you were thankful for the body you have. Thanks to him, you can fix up the bunny like this. Tomosane: Hm... And he was the one who created this whole bothersome situation. Yuki: That's true, but... I'm not the kind of person that's supposed to be in this world. Tomosane: Apparently if we go to a hospital, they can erase us one by one... They call those people counselors... Yuki: What's up with that? Sounds scary! Tomosane: There's a treatment for dissociative identity disorder that erases the personalities... Tomosane: That's how unnecessary our existence in this world is. Yuki: I can't deny that. Hasaki: You're wrong. Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: What? Hasaki: Thanks to Nii-san creating the two of you... we were able to meet... Hasaki: If Takuji Nii-san hadn't accepted your existence, I would be truly alone. Hasaki: So when you say it's bothersome and stuff... that's kind of... Tomosane: Hey, whoa... D-Don't cry... Yuki: Whoa... Don't make your sister cry. Tomosane: You agreed with me! You said we were just a bother! Yuki: Don't look at me... Tomosane: B-But still... I can't forgive Mamiya Takuji for not giving up on his mother... Yuki: Well, maybe so, but he's a kind person at heart. After all, he was originally going to be the savior and protect the world. Hasaki: U-Um, do you have to talk about this... Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: Yeah, I don't mind it anymore.. * You shouldn't talk bad about people..."* Tomosane: You're the primary victim here. Yuki: Haa... That just means her brother isn't the only one who's kind. Maybe it runs in the family. Tomosane: In the Mamiya family, huh... Kind to a fault, perhaps. Hasaki: Ahahahaha, Dad really was gentle... I guess. Yuki: Oh, I finished this while we were talking. Hasaki: Th-Thank you! Yuki: Ah... I feel like I'm gonna disappear. Hasaki: Disappear? Tomosane: Yuki's personality is going to disappear... Not like I really care, but I'm surprised you can feel it coming on. Yuki: So you still can't feel it? You'll probably get better at it later. Tomosane: How am I supposed to get better... Tomosane: Yuki... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Yuki-san? Tomosane: Ah, she's gone... Hasaki: ... Tomosane: Well it's not like she's gone forever... Don't make that face. Hasaki: B-But some day... Tomosane: Stop looking so sad... Hasaki. Hasaki: Yeah... Sorry. *I ended up going to class.* *Apparently attending class was my job this time.* *If you ask me, one of the other two should be going to class and doing other boring stuff like that.* *I especially don't want to waste my time going to class since I'm fated to disappear anyway.* *But at least there aren't any afternoon classes on Saturday, so it's not all bad.* *The meal Hasaki made me for lunch was gone too.* *Apparently someone ate it that morning (either Mamiya Takuji or Yuki), since both the lunchboxes were empty.* Tomosane: Hmm... Hasaki's lunchboxes are way too small. Tomosane: It's still first period... *I looked at the clock.* *It was still pretty early.* *I'm gonna be hungry before dinnertime...* *And someone ate my dinner too...* Tomosane: I'm pretty sure Hasaki said she would be home late today. *It's strange that Master would only call for Hasaki to work at Hakushuu.* *Usually he calls me or Yuki when he needs someone to wash dishes or clean the shop.* *Well... either way, Hasaki will be late.* Tomosane: ...It's been a while since I've been able to do that. *I hadn't done it in a while, so I had a lot of energy built up.* *This was the first chance I'd had in a while...* Tomosane: ... Tomosane: ...That voice. *When I left the school building, I heard them talking.* *In the rear courtyard...* *I could only hear a few words, like "finish it" and "let's go," but I could tell right away what they were doing.* Tomosane: Haa... I want to just ignore them and go home, but... *I hopped over the fence.* Tomosane: Yo... Numada: Huh? Nishimura: No way... Shiroyama: M-Mamiya... kun. *My perceptions aren't altered like Takuji and Yuki's are.* *I heard their words exactly as they said them. "Takuji," not "Yuuki" or "Tomosane."* *Which just means that my perceptions don't need to keep secrets from me.* *Well, I'm glad I don't have to deal with that crap.* Nishimura: Wh-What's up? *He's shitting bricks...* *That can only mean one thing. Bingo...* *They were hiding and whispering about something... These guys are a pain.* Tomosane: Nah, nothing in particular. Do I need to have something in particular to talk about? If you'd like, I could make a problem for you right now. Numada: Oh, no. Tomosane: Just now, you guys were talking about going somewhere, weren't you? Nishimura: Oh, uh, not at all. Nishimura: G-Guh... Shiroyama: Ah! Numada: Eek! Tomosane: And I heard you were going to 'finish' something... *When I punched Nishimura, the other two winced in fear.* *They bullied Mamiya Takuji so much, but they rolled over like dogs once I beat them up a few times.* *They're weak... That's the only way to describe them.* Tomosane: So? What were you talking about? Numada: S-Sorry! Uh, we were, uh, looking for you, Mamiya-kun. Tomosane: Hmm. Looking for me, huh? Numada: Uh, well. We got some good stuff... We thought maybe you'd wanna get in on it too. Tomosane: Good stuff? Numada: Yeah, yeah, good ice. Tomosane: I see... Some good ice, huh? Numada: It was really expensive. The crystals are pure white. Tomosane: Pure white crystals... *"Ice" is a euphemism for meth.* *They also call it "S," "Tina," or "glass." There are a lot of nicknames.* *I didn't care to know, but I learned a lot of dumb shit like that hanging out with these guys.* *They call it a white powder, but... most of it doesn't really look like white powder. At least, I've never seen any like that.* *Apparently it's colorless and transparent if the purity is high, but the kind of stuff that gets sold in the city isn't white because of the impurities.* *The color changes depending on the impurities. It can even be yellow or pink...* *Most drugs go through quite a few different hands before they reach the individual sellers. The adulteration happens as it passes through all those different hands.* *And to dilute the water even more, the end sellers cut the drugs before they sell them.* *Apparently they add anything they have at hand that looks like white powder, even though they have no scientific knowledge about the drugs.* *Sugar, salt... sometimes even chalk is mixed in.* *Apparently it burns like crazy if you add sugar.* *I've heard stories of people whose meth exploded when they lit up, getting in their eyes and everything... That happens when their meth is cut with salt.* *And sometimes even poison is mixed in.* *If it's cut with a lethal poison, they call it a Terror Hit.* *And if the adulterant just gives you some side effects, they call it a bad trip.* *But it's apparently not very common for meth to be cut with actual poison.* *Meth is one of the tools of the trade for a lot of people in the business, so anyone who sells meth cut with anything poisonous might be "disciplined" to control the quality of the market.* *Because of that "discipline," the quality is fairly high.* *I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.* *The only reason I learned all this stuff is because I hang out with these guys.* Tomosane: Oh really... Good ice, huh? Numada: Y-Yeah. Tomosane: ...Give it all to me. Numada: What? Tomosane: You were planning on doing it without me, weren't you? I told you to give me all of it. Didn't you hear me? Numada: B-But! Numada: Haa... Shiroyama: H-Hey... Tomosane: Hm? What? Shiroyama... Shiroyama: ... Shiroyama: Oh, uh... Nothing. *The flame of resistance flared up in Shiroyama's eyes for a moment...* *But once he met my eyes that flame disappeared.* *He had the most backbone of all these losers, but now look at him.* Tomosane: What is it, Shiroyama? If you have something to say, look me in the eyes and say it. Shiroyama: I-I didn't say anything... *Well, after I hurt him that bad... I don't blame him.* *The first time I met him, I beat him bloody... and I've nearly killed him on a few other occasions too.* *Because he tried to get revenge on me several times.* *Though he failed every time...* *He tried to jump me in a back alley once too.* *Even an amateur doesn't give many opportunities to get ambushed, though. People are instinctively wary of walking through dark and deserted places.* *Unless they were drunk, anyone would notice footsteps behind them in the dark.* *And I'm more careful about listen for footsteps behind me than most people.* *If the footsteps slow down when I do, I can tell... That alone is enough to stop them from ambushing me.* *Maybe it would be different if they could fly or something... A stun gun or something wouldn't matter, though.* *I've seen Shiroyama break someone's leg without hesitation before.* *And there was one time when he got a bunch of people together and surrounded me late at night.* *But there were less than ten people.* *They had knives and stun guns.* *It was a pretty good plan on his part. Even a dumbass could think of something like that, though.* *Of course, I ran away at full speed... It would be retarded to fight them head on.* *I was confident in my running speed. It's not my arms but my legs that make me strong in battle.* *They slowly split up... They were too focused on chasing me so they didn't even notice that they weren't moving together.* *I turned and butchered the closest man.* *I hit him with my entire body weight, knocking him out in a single blow.* *I picked up his knife and threw it at the second guy.* *He probably didn't expect me to throw it.* *He fell on his ass right there.* *I put my boot in his face, since he'd offered so nicely.* *I felt the unique sensation of teeth breaking under my heel.* *I got a metal pipe from him.* *In reality, a metal pipe is a far better weapon than a knife or a stun gun.* *The length is more important than the lethality of the weapon.* *I used my new weapon to take out my pursuers one by one.* *In the end, it was four versus one... I wouldn't lose to four amateurs even without a weapon.* *The end result was a one-sided beatdown that was even more brutal than usual.* *I stabbed a knife through Shiroyama's right hand to teach him a lesson.* *I stabbed Numada right in the ass as he tried to run.* *That was the last time Shiroyama tried to resist...* *After that, he devolved into a man who only fears me.* *Well, part of that is because I hurt him so badly... but that was his own fault.* *He did something disgusting to my body, even if was Mamiya Takuji's personality at the time... I couldn't hurt him enough to pay him back for that.* Tomosane: Is this everything? Numada: Y-Yes... *He gave me one packet of the stuff.* *It didn't look like enough for them all.* *I made them empty their pockets and searched their stuff, but I couldn't find anything.* Tomosane: Hmm... Numada: So... are you done? Tomosane: ...Yeah. *Numada turned to run.* Tomosane: Huh?! Tomosane: Hey! Numada! Numada: Huh? Tomosane: Take off... your shoes. Numada: Huh? Tomosane: Do it already! *I made him take off his shoes right there.* *He was walking funny.* *Like he was protecting something.* *I checked out his shoes, but there was nothing in them.* Numada: Th-There's nothing there, right? Tomosane: ... *I rolled up the cuffs on his pants.* Numada: Ah... *There was an unusual bulge in one of his socks.* Tomosane: ...What is this? *I punched him, but not hard enough to hurt my hand.* *I got three more packets from Numada's socks.* *Three packets of white powder... Naturally, they were more packets of drugs.* Tomosane: You have quite a lot of this stuff, huh? Numada: Ahahaha... We really splurged this time. *Numada laughed weakly.* *The blood poured out of his nose.* *Splurged, huh? For this powder...* Tomosane: Well then, I'll be confiscating this. Numada: Huh? Wh-What? *Numada tried to say something, but I was already leaving.* *At the current prices, each of these 0.3g packets would sell to the end consumer for over 10,000 yen each... Put together, there was easily over 30,000 yen worth.* *I couldn't complain about that.* *I flushed the toilet in the smelly bathroom stall.* *The packets all went down the toilet along with the water.* *It was hard to flush the unopened packets since they had air in them.* *I finally got them to flush along with some toilet paper.* Tomosane: Haa... These public restrooms always smell like shit. *I disposed of the drugs I took from Numada and Shiroyama in a nearby restroom.* *It was only natural.* *I wouldn't want to get stopped by the police while I had that stuff in my pockets.* *I always get rid of any drugs I confiscate right away.* *I'm only taking it from them to cause them pain... not to use it myself.* *I never planned to use any of the drugs myself.* *I can tell there's already something wrong with Mamiya Takuji's brain. I don't even want to imagine what would happen if I started doing drugs too.* *I used to take them home and throw them away in the garbage at my house, but lately I've been getting rid of them as soon as I can.* *Anyway, I'm bullying them as much as I can.* *I'm taking my revenge on them before I disappear.* Tomosane: ...Hm? *Did I... imagine that?* *...* *Oh well...* *I should get going...* *...* *I knew it...* *He's not an amateur...* *I felt a bit uneasy... and I was sure of it by the time I went into the station in Suginomiya.* Tomosane: ...I let my guard down because there are so many people in Suginomiya. *This is probably because I've been targeted by Shiroyama and his thugs so many times.* *I can always tell when someone's watching me... It's just a matter of practice.* *I dashed into a side road, like I was running away...* *Then I turned and stopped just around the corner.* *And waited...* *"Ah..."* *A man quickly followed me around the corner.* *It was a street just off the main road, and no one else was around.* *Because of that it ended up being just the two of us staring at each other in an alley.* *My pursuer froze for a moment and then looked away.* *Which means he's not a cop...* *Though I suppose a cop wouldn't trail me like this.* *A cop would've stopped me when I went in the restroom, or right after I came out.* *"..."* *My pursuer tried to walk away with a calm gait that was obviously feigned.* *But...* Tomosane: Hey... do you think I'm just gonna let you walk away? *"Huh? Um, what do you mean?"* Tomosane: Haa... *"E-Eek! A kn-knife?"* Tomosane: Bingo... *"Ah..."* *I cut open the bottom of his bag, and a camera fell to the ground.* Tomosane: What's this big camera for? Not like you can go birdwatching here in the city... *"Oh, no... I'm a paparazzo. I just got back from my favorite idol's concert..."* Tomosane: So what do you do with those ugly sunglasses? Go peeping through the window? *"Uh..."* *It was hard to see through his long hair, but his sunglasses had unusually thick frames.* *Sunglasses with a built-in camera... The kind detectives and the like use...* Tomosane: What are you, a detective? Who hired you? *"Hahahaha... Um."* *"Huh?!"* *"Guh!"* Tomosane: You think I'm gonna let you run? *I locked his arms behind his back and pushed him to the ground.* *I could break both his arms if I put my body weight on him and bent his arms just a few more inches.* *"O-Ow, ow ow ow!!"* Tomosane: Who are you... Why are you following me? *"S-Sorry! I'm a photographer... I do landscape pictur― ah, ow, ow, ow, oww!!"* Tomosane: You weren't looking at the scenery... You were following me. *"A-Ahahaha..."* *I looked through the rest of his belongings.* Tomosane: ... *I found a notebook.* *I thought he was a detective or something at first, but I knew he wasn't when I saw that notebook.* Tomosane: Are you a reporter? For a newspaper? No, this employment card says it's a magazine... Your name is Kimura Nobukatsu, is it? Kimura: A-Ahahaha... Tomosane: So what were you looking for, Kimura-san? Kimura: Oh, uh... I was writing about today's youth culture... Tomosane: You mean you were investigating drug addiction, right? Kimura: Uh, um... Tomosane: Bullseye, huh... Kimura: Ah, ahahaha... Umm... Tomosane: I'll be confiscating this camera. Kimura: N-No way... H-How about you just delete the pictures? Tomosane: I'm sure you can restore them. Kimura: A-All right! Then just take the memory card! Tomosane: Hmm... Well, okay... *I let go of his arms...* Kimura: Haa... I knew you were strong from when I scoped you out, but that's amazing. You must have experience with martial arts. Tomosane: Oh, you want to interview me now that you lost your pictures? Kimura: Hahahaha, don't say that. After investigating you, I have to say I'm incredibly interested in you personally. Tomosane: Are you trying to butter me up? Don't you think something like that is just gonna tick me off? Kimura: W-Wait a second. Sorry, sorry. Kimura: I was serious. Your actions are really mysterious... Tomosane: Do you have a death wish? Kimura: W-Wait! At least let me say this. Tomosane: Say what? Kimura: Why did you throw away the drugs you took from them? Tomosane: Huh?! Tomosane: Y-You little bastard. How do you know that? Kimura: Hey, no, wait, don't get mad... It doesn't hurt you, though, does it? Tomosane: Huh? Kimura: You haven't done any of the drugs. Kimura: There wasn't a single empty packet. All of them still had the drugs in them, and you just threw them away... Tomosane: Exactly how long have you been following me? Kimura: Um, I just happened to see it. Tomosane: You just happened to see it while you were going through my garbage? Kimura: And you tried flushing them down the toilet, but they didn't all flush. Those air-filled packets don't flush very well since they float. Tomosane: You searched my toilet? Kimura: Yeah, you go to the toilet every time you get any drugs... At first, I thought you were doing the drugs in there, but then I discovered a packet that didn't flush. Kimura: Since then, I've been using a plunger to investigate what you flushed. Kimura: I recovered quite a lot of them. Tomosane: Really now... Kimura: Yeah, that's why I was curious. I wanted to know why you would do that after going through all that trouble to get those expensive drugs. Tomosane: All right... I understand. Kimura: You understand? Tomosane: Yeah, it looks like you know too much... Kimura: Wh-What? Wait... did I say too much? Tomosane: Yeah, way too much... Kimura: U-Um, your face is really scary... You're not thinking of killing me, are you? Tomosane: Yeah, that's the plan. Kimura: Eek! Kimura: Aaah! My SLR! Tomosane: Also, this thing looks ridiculous. Kimura: Ah... Kimura: Not my camera sunglasses! Kimura: Ah... Tomosane: Don't come near me ever again. Kimura: U-Ugh... You show no mercy... Tomosane: If I ever see you again, you're dead. Kimura: Okay... Understood. *Kimura's wristwatch flashed bright like a flashlight.* Tomosane: Ah! *The light was seared into my retinas.* Tomosane: Tch... He still had another camera, huh... *He looked like a fool, but I'm sure there's a reason why he was investigating me.* Tomosane: Kimura Nobukatsu, huh? I should be careful from now on. He's dangerous... *If I see Yuki, I should warn her too.* Tomosane: And Mamiya... Nah, forget about him... *Mamiya is in the most danger, but I can't just go and warn him about every little thing.* Tomosane: Either way, from now on I should only confiscate money from those guys, not drugs. *Taking their drugs away causes more psychological damage since it's so much harder for them to get, but I don't have much of a choice anymore.* Tomosane: Personally, I don't give a shit if I get caught, but I don't want to drag Yuki down with me. *If Yuki got caught, Hasaki would be upset.* *And that's the last thing I want to happen.* Tomosane: Puhaa... *I drank a can of tea I had in the fridge to calm myself down.* *The cold tea pricked at the back of my throat and made my head hurt.* *But to me, even that pain felt good...* Tomosane: Haa... That helped cool my head a bit... Tomosane: I haven't had one of these in a while. *I opened the top on a cup of ramen.* *A lot of crap happened, so it took longer than I expected to get home.* *The sun was already setting... It wasn't dinner time yet, but I made myself some ramen anyway.* *It was salty.* *Well, the taste doesn't really matter.* Tomosane: Oh, it's boiling... *I came back into the kitchen and poured the kettle of boiling water into my ramen.* *I looked at the clock.* *It was already after five...* *Hasaki still wouldn't be home for a while.* *She said she would be working at Hakushuu late tonight. Her job there usually ends around ten o'clock.* *If I include the time she'll spend walking home, it'll be more than 5 hours until she gets home.* Tomosane: ...Heh. *A little giggle found its way out of my mouth.* *No one will be in this house for quite a while...* *I'm alone in this house...* Tomosane: ...It's been a while. *Maybe I can do that again...* *Hasaki won't be home for...* Tomosane: I can... *I put in the CD I bought.* *My heart rate increased...* Tomosane: ...Heh. This isn't like me. Tomosane: ... *The video game started up.* *I can play video games.* *When I'm alone, I can play games without worrying.* Tomosane: Heh... Hehehe! Tomosane: I haven't heard this sound in a long time... *I'm not an egghead like Yuki, who always comes home and immediately sits down to a book.* *I only read books to kill time when I have nothing else to do.* *Games are way better than books! If I could, I'd like to play handheld games when I'm at school.* *I've actually tried bringing handheld games to school before.* *But whenever I went to play them...* *The batteries were dead.* Tomosane: That's probably... No, that's definitely because Mamiya found the games and played them until the battery died. Tomosane: I did it dozens of times too, but I never got to play any of the games... God damn it! *That bastard... Every time I charge it up so that I can play games, he always plays them for hours on end before I even get a chance to try.* *At this point, I'm pretty sure he's doing that on purpose to bug me.* *Whenever I finish charging the handheld and excitedly put it into my bag, my consciousness blacks out...* Tomosane: And then before I know it, the batteries are dead! Tomosane: Every time I feel that desperation, it makes me want to kill that bastard... *I must be destined to hate every single thing about Mamiya Takuji.* *For the record, Mamiya Takuji actually owns a lot of games, but most of them aren't the kind of stuff I play.* *Most of them are so-called galge, which I'm really not interested in.* *Though I guess he does have a few games that I do like.* *I just don't really feel like playing any of them, though.* *I mean, why would I?* *He always pirates his games online instead of buying them.* *I can't stand that... It bothers me so much I want to kill him for it.* *Not that I'm someone who should be giving a lecture on morals...* *I just instinctively hate him.* Tomosane: Apparently I find every single thing he does irritating... He's such a pain in the ass. *It seems like Yuki doesn't hate Mamiya, but I really don't understand why.* *Someone like him might as well just die.* *There aren't very many things in this world I hate as much as him.* *There's not a single good thing about him.* *Either way, I can't play games at school.* *And I can't play games in the house either...* *Especially not console games that use the TV.* Tomosane: Hasaki will be at Hakushuukyou all night. She said her shift would last until late tonight... *Which means I can play games today without worrying about anything.* *If Hasaki ever sees me in the living room, she always shows interest in what I'm doing.* *She always comes and bothers me.* *Which is why I can't play games when she's around.* Tomosane: Whatever... Let's have some fun tonight. It sure has been a while... Hasaki: I'm home. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Why? Hasaki: Oh, Tomo Nii-san, there you are. I thought you weren't around because you didn't respond. Tomosane: ... *Why...* *Why is she home so early?* *Didn't she say she was working late?* *I can't believe she came home the second I finally turned the game on...* Hasaki: Is that a game? Tomosane: Y-Yeah... Hasaki: That's rare... Tomosane: Hasaki... weren't you supposed to be working late? Hasaki: Oh, uh... Well, it was a special job, so it didn't take long. We finished up sooner than I expected. *A special job?* *Not like it matters to me, I guess...* Hasaki: And why are you eating that? *Hasaki grumpily sat behind me.* Hasaki: What about the lunch I packed? Tomosane: Oh, I ate it, but I was still hungry afterward. Hasaki: But I bought ingredients and hurried home just so I could make you dinner... Tomosane: You told me you wouldn't be home until later. Hasaki: I said I might not be home until later. I never said I definitely wouldn't... Isn't it awfully early to be eating cup ramen? Tomosane: I just got hungry is all... Hasaki: Hmm... Really? *Ah... what a pain...* *I started talking less and focused on the game instead of Hasaki.* Hasaki: So... what kind of game is it? *How long is she planning on sticking around?* *The conversation is over. Shouldn't she go back to her room or something?* *I suppose I could stop playing...* *No, then she would probably just complain.* *Damn it... I always make sure not to play video games around her because I don't want to get involved with her...* *Why is she going out of her way to sit here with me?* *...Hmph.* *...* *What should I do now?* *...* *I'm sure Hasaki will be pissed if I tell her to get out.* *Hasaki never listens to any direct orders I give her. If anything, giving her orders has the opposite effect.* *What would Yuki do in a situation like this?* *Hmm...* *Yuki would probably just ask Hasaki to play with her.* *The other one...* *The next person to come to mind was the person I hated most.* *Mamiya Takuji...* *He always does things to piss people off even if he doesn't intend to.* *He would do something that Hasaki didn't like, or maybe he would just leave the room.* *In this situation, does that mean... that I should learn from Mamiya Takuji's example?* *That's it... The strongest gust of wind will fail to take off a person's coat, but the warmth of a sunny day will accomplish it easily.* *In other words, I have to make her want to leave the room.* *So I should say something to gross her out...* *That could work.* *...* *What would make Hasaki upset?* *Well, most women don't like it when you talk about sexual stuff...* *Some kind of sexual harassment involving the game, perhaps.* *Which leaves me with only one answer.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, are you ignoring me? What game are you playing? Tomosane: Oh, this is an eroge. Hasaki: Hm, an eroge... Wait, what?! Tomosane: What are you so surprised for? This is an eroge. Hasaki: Uh, wh-what do you mean, an eroge? Um... Tomosane: That's right. It's exactly what you're thinking. Hasaki: U-Um, the eroge you're playing... What's it about? Tomosane: Oh... There's a mental patient who's deluded himself into believing he's a ninja keeping watch over his little sister, and he rapes the schizophrenic spy girl who shares the same room in the sanitorium with him. It's a game about the dream the spy girl sees while she's getting raped... *I just made it up on the spot, so it probably sounded like nonsense...* *But it doesn't really matter what it's about.* Hasaki: O-Oh, really... Wow. That's way too complicated for me... It sounds interesting, though. Hasaki: Wh-What's this scene about? *I thought she would leave right away, but oddly enough, she stayed put.* *What's her deal... Are kids these days just used to the oversaturation of sex in the media?* *I thought Hasaki would be too embarrassed to talk about this kind of stuff... How annoying.* *Well, I'll just make something up.* Tomosane: The spy girl's pet bird, Red Baron, is about to drop a bomb on the enemy's secret base. Hasaki: O-Oh wow... S-So that's what eroge are like... *I just ignored Hasaki and focused on the action.* *Side-scrolling shooters usually have enemies scroll from right to left, but this one's different because they go left to right.* *Also, it's not an eroge.* *Though that should be really obvious.* Hasaki: Th-The art is really cute... *Well it's a game about birds flying planes... Of course it has cute art.* *I just told her it was eroge to make her go away... Why is she still here?* Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san, um, I-I didn't know you played games like this. Tomosane: Yeah, I do. Hasaki: U-Um, so did I miss the scene... about the guy who thinks he's a ninja spying on his little sister? Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Oh, uh, I just can't imagine that happening based on what's on screen, so... I thought I'd ask. *Of course you can't imagine it... I was lying when I said this shmup was an eroge.* Tomosane: You can't imagine it, huh... *I can't really imagine it, either.* *An eroge, huh?* *I haven't ever played one, so I wouldn't know.* *I just said that part about his little sister to mess with Hasaki, but... A little sister?* *Why would I say that? Even perverts wouldn't get turned on by their own sister... I mean, come on, it's your sister.* *But wait... I do remember that Mamiya Takuji had a couple games with 'sister' in the title...* *A game about locking up your sister... I think that was called 'Siskan,' and another one was called 'Sis Sky.' There were a lot of them.* *Does that mean... there's a demand for games like that?* *Which means... there really are perverts who get turned on by their little sisters...* Tomosane: What a sad world we live in. Hasaki: Huh? Wh-What do you mean? Tomosane: Oh, uh, nothing. *Not like I care, but why is she still here?* Hasaki: Do you play games like this one a lot? *Why would I play a lot of eroge?!* *I wanted to snap back at her, but...* Tomosane: Yeah, I hide them from you, but I play eroge every day. *...* *I just said something... incredibly shameful.* *Don't worry about it... This is just to put some space between me and Hasaki.* *I need to keep a certain distance between us.* *I'm going to disappear eventually.* *If I become important to her, it'll only hurt her more when I disappear.* *So I have to be hated... I have to be loathed by everyone I meet.* *Even Hasaki has to hate me.* *If Yuki is getting cut off from the world, then that means it won't be long before I disappear.* *Hasaki has to forget me... and live on in a world without me.* *She doesn't need any good memories of me to do that.* *Yuuki Tomosane has to be a terrible person so that she doesn't grieve me when I'm gone...* Hasaki: E-Every day?! Tomosane: Yeah, every single day... I like to play mindbreak games. Hasaki: Mindbreak? *She was completely oblivious.* *Hasaki probably doesn't know what I'm talking about... She probably just thinks it's like mind control or something.* Tomosane: I like games where you can train your little sister... Hasaki: Train? *She was still oblivious.* *That's right... People in normal society use the word 'train' when they're talking about animals or sports...* Hasaki: You mean, like, teaching her how to do something? *I guess you could say that...* *No, that's not it.* Tomosane: No, that's not what I mean... I told you, this is an eroge! Hasaki: Eroge... Hasaki: Wait, what does the 'ge' mean? Tomosane: It's short for game. Hasaki: Oh, okay... That makes sense. *What did you think the 'ge' stood for before?* Hasaki: h, uh, I should've been able to figure that out.. * So what do you do to your little sister in that game?"* *Hasaki was definitely wavering.* *This is my chance... I just have to keep saying things that will creep her out.* Tomosane: ... *Grr...* *I'd like to, but... this is kind of hard.* *I don't really know much about eroge either. I guess there's sex, since it has 'ero' in the abbreviation, but I don't really know what that has to do with training.* Hasaki: Um, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: It's ero, so they do erotic stuff... Hasaki: You mean... they... have sex? Tomosane: That's right. They do all sorts of perverted stuff! Hasaki: P-Perverted? Tomosane: Yeah, perverted. Perverted stuff means sex in this case... Hasaki: R-Really? *Good job, Hasaki... Wait, why is Hasaki leading the conversation?* Hasaki: ... *Hasaki's downturned face was bright red.* *Okay, she's embarrassed, but why isn't she leaving? I can't stand this awkwardness for much longer.* Tomosane: The sex scene is coming up... Hasaki: Huh?! Tomosane: The sex scene is coming up, so go away. Hasaki: U-Um, y-you mean... Tomosane: I hope I don't need to explain that too... Hasaki: Why don't you go and do that in your room?! Tomosane: There's no console in my room. Hasaki: O-Okay, but... Tomosane: So get out... Hasaki: U-U-Um... Tomosane: What? Hasaki: Huh? Um, you said there was a sex scene soon, right? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right... Hasaki: If you don't mind... I might wanna watch it... Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Huh?! Hasaki: Ah, um, well, I've never seen a game like that before... If you like those games, then I want to see it too. Hasaki: Uh, not in a weird way. Y-You don't really talk about yourself, so I always wonder what you're interested in... Hasaki: So I wish I could understand you better, Tomo Nii-san... And this is the first time I've seen you so focused on something... *What's... happening?* *It's not going like I expected it to...* *If everything had gone as planned, by now Hasaki would have yelled, "Tomosane-san, you perv! I hate you!" Or maybe she would've looked shocked and said, "Uh, I'll leave you to your games..."* *Why is she acting like this?* Hasaki: U-Um, Tomo Nii-san... why aren't you saying anything? U-Uh... *Haa...* *I turned around and looked at Hasaki.* Hasaki: Wha―! *Why is she blushing? And why are there also tears in her eyes?* *If she hates it that much, she should just leave.* Tomosane: You know, Hasaki... Hasaki: Y-Y-Yes? Tomosane: Doesn't it feel like you're missing something here? Hasaki: Huh? Wh-What? I'm missing something? *Of course you are... What on earth do you think I've been talking about?* *Everything's getting complicated now...* Tomosane: I told you to leave because there's a sex scene coming up. There's something very important I have to do. Hasaki: Something important? Tomosane: ...Grr. *Damn it... She's totally oblivious.* Hasaki: Th-That's okay. No matter what happens... Yeah. *No matter what?* *What's her problem? She's trying to act casual even while her cheeks are burning red.* Tomosane: Hey, Hasaki... Hasaki: Th-This is the living room, so I can be here if I want. Tomosane: I can't show a little kid something like that... Hasaki: I-I'm not a little kid! I'm an adult! Tomosane: What definition of adult are you using? Hasaki: Who cares about the definition?! I hate how you always treat me like a kid. Tomosane: If you don't like it, then go away... There's no reason for you to stay here. Hasaki: That's for me to decide... Don't tell me what to do. A-Anyway, just keep going. I don't mind, really... *Haa...* *Now she's just being stubborn. I guess I can't keep up the act any longer.* *Seems like she's gonna stay no matter what.* Hasaki: B-But... I'm surprised there are games with sex scenes on consoles. Tomosane: There aren't. Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: This is a television, and I'm playing on a game console... Eroge are only on the PC. Tomosane: There's no way they could sell eroge for a console... Hasaki: What?! Tomosane: I just said all that stuff about porn because you were annoying me. Hasaki: ... Hasaki: There you go again... Hasaki: Fine! I guess you really hate being around me, huh? Tomosane: Pretty much. Hasaki: ... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, you JEEERRKKK! *Hasaki pulled her hand back as far as she could...* *And then brought it down instantly.* Tomosane: Aaaaaahh!! Tomosane: Dammit! Why did you hit the power button?! Hasaki: Jerk! Tomosane: What the hell?! I can't save in a shmup, you know?! *I expected her to slap me or something... I never thought she would hit the power button.* *What a bummer...*

*Familiar music... but with a slightly different style than my own.* *The same song can sound completely different depending on who's playing it... Well, it might sound the same to everyone else.* *Yuki...* *The usual place... The usual piano... But the person playing was Yuki.* *When I woke up, Yuki was sitting right next to me.* *Yuki played with her eyes closed, but she had a smirk on her face, like she knew I was there.* *I didn't think I was working today, though. Why is Yuki playing the piano here?* *I looked around the room.* *The same faggots as usual were here.* *I always have to wonder... It's not like this is a gay bar or anything.* *It's just supposed to be a normal bar. These guys probably all come here because Master has no morals.* *...Huh?* *...* *That's... Takashima Zakuro...* *Why's she here?* Yuki: I'm here on a date. With her. *Yuki spoke only to me, with her eyes still closed.* *Naturally, her mouth didn't actually move.* Tomosane: What do you mean, a date? Yuki: Yeah, it was just a coincidence. I saw her on the train. Tomosane: On the train, huh... Tomosane: What were you thinking? You're both girls, aren't you? Yuki: But I look like a guy, don't I? Tomosane: Still... Yuki: You're in a bad mood, huh? What, are you jealous? Tomosane: Why would I be jealous of you? *Yuki smiled and played the piano.* *There was a certain lilt in the music that wasn't there before.* *To the rest of them, it must have looked like she was just playing silently, but in reality she always talks a lot while she's playing.* Yuki: I haven't played this piano in quite a while. Tomosane: You asked them to tune it, right? How is it? Yuki: It feels really good. But it's been more than a month since I asked Master to get it tuned. Tomosane: They only finished tuning it earlier this week... Yuki: That's a bit shady, but at least it still sounds good now since he only got it done last week. Tomosane: Yeah... Pretty good timing there. Yuki: ...Well, I wouldn't say that. *The performance ended.* *Apparently Takashima Zakuro was really impressed by Yuki's playing... Listening to her praise, I could tell that the girl wasn't the kind of person I would get along with.* *She wouldn't really like me... though she probably wouldn't come near if I was the personality in control.* *I watched Yuki and Takashima talk as I thought about that.* *Yuki got along with Takashima really well. Really, Yuki gets along well with anyone.* *She's completely different from me and Mamiya Takuji.* *If I had the kind of social skills she does...* *I can't even imagine it.* *Yuki is really something.* *It's just such a pain in the ass talking to people...* *I don't want to get involved with people if I don't have to. I don't want to talk to them, and I don't even want to go anywhere near them.* *Especially not women. I can't stand people who can just cry at the drop of a hat, like it's a normal thing that people do all the time.* *I never know how I'm supposed to talk to them.* *Men are easier, since I can just hit them and then they stop bothering me.* *Women are just a pain in the ass...* *In other words, what really suits me is just being alone.* Yuki: I hate people too, you know? Tomosane: ...Huh? *I was only thinking that to myself, so even Yuki shouldn't have been able to hear it.* *I was just thinking to myself, and yet―* Tomosane: ...How did you know what I was thinking? Yuki: I just had a feeling... but it sounds like I guessed right. Tomosane: Yeah... It was like you were replying to my inner thoughts. Yuki: Oh really... Lately, it feels like I've been able to hear your thoughts sometimes. Yuki: Though anyone watching would say that even this conversation is only in our thoughts. Tomosane: Yeah, no one else can hear us right now. We can talk privately, just between the two of us. Yuki: The brain is a mysterious organ. Tomosane: I wouldn't call it mysterious. I'd just call it a piece of shit. That's what I always say... Yuki: Anyway, like I said, you always say you hate people, but it's not like I enjoy their company either. Tomosane: You're not very convincing. Yuki: Why not? I like to be alone, too. I'm really good at being alone. Tomosane: How can you be good at being alone? Yuki: What? Did you imagine something perverted? Tomosane: Don't worry, I didn't think anything like that at all. Yuki: What's your problem? You can fantasize about me if you want. Tomosane: Why would I fantasize about you? That's ridiculous... Yuki: Then who do you fantasize about? Tomosane: I don't fantasize about anyone. Shut up. Yuki: Oh, you don't have a good imagination so you prefer to watch porn? You don't really have many porno mags, though.. * Oh! I get it! You only like 2D girls!"* Yuki: But you don't have any ero manga either... Maybe you have a stash of porn on the computer? Tomosane: You're getting on my nerves. Are you going to keep spouting nonsense until I pop your bubble? Yuki: But you do jerk off, don't you? Tomosane: I don't. Yuki: Liar. If a healthy boy didn't jerk off, the semen would start coming out in his sweat. Tomosane: No, it wouldn't... What the hell do you think a healthy boy is, anyway? Yuki: Good boys are made of 50% kindness and 50% semen. Tomosane: Why, you... You're insulting all the boys in the country, you know? Yuki: No, I'm complimenting them. I said 50% is made up of their innate kindness. Tomosane: And the other half is pure semen. Yuki: Isn't that about right? Tomosane: That's not right at all! It would be terrifying if that was true! Yuki: L-Like I said, boys are scary! Tomosane: That's dumb! Don't act scared about something stupid like that! Tomosane: Haa... All right, so if that's true, then there's semen coming out when you sweat, too. We do share the same body, you know? Yuki: No way! That's awful! I'll get pregnant with your child! Tomosane: No, wait... That's impossible for a lot of reasons. Yuki: But your semen is mixed in with my sweat, right? Tomosane: I'll kill you. Yuki: Oh, you wanna take a shot at me for old times' sake? No cheap shots! Tomosane: Whoa, what's your problem? Why are you trying to fight me? And besides, there's no semen in my sweat! Yuki: Yeah, right... Tomosane: Yeah, I am right! You can't even keep a straight face when you say that shit. Yuki: But you're not jerking off at all, right? Then there's gotta be semen in your sweat. By this point, it's probably pure semen. Tomosane: Why, you... All right, look here. This conversation is over. Drop it. Yuki: Then we can agree. You're sweating buckets of cum! Tomosane: Yeah, right! Yuki: You admitted it! Tomosane: No! I'm not admitting it, I just don't want to talk about it! Besides, even if there was semen in my sweat, how the hell would you get pregnant from it?! Yuki: Don't make me spell it out for you. I'm a sensitive girl, you know. Tomosane: Did your brain leak out of your ears? Yuki: Can't you be a bit more sensitive when you're talking to girls? You shouldn't tell a girl she has no brains. Tomosane: I don't even know where to start with that. You're the one who was saying semen over and over, so I don't know why you expect me to be sensitive! Yuki: But don't I look like an innocent girl? I'm so cute, you know. Tomosane: Not even a little. Yuki: Yes, I am. Are you stupid? Tomosane: It's kind of rude to disregard someone's opinion and then top it off by calling them stupid. Yuki: Okay, let's get back to our serious conversation. Do you not have any interest in women? Tomosane: This conversation wasn't serious for even one second... You're just making lewd jokes. Yuki: Oh come on, don't young guys like you get horny sometimes? Tomosane: I don't... Yuki: You have ED at your age?! Tomosane: That's not what I mean! Yuki: Then what did you mean? Tomosane: Haa... You know, Mamiya Takuji probably loves doing stuff like that. Yuki: Mamiya Takuji... does? Tomosane: That's right. That thing people do when they're alone... Yuki: O-Oh, okay... Mamiya Takuji, huh? Tomosane: Doesn't he do that several times a day? That's probably why I don't feel any lust. Yuki: Oh... So I don't have to worry about getting pregnant. Good to know. Tomosane: That was impossible to begin with. Yuki: It was?! Tomosane: Why do you sound so surprised? Tomosane: Okay, let's start from the beginning. You share the same body as the two of us. Yuki: Share the same body... That's kind of erotic. I might be getting a little wet. Tomosane: You're not. Yuki: Hmm. I think I understand. So you don't feel lust very often... Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Yuki: So that's why you never got turned on by your cute older sister. Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: Neither me nor Hasaki... If you were a normal guy we could do some rape roleplay or something. Tomosane: What are you talking about? Zakuro: U-Um... Yuki: Huh? Yuki: Shit... I forgot about Takashima-san. Tomosane: You were on a date with her, right? Zakuro: S-Sorry... I must be boring you, huh? Yuki: Oh, n-not at all... S-Sorry, I was just having a mental meeting. Zakuro: A mental meeting? Yuki: Don't you do that? I was just talking to the different mes in my head. You know, like, what should we have for dinner and stuff like that. Zakuro: Oh, I understand. I do that too. Yuki: Ahahaha. Plenty of people have mental meetings. Zakuro: Yes. When I was going home earlier, I was thinking about this. Zakuro: Conductor Takashima! We've been running on empty since lunchtime! We will need to stop for refueling soon! McDonalds spotted at two o'clock! Pilot Takashima taking a 90 degree right turn in 200 meters! Zakuro: We've infiltrated the store! All right, Loader Takashima! Load coins into the cannon! Ready, aim... Cannoneer Takashima! Now's your chance! Fire 100 yen! Bang! Zakuro: You acquired one milkshake * Something like that, ahahahahaha!"* Yuki: Ahahahaha... L-Like that, huh? *...* *What on earth? And Yuki talks about me like we're having some kind of "mental meeting"?* *Jeez...* Zakuro: So what was that meeting about? Yuki: Um... Tomosane: Boys are made of kindness and semen... wasn't it? Yuki: Like I can say that! Tomosane: But it's the truth. Yuki: ... Yuki: Um, I was just thinking, uh... there are two equal but opposite forces inside every man's heart. Zakuro: Equal but opposite forces? Yuki: That's right. Boys have two opposing forces within them. Zakuro: What are those? Yuki: The first is... lust. Zakuro: Lust? Yuki: Yeah. Lust for various things. The desire to make things your own. For instance, the girl they like. Zakuro: Oh... Uh... Yuki: Half of a man's heart is constantly awash with that lust. Zakuro: U-Um, y-you think so? Then... what's the other half? Yuki: The other half... is kindness. Zakuro: Kindness? Yuki: Yes. They're always careful that they don't hurt the person they love with their lust. Boys are made of just such a kindness. Yuki: How about that?! Tomosane: So what? Yuki: Wasn't that pretty good? I didn't tell a lie! I'm pretty quick on my feet! Tomosane: I don't know about that... Well, whatever. Look at her. Tomosane: She's bright red. Yuki: Oh, you're right. Tomosane: She got bright red when you said that. Yuki: Oh shit! She realized that was all sexual harassment?! What should I do, Tomosane? She saw right through me! Tomosane: No, I don't think she did... Yuki: Then why is she blushing? Tomosane: Haa... It's not like she actually thinks you meant to say that boys are made up of semen and kindness. Yuki: Huh? But the meaning is the same. Tomosane: Then maybe you were sexually harassing her. Yuki: Oh... I guess I was... Yuki: That's a good point. I guess I'll have to give my title as the wittiest guy around to you. Tomosane: I don't want it! And when did you get the title in the first place? Yuki: Way before you were born! Tomosane: Why, you... Now I'm sure your brain is leaking out your ears. *Yuki kept up a conversation with both me and Takashima in that vein.* *She really is a talented girl.* Master: All right... Time to close up shop. Tomosane: Haa... Why are you making me work until close? Yuki: Yeah, what's up with that? Master: J-Jeez, it's weird how you and Yuki are both there at the same time. Well, whatever. Hey, Hasaki-chan. Yuki: Huh? Hasaki-chan is here? Tomosane: ...I remember she was supposed to work today. I wonder why she didn't come out. Hasaki: I didn't want to... bother you. Yuki: N-No! That girl was with me, not Tomosane. Tomosane: Why are you trying to cover for me all of a sudden? Hasaki: Oh... I knew it was you, Yuki. That's not what I was talking about. Yuki: Oh, then why didn't you come talk with us? Hasaki: Well... It seems like Tomo Nii-san hates me. He doesn't want to be around me, I guess. Yuki: What? Master: You're bullying her again? Tomosane: Ah, no... Hasaki: He doesn't want his little sister in the house, so he plays eroge in the living room. Master: Whoa, what did you just say? Yuki: What the hell?! Didn't you just say you don't jerk off?! Hasaki: Huh?! Tomosane: Wh-Why the hell would you say that here?! Hasaki: U-Um, what do you mean by jerk off? Yuki: Oh, uh... It's a weightlifting term. They do it at the Olympics, you know, uh... The clean and jerk, I think? Master: That's impossible... Why is Tomo-chan saying he doesn't masturbate at his age? Hasaki: M-Masturbate?! Tomosane: W-Wait! Wait just a second! Hasaki is right there, you know! Hasaki: Oh, d-don't worry about me. I'm fine... Um, Yuki-san, i-i-is that true? *She couldn't even talk straight.* Yuki: You know, he has all these cute girls around him, like me, or even you Hasaki, and me too! But he told me he's not attracted to us at all. Tomosane: Why would I lie about that?! Hasaki: Oh... So you're not attracted to us... at all. Tomosane: Why are you getting upset about that?! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, I think you're too self-centered. Why would I get upset about that? *The vein in her forehead was bulging. It was kind of obvious.* Tomosane: E-Either way, you should be happy, since there won't be any misunderstandings. Hasaki: That's right. How wonderful. Not like there would be any misunderstandings about me anyway. Tomosane: Why are you angry?! Hasaki: You're so self-centered! Why would I get angry about that? Yuki: But you don't feel anything for me either? You don't like the big sister archetype or the little sister archetype? Master: Then maybe I'm his type? Tomosane: You don't even show up on my radar! Master: That's ridiculous. Why wouldn't I show up? Yuki: What's your problem? If you don't think sisters are cute and you don't think old men are cute, it's like you're saying you don't like anyone! *Uh, I don't think anyone finds old men cute...* Master: If you don't like them, you should at least like me. I'm made of pure, unadulterated cuteness! Tomosane: Don't go around telling normal people about your fucked up version of cute! Master: Is incest normal, then? Tomosane: Like I said, I'm not into that either! Hasaki: Then... what do you think is cute? Tomosane: H-Huh? What do I think is cute? Yuki: Yeah, I'd like to know too. Tomosane: I don't think anything is cute... What the hell is 'cute' anyway? I'm not Mamiya... Yuki: If you don't want to put it that way, then what do you like in a girl? You have to have a type, right? Tomosane: How would I know?! I've never thought about that! Master: Maybe Ecchan's your type? Hasaki: Who's Ecchan? Tomosane: Why are you glaring at me?! Yuki: Who... is that? Tomosane: Ecchan is a former officer in the self-defense force, and he's gay! His real name is Echizen Kousuke! Master: Oh, that pretty boy was a mercenary, not an officer. He had such a squeaky voice I couldn't even believe he was a gun for hire. Master: I'd go crazy for that cute little lover boy if I could just hear him say, 'I want to break open Tomosane's vault of gold.' Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san's vault of gold? Wh-What's that? Master: It might not actually be gold, but it's a vault that needs opening! Tomosane: Keep your hands off my gold, old man. Hasaki: What are you guys talking about? Tomosane: Forget it! Yuki: Then who is it?! Master: Oh, I know! It's Kazu-chan! Hasaki: Who's Kazu-chan...? Tomosane: Don't look at me like it's my fault! That guy's not as old, but he's still a faggot! His real name is Hyoudou Kazutaka. Master: But you seem like you'd get along well with a hardcore sadist like him, Tomo-chan, and he's really rich too... I heard him say that he had 10 billion in the bank. Tomosane: That was a lie. No one rich comes here. Master: Oh, I wouldn't go that far. There are some pretty famous people who come in here. One of the famous people that's involved with this industry is... Abe-san, you know? Tomosane: That guy's just a plain old faggot! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, there are a lot of rumors about you getting with men, aren't there? Yuki: That's why he doesn't get turned on by us, Hasaki-chan. If there are that many rumors, then it must be true. I'm really sad to hear about all this. Master: If you just jump in bed with anyone who asks, the guys around here will eat you up in no time. Tomosane: You can't call those rumors! That's all just pure fabrication! And who said I was jumping in bed with any of those faggots?! Yuki: Then who do you like? Tomosane: I don't know! *Wait... Is the conversation changing course?* *Why are we talking about the person I like?* Master: You don't have a favorite, huh? The other suspicious customers would be... Tomosane: None of your customers are suspicious in this case... Hasaki: U-Um, then maybe that girl from earlier. Tomosane: From earlier? Tomosane: Uh, Takashima Zakuro? *Not at all.* *That's what I'd like to say, but...* *I might be able to push Hasaki away if I say I like Takashima.* Hasaki: O-Ohh... So you want to push me away. Tomosane: Wait! How did you know what I was thinking?! Yuki: I told her. Tomosane: Wh-Why, you! Why can you read my mind all of a sudden? Hasaki: Which means... you really were thinking that. You want to push me away... Tomosane: N-No, I didn't mean it in a bad way. Tomosane: Besides, I don't like anyone! I hate people in general! Yuki: What's up with that? Do you think you can just say that and run away? Tomosane: I'm not running away. Why do you think there has to be someone I like? I don't have any particular affection for anyone. Yuki: Oh, so you just hate people, huh? That's how much you love yourself, huh? Tomosane: What makes you say that? Yuki: Only myself can I love, so I hate all of the above * By Tomosane."* Tomosane: Haa... *This is getting a bit stupid. Whenever I talk to her, it's like we just get stuck in an infinite loop.* Tomosane: And besides, you're mistaken if you think young men are turned on all the time. Tomosane: In my case, I'm sharing this body with another person. Some dumbass is dealing with all that lust. Yuki: What, are you saying I'm a horny bitch in heat?! Tomosane: No! I'm not talking about you! Mamiya! I'm talking about Mamiya Takuji! Hasaki: Takuji... Nii-san... Tomosane: That's right. That's why I don't get turned on. It's not your fault, Hasaki, or yours, Yuki. Master: That's right. And it's not my fault either. I was scared for a second there when you said you didn't get turned on by such a beautiful guy like me. Tomosane: You're not even on my radar! Yuki: Isn't this the first time all three of us have walked home together? Tomosane: Well, anyone else would say there are only two people here... including Hasaki. Hasaki: No, that's not true. Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: I feel like I can actually see both of you. Hasaki: Yuki-san is like my big sister... and Tomo Nii-san is a big stinking bully. Yuki: Hasaki-chan! Hasaki: Wha! Tomosane: Don't just hug her all of a sudden. You're making me hug her too. Hasaki: Jeez... You always say stuff like that, Tomo Nii-san. Yuki: Like I said, he just gets embarrassed. He really wants to be nice to you. Tomosane: That's just one of your delusions. Yuki: My delusions, is it? Tomosane: What? Yuki: Nothing. *Nothing, huh?* *Yuki knows the real reason why I'm cold to Hasaki.* *And we haven't explained that reason to Hasaki.* *When Yuki is completely cut off... that will be the moment when Mamiya Takuji and I disappear.* *Hasaki doesn't know.* *If only Yuki remains, then there shouldn't be a problem.* *Yuki is more human than us, and if nothing else she's definitely smart.* *She's inherited all the abilities of Mamiya Takuji during the height of his prosperity.* *She isn't twisted like me.* *But if Hasaki knew that Mamiya Takuji and I were going to disappear... Well, that's why Yuki makes jokes like that but never says the truth.* *When Yuki talks about the truth, she never jokes around.* *She always speaks in a strong tone of voice and unconditionally denies our destiny.* *She denies that my disappearance is inevitable.* *And she argues without any basis or proof, which is unlike her. She just denies it based on her feelings.* *We just got into an argument about it earlier, but it was a conversation that Hasaki couldn't hear.* *Yuki loves Hasaki too.* *She just wants to protect Hasaki.* *Yuki seems to be searching for a different solution to our destiny.* *And she's rushing to do it.* *She was always talkative around me, but lately she's been even more so.* *We'll pass each other by, and soon we'll never see each other again.* *She seems to be striving for some other solution, some way to fight against our destiny.* *Sometimes it pains me when she's trying so hard to be cheerful.* *It's like she's just pretending... That's how it feels.* Yuki: That's how I look, huh? Tomosane: You were reading my mind again? Get a hobby. Yuki: Ahahahaha... Sorry. Yuki: It pains you when I'm being so cheerful, huh? I never would've imagined you saying those words. Tomosane: Yeah, but as times passes and your appearances have grown closer together, even you must have started to realize how powerless you are. Yuki: That's ridiculous. It's not like I only just realized it. I knew I was powerless from the beginning. Yuki: I haven't accomplished anything! V for victory! Tomosane: If you failed, then there's no victory... Yuki: You think? Ahahahaha... *Yuki laughed.* *She laughs a lot lately.* *But it was painful for me to look at that smile.* *Sometimes her face... looks more like she's crying than smiling.* Tomosane: You've maintained your existence for quite a while today. Yuki: Yeah, lately I've been working hard to stop myself from disappearing. Tomosane: To stop yourself from disappearing? Yuki: That's right. Tomosane: Is that possible? Yuki: Yeah, I'm really putting my all into it. I'm making sure that I don't lose consciousness, and I'm trying to commit everything that happens to memory. Tomosane: So you don't lose consciousness? Yuki: You should understand, Tomosane. It's like trying not to fall asleep, I guess? Tomosane: I guess you could say it's kind of like sleeping... Though I always disappear in an instant, so it's more like getting knocked out for me. Tomosane: I understand that part, but what do you mean about your memory? Yuki: Oh, you probably don't know what I mean. Yuki: Since you never have to worry about preserving the continuity of your memories. Yuki: You know, I have to be very careful to keep every memory I have fresh. If something fades from memory for a moment, it usually doesn't ever come back. Tomosane: It doesn't come back? Yuki: Yeah, from what I can gather, it seems like my memories have lost their continuity more than once. Tomosane: From what you can gather? What's that supposed to mean? Yuki: Sadly enough, I don't know myself. This might be obvious, but since I'm losing my memories, I don't have any memories of what I've forgotten. Yuki: When I have that experience, I just think... What is it that makes a human being human? Tomosane: What makes a human being human? Yuki: Yeah. What's necessary for a human to be human? What's necessary for me to be me? Tomosane: Would that be... the continuity of memory? Yuki: That's right. The one thing that I need to be me is my memory. Yuki: Losing one's memory is the same as losing one's self. Tomosane: That's a pretty grim way of putting it. Yuki: Yeah, and Hasaki says that she's seen me during those moments. Tomosane: You mean when you're talking to Hasaki? Yuki: Yeah. Until just recently, I've always seen Hasaki-chan as Hasaki-chan. But sometimes I'll see her as herself one moment, and then the next moment as the fictional person Wakatsuki Tsukasa. Yuki: I heard about it after the fact... But you know how she is. Hasaki-chan didn't want to tell me much about it. Tomosane: I see... So that's why you're working to preserve your continuity? Yuki: Pretty much. Tomosane: Seems like it would wear you out. Yuki: Yeah, it does. But it's something I chose to do. Tomosane: Your memory makes you the person you are, huh... Yuki: It's the reason you are you. When I think about who I am, it makes me realize how precious memory is. Yuki: If your memory is overwritten with new memories all the time, then there's no real proof that you really are you... Seriously. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: That has nothing to do with it... Yuki: What? Tomosane: Memory... Realization... Even without those things, you are you. Yuki: I wonder about that. Besides, you've never met the new me. Tomosane: I guess I haven't met her yet, have I? Yuki: Yeah, and it's not just her memory that's messed up. Her perceptions are warped, too. She sees Hasaki-chan as Wakatsuki Tsukasa, and she thinks the rabbit doll is a girl called Wakatsuki Kagami. Yuki: I wonder how would she see you, Tomosane. Tomosane: Just a stranger, probably. Yuki: You think? I'm not really sure, but... if I'm still me, then I doubt I would ever see you as a stranger. Tomosane: That's just what you want to think. I'm sure I would just be a guy with an attitude problem. Yuki: I dunno... You wouldn't talk to me anymore if I was like that, would you? Tomosane: The new you would probably hate me, so I would do my best to ignore you. Yuki: So you would hate the new me, huh? Tomosane: I never said I'd hate you. Yuki: But you wouldn't like me, would you? Tomosane: I don't know. Yuki: I wonder if you'd still love me even if I wasn't me anymore. I'd like to believe that you would still love me as passionately as you do now. Can I believe in you? Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Wait! I've never had any special feelings for you before! Yuki: Ahahahaha... Gotcha. Tomosane: And besides, we probably wouldn't even be able to speak to each other. Tomosane: When you're completely cut off from the world, Mamiya and I will be gone. It's not a matter of whether we would see each other or not, since it would be impossible. Yuki: There you go again. Yuki: Even if I can't see you, I'd like you to keep existing. Tomosane: What are you talking about? Once you're cut off, even those thoughts will disappear. Yuki: Maybe they'll disappear when it happens, but... right now, that's what I really want. Yuki: I don't care what the new me thinks. Right now I want you to keep existing. Tomosane: What are you talking about? Yuki: Haa... I just wanted to tell you, that's what I was thinking. Yuki: Oh, that's right! Hasaki-chan! *Yuki suddenly raised her voice.* *She spoke in a voice that used our voicebox, so that other people could hear her speak.* Yuki: Hasaki-chan, why don't you sleep in my bed once in a while? Tomosane: Upfh! Hasaki: Huh? Yuki: I know I look like a boy, but I'm a girl on the inside, so there's no danger. Tomosane: But I'm a guy on the inside and the outside! Hasaki: But you said you weren't attracted to me, Tomo Nii-san, so there's no problem. Tomosane: Now you too?! Hasaki: I don't mind * I want to spend as much time with Yuki-san as possible."* Tomosane: W-Wait! I mind! Yuki: Why? Tomosane: Y-You can't! You know damn well there's a problem with having a boy and a girl sleep in a bed together! Yuki: What, so you really would get turned on? Tomosane: N-No way! Hasaki: Then it should be fine. It's not like I want to sleep with you, Tomo Nii-san. I want to sleep with Yuki-san. Tomosane: But it's the same thing! We share a body! Yuki: But you said yourself it wouldn't be a problem. You just told us that you're not attracted to either one of us. Tomosane: I-It's a problem morally! Yuki: There's a problem morally with two siblings sleeping in the same bed? Hasaki: If not, then there should be no problem. Tomosane: U-Um, wait! What if Mamiya Takuji suddenly showed up? Yuki: That won't happen. He refuses to recognize anything that would cause inconsistencies in his world, so he won't come out. Tomosane: Y-You never know. He's a lolicon, a pedo, and a pervert, so he might... Hasaki: If he does, then I'll handle it. There won't be a problem. Yuki: That's right. Besides, Mamiya Takuji believes he's weaker than even a girl, right? He's not strong enough to overpower Hasaki. Tomosane: Even weaker than Hasaki? What a freak. Tomosane: So, now what? Yuki: Let's get some sleep! Hasaki: Yeah! Tomosane: Hell no! Yuki: Why not? It's bedtime. Tomosane: So why are you sleeping in my room?! And why is Hasaki in her pajamas? Hasaki: Because I'm going to sleep. Tomosane: No, that's not what I mean. Why in my room? Yuki: What are you blabbering about? I moved in before you, so it's my room! Tomosane: Whatever... All right, fine, I don't care about you. Tomosane: Hasaki, get out! Hasaki: Why can Yuki-san stay, but I can't? Tomosane: That should be obvious! Hasaki: That's not a reason. I asked you why Yuki-san can stay, but I can't. Tomosane: I don't need a reason! We can't do anything separately! Yuki: That's not true. I'm only barely holding on, so I could disappear any time you want. Tomosane: You can disappear?! Yuki: Like I said, I feel like I'm gonna faint. Let me get some sleep. Tomosane: Then just disappear right now! Yuki: No way. I held onto my consciousness for this long, so at least let me sleep in my own bed. You don't understand how stressful it is enduring this for so long, since you've never had to do it yourself! Yuki: I feel so sleepy, almost like I stayed up four nights in a row. Tomosane: Then just disappear already! Yuki: I endured it for so long. Why won't you just let me sleep in my bed?! Maybe you're the one who should just disappear already! Tomosane: If I could conveniently disappear right now, I would! I'm telling you to disappear because I can't! Yuki: Then why don't you practice until you can * All right, I'm getting in bed!"* Tomosane: Stop it, you dumbass. Ah... Yuki: Ow! What are you doing?! Tomosane: That's my line! Yuki: Ah... Tomosane: Hm? What? Yuki: How did it end up like this? Tomosane: Why are you so calm... in this situation... Yuki: You're the one who knocked me down. Tomosane: No! You were the one that fell! *I've never been so glad Hasaki can't see us both. I don't understand how this happened.* *I ended up on top of Yuki.* Yuki: How about you get off me before you space out? Tomosane: Why Yuki: Well, not like I really care, but my panties are showing. Tomosane: Wha―? Yuki: Wait, did you flip up my skirt on purpose when we fell? Tomosane: That's ridiculous. Yuki: Really? Well, if you wanna take a looksie, just say so. Giving a bit of fanservice to my little virgin brother is just one of my duties as a sister. Tomosane: I really will kill you... Hasaki: What's wrong, Yuki-san? Yuki: Oh, Hasaki-chan, come in the bed with us. Tomosane: What are you saying?! Hasaki: Yeah! Tomosane: No! Stop―whoa! Yuki: Wow, the sheets are cool to the touch. Tomosane: Why are all three of us in the same bed?! Hasaki: So fluffy... Tomosane: Hasaki! Get out! Hasaki: No. I don't like you because you always order me around, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Yuki! Yuki: This is fun. Tomosane: This is not fun at all! Hasaki: This is fun. Yuki: Look, Hasaki-chan is telling the truth. The majority vote says that this is fun! Tomosane: You can't have a vote to decide if something's fun! Yuki: Oh right, Tomosane, do you wanna take a bath together next time? Tomosane: Yeah, right! Yuki: But what would you do if you had to take a bath when our personalities were overlapping? Tomosane: Th-That's never happened before. Yuki: That's only because I wasn't able to control when I was awake. Now I'd be able to create just such a situation, if I wanted. Tomosane: Then it would be your fault! Yuki: But it's still possible. Or would you just go days without a bath? That sounds like hell on earth. Tomosane: Don't ask me! Anyway, I'm not taking a bath with you! Hasaki: Couldn't you just wear a swimsuit? Yuki: That's right! Tomosane: That's not right! Hasaki: If I wore a swimsuit, I could come in too. Tomosane: No, you couldn't! Hasaki: Why? Tomosane: Just think about it. Two siblings can't take a bath together in their swimsuits. Hasaki: Really? Yuki: No, I don't see any problem with that. Yuki: Or rather... maybe it's only a problem because Tomosane would be looking at you with lust in his eyes? Tomosane: Th-That's impossible! Yuki: Besides, a swimsuit is something that you can show other people at the beach or the pool, so why's he overreacting like that?! What's your conclusion, Hasaki-chan?! Hasaki: It's probably because he would get turned on. Tomosane: I would not! That's what I've been telling you! Hasaki: Is that a fact? Tomosane: Ow, ow, ow, oww! Why are you pinching me, Hasaki?! Yuki: That one was your fault. You can't tell a woman she's not attractive. Tomosane: But I wouldn't, you know? We're siblings. Isn't that perverted? Yuki: Is that so? Then there should be no problem if I do this. Tomosane: Wh-What are you doing?! Yuki, wait! Hasaki: Wh-What are you doing, Yuki-san? Yuki: I'm just holding you close. He said it wouldn't be a problem, after all. Tomosane: Don't do that! Yuki: And it's so narrow that I don't have much choice anyway. We hardly fit in the bed. Tomosane: Who cares if you're not covered? It's the middle of summer! Yuki: We'll catch a cold, right, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Yeah. Tomosane: Why would you? Yuki: Hasaki-chan always sets the air conditioning to 27 degrees Celsius and sleeps under the covers. Hasaki: Otherwise I can't sleep... Yuki: And today we set the air conditioning to 25 degrees because it's gonna be like an oven with three of us under the covers. Hasaki: So if we're not all under the covers, we'll catch a cold. Tomosane: Wait, wait, I don't understand. Can't we at least sleep in separate beds? Yuki: What do you think, Hasaki-chan? I think it feels better this way. Hasaki: I like this way too. Tomosane: Ah! *Hasaki buried her face in my chest.* *I couldn't believe how small and fragile she felt...* Yuki: ...What? Tomosane: Whoa, why are you holding her to my chest again?! Yuki: You were just thinking about how good Hasaki-chan's little body felt. Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: N-No, I wasn't! Yuki: Yes, you were. Lately, I've been able to hear your internal dialogue. You can't fool me. Tomosane: B-But that's... Sh-She's just cute like a puppy. She's my sister, you know? She's cute like any little sister... Hasaki: ... Yuki: Hasaki-chan is glad to hear that, even if it is that kind of cuteness. Hasaki: W-Well... It's better than hearing him say he's not interested at all. Yuki: Let me tell you a secret Hasaki-chan, just between the two of us. He's getting sexually aroused too. Hasaki: What? Tomosane: Wait! That's a lie! How would you know that?! You said you could only read my mind! Yuki: Hmm... So you're not? Tomosane: Absolutely not! Hasaki: Absolutely not... Yuki: Wow, it's really hot in here. Tomosane: Then get out of the bed. Yuki: That would be a bit cold. Oh, it must be because I'm still wearing my clothes. Let's take these off now. Tomosane: Don't take off your clothes for no reason! Yuki: It's not like it really matters. I only exist in your head, after all. I'm taking my clothes off. Tomosane: W-Wait! Hasaki: Huh? D-Did she take them off? Yuki: Yeah, but only me. Tomosane didn't take anything off, so there's nothing to worry about. Tomosane: You've been able to do a lot of new things lately, haven't you? Yuki: I've been around a lot longer than you. If you train your perceptions, you can control them more than you might think. Tomosane: You shouldn't use your brain's defects like that. Yuki: I wonder if they really are defects. Maybe they're actually special powers. It just depends on how you wanna look at it. Hasaki: Um, I'm a bit hot too, so... Tomosane: W-Wait! You can't do that! Hasaki: I already... pulled down my pajama bottoms. Tomosane: Pull them back up! Hasaki: Why? You said I was just like a puppy, right? Would you get turned on by an animal if it wasn't wearing pants? If you saw a cat or dog without pants, would you get turned on? Tomosane: No, not at all... But even if you're cute like a puppy, we're still siblings, so... Hasaki: Underwear is just a piece of fabric. It'll be okay... Besides, Yuki is already in her underwear, isn't she? Yuki: Wow, Hasaki-chan, you can be a scary girl sometimes. Hasaki: No, uh, I was just a bit jealous. I heard you were really beautiful, Yuki-san. Tomosane: She's the only one who ever said that! Yuki: You have to admit I look pretty good! Tomosane: I have to? By what standard? Yuki: Who cares about that? Let's get some sleep. Tomosane: Don't wrap your leg around me! Yuki: Jeez... Don't wrap your leg around me, don't snuggle with Hasaki... You sure have a lot of demands. Tomosane: I shouldn't have to demand them in the first place! Tomosane: And Hasaki! Don't try to squeeze in between my arms just because you're small! Hasaki: But I fit perfectly. Tomosane: You shouldn't just stick it in without thinking because it's a perfect fit, or else you might get in trouble with the law. Yuki: Like rape? Tomosane: I-I wasn't talking about that! Like parking, or illegal dumping of waste! Hasaki: You mean... you just think of me like you think about parking... or illegal dumping? *Jeez, Hasaki is in a bad mood. It just keeps getting worse and worse. What's going on here?* *But still, Hasaki's body sure is something. I always knew she was really small, but I didn't know she was like this.* *She's just the right size to fit in the crook of my arm.* Yuki: What do you think about my boobs on your back? Tomosane: You're vulgar. Yuki: What's your problem? I knew you were a lolicon that's obsessed with flat chests! Hasaki: U-Um, Yuki-san, I'm not that flat-chested. I have a little bit there. Yuki: Really? Hasaki: Well, I'm not an A cup. I'm a B cup... Though it is kinda loose on me. Tomosane: Isn't that still pretty much flat-chested? Hasaki: That's not unusual at my age! Maybe I am on the small side, but I'm bigger than an AA cup or an AAA cup. Sometimes an A cup is too small and I don't fit. Tomosane: Sometimes you don't fit in an A cup, huh? Hasaki: But the most common size in my grade is a B cup, so I'm perfectly normal. My chest isn't that small. Yuki: Hasaki-chan, are you wearing a bra? Hasaki: Oh, well, yeah... Yuki: Why don't you take it off when you're sleeping? Hasaki: Huh? Th-That's... Tomosane: You don't need to do that! Now go to sleep! *...* *How unusual...* Yuki: Zzzz. *I'd never seen Yuki's sleeping face before. She saw me sleeping once, but I never expected to do the same to her.* *This had never happened before.* Tomosane: Maybe this is the harbinger of a great change. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Oh, Hasaki, you were awake? Hasaki: Yeah, I just woke up. Hasaki: It must be rough for Yuki-san. Tomosane: Y-Yeah... *We haven't told Hasaki what it will really mean when Yuki is cut off.* *Well, she probably understands more or less.* Hasaki: I wish the three of us could live like this forever. *...* *I was at a loss for words. No, I should just agree with her.* *But as I looked at Hasaki's lonesome face, I couldn't find any words to say to her.* Tomosane: The three of us, huh? That might be nice. *I don't know the future.* *Only God knows what will happen in the future.* *But that's what Hasaki wished for.* *She wished for this life.* *She wished for a plain, boring life where one day melts into the next.* *And I can't even give her that.* Yuki: Zzz. Tomosane: I can hear Yuki breathing in her sleep. And Hasaki too. Tomosane: I wonder if they're having good dreams. Tomosane: Haa... But... *This place can't be their Wonderful Everyday. They have to grasp something new in the new world that's waiting for them.* *After I pondered on it for a while, I went to sleep feeling like there actually was something I wanted to accomplish of my own free will for the very first time.*

*Class is boring today too...* *So boring...* *I looked over the classroom. There were no faces I recognized.* *Because I never tried to remember any of them.* *Apparently Yuki knows a lot of people in class, though.* Tomosane: What? Now that I think about it... *When Yuki is cut off from the world, she perceives Hasaki as two twin sisters.* *She said those illusionary twins were in her class, but it's not like Hasaki is one of her classmates, so why would she see them?* *Maybe it's an illusion that she sees even when Hasaki isn't here?* *I guess you can hallucinate something regardless of whether there's actually something there.* Tomosane: I wonder if that's right... *The illusionary world that her mind is creating has its own internal consistency.* *For instance, the number of personalities. Mamiya Takuji, Minakami Yuki, and me. It's not a coincidence that there are three of us. We correspond to the Creator, the Harmonizer, and the Destroyer.* *My name was even created by reversing the name Minakami Yuki and changing the reading of the characters.* *So when it comes to Hasaki, Yuki doesn't see an arbitrary illusion without internal consistency.* *As proof, there are several reasons why she perceives one person, Hasaki, as two twin sisters.* *First, because that rabbit doll isn't just a doll to Hasaki.* *Mamiya Takuji gave it to her as a gift.* *Back when he was (supposedly) still normal, he made it for his little sister.* *I say supposedly because I don't have any memories about it myself.* *I heard it all from Yuki.* *When Takuji gave her that present, that was the best time in Hasaki's life.* *After that, the incident occurred.* *The incident that could be called the original evil behind all our problems.* *The great incident that left scars on Hasaki's mind and body.* *The incident that stole all of her happy days.* *After that incident...* *To Hasaki, the self that continued maturing was fake.* *She started to perceive the doll she received from her brother as the real Hasaki.* *She declared her maturing body to be fake and insisted that the doll was the real one, all so she could stop her physical development in the happy days of her life.* *Of course, Hasaki doesn't believe that anymore, but...* *Her scars and trauma were so bad that she had to believe that for a certain period of time.* *And of course, those scars are the reason why she still holds on to that doll.* *Her spirit wasn't completely destroyed.* *That doll is...* *The material form of the best time in her life. Her memory itself.* *That's what the doll is to her.* *That's why Mamiya Takuji perceives Hasaki as twins.* *The Hasaki that continues to grow... and the rabbit that's frozen in time.* *Though it's a mystery why he sees the growing one as the younger sister and the one frozen in time as the elder.* *Maybe it's just hard for him to look at Hasaki and see an older sister.* *By the process of elimination, the rabbit that didn't have such a strong impression became the older sister.* *As for the twins' names...* *I don't know the details about where they came from.* *Apparently he took the names from some twins in an anime. I don't really know what kind of anime it was, though.* *I heard that it almost looks more like a game than an anime.* *And I don't know if the illusionary twins in his delusions have the same personalities as the twins in that anime. It probably doesn't matter.* *I have no idea why their last name is Wakatsuki.* *Well, it was Takuji's idea, so that name is probably from an anime or an eroge. I'm sure there's no real significance to the name.* *But still, the delusions are mostly logical and internally consistent.* *And that's why tiny inconsistencies appear between the delusions and the real world.* *Those inconsistencies are what warp his perceptions.* *Yuki and Mamiya Takuji feel the warping of their perceptions especially strongly.* *Mysteriously enough, I hardly ever experience any warped perceptions.* *Yuki experiences a lot of these warped perceptions. Like when people call her "Mamiya," she hears it as her own name. That has never happened to me.* *People call me Mamiya Takuji, and I hear it as Mamiya Takuji.* *I experience some effects that are similar to Yuki and Mamiya's hallucinations, but my brain doesn't attempt to forcibly establish internal consistency.* *Maybe that's the proof that I'm going to disappear soon.* *A short-lived personality doesn't need that kind of consistency.* *Absurd leaps forward in time. Absurd perceptions.* *My brain doesn't even care if things like that happen.* *After all, I'm just going to disappear eventually.* *"Tomo Nii-san."* Tomosane: Hm? Tomosane: Whoa! Hey! Teacher: Haa... What is it, Mamiya? Tomosane: Oh, uh... It's nothing. Teacher: If it's nothing, then don't raise your voice, please. Tomosane: H-Hey, you... Hasaki: I brought you lunch. Tomosane: You dummy... Hasaki: It's your fault. You never bring the lunchboxes I make for you to school. Tomosane: No, it wasn't me this morning. Hasaki: Either way, I made you lunch. Tomosane: Y-You shouldn't do that. At least don't come in during class. Hasaki: I stand out a lot more during the breaks, since all the students are out in the halls. Tomosane: Th-That's true, but... Miu: Ahahahaha, you should take it and be thankful. Tomosane: Who are you? Miu: You know who I am. We've been in the same class all year long. *Who is this?* Miu: Jeez, don't look at me like you don't know who I am. Hasaki: Miu-san always opens the door for me and helps me make it over to this side of the classroom. Tomosane: What? *Now that I think of it, Hasaki actually has brought me lunch during class a few times before.* Miu: I mean, Hasaki-chan always comes over to me and asks where Tomo Nii-san is. Miu: Oh right, Mamiya-kun, was your first name Tomo? Tomosane: No, it's Takuji, but... Miu: Then why does Hasaki-chan call you Tomo Nii-san? Hasaki: Oh, that's just... Tomosane: Oh, it's just because I'm her friend and her big brother. Don't worry about it too much. *I just made up a lie.* *More importantly, Hasaki made friends with someone at my school while I wasn't looking.* Hasaki: I'll make dinner today, so don't you dare eat cup ramen somewhere. Tomosane: I was planning on going to Hakushuukyou right after school. Hasaki: No. Eat dinner at the house first, then go to work! There will be too much if you don't come eat some. Tomosane: Just put it in the fridge, then. Hasaki: I want you to eat it when it's warm. Tomosane: What for? Teacher: Mamiya! Tomosane: Ah, yes! Teacher: My hearing's terrible, and even I can hear you. Can't you at least talk a little quieter? Tomosane: Ah, s-sure... *So you don't mind if I talk as long as I'm quiet?* Teacher: Jeez... This always happens because you never remember to bring the lunch your sister packs for you. You should learn from your mistakes. Tomosane: Y-Yes... Wait, huh? *What did he say?* *My sister...* Teacher: I'm losing my hearing, so I don't notice. The other teachers would scold you if they saw that. Tomosane: O-Okay... Hasaki: P-Please excuse me... Teacher: Well, okay... But it's a problem if you come in during class, so try to do it inbetween classes from now on. Hasaki: Ah, okay... Thank you. Teacher: And remember, I'm losing my hearing, so let's just say I was talking to myself this entire time. *Wait... How long have the teachers known about Hasaki?* Miu: Ahaha, what are you so surprised about, Mamiya-kun? Tomosane: Oh, uh... I didn't think the teachers knew about Hasaki is all. Miu: Why would you think that? She's always wandering the halls here at school. Miu: She's kind of famous, since she's such a good little girl that always comes to bring her big brother lunch. Male Student: I'm jealous that you have such a nice sister, Mamiya-kun. Female Student: I wish I had a sister like that. Tomosane: S-Sure... *What's going on? Why are all these people acting like we're friends or something.* Teacher: Class is dismissed. Hasaki: Sorry... Miu: Don't worry about it. It's his fault for forgetting his lunch all the time. Miu: And thanks to that, we all got to meet you, Hasaki-chan. *I knew Hasaki had brought me lunch during class before, but I didn't recall it being like this.* Tomosane: Yuki... *This atmosphere in the class... It must be Yuki's doing.* *Yuki always says she hates people, but she makes friends so easily that everyone likes her.* *I could never do that... and it's kind of bothersome for me, really.* Hasaki: Are you... mad at me? Tomosane: Oh, uh... It's nothing. Male Student: You have such a cute little sister, Mamiya-kun. Male Student: Her name's Hasaki-chan. Male Student: Oh wow... Where do you go to school, Hasaki-chan? *They all talk to her so casually.* *The original Mamiya Takuji was always treated like a leper, and he even turned into an object of fear after my personality was born, but...* *Somehow, before I even realized, I'd turned into someone that they all felt comfortable talking to.* *What a pain in the ass...* Hasaki: Oh, I'm not going to school. Male Student: Oh, do you take courses online? Female Student: God, would you shut up? That's none of your business. Male Student: Ahahaha. *Maybe that's why...* *Maybe the reason the other Yuki personality always sees the Wakatsuki twins here at school is because Hasaki comes and wanders around the halls so much.* *Hasaki's presence is such an open secret that Yuki might start to think of her as another classmate.* Miu: Just be careful. Mr. Izumida doesn't really mind, but Senagawa would forbid Hasaki from the school if she found out. Tomosane: Okay... *This is a comfortable environment for Hasaki. That must be Yuki's work too.* *But this is ridiculous.* *If she starts making any trouble at all for the school, she definitely won't be allowed on school grounds anymore.* *I have to admit, though, it would make my life a lot easier if she wasn't allowed at school. Annoying stuff like this wouldn't happen anymore.* *All of my classes ended.* *My consciousness never faded. I had to sit through the entire school day.* *It was kind of a pain in the ass, but I took notes, listened to the teachers, and thought about all their useless drivel, so in a way I was a model student.* *Lately I've been thinking... this might not be so bad.* Tomosane: Okay, then... Time for work. Miu: Huh? Didn't your sister tell you to check in at home first? *One of the girls from my class blocked my way. It was the girl with the seat next to the door, who always lets Hasaki in.* Tomosane: Haa... Please don't pry into other people's domestic matters. Miu: Domestic matters... Is that really the problem here? Tomosane: Every person should make their own path. Miu: Hmm... Tomosane: And besides, how long have you known about Hasaki, girl? Miu: Girl? I have a name, you know. It's Iwada Miu. Tomosane: Oh, sorry. How long have you known about Hasaki, Iwada? Miu: I've known about her from the beginning, of course. I sit in the back, right next to the hall, so there's no way I would miss a girl sneaking into the classroom. Tomosane: When was that? Miu: When * I don't remember exactly... but since the beginning of the school year, maybe? I guess that would make it some time in April?"* *April... Even during the first month of classes...* Miu: Yeah. I was the one who told her to wait until there was an old guy teaching the class, so now she only comes in when Mr. Izumida is teaching. Tomosane: I see... But it sounded like Izumida knew. Miu: Maybe it's because he's about to retire? He's pretty lax. He doesn't bother with stuff he doesn't have to. Miu: And he knows that everyone has their own circumstances. Tomosane: Circumstances, huh... *Maybe the teachers here at school understood just how complicated the situation at the Mamiya house was.* Miu: Well, I couldn't say for sure. Maybe it's just because Hasaki is so cute that she can get away with it. *I never asked for your opinion.* Miu: So anyway, you have such a cute little sister. You should be nice to her. *That has nothing to do with you.* *I wanted to yell at her.* Tomosane: A cute little sister, huh? Miu: Yeah, I'm really jealous of you, Mamiya-kun. You're surrounded by such cute things all the time. Tomosane: Surrounded? Miu: Like the strap on your cell phone. It's really cute. Was that a present from your sister? Tomosane: Cell phone? *I've hardly used it. I don't even know how long I've been carrying this old thing around. The battery is so old that I never get a chance to use it.* *Why would Mamiya Takuji carry around such a useless old phone?* *The old cell phone had an old strap on it too.* Miu: Those twin rabbit dolls are just like the one Hasaki-chan always carries around. Tomosane: Oh, well... Maybe it is. *I wouldn't know.* *There were twin rabbit dolls attached to the cell phone by straps, just like Miu said.* Miu: What a nice sister you have. Tomosane: Yeah... *This woman is so annoying. I can't believe Yuki made friends with a girl like this while I wasn't looking.* *I'd like to brush her off, but the new Yuki will live the rest of her life as Mamiya Takuji.* *I can't destroy a human relationship that she's made on a whim.* *I'm surprised how much has changed in less than six months. This all must be part of the preparations for Mamiya Takuji's rebirth.* Miu: Hmm... *The woman called Iwada didn't just look at me. She stopped and stared at me.* Tomosane: What? Do you need something? Miu: Oh, uh, that's not it... Miu: I feel like your personality changes a little from time to time. *Changes a little, huh?* *If it's just changing "a little," that must mean the inconsistencies in our perceptions are doing a good job in keeping our external behavior consistent.* *Three completely different people are sharing this same body, after all.* Tomosane: Are you saying that I'm hard to get along with right now? Miu: Oh, uh, I dunno about that... *Iwada smiled.* *Well, it's hard to tell someone they're being a jerk to their face. You can't just tell someone, "It's hard to get along with you."* *If she didn't want to say it to my face, she shouldn't have pointed it out in the first place.* Miu: I wouldn't say you're easy to get along with, but you seem nicer than usual. Tomosane: Nicer than usual? Miu: Yeah, I just got the feeling like you really loved your little sister. Tomosane: Huh? What part of that conversation would make you think that? Miu: No, today was what really convinced me. You were definitely stern with her, but I could tell you were thinking about what's best for her. Miu: Well, it's not a big deal. See ya. *What was that?* *I guess you can't judge people from appearances. I don't get it.* Tomosane: That was weird... Oh well. *I looked at the clock.* *I had to be at work soon.* Tomosane: It would be a huge pain in the ass to go home and then to work. *I should just head straight to Hakushuukyou.* Miu: Oh right, Mamiya-kun. Tomosane: What, you're still here? Miu: Hasaki-chan is making dinner for you, so I think she'll be really sad if you don't go home first. Tomosane: ...Yeah. Miu: Well? I know you said it would be a pain. Tomosane: Haa... Would you please stay away from me? You're honestly kind of annoying. Miu: Ahahaha, I'm a busybody. Well, you should listen to your classmates' advice from time to time. See ya. Tomosane: My classmates' advice, huh? *It's not like any other classmates have ever given me advice...* Tomosane: All right... *I'll walk to Suginomiya and then make a decision.* Tomosane: ... *What? I'm being followed again.* *By Shiroyama?* *No, they wouldn't try to jump me before sunset. It's not Shiroyama.* *They're just trailing me. It's probably one person.* *It must be that guy from before.* *Haa... If he's alone, I can just do the same thing as last time.* Kimura: H-Huh? Tomosane: Yo. Kimura: H-How did you know? *It played out just like before.* *I walked faster and then turned into an alley, where I waited for my pursuer.* *This time I turned into a parking lot to wait for Kimura.* *Why does that dumbass carry around such a huge camera when he's trailing someone? He did the same thing last time.* Tomosane: You're still following me, huh? Kimura: Ah, no... I was following a celebrity. Tomosane: Kimura Nobukatsu, journalist. Or are you a paparazzi now? Kimura: Ahahahaha, that's right. Kimura: Wait, I lied! Don't hit me! Tomosane: If you don't want to get hit, then don't make shit up. Kimura: U-Um, what would you be doing today? Tomosane: None of your business. I told you I wouldn't let you off easy if I caught you following me again. Kimura: Oh, uh... There's a reason I'm following you. Tomosane: For your own benefit, I'm sure. Kimura: No, there's more... Tomosane: Oh, is that so? Not just for your own benefit? You know what will happen if you lie to me again, don't you? Kimura: Uh, you were the illegitimate son of the founder of that one religion, the White Lotus Association, right? Kimura: Ahh, my camera! Tomosane: Why, you... What are you investigating? Kimura: Y-You can't! That's my F2 Photomic! You can't buy those anymore! Tomosane: Like I care. Why are you even using such an old piece of shit? Kimura: Because you destroyed my Reflex D3 the other day, of course! Tomosane: What are you talking about? A reflex something or other? Kimura: A DSLR camera! The F2 Photomic is the greatest mechanical SLR camera, but the D3 is the king of all DSLRs! *He's awfully passionate about this stuff. Is he obsessed with cameras or something? I guess it's just work-related for him, though.* Kimura: It was originally designed for the battleship Yamato, so it's Japan's glory! Tomosane: All right, I got it, I got it. So you'd rather I broke you instead of your camera. How about your arm? Or maybe your leg, so you can't walk anymore? Kimura: Oh, uh... I'm terribly sorry. Tomosane: So then, what were you investigating? Kimura: Oh, uh... Nothing in particular. Tomosane: Oh... So how about we start with the camera, and then go for the legs? Or maybe we should do something special and go for the eyes? Then I'm sure you wouldn't have any use for those cameras of yours. Kimura: No, I-I wouldn't be able to work. But really, I hardly know anything. Tomosane: Hmm... All right, if you say so. You can only try the patience of a saint for so long. Kimura: Wait. Jesus always said to turn the other cheek. Tomosane: What? You want your body dumped in the creek? Kimura: Ah, no... I didn't say anything. Tomosane: What can I do to make you give up? Kimura: I've given up. Tomosane: Oh, really? You expect me to believe that when first you were investigating me, now you're investigating my family too, and you're talking about how you 'hardly know anything.' Kimura: Ahahaha... Well, there was so much interesting stuff about you. Kimura: Your supposed father is Mamiya Hiro, but Mamiya Takuji is definitely the illegitimate child of Mamiya Kotomi and the White Lotus Association founder Shire Tarou. Kimura: That new age religion has a great deal of political influence, so I was really surprised how easy it was to investigate his illegitimate child. Tomosane: I'm really surprised how easy it was to make this dumbass tell me all that. Kimura: Oh... It's nothing to hide. Kimura: Ah, we can't talk here. The police over there are looking at us. Tomosane: Police? Kimura: Look. You probably can't see them very well, but... *I turned my head for a second.* *There weren't any police there, or anyone at all.* Tomosane: What police...?! Tomosane: Tch... *My vision burned white.* *I can't believe it. I fell for the same trick twice.* *That guy is pretty smart.* *If he just made me look and then ran, I could catch him easily.* *If he just ran and tried to blind me while he was running away, the result would be the same.* *If I heard him move even an inch while I was turned around, my body would react instantly.* *The reason he got me right in the eyes with that flashlight was because he didn't move at all while I was turned around. Instead, he just held up the flashlight so it was right in my face when I turned around.* *He didn't make the slightest movement aside from holding up the flashlight.* *That's why I couldn't react in time.* Tomosane: His acting was pretty good too. *He carries around that huge camera, so it's not hard to spot him when he follows me, but other than that, he definitely knows what he's doing.* *If he hadn't experienced situations like this before, he wouldn't be able to do that.* Tomosane: Haa... Well, anyway. *I looked at my cell phone.* *That journalist took up some more of my time.* *If I went back to the house and ate before going to work, I'd be late.* *I felt bad for Hasaki, but I had to head straight to Hakushuukyou now.* Hasaki: I knew it. Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: I knew you would come straight here without going home. Tomosane: Wait, why are you here? You're not working today, are you? Hasaki: I got a text from Miu-san. She said you might not come home. Tomosane: Miu? Wait, you mean Iwada?! *What's her problem? What a busybody.* Hasaki: I told you to come eat dinner at the house. Tomosane: Something came up. It's not like I wasn't planning on going home. Hasaki: That a fact? Tomosane: Haa... *Damn it. That girl sure likes sticking her nose where it doesn't belong.* *But she got a text from Miu, huh?* *That must mean Hasaki exchanged phone numbers with other people.* *That feels a bit weird.* *I thought Hasaki hated people even more than I do.* *That must be Yuki's influence too.* Hasaki: Master said I could use one of the tables here until the store opens, so I made it here. Tomosane: Here? Hasaki: Yeah, dinner. Tomosane: Oh, I see. *Hasaki's cooking was the same as usual.* *To be honest, this faggot Master's cooking is better, but Hasaki is a lot younger. I should be thankful to her.* *Even if she did forget to cut the okra.* *Even if there are still pieces of bonito in it because she sliced it too thinly when she was making the soup stock.* Hasaki: Don't laugh at my food, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Huh? Was I laughing? Hasaki: You weren't laughing, but I could tell what you were thinking. I'll be more careful next time. Hasaki: I know the okra isn't cut, and I didn't get all the bonito shavings out of the soup stock... Tomosane: Oh, if you don't shave the bonito so thinly, it's easier to get out. Then you don't have to worry about it. Hasaki: Oh, that makes sense. Tomosane: Hm? Tomosane: The store isn't open yet, is it? Hasaki: No. We're still closed. Tomosane: It sounds like there are a bunch of faggots outside fighting. Hasaki: Oh, they're not fighting. Today is Master's birthday. Tomosane: Really? Hasaki: Yeah, a couple days ago we had to rush and put together a party. Tomosane: Oh, that day when you came home earlier than expected? Hasaki: Yeah, it didn't take as long as I thought. Tomosane: Hmm, is that so? *And that's when tragedy befell me... Which means I can blame Master for that one.* Tomosane: Master's birthday, huh? That must be why those creatures are all making a ruckus outside. Hasaki: Creatures? Tomosane: Don't worry about it. *I unlocked the door and opened it.* Tomosane: Shut the fuck up! We're not open yet! Faggot: Huh? Faggot: Huh? Is that you, Tomo-kun? Tomosane: Whoa... What's this? Faggot: It's a champagne shower, of course. Tomosane: But why are you doing that to me? Faggot: Because we thought Master would come out. Tomosane: Look who you're spraying next time, damn it! Tomosane: What the hell is this? The only thing you have for me to change into is girls' clothes?! Master: Ahahaha, the plan was a success. Tomosane: So this was your plan all along... Master: It's the only birthday I'll have all year, you know. What better present than having you dress up in such a cute little dress? Tomosane: A cute dress, huh? *A cute dress... It is an awfully frilly dress, but...* Master: Yeah, and I had Hasaki-chan take your measurements. Tomosane: My measurements? Hasaki: We still had the measurements for your school uniform. Tomosane: Why, you... Hasaki: Sorry... Master: Oh, don't blame Hasaki-chan. I didn't tell her what I was going to use them for. Hasaki: He said he would make you match with me, but I thought it would be a tuxedo or something. Sorry. *Well, normally when you say a guy and a girl match, you picture the guy in a tuxedo and the girl in a dress. What kind of dumbass would dress them both up in women's clothing?* Master: Oh, don't be so fussy. We're just celebrating my birthday. Tomosane: I don't know why anyone would celebrate the day something like you came into this world. Master: Jeez, you're always so rude to your martial arts teacher. Faggot: You're a master tactician. You asked us to shower you in champagne because you knew it would be someone else walking through the door. Tomosane: I can't believe you went out of your way just for this. Master: Ahahaha... I'm not actually a tactician at all. I just overslept. Master: But thanks to you guys, Tomosane put on a dress for us. Tomosane: I didn't put it on for you! You stole my other clothes! Master: Oh, come on, I'm just washing them for you. You have to wait till they go through the laundry. Faggot: Would you rather be a nudist or a crossdresser? Given those two options, even Tomo-chan would choose the dress. Tomosane: Yeah... His first suggestion was a naked apron, so naturally I chose this instead. Master: Aren't you happy about it? Tomosane: Why would I be happy, you fucking Sodomite?! Master: You've got quite the mouth on you, don't you? Tomosane: Grr... Master: Oh, that's no good. You'll be no match for me if you're focusing on your skirt instead of the fight. Tomosane: Why, you bastard! I'll kill you! Master: Ohoho, I always wanted to cop a feel on this cute little butt. Tomosane: I'll kill you! I swear I'll fucking kill you! Master: Oh, will you now? Soooo scary... Maybe I should take your virginity right here and now. Hasaki: Uahhh! Master: O-Oh... Hasaki-chan, wait, the water in that kettle is boiling hot. Master: Whoa, w-wait, Hasaki-chan, I was just kidding! Master: Owwwchaaaa!! Master: Jeez... I can tell you're siblings because neither of you can take a joke. Tomosane: That's because you keep doing things that aren't jokes. Master: By the way, what are you wearing for underwear? Tomosane: I'm still wearing my wet boxers. There's no way I could put on those panties. Master: Oh, come on, don't be a party pooper. Put 'em on. There were garters too, you know? Tomosane: I'd rather be a party pooper. Master: Oh really? Maybe I should bend you over this table for real? Tomosane: If you keep talking like that, I'm sure Hasaki can find some more boiling water for you. Master: I suppose so... But really, what do you think? Tomosane: About what? Master: What kind of underwear do you think she prefers? Maybe we should have Hasaki decide for you? Tomosane: Hasaki? What do you mean? Master: I'm saying Hasaki should decide whether you wear boxers or panties. Think about it. You two could have matching underwear too. Hasaki: M-Master! Master: But you said they were cute. Hasaki: W-Well, they are cute panties... Master: So why don't you decide what kind of underwear Tomosane should wear, Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: Why would she do that? It's not like Hasaki wants some sort of pervert who would wear girls' underwear for an older brother. Hasaki: Uh.. * Um..."* Tomosane: Wait, why are you blushing? Hasaki: N-No! It's just because we would match! Tomosane: No... Why would our underwear need to match? Hasaki: I-I guess it doesn't, but... Master: What do you think, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Oh, uh, it's fine like this. I don't want to force Tomo Nii-san to do it. Master: What do you mean? You'd rather have him wear the same pair that you have on, right? Hasaki: Oh, uh, that's not true. I just thought maybe it would be nice if we matched. Master: Hold him down. Tomosane: What?! Tomosane: Hey, y-you bastards! Get off me, you faggots! Master: Hehehe... Those two homos are my students just like you, and they have higher belts than you. Tomosane: What, these homos are better than me? Master: Yeah, they've been studying under me since they came to Tokyo. These guys originally did judo for 15 years. They even won tournaments in high school. They're pretty amazing. Tomosane: Wait, why are these guys here just for me? Master: Well, you're going to fight back, right? Tomosane: Why? Master: Because I'm going to force you to wear these. Tomosane: Wha―?! Tomosane: Gaah, seriously, stop! Fucking stop it! Tomosane: Uugh... I've been defiled... Master: All right, now wear that the rest of the day while you work. Tomosane: You're a demon! You're the devil! Master: What are you crying for? Haven't you ever dressed up for a cultural festival at school? Tomosane: If they tried to make me dress up like this at a school festival, I would stop them, even if I had to kill them. Master: Okay, it's about time to open shop. Tonight's a party. Let's make enough sales to make up for last month! Tomosane: Some day, I will kill you... Master: Hehehe, then you'll have to get a lot stronger. *This old faggot has been practicing martial arts since long before I... no, long before Mamiya Takuji was born. My experience fighting isn't comparable to his.* *I saw this faggot fighting some yakuza, and he was chucking glass ashtrays like throwing stars and splitting beer cans to use as shanks.* *Compared to him, I just look like a little kid play-fighting.* Customer: Master, why's there a chick in here? I loved Tomo-kun. Master: Look closer, my friend. I'm pretty sure he's not a woman. Customer: Hmm... What? Oh wow. Tomosane: Don't come near me, you faggots. Customer: My, what a sharp tongue he's got. That's definitely Tomo-kun. Customer: Wow, wow. What happened, Tomo-kun? Tomosane: Shut up! Sit down and drink your fucking beer, assholes! Customer: Woow! Did you shave your legs? Tomosane: Shut up, shut up! Why would I do that?! Customer: Wow, it's so smooth! But I can feel your muscles too. So cute! Tomosane: Don't touch me, you bastard. Next time, there'll be blood. Customer: I-I'm already seeing blood... Master: Come on, hands off the dancer. Tomosane: When did I become a dancer?! Customer: Jeez, Yuki-chan is so much nicer. Tomosane: Don't tell me that. Why don't you say that shit when Yuki's around? Master: Yeah. It's a lot easier to deal with him when it's Yuki. Customer: But I like Tomosane's music more. Master: His piano playing is really depressing if you ask me. Customer: Yeah, Yuki-chan's playing is brighter and happier, but it feels like it's too upbeat for people like us. Tomosane: I see. So my depressing music is more suiting for faggots like you. Customer: Sounds about right, gyahahaha. Tomosane: Gyahahaha, my ass. You guys are always laughing and making jokes. I don't know what you faggots have to complain about. Customer: You don't need a reason to laugh. We couldn't get along in this world if we didn't take some time to laugh once in a while. Master: Yeah, we can be sad when we're alone, not when we're all together. Customer: That must be his hobby. He likes to act gloomy and depressed all the time. Tomosane: Hmph... *Jeez... These guys...* *They make an awful lot of noise.* *In the end, they made me play the piano and Hasaki sang along.* *Both of us were humiliated.* *Maybe we could sue them for human rights violations.* *That's how bad it was.* *Master let us off work a little later than usual, and we went home.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, the bath is ready. Come get in. *I heard a voice from downstairs.* Tomosane: I'm sticky from all that champagne... *I tried to wipe it all off with napkins, but my hair was still sticky.* Tomosane: Did Hasaki decide to call me Tomo Nii-san all the time now or what? How did that happen? *That must be Yuki's influence again. She's been pushing Hasaki a lot more than usual.* Tomosane: Yuki has been really weird lately. *It's not like her. She's rushing to finish things. It's weird how she's trying to be so upbeat all the time lately.* *She must be fighting against our destiny.* *Making friends with all our classmates must be part of her plan, too.* *Yuki is gradually disconnecting from the world.* *So that the Yuki and Mamiya Takuji personalities can be unified.* *That's why I have to do my job too.* *My job is to erase Mamiya.* *I'm making good progress in that.* *But...* Tomosane: I still feel uneasy. *Recently, I haven't had as many chances to meet Mamiya Takuji.* *Of course, Yuki being disconnected from this world is synonymous with Mamiya Takuji's personality fading.* *So I can understand why I wouldn't be able to meet him as often.* *But...* *Is that really the only reason?* *Is Mamiya Takuji's personality really fading?* *My reason for existence is the destruction of his personality.* *Erasure through utter self-denial.* *That's the mission I've been tasked with.* *That's undeniable, and yet...* Tomosane: Somehow I feel like Mamiya Takuji's existence is growing stronger by the day. *I've felt him especially strongly since the beginning of this month.* *His existence hasn't weakened, but rather, it's like his control over this body has grown stronger.* *What does it mean?* Tomosane: It couldn't be... *Does Yuki feel it too?* *If Yuki feels this unease too...* Tomosane: Unease... Yuki: Like a feeling in your chest? Tomosane: A feeling... in my ch― Whoa! Tomosane: Why are you here?! Yuki: Hello, Tomosane. Tomosane: Y-You dumbass, why are you in the bath with me?! Yuki: Hmm, well, I couldn't control it this time. I woke up, and here I was. Tomosane: Th-Then just d-disappear! Yuki: Really? Are you sure you didn't call for me? Tomosane: Me? Call for you? Yuki: Yeah. There was something you really wanted to ask me. Tomosane: You can appear just like that? Yuki: Who knows? I just got that kind of feeling. I told you before, but I'm definitely getting cut off from this world. Yuki: But interestingly enough, the more it happens, the more freedom I have. Tomosane: Freedom. Yuki: Yeah, I told you I could kind of tell what you were thinking. Tomosane: You did say that. Yuki: Yeah, and not the voice you use to talk to me in your head, but what you're really thinking. Yuki: I can hear that voice even when I'm unconscious. Tomosane: Even when you're unconscious? Yuki: Yeah, the more my existence fades, the more I can understand your actions, words, and even thoughts. Tomosane: But aren't you unconscious? Yuki: I guess it's kind of like a dream. Tomosane: But you said that you heard my thoughts and that's why you appeared just now. Yuki: Yeah, apparently I can wake up if you're thinking of something that really resonates with my heart. Tomosane: I see... So that's why you're here? Yuki: Yeah, and also... I can read one other person's mind too. Tomosane: One other person? You mean Mamiya Takuji? Yuki: Yeah. I hear his thoughts too. When I'm unconscious, or at least when my personality doesn't exist, I can hear your thoughts, and Mamiya Takuji's thoughts too. Tomosane: So... what is he thinking? Yuki: Oh, he's just thinking about stupid stuff. He's always like that. Tomosane: Stupid stuff? Yuki: Yeah, like this anime doesn't have any panty shots, or this anime has a stupid plot. Tomosane: Th-That really is stupid. Yuki: Yeah, it's really stupid, but... Tomosane: But? Yuki: Oh, it's nothing... It's just that now I understand how much time Mamiya Takuji actually spends jerking off. Tomosane: You don't have to read his mind to understand that. Yuki: Really? Tomosane: His underground room is full of dirty books and suspicious tissues. Yuki: You mean his secret base? You've gone there before? Tomosane: I haven't gone there, but I switch with him down there all the time. Yuki: Hmm. I see. Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: I've never been down there. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: Yeah, I've never been down there. I didn't really know about it. Tomosane: You didn't know about it? Yuki: Yeah, you never told me about it. Tomosane: Oh, uh... I just thought you knew. Yuki: I only learned about it since I started hearing his thoughts. Yuki: What's down there? Tomosane: If you're interested, why don't you just go see? You know where it is, don't you? Yuki: Ahahaha... That's probably impossible. Tomosane: Impossible? Yuki: I tried going down there a few times, but when I did... Yuki: Complete shut down... My consciousness disappeared. Tomosane: What's up with that? Yuki: He probably doesn't want to show me that room. Tomosane: Why? Yuki: Well, I can think of a few reasons... *A few reasons, huh?* Yuki: Yeah, a few reasons. Tomosane: Haa... You're such a creepy girl. Don't read my mind. Yuki: Ahahaha, it's not like I can control it. I just get a feeling about these things. Tomosane: So then... you heard my question? Yuki: You felt uneasy about Mamiya's existence. Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Yuki: Yeah... Tomosane: You're being disconnected from the world, but he's not weakening at all. Yuki: His existence is growing stronger, you mean. Tomosane: That's right. Yuki: Maybe you're imagining things? Tomosane: That's impossible. You noticed the same thing. Yuki: Today and yesterday, his personality didn't exist for even one second. Tomosane: Y-You can tell that too? Yuki: Pretty much. As for you, yesterday you existed from 8:32 p.m. until 12:35 a.m. when you want to sleep. Today it was from 4:00 p.m. until now. Tomosane: H-How do you know that? Yuki: Like I said, it's like there's a channel between me and all the other personalities when I'm unconscious. Tomosane: Since when? Yuki: Dunno. I only really figured out the details recently, like a couple days ago. I might've had the power during the time I didn't appear for a long time, though. I'm not really sure. Yuki: Anyway, I can't say that you're correct in assuming that Mamiya's existence is growing stronger. Tomosane: That's an awfully roundabout way of putting it. You can't say I'm correct? Yuki: Yeah... I guess so. I can definitely feel the same thing you're feeling. Yuki: But even I don't know what exactly that is. Tomosane: I see... Yuki: But I'm certain that his mental activity is diminished right now. Tomosane: Really... Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: Oh? Hasaki: I knew you two were in here together. Tomosane: Wh-Wh-Wh-What are you doing, Hasaki?! Hasaki: I'm wearing a swimsuit, so it shouldn't be a problem. Tomosane: B-But I'm naked! Hasaki: Then what about Yuki-san? Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Yuki-san is here, right? Yuki: Y-Yes... Hasaki: Is Yuki-san wearing a swimsuit? Yuki: Um, sorry. I'm naked. Tomosane: W-Wait, it's not like that, Hasaki! Hasaki: What do you mean? There's no problem, is there? Hasaki: I'm wearing a swimsuit, and you said you didn't get turned on by me or Yuki-san, right? Tomosane: Th-That's true, but... Yuki: U-Um, are you mad about something, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Not at all. Besides, yesterday we promised that we'd all get in the shower together, right? Hasaki: I can't believe you would leave me out, Yuki-san. Yuki: Ahahahaha... Sorry about that. Tomosane: This is happening because you made that dumb promise! Hasaki: This happens because a child like me takes her serious... is what you want to say, right, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Huh? Uh, yeah, that's right. It's Yuki's fault, because she always says dumb stuff like that... Hasaki: Then let me ask, what's stupid about what I'm doing right now? Tomosane: A-At this age... we shouldn't be taking baths together. Hasaki: I'm wearing a swimsuit. Tomosane: And I'm naked! Hasaki: I-It's not like I'm looking! J-Jeez... Tomosane: That's not the problem here. Hasaki: Then what's the problem? Tomosane: Oh, uh... You know what it is. Right, Yuki? Yuki: I think it's fine, don't you? You said me and Hasaki don't turn you on, right? Tomosane: That's not the problem here! Yuki: Really? Isn't it? Hasaki-chan says she's not looking at your dick, and you said you don't get turned on by us. Hasaki: Oh, uh... I'll try not to look, but I can still kind of see. Yuki: Oh, really? Tomosane: What do you mean, kind of see?! What kind of compromise is this?! Yuki: Huh? Then what's the problem? If you go crazy with lust from seeing Hasaki's body, I can always make you go unconscious, so don't worry. Tomosane: You can do that too? Dumbass... Yuki: Then what's the problem? If you get turned on by me, well, I'll forgive you for that. Who knows, maybe I'll let you push your luck. Tomosane: Stop fucking around! Hasaki: Yeah... You're going too far now, Yuki-san. Yuki: Oh, you too, Hasaki-chan? Now you're all ganging up on me. Hasaki: Not like it matters. You said you didn't find her attractive, right, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: That's right. I'll be getting out now. Yuki: But you haven't washed your body at all yet. Tomosane: Shut up! Yuki: No, you shut up. I share the same body with you, and I don't want to be dirty. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, you should wash properly. I prepared this bath just for you. Tomosane: Ugh... *I don't understand what's going on in their heads anymore.* Yuki: And putting that aside, why aren't you looking at me at all? Tomosane: Why would I look at you?! Yuki: What's your problem? I'm not charging you to look, you know. Tomosane: No... I don't want to look, even if it is free. Yuki: You don't have to be so blunt about it. Hasaki: Is Yuki-san's bust really big? Yuki: What do you think, Tomosane? Tomosane: I don't care! Yuki: What do you mean? I'm really not too sure myself. Hasaki: Hmm... Yuki-san is Takuji Nii-san's ideal woman, right? Yuki: Sometimes I wonder about that, but I guess that's more or less on the mark. What about it? Hasaki: Yuki-san, what kind of girls does Tomo Nii-san like? Tomosane: Why are you asking Yuki that?! Hasaki: Because you won't tell me. Tomosane: That doesn't mean Yuki would be able to tell you, though. Yuki: Really? Did you forget about my new powers? I just finished explaining them to you. Tomosane: Wha―! Hasaki: Powers? Tomosane: Oh, uh, it's nothing. Yeah, weather's nice today, isn't it, Hasaki? Hasaki: It's night right now. Tomosane: Yeah, but... isn't the night sky really pretty? Hasaki: I can't see it from inside. So what were those powers you were talking about, Yuki-san? Yuki: Yeah, they're... Tomosane: Shut up! Shut up! This topic is off limits! Hasaki: Why? I'm not asking you! Tomosane: But it's still personal information related to me! Hasaki: But you won't tell me, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Why would you want to know that? There's no reason you should care about your brother's preferences. Hasaki: Thats not true! We should be open about these things because we're siblings. Tomosane: Okay, then what's your type? Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Look, you can't answer. That's what I mean. Hasaki: ...lies. Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Bullies! Th-That's the kind of person I like. Tomosane: You like bullies? You have awful taste in guys. Hasaki: But then it really stands out when they're nice, which makes me like them more! Tomosane: Hmm... *Is that really how it works? I don't really understand women.* Hasaki: I-I said it! Now it's your turn! Tomosane: Huh? What do you mean? Yuki: Go on, say it. You promised. Tomosane: I never promised, did I? Hasaki: You did! That's why I told you my type! Tomosane: That's ridiculous. Yuki: It's not ridiculous. You're the one that's being ridiculous. Tomosane: Why are you grinning like that? Yuki: Oh, nothing. It's just a lot of fun to watch this, since I feel like your big sister. Hasaki: Hurry up and say it! You promised! Tomosane: M-Mine? Yuki: That's right. Tell us your type. Tomosane: Then what about you, Yuki?! Yuki: Me? I like you, Tomosane. Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Grr... Tomosane: Wh-What did you say? Hasaki: You seem awfully happy about that, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Wh-What on Earth gives you that idea?! Hasaki: You're smiling. Tomosane: I'm frowning! Hasaki: Yuki-san... you like Tomo Nii-san? Yuki: Yeah, Tomosane is a nice guy. Maybe it's just because I don't know anyone else very well, but none of them are as attractive as Tomosane. *Yeah right. You know lots of other people. You get along great with everyone in our class.* Hasaki: Y-You're really honest about it, huh? Yuki: Well, yeah, but it's unrequited love. Hasaki: Huh? Y-You think? Yuki: Yeah, it is. There's only one girl in Tomosane's heart. Hasaki: Only one girl? Tomosane: Hey! What are you guys talking about now?! Don't talk about me like I'm not here! Hasaki: So Tomo Nii-san really does have someone he likes? Tomosane: No way! Yuki: Hehehe... It's all right, Hasaki-chan. He's not thinking about anyone but you, Hasaki-chan. Hasaki: ... Hasaki: B-But that's... Hasaki: That's just... as a little sister, right? *What's she talking about now? What else is there?* *But still... I know she gets stubborn whenever I say that I don't view her as anything but a sister.* *If I wanted, I could say it's not like that. Though I'd have to be careful how I phrased it.* Tomosane: Of course it is! Hasaki: Oh... Yuki: Hehehe, I wouldn't be so sure about that. Oh well. I'm certain that Tomosane isn't thinking about any other girls, at least. Hasaki: ... Yuki: Hehehe... Don't worry about it, Hasaki-chan. You like bullies after all, right? Hasaki: Uuh... Yuki: So maybe it's better that he can't be honest about it, since he's like a bully? Hasaki: Not at all. Hasaki: How can you keep that kind of attitude around the person you like, Yuki-san? Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: L-Like I said, she was just making a joke, Hasaki. Yuki: What do you mean by attitude? Hasaki: You're naked right now, right? Yuki: Yeah... Well, Tomosane said he wasn't looking, and he doesn't even want to look. Hasaki: Yeah. Yuki: Something like that. Hasaki: I guess so. Tomo Nii-san isn't good for anything, anyway. Yuki: Oh? Tomosane: Hasaki? Yuki: Huh? Hasaki-chan left. Tomosane: Phew... Yuki: What are you so relieved for, Tomosane? Tomosane: Of course I'm relieved. You're bad enough, but add my little sister to the equation too and I can't even think straight. Yuki: Your little sister, huh? It's only at times like this that you think of her as a sister, huh? Hasaki: That's right. At times like this, I'm just a little sister... Yuki: Huh? Hasaki-chan? You're still there in the changing room? Hasaki: Yes, I'm still here. Because... Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: Wha-?! Hasaki: I haven't washed my body yet. Tomosane: Y-You dummy, Hasaki! Where's your swimsuit?! Hasaki: I can't wash myself when I'm wearing that. Tomosane: Y-You dummy, that's not what I'm talking about! Hasaki: Then what's the problem? I'm your little sister, so there's no problem, right? Tomosane: D-Dummy! You're not a little kid anymore! Hasaki: You only treat me like a little kid when it's convenient for you, don't you? Tomosane: Th-That's not the problem here... Hasaki: Besides, Yuki-san is naked, right? Tomosane: Y-Yuki only exists in my head! Hasaki: But to you it's just like she really exists. Tomosane: That doesn't mean... Hasaki: I don't think there's a problem. Just don't look at me. Tomosane: H-Hey, Yuki! Yuki: M-Me? Tomosane: Hasaki is doing this because you said all that stuff! Yuki: Really? I think it's your fault this time. Hasaki: How long are you gonna be washing up? You should come in the tub too. Tomosane: Huh? There's no way two people could fit in that tub! Hasaki: Hmm, you must be scared because you think you'll get turned on. Tomosane: Th-That's impossible. Hasaki: Then what's the problem? Tomosane: I-I'm still washing up... Hasaki: Hmm, is that so? Tomosane: Hey, you! Hasaki: Move over. I need to wash myself too. Tomosane: Oh, but... there's only one seat. Hasaki: I'll just sit on the floor, then. *Wh-What's going on here?* Tomosane: M-Maybe I should get out now... Hasaki: You haven't washed yourself at all. Tomosane: Oh, I just like to take quick baths is all. Yuki: I like to take long ones. Hasaki: See? Tomosane: Yuki, why'd you say that?! Yuki: What's it matter? You're not turned on by your little sister, now are you? Tomosane: It's not a problem of getting turned on or not! Hasaki: Then what's the problem? Yuki: Come on, let's just wash and get it over with. You haven't washed your hair yet, either. *Jeez... Maybe Yuki doesn't mind because she's a woman, but...* Yuki: What? You can't control yourself when she's sitting right beside you? Tomosane: Y-Yuki! Yuki: You don't think of Hasaki-chan as just a sister, do you? Tomosane: Of course I do! Yuki: Really? Yuki: You really do treat her like your sister only when it's convenient, just like she said. Tomosane: Shut it! Hasaki: Are you talking to Yuki-san in secret again? Tomosane: I-It's not a s-secret or anything important like that! Yuki: Really? It's not important how you think of Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Oh, that probably isn't important to Tomo Nii-san at all. Tomosane: Th-That's not what I meant. Yuki: Oh, now you made Hasaki-chan mad again, Tomosane. Tomosane: It's your fault! Hasaki: Haa... I don't care anymore. Tomosane: Okay, I'm getting out now! Yuki: Wait a second. You have to use conditioner too! Tomosane: What the hell is that? Hasaki: Oh, was this yours, Yuki-san? Yuki: That's right. Hasaki: Is that a good brand? Yuki: I think so. It had good reviews online. Hasaki: It must be really expensive. Yuki: Wanna try it? Hasaki: Huh? Can I? Yuki: Sure, I don't mind. Tomosane: Who cares about that? Let me get out of here already! Hasaki: I care. Be quiet, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: How much of this should I use? Especially this tube of treatment. Yuki: Do you want me to do it for you? Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Are you dumb? You and I look the same to Hasaki. There's no way she's okay with that. Hasaki: Yuki-san, would you? Yuki: Yeah, sure. Tomosane: Why are you ignoring me? Why are you saying yes?! Hasaki: You're awfully annoying, Tomo Nii-san. Don't butt into our conversation, please. *Yuki circled around behind Hasaki.* *Well, I guess it's better this way since I don't have to worry about seeing anything I shouldn't.* Yuki: This should be enough conditioner for your hair, I think. Hasaki: Oh, that's about how much shampoo I use, too. Yuki: Yeah, it's about as thick as normal shampoo, so I'm not surprised. Hasaki: All right, will you please? Yuki: Yeah. Tomosane: Ah?! Wh-What?! *When Yuki's fingers touched Hasaki's head, my fingers caressed her hair.* Tomosane: Y-Yuki, what are you― Yuki: Come on, brothers and sisters should get along once in a while. Now put about a finger-sized bit of treatment in your palm and rub it on evenly. Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: Good night. I'm tired, so I'm gonna dip out. Tomosane: What do you mean, dip out? You can't log out now. Tomosane: Hey! Hasaki: What? Tomosane: U-Um... Hasaki: Yes? Tomosane: Yuki disappeared. Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Oh, it's nothing unusual, but... Hasaki: Which means, right now... Tomosane: The two of us are alone. Hasaki: Alone! *Hasaki suddenly blushed when she heard that word.* *No, that doesn't make sense. From her viewpoint, it's just been the two of us from the beginning.* *But I couldn't say that. I wavered for a moment.* Tomosane: U-Um, I don't know how to put on the treatment, so maybe I should just get out now. Hasaki: ... Tomosane: U-Um, I kind of went along with it when Yuki was around, but we really shouldn't be doing this. *To be honest, it was bad even when Yuki was around. Yuki just dragged me along with her stupidity, and Hasaki was too stubborn to stop.* Tomosane: Ahahaha... I'll get out. *When I tried to stand up, Hasaki grabbed my arm.* Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Finish what you started. *What I started...* Tomosane: Wait, I don't understand what you mean! Hasaki: Um, I already closed my eyes. I can't open them now. *She closed her eyes, so she can't open them now? That doesn't really make sense.* *I guess there are a lot of shampoos out there that sting if you get them in your eyes.* *But...* Tomosane: No, but... Hasaki: I-I'm just your little sister, after all. What's the problem? And besides, you already saw me naked... Tomosane: Oh, uh... For the record, I did my best to not look. Hasaki: Th-Then keep doing your best and it'll be fine. *It won't be fine at all.* *Yeah, this doesn't even make sense anymore. Why am I taking a bath with Hasaki, and why do I have to wash her hair?* *Besides...* *Truthfully, I shouldn't be alone with Hasaki like this.* *Even if she is my sister, two people of our age can't be naked and alone together.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Y-Yeah... *At Hasaki's urging, I continued to apply the conditioner and other hair products to Hasaki's scalp.* *Sadly enough, it was a lot easier than I expected once I got started. Yuki's experience was still in my body.* Hasaki: Ahahaha... You're pretty good at this, Tomo Nii-san. Have you done this for Yuki-san before? Tomosane: No. That's never happened, ever. We share the same body, so I have most of the same skills and experiences that she does. Hasaki: I see. Tomosane: Yeah, and Mamiya Takuji should be able to do everything that we can do. Hasaki: Hmm... Then you know how to put on the treatment too. Tomosane: Hey, wait! Hasaki: Please put on the treatment too. Tomosane: U-Um... Tomosane: Huh?! *Hasaki grabbed my hand.* *Her hand was small, soft... and very warm.* *And it was...* *Trembling.* *...* Tomosane: What's wrong, Hasaki? Hasaki: No, it's nothing... *I knew right away that Hasaki was crying.* *Not from her voice.* *And of course, I couldn't see her face from behind...* *But somehow, I knew right away that Hasaki was crying.* Hasaki: I think I know... why you always push me away, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: But that's selfish. Hasaki: You think that if you push me away, we won't ever grow closer... but you're wrong. *She didn't say it directly.* *But I could tell she was blaming me.* *She didn't blame me because I was going to disappear, but rather, because I pushed her away to avoid growing closer to her.* *No, because I tried to avoid growing closer to her... but still did.* Hasaki: I don't know... what will happen to you or Yuki in the future. Hasaki: Even if I did know... there's nothing I can do about it. Hasaki: But there is something I do know for sure... Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: So... Hasaki: The treatment! Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: At least do that for me. Th-This is really embarrassing, you know! Tomosane: Huh? E-Embarrassing? Hasaki: O-Of course it is! Tomosane: B-But you were the one who came barging in, and you took off your swimsuit... Hasaki: B-But that was... Oh, shut up! Sometimes a girl has to do things that are embarrassing! *She fiercely spat out those words.* *A girl has to do things that are embarrassing... Is that true?* *I don't really understand, but I think that might be true.* Hasaki: Wh-What kind of person wouldn't be embarrassed about being seen naked? Tomosane: Uh, an exhibitionist, maybe? Hasaki: Don't lump me in with those people! Tomosane: Oh, uh... Sorry. *Uh... Somehow we're getting off topic.* Hasaki: Did you think I wasn't embarrassed about this? Tomosane: Then why did you do it? Hasaki: I-I told you, sometimes you have to do things like this. That's why. Um... It's kind of like how sometimes a nuclear meltdown can happen even when it's supposed to be impossible for the reactor to malfunction! It's just like that! *No, uh... I don't think it's like that at all.* Hasaki: Anyway, you can wash out the conditioner now. Tomosane: Oh, sure... Hasaki: Ahhh... That feels good... Wow, my hair is so soft. Tomosane: Yeah... *When the conditioner was in her hair, it felt nice and slippery, but once I washed the conditioner out it changed to a soft, silky feeling.* *Ooh... This is totally different from the feeling of a guy's hair. Or maybe that's because she's still so young?* *She looks a lot younger than she actually is.* *That must be because of her Mamiya blood.* Hasaki: Keep going. Tomosane: A-All right... *There was no point resisting at this point. I put a little bit in my palm just like Yuki told me and rubbed it into Hasaki's hair.* *This "treatment" stuff was more viscous than shampoo or conditioner, like paste.* Hasaki: Ah... It feels funny. Tomosane: This is designed for use on people's hair, right? It kind of reminds me of something else. Hasaki: Oh, that's because it comes in a tube. It's different from the shampoo or conditioner. Tomosane: What do you usually use, Hasaki? Hasaki: Hm? Probably the same thing you use. Just shampoo and conditioner. I've been interested in these bottles in the bathroom for a while now, but I never knew how to use the treatment or anything like that. *It was just like the shampoo and conditioner, but someone who didn't know that might have thought it was supposed to go on your face. Makeup remover has about the same consistency as this stuff, I think.* Tomosane: I'm gonna rinse it out now. Hasaki: Huh? Already? Tomosane: Yeah, you're supposed to wash this out right away. *I gently rinsed the treatment out of her hair.* *It says that I can just wash it out like normal, but apparently it can cause a rash if someone has weak skin, so I was extra careful as I rinsed her hair with water.* *After it all rinsed out, her hair was even softer than before.* Hasaki: Wow, this is amazing! Tomosane: Haa... Good for you. Hasaki: Yeah! *Hasaki cheerfully turned toward me.* *And because of where I was standing, she turned to face my...* Hasaki: Ah― *I could tell she was about to scream, and I prepared myself in case she was about to hit me in a very delicate area.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomosane: H-Hasaki! *Hasaki fainted on the spot.* Tomosane: H-Hasaki! Tomosane: Hey, you! Hasaki: Wait... what? Tomosane: Phew... You're awake now? Hasaki: Uh, I was... in the bathroom. Tomosane: That's right. You fainted. Hasaki: Oh, I see... Tomosane: You could at least act surprised... Jeez. Hasaki: ... Tomosane: What? Hasaki: Oh, uh... If I fainted, then... Tomosane: Yeah... Uh, I tried not to look, so... Hasaki: These are your pajamas. Tomosane: I don't know where you keep your underwear... and I couldn't put those on you with my eyes closed, so I just put my pajamas on you. Hasaki: Oh, you're right. I'm not wearing any underwear. Tomosane: Th-Those just came out of the wash, so you can wear them for now. They're not dirty or anything. Hasaki: Why would your pajamas be dirty? Tomosane: Well, they would be dirty if I was wearing them. Hasaki: But you were saying it like your pajamas were usually dirty. Tomosane: Oh, uh, I just thought you wouldn't want to wear your brother's pajamas. Hasaki: ... *I thought she was about to argue with me again, but she gave me a big smile.* Hasaki: Not at all. I like how they smell like you. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Wait, what do you mean? Hasaki: Exactly what I said... Tomosane: Haa... Okay, now get to sleep. You can have my bed. Hasaki: Oh, this is your room. Tomosane: I couldn't go into your room, could I? Besides, I was rushing, so I just carried you into my room since I know where everything is in here. Hasaki: Oh... Tomosane: Oh, don't move yet. You might still be a bit anemic, so don't move. Just get some rest. Hasaki: Huh? What about you? Tomosane: I'll sleep on the couch. Hasaki: Wait, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: What? Hasaki: I might feel sick later tonight. You know, if the blood vessels in your brain burst, you don't have symptoms right away. Tomosane: Haa... I don't think anyone in our family has ever died of a stroke. Hasaki: I might be the first. Tomosane: So what do you want me to do about it? Hasaki: Let's sleep together. Tomosane: You know... *I was about to give her the usual excuse, but...* *For some reason, I stopped myself.* *Maybe her words plucked on one of my heartstrings.* Tomosane: I think that if I push you away, we won't ever grow closer, but... I'm wrong. Hasaki: Ah... Tomosane: It's nothing. Well, okay. I wouldn't want you wetting the bed, now would I? Hasaki: Hey, I don't wet the bed. Besides, there's nothing you could do if I did! Tomosane: Really? I could find a way to dry it so no one else found out. Hasaki: I could do that myself. Besides, I don't wet the bed! Tomosane: Oh. Good to know. *That night, Hasaki and I slept in the same bed.* *It felt kind of nostalgic.* *Somewhere in my forgotten memories... no, in Mamiya's forgotten memories, something like this must've happened before.* *I'm sure of it.* Tomosane: That's not all. Hasaki: Wh-What do you mean, that's not all? Tomosane: You're my little sister, so I have to protect you. Hasaki: Protect me? Tomosane: That's right. Yuki does too. We both have to protect you... as your big brother, and as your father too. Tomosane: That's the reason why we're here today. Yuki: I see. That would make me the big sister, and the mother too. Tomosane: You look like a man from the outside, though. Yuki: That's not true. Just look at these melons! Tomosane: Shut up, and don't rub those things on me! Hasaki: What are you doing, Yuki-san? Yuki: A-Ahahaha, sorry. Hasaki: But I think Tomo Nii-san is right... I don't think I'm really happy with that answer though. Tomosane: Why? Hasaki: Oh, uh, nothing... But now I know that you're thinking of what's best for me, Tomo Nii-san... I know that now. Hasaki: But... Tomosane: But? Yuki: That was a pretty good answer, but I don't think it's the one Hasaki-chan wanted to hear. Tomosane: But it's the truth. Now that our father is dead and our mother is catatonic, who else is going to protect Hasaki? Tomosane: I'm thinking of what's best for Hasaki, just like you told me to do, Yuki. That's what I have to do to protect Hasaki. *Those were my genuine feelings.* *I said it partially because I wanted to keep my distance from Hasaki, but... those were still my most genuine feelings.* Hasaki: Hahahaha... I can't believe you would say that now. Tomosane: Hm? Hasaki: Nothing... It's nothing. Really. I'm just a bother, huh? Tomosane: What are you saying? Hasaki: Okay, I'm getting out. I can't wash my body with this swimsuit on, anyway. Hasaki: And I wouldn't want to take it off in front of you, even if you are my brother. Tomosane: All right, I'm about done. Hasaki: Huh? Go ahead, take your time. Tomosane: No, I already washed my body. Right, Yuki? Yuki: Well... Okay, I guess. Yuki: I'd like to spend a bit more time washing, personally. Hasaki: Huh? Yuki: Oh, nothing, nothing. Tomosane: All right... We'll take our time. Hasaki: Y-Yeah... Yuki: I never thought you would say that. Tomosane: It's not like I lied to her. Yuki: Well, I think you wanted to keep your distance from her, but I suppose you didn't lie to her. Tomosane: Yeah... It was the truth. Yuki: Well, I understand what you said about protecting Hasaki. Tomosane: I don't have much time left, though. Yuki: You keep saying that. Tomosane: It's the truth. Yuki: How do you know it's the truth? Tomosane: More importantly... Yuki. Yuki: What? Tomosane: I really don't know where to look, so could you put on some clothes? Yuki: No way. I like to be naked after I get out of the bath. Tomosane: I don't care what you like! Put on some fucking clothes! Yuki: Oh, come on. I'm giving you some fan service. Tomosane: That's what we call an unwelcome favor. Yuki: Jeez... Oh fine. I'm at my limit anyway. Tomosane: Your limit? Yuki: Oh, sorry. I know we're in the middle of a conversation, but... Tomosane: Yuki? *Yuki suddenly disappeared.* *She instantly disappeared, like her batteries suddenly ran out.* Tomosane: She's overdoing it. Tomosane: Oh well... Not my problem. Hasaki: I-It is too your problem, Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Yuki, I'm getting out. Yuki: Huh? You haven't washed your hair yet. Tomosane: Shut up! *I left the bathroom in a hurry.* *When I left, I turned and saw that Yuki had already disappeared.* Tomosane: She was overdoing it. Why would she force herself to stay for something dumb like this?

Tomosane: Hey, you! Hasaki: Move over. I need to wash myself too. Tomosane: Oh, but... there's only one seat. Hasaki: I'll just sit on the floor, then. *Wh-What's going on here?* Tomosane: M-Maybe I should get out now... Hasaki: You haven't washed yourself at all. Tomosane: Oh, I just like to take quick baths is all. Yuki: I like to take long ones. Hasaki: See? Tomosane: Yuki, why'd you say that?! Yuki: What's it matter? You're not turned on by your little sister, now are you? Tomosane: It's not a problem of getting turned on or not! Hasaki: Then what's the problem? Yuki: Come on, let's just wash and get it over with. You haven't washed your hair yet, either. *Jeez... Maybe Yuki doesn't mind because she's a woman, but...* Yuki: What? You can't control yourself when she's sitting right beside you? Tomosane: Y-Yuki! Yuki: You don't think of Hasaki-chan as just a sister, do you? Tomosane: Of course I do! Yuki: Really? Yuki: You really do treat her like your sister only when it's convenient, just like she said. Tomosane: Shut it! Hasaki: Are you talking to Yuki-san in secret again? Tomosane: I-It's not a s-secret or anything important like that! Yuki: Really? It's not important how you think of Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Oh, that probably isn't important to Tomo Nii-san at all. Tomosane: Th-That's not what I meant. Yuki: Oh, now you made Hasaki-chan mad again, Tomosane. Tomosane: It's your fault! Hasaki: Haa... I don't care anymore. Tomosane: Okay, I'm getting out now! Yuki: Wait a second. You have to use conditioner too! Tomosane: What the hell is that? Hasaki: Oh, was this yours, Yuki-san? Yuki: That's right. Hasaki: Is that a good brand? Yuki: I think so. It had good reviews online. Hasaki: It must be really expensive. Yuki: Wanna try it? Hasaki: Huh? Can I? Yuki: Sure, I don't mind. Tomosane: Who cares about that? Let me get out of here already! Hasaki: I care. Be quiet, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: How much of this should I use? Especially this tube of treatment. Yuki: Do you want me to do it for you? Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Are you dumb? You and I look the same to Hasaki. There's no way she's okay with that. Hasaki: Yuki-san, would you? Yuki: Yeah, sure. Tomosane: Why are you ignoring me? Why are you saying yes?! Hasaki: You're awfully annoying, Tomo Nii-san. Don't butt into our conversation, please. *Yuki circled around behind Hasaki.* *Well, I guess it's better this way since I don't have to worry about seeing anything I shouldn't.* Yuki: This should be enough conditioner for your hair, I think. Hasaki: Oh, that's about how much shampoo I use, too. Yuki: Yeah, it's about as thick as normal shampoo, so I'm not surprised. Hasaki: All right, will you please? Yuki: Yeah. Tomosane: Ah?! Wh-What?! *When Yuki's fingers touched Hasaki's head, my fingers caressed her hair.* Tomosane: Y-Yuki, what are you― Yuki: Come on, brothers and sisters should get along once in a while. Now put about a finger-sized bit of treatment in your palm and rub it on evenly. Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: Good night. I'm tired, so I'm gonna dip out. Tomosane: What do you mean, dip out? You can't log out now. Tomosane: Hey! Hasaki: What? Tomosane: U-Um... Hasaki: Yes? Tomosane: Yuki disappeared. Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Oh, it's nothing unusual, but... Hasaki: Which means, right now... Tomosane: The two of us are alone. Hasaki: Alone! *Hasaki suddenly blushed when she heard that word.* *No, that doesn't make sense. From her viewpoint, it's just been the two of us from the beginning.* *But I couldn't say that. I wavered for a moment.* Tomosane: U-Um, I don't know how to put on the treatment, so maybe I should just get out now. Hasaki: ... Tomosane: U-Um, I kind of went along with it when Yuki was around, but we really shouldn't be doing this. *To be honest, it was bad even when Yuki was around. Yuki just dragged me along with her stupidity, and Hasaki was too stubborn to stop.* Tomosane: Ahahaha... I'll get out. *When I tried to stand up, Hasaki grabbed my arm.* Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Finish what you started. *What I started...* Tomosane: Wait, I don't understand what you mean! Hasaki: Um, I already closed my eyes. I can't open them now. *She closed her eyes, so she can't open them now? That doesn't really make sense.* *I guess there are a lot of shampoos out there that sting if you get them in your eyes.* *But...* Tomosane: No, but... Hasaki: I-I'm just your little sister, after all. What's the problem? And besides, you already saw me naked... Tomosane: Oh, uh... For the record, I did my best to not look. Hasaki: Th-Then keep doing your best and it'll be fine. *It won't be fine at all.* *Yeah, this doesn't even make sense anymore. Why am I taking a bath with Hasaki, and why do I have to wash her hair?* *Besides...* *Truthfully, I shouldn't be alone with Hasaki like this.* *Even if she is my sister, two people of our age can't be naked and alone together.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Y-Yeah... *At Hasaki's urging, I continued to apply the conditioner and other hair products to Hasaki's scalp.* *Sadly enough, it was a lot easier than I expected once I got started. Yuki's experience was still in my body.* Hasaki: Ahahaha... You're pretty good at this, Tomo Nii-san. Have you done this for Yuki-san before? Tomosane: No. That's never happened, ever. We share the same body, so I have most of the same skills and experiences that she does. Hasaki: I see. Tomosane: Yeah, and Mamiya Takuji should be able to do everything that we can do. Hasaki: Hmm... Then you know how to put on the treatment too. Tomosane: Hey, wait! Hasaki: Please put on the treatment too. Tomosane: U-Um... Tomosane: Huh?! *Hasaki grabbed my hand.* *Her hand was small, soft... and very warm.* *And it was...* *Trembling.* *...* Tomosane: What's wrong, Hasaki? Hasaki: No, it's nothing... *I knew right away that Hasaki was crying.* *Not from her voice.* *And of course, I couldn't see her face from behind...* *But somehow, I knew right away that Hasaki was crying.* Hasaki: I think I know... why you always push me away, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: But that's selfish. Hasaki: You think that if you push me away, we won't ever grow closer... but you're wrong. *She didn't say it directly.* *But I could tell she was blaming me.* *She didn't blame me because I was going to disappear, but rather, because I pushed her away to avoid growing closer to her.* *No, because I tried to avoid growing closer to her... but still did.* Hasaki: I don't know... what will happen to you or Yuki in the future. Hasaki: Even if I did know... there's nothing I can do about it. Hasaki: But there is something I do know for sure... Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: So... Hasaki: The treatment! Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: At least do that for me. Th-This is really embarrassing, you know! Tomosane: Huh? E-Embarrassing? Hasaki: O-Of course it is! Tomosane: B-But you were the one who came barging in, and you took off your swimsuit... Hasaki: B-But that was... Oh, shut up! Sometimes a girl has to do things that are embarrassing! *She fiercely spat out those words.* *A girl has to do things that are embarrassing... Is that true?* *I don't really understand, but I think that might be true.* Hasaki: Wh-What kind of person wouldn't be embarrassed about being seen naked? Tomosane: Uh, an exhibitionist, maybe? Hasaki: Don't lump me in with those people! Tomosane: Oh, uh... Sorry. *Uh... Somehow we're getting off topic.* Hasaki: Did you think I wasn't embarrassed about this? Tomosane: Then why did you do it? Hasaki: I-I told you, sometimes you have to do things like this. That's why. Um... It's kind of like how sometimes a nuclear meltdown can happen even when it's supposed to be impossible for the reactor to malfunction! It's just like that! *No, uh... I don't think it's like that at all.* Hasaki: Anyway, you can wash out the conditioner now. Tomosane: Oh, sure... Hasaki: Ahhh... That feels good... Wow, my hair is so soft. Tomosane: Yeah... *When the conditioner was in her hair, it felt nice and slippery, but once I washed the conditioner out it changed to a soft, silky feeling.* *Ooh... This is totally different from the feeling of a guy's hair. Or maybe that's because she's still so young?* *She looks a lot younger than she actually is.* *That must be because of her Mamiya blood.* Hasaki: Keep going. Tomosane: A-All right... *There was no point resisting at this point. I put a little bit in my palm just like Yuki told me and rubbed it into Hasaki's hair.* *This "treatment" stuff was more viscous than shampoo or conditioner, like paste.* Hasaki: Ah... It feels funny. Tomosane: This is designed for use on people's hair, right? It kind of reminds me of something else. Hasaki: Oh, that's because it comes in a tube. It's different from the shampoo or conditioner. Tomosane: What do you usually use, Hasaki? Hasaki: Hm? Probably the same thing you use. Just shampoo and conditioner. I've been interested in these bottles in the bathroom for a while now, but I never knew how to use the treatment or anything like that. *It was just like the shampoo and conditioner, but someone who didn't know that might have thought it was supposed to go on your face. Makeup remover has about the same consistency as this stuff, I think.* Tomosane: I'm gonna rinse it out now. Hasaki: Huh? Already? Tomosane: Yeah, you're supposed to wash this out right away. *I gently rinsed the treatment out of her hair.* *It says that I can just wash it out like normal, but apparently it can cause a rash if someone has weak skin, so I was extra careful as I rinsed her hair with water.* *After it all rinsed out, her hair was even softer than before.* Hasaki: Wow, this is amazing! Tomosane: Haa... Good for you. Hasaki: Yeah! *Hasaki cheerfully turned toward me.* *And because of where I was standing, she turned to face my...* Hasaki: Ah― *I could tell she was about to scream, and I prepared myself in case she was about to hit me in a very delicate area.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomosane: H-Hasaki! *Hasaki fainted on the spot.*

*.........* *......* *...* Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Huh? Tomosane: The sky? Tomosane: Where am I? Tomosane: Building B? And it's afternoon? Tomosane: I... *What happened?* *I'm confused...* *This hasn't happened... in a while.* Tomosane: I was out for a while that time. *It was just my intuition, but I knew it right away.* *That my consciousness had been gone for an unusually long time.* *The longer it's gone, the greater the reaction when my consciousness returns. I could tell that quite a long time had passed.* *But when I looked at the time on my cell phone, surprise turned into horror.* Tomosane: July 10th... 12:05... *It's been a long time since I've experienced a gap that big... No, this must be the first time.* *I slowly followed my memory back to the last time I was awake.* *...* *The last thing I remembered was that day when we were in the bathroom together.* *The date was July 6th. It's been 4 days since then...* *I'd never experienced such a large leap forward in time before.* Tomosane: Why hasn't my consciousness come to the surface in such a long time? Tomosane: I'm shocked... No, this is terrifying. Tomosane: I've experienced leaps forward in time before, but I'm shocked that it could last this long. Tomosane: Is this how Yuki feels? *She was just a bit surprised when it happened to her, like it was no big deal.* *I can't believe she could experience something like that and still act like it's nothing.* *That woman is something else.* *When I lose consciousness for this long, I get the feeling I'm being pushed out.* *Like I'm being forcibly driven away.* *When I finally awoke, I felt like I had just woken from a long dream... and I felt utterly bewildered.* *It must have been even worse for Yuki.* *Even worse...* *How much worse could it get?* *I was only gone for four days. It's not like I lost several weeks like Yuki did.* *If I'm this bewildered after four days, how bad would it be after four weeks?* *I can't even imagine it.* *Would I even be able to reconstruct my consciousness after that long?* *Or would my consciousness still be scattered and lost when I woke up?* *After experiencing this today...* *That state is closer to nonexistence than a simple pause.* *There was a strong force, so strong that I was surprised I could even lift my consciousness to the surface.* *And that force...* Tomosane: That force wasn't suppressing my consciousness... That force tried to erase it. Tomosane: ... *That's right.* Tomosane: Is that it? Yuki, you... *I'm such a fool. I never realized that truth before.* *But now that I think about it, it's obvious.* *That's not a pause in our consciousness.* Tomosane: Yuki was already... being erased. *It's impossible for her personality to just coincidentally be paused for such a long time.* *Her personality was already being erased.* *That's why the new, disconnected personality "Minakami Yuki" was created.* *The new "Minakami Yuki," who perceives Hasaki as two fictional twins, was only created once Yuki was erased.* *Which means Yuki is already an unnecessary personality. She was nothing more than a hindrance for the creation of the new Yuki personality.* *That's why she seemed so rushed.* Tomosane: Yuki, that dummy... *She said she was forcibly keeping her consciousness on the surface.* *I didn't think anything about that statement.* *I understood it as just another piece of the same puzzle.* Tomosane: No... This is completely different than before. *That's right.* Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji is already trying to remove the original Yuki. *That's much more than simply stopping her personality for a long time.* *Mamiya Takuji is forcibly erasing her.* *Which means the disappearance of Yuki's personality.* *No, the reverse. Yuki didn't come out of a long pause. She was only holding onto her consciousness after she barely escaped being erased.* *Somehow, she held onto her consciousness so she could continue to exist.* *Which means now Yuki is...* *That dumbass. She was worried about my relationship with Hasaki at the end, huh?* Tomosane: Why didn't she say anything? Tomosane: She was already being erased. Tomosane: She only delayed her disappearance by holding onto her consciousness. *Why did she try so hard to delay it?* Tomosane: Damn it, Yuki. *From my perspective, "I" am an existence that will disappear, while "Yuki" is going to remain in this world.* *But she must've felt the same way.* *The new "Minakami Yuki" is the one that will remain.* *The Yuki I know will disappear.* *She will be erased.* *Even before me...* *That's why she wanted to leave Hasaki in my hands, since she knew I would last longer than her.* *She wanted to leave Hasaki to me, "Yuuki Tomosane," not the new "Minakami Yuki," who is the same and yet completely different from her.* *She wanted to leave her in my hands.* *That's why she held onto her consciousness so desperately for those few days.* *That Yuki was already useless once the new "Minakami Yuki," the one that Mamiya Takuji desired, was born.* *Rather, she was getting in the way of the new "Minakami Yuki."* *There's no point in them both existing.* *Rather, it's only natural for the old Yuki to disappear once the new "Minakami Yuki" is born.* Tomosane: Then... what about me? *Why was my consciousness stopped for such a long―well, not long compared to Yuki―time?* Tomosane: Agh! *I could feel Mamiya Takuji's existence.* *That's strange. He's fated to be erased by me, and yet...* *His existence is growing even stronger.* *And it feels like my existence is growing weaker.* Tomosane: Ah! *I checked my phone again.* Tomosane: Today is... *That's right!* *I remembered when I looked at the date again.* *The day I promised to meet Mamiya Takuji had already passed.* *The day I was supposed to meet him again...* Tomosane: Fuck! Tomosane: I have to erase him. *For some reason, I had a worrying presentiment.* *I couldn't understand.* *Why would I feel like that?* *My heart was steeped in uncertainty.* Tomosane: Haa, haa... *I tuned into the channel of Mamiya's existence.* *The place was right in front of Takashima Zakuro's classroom.* *I didn't have a solid reason, but my intuition told me that if I aligned our channels here, I could meet him.* *No, it wasn't my intuition or anything supernatural like that.* *Mamiya's consciousness appears in this place.* *So I can't miss that moment.* *I can't let him trade places with me. I have to hold onto my own consciousness.* *If my hypothesis is correct, I could simply let myself be pushed out of consciousness without meeting Mamiya at all.* Tomosane: ... *Mamiya's body came into sight hazily. He was peeking into the classroom from the hallway.* *I think this classroom was next to ours. This is Takashima Zakuro's classroom.* *I wonder if Mamiya Takuji has some sort of relationship with Takashima Zakuro too, just like Yuki did.* *No... That's not important right now.* *Here he comes.* Tomosane: I've been looking for you... Takuji: *Our channels weren't quite lined up. Almost there...* Takuji: U-Umm... *...* *There he is.* *This is kind of anticlimactic.* *I didn't think I would be able to find him.* Tomosane: You promised you'd bring me 50,000 yen. Your time's up. *The promise from a week ago. I ordered him to bring me 50,000 yen.* *I felt uneasy, thinking...* *What if my consciousness was gone for such a long time because Mamiya Takuji tried to erase me just like Yuki?* *In the end, Yuki and I only exist in accordance with his will.* *This man looks weak, but he's the absolute authority, the one who created everything.* *Yuki and I, the Destroyer and the Harmonizer, were both created through this man's will.* *Which means, if he changed his mind―for instance, if he's too scared to be erased―then it's possible that he could forcibly erase me.* *That's why I had chills running down my spine.* *Mamiya Takuji cowered before me.* *But I was the one who was truly afraid.* *Because I could disappear on his mere whim.* Tomosane: Hurry up... Give me the money. The money. Takuji: Um, well... Tomosane: Don't tell me you don't have your wallet with you. I can see it in your back pocket. Takuji: Huh? U-Umm... Takuji: Eagh! *I braced myself after hitting him.* *I almost expected to disappear the second I struck him.* *But that fear didn't come true.* *He crumpled under my first blow, just like every time before.* *Nothing changed. Nothing at all.* *Which means...* *I should hurt him enough to erase his existence right here and now.* *Even if he hasn't erased me yet, I should destroy him as soon as I can.* *Because that's my fated role.* Tomosane: Now then, hand it over. Takuji: U-Uh... Okay... Tomosane: What's this? Takuji: Huh? Wh-What do you mean? Tomosane: There's only 27,571 yen here. Takuji: W-Well... Takuji: Ow... Tomosane: You're not going to have a good time if you can't even keep your promises. You're more than 20,000 yen short. Takuji: I-I'm sorry... Tomosane: Oh, no... Takuji: E-Eek. Tomosane: I don't care for your apologies. It's just, it really bothers me when I don't have any money. *Disappear! Disappear! Disappear! Disappear! Disappear!* *I prayed as I punched him.* *As I punched him, I noticed... something was weird.* *Disappear! Disappear! Disappear! Disappear! Disappear!* Tomosane: Ah! *Mamiya's eyes glimmered for a moment.* *No, I must've been imagining it. He was the same frightened child as always. There was no change.* *But I instinctively stopped my fist.* Takuji: I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry... Tomosane: Tch... *For some reason, my entire body was covered with a sheen of cold sweat.* *He was crying and begging for mercy at my feet, but the one whose heart was truly frozen with fear...* Tomosane: Damn it. It's me. Shiroyama: Ah... Numada: Oh, Mamiya-kun. Iinuma: Sup? Tomosane: ... Shiroyama: Gah! Iinuma: Why? *There was no reason. It was just an outburst of anger.* *Anger at myself, for being afraid of Mamiya Takuji.* Tomosane: Just now... 'Oh crap' was written on your face, like you didn't want to see me. Shiroyama: Th-That's... Tomosane: I don't know why, but I'm not too fond of excuses. Iinuma: Mamiya-kun, I don't think he meant it that way... Tomosane: What? Iinuma, are you talking back to me? Iinuma: N-Not at all, but... Tomosane: If you're going to disobey me, you'd better be prepared to kill me. You know that, right? Iinuma: Y-Yes... That's... Tomosane: Well, whatever. Tomosane: Actually, didn't you know someone who was growing some leaf, Numada? Numada: A-About that... He got caught by the police. Tomosane: Really? He got caught? Shiroyama: Yes, and... he snitched on a lot of other people. Tomosane: So you're going to get caught too? Numada: No... I think I'm probably safe, but... Tomosane: Anyway, if you do get caught, don't tell them about me. Otherwise, I'll kill you when I get out. Numada: I'm not a snitch. Besides, I'm not going to get caught... Probably. Tomosane: Hmm. Well, keep it up then. *This conversation is pointless.* *I'm only running away from Mamiya Takuji. Shiroyama doesn't matter right now.* *None of these guys matter at all.* *Mamiya Takuji's destruction... that is my raison d'etre.* *And yet...* Tomosane: And as for you, Mamiya-kun, I'll wait till next week. Get me the rest of the money. Tomosane: If you don't, it won't just be painful. Takuji: O-Okay... *Our voice was shaking with fear. Not his voice, mine.* Tomosane: Alright, then... Does anyone have a cigarette? Shiroyama: Ah, you want some of my Sevens? Tomosane: Sevens? Isn't that the stuff that smells like shit? Numada: Yeah, it is. Shiroyama: What? Really? I like it. Tomosane: Whatever, that works. Numada: You always like the offbeat brands. What was it? Never... Neverland, I think? Tomosane: It's not like I want to smoke something weird like that. It's just what's always in my pocket, so I smoke it. Numada: What? Is your pocket an extradimensional portal? Tomosane: I wish. Then I'd have as much as I wanted. Though I'd rather it gave me money instead. Shiroyama: Of course. *Even when I smoked, I couldn't stop trembling.* *I'm being completely eaten up by Mamiya Takuji.* *What's going on?* *I have to finish Mamiya Takuji soon.* *That's supposed to be my role.* Tomosane: Agh! Shiroyama: Huh? Are you heading home? Tomosane: I just wanted to go to the station. Numada: You're gonna ditch all your classes? Tomosane: Dunno. Anyway, I want to get some coffee at that cafe, Spring Coffee, in front of the station. Numada: Ahahaha, see ya later. Tomosane: ...! *I felt dizzy. The world twisted and warped.* *My vision blurred.* Tomosane: What am I doing? *I have to finish him.* *Finish Mamiya Takuji.* *"Are you going to kill him again?"* Tomosane: Huh? *I thought I heard someone's voice.* *But I faded out before I could figure out whose it was.* *My consciousness was forcibly ended.* *By the Creator, Mamiya Takuji.*

*The moment I awoke.* *The moment time began to move.* *Everything felt distant.* *Is it that way for everyone?* *Or just me?* *What was the first thing that came into sight when I awoke?* *I always try to remember that.* *What is the scenery of awakening...* *I'm trying to remember that.* *And I'm trying to remember... who I am.* *My name... My sex... My family... My...* *It all came together in an instant.* *A drop of water fell in the distance.* *The sound of a drop of water breaking somewhere in the distance.* *That which is broken imparts its moisture upon the earth.* *Only through breaking can it grant its blessing.* *Because once broken, the blessing is able to soak into the earth.* *Where is this...* *The confusion after awakening.* *Doesn't everyone feel it?* *Or is it a confusion that only I feel?* Tomosane: Ow... Tomosane: This is... Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji's hideout. *Agh... Vertigo. And my head hurts.* *This feeling again?* *I took the cell phone out of my pocket.* Tomosane: ...I thought so. *It happened again... No, it wasn't as long this time, but it's still been two whole days.* Tomosane: July 12th... 10:30 p.m. Tomosane: Damn it. *This only happened because I was afraid of him last time.* *Last time was four days. This time, two days.* *I didn't exist for a second during that entire time. These leaps forward in time are completely different from what I've experienced in the past.* Tomosane: Ah... *I was hit with a splitting headache.* Tomosane: Damn it... *Is this from sleeping on the concrete?* *No, that's not it. This headache is from my disordered consciousness.* *The forcible erasure is happening.* *The same thing Yuki experienced.* *No... It's weaker than what Yuki experienced.* *Unlike Yuki, I could easily be erased if he wanted.* *My will isn't nearly as strong as his.* *Which must mean...* *He's not seriously trying to destroy me yet?* Tomosane: Either way, I'm in the palm of his hand. *I'm no different than an ant under the magnifying glass.* Tomosane: For now... *I looked around. It was the same depressing place as always.* *It was depressing, just like his mental state. I couldn't fathom the depths of that darkness.* Tomosane: Two full days, huh? Tomosane: It's scary that my discontinuity could come to this point. *Scary... No, it's more like isolation.* Tomosane: I see... *Isolation and fear... The feelings one must experience just before death.* Tomosane: I'm fearful of my own death? Tomosane: Ugh... *When the night breeze blew on my body, I realized how incredibly fatigued I was.* *He must've been running. My feet feel really heavy.* Tomosane: Hm? *Somehow I hadn't noticed that there was a paper bag in my hand.* *There were CDs or something inside it.* *But why didn't I notice before?* *It should've been in the way when I climbed the underground ladder.* *Yet I carefully held onto this bag the entire time.* *My disordered consciousness... Maybe it was this confusion that made me do that?* *Or maybe Mamiya Takuji made me do it through some sort of compulsive power?* Tomosane: Ah! *I tried to throw the bag away...* *But...* Tomosane: No... If it was Mamiya Takuji's compulsion, I wouldn't have noticed it halfway through like this. *It was a weaker force that made me carry this bag this entire time.* *A force that seemed on the verge of disappearing.* Tomosane: Yuki's power... *Or maybe a simple coincidence caused by my confusion.* Tomosane: Yuki or Mamiya must've bought this CD. *If Yuki bought it...* *Then perhaps I shouldn't throw it away.* Tomosane: Haa... If only I could understand what Mamiya was thinking when I was unconscious. *But I couldn't expect something so convenient to happen.* Tomosane: Maybe if I tried harder... *But I didn't know what I was supposed to do in order to accomplish that. I didn't even know what it would feel like if I did it successfully.* Tomosane: The closest thing I can think of is... if a sleeping person could understand what was happening around them while they were asleep. *Unfortunately, I couldn't really understand that state of mind.* *Maybe it's a power she attained through her strong will to escape erasure.* Tomosane: A strong will... *Really, now I think...* Tomosane: I can't do anything. I'm useless. I'm nowhere near as good as Yuki. *My headache was going away.* *And my thoughts were starting to line up too.* Tomosane: I should go home for now. *The front of Mamiya's house...* *It felt somehow nostalgic.* *I felt like Urashima Tarou, even though I was only gone for six days.* Tomosane: I wonder if Hasaki is home. *The lights were all off. Hasaki must be at the bar today.* Tomosane: Hasaki... *I wanted to see Hasaki.* *I wanted to talk to Hasaki.* *I wished Hasaki was home.* Tomosane: What's wrong with you, Tomosane? Tomosane: You're getting sentimental, like a woman or something. *Anxiety... My head was full of a sort of anxiety I had never experienced before.* *Hasaki... Yuki... No, it doesn't matter who. Anyone I know... Maybe if I went to Hakushuukyou...* *I wanted to go.* *Even though I had no reason to go to Hakushuukyou.* *A gap of four days... and then another two days after that.* *Hasaki hadn't seen me for six days. Almost an entire week.* *She must be worried about me... I should go see Hasaki.* *I could at least give her a bit of peace of mind.* Tomosane: ... *No...* *There was something I had to do first.* *I had to check what happened during those days of nothingness. I had to check my surroundings.* *The house... I wanted to at least see if there was any information to be found in my room.* *Of course, no one was home.* *And there were no major changes.* *It was only six days... Just six days.* *A lot could've happened in that much time, but it's also possible that nothing changed at all.* *I threw the paper bag on the sofa and turned on the lights in the living room.* Tomosane: Huh? *That was... Yuki...* *When I turned on the lights, Yuki appeared before me and went upstairs.* *Not walking, but... as if she was sliding.* Tomosane: Yuki... Tomosane: ... *The room was pitch black. Yuki stood there, but the light had gone out of her eyes.* *Her gaze wasn't focused on anything... She just stared blankly.* Tomosane: Yuki... *I called out to her, but there was no response.* *I felt goosebumps on my skin.* *What I'm feeling right now is...* *Utter terror.* *Fear?* *Am I afraid?* *Like a puppet suspended in midair, Yuki simply stood there.* *Like a picture, or even just a reflection on the wall.* *No presence. Just an image projected on the wall.* Tomosane: Yuki! *I turned on the lights.* *The faint fluorescent light illuminated the room.* *And in the light, Yuki stood sentry, like the spirit of a lingering ghost.* Tomosane: Hey... *I tried to touch her, but...* Tomosane: Huh? *My hand went right through her.* *As if there was never anything there to begin with...* Tomosane: I can only look? An illusion without substance... Yuki: Phew... I'm pooped. Tomosane: Y-Yuki! Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: I-I was really shocked. My hand went through your body just now. It's like you're a ghost or something. Yuki: Where did I put that CD I bought? Um, I think I had it when I came home. Yuki: Oh, right. I left it on the sofa downstairs. *...* Tomosane: This is... *That's right. This means...* *The fear I'd felt since I woke up... This is why.* *I was afraid of this.* *That's why the fear disappeared just now.* *The fear...* *It turned into despair.* *And the despair...* Tomosane: I see... That means I... *The despair turned into sadness.* *I heard someone coming up the stairs.* *Before they came into view...* *I prepared myself for the shock.* *Before those footsteps reached the room, I braced myself.* *I dispelled all the emotions that were rising up within me before I had to look at her face again.* *I dispelled the sadness.* *Now's not the time to be sentimental.* *Just like Yuki did before, now it's my turn to do what I can.* *Yuki's footsteps.* *I was afraid to see Yuki again.* *The sight of the new "Minakami Yuki" crushed me.* *But right now, I can't let myself be defeated by something like that.* Tomosane: Accept the truth... The entire truth. *I knew this would happen.* *Everything can move forward only as they were intended to.* Yuki: Why did I leave this in the living room anyway? I should've just brought it up to my room, since it's mine. I'm so silly. Tomosane: ... *I felt like I would be crushed when I heard her voice.* *The same appearance. The same voice, and yet...* *The person before me wasn't Yuki.* *Her world didn't even overlap with mine.* Tomosane: I promised that I would stay strong once this new Yuki came back... Tomosane: I promised that I would accept the truth... *Even I was shocked by my own weakness.* *But...* Yuki: I haven't walked home with Kagami and Tsukasa in a long time. I wonder why they were out there. *...* Tomosane: Did she just say... they walked home together? *I tried to understand the situation.* *I killed my emotions.* *I focused solely on comprehending what was happening in front of me.* Tomosane: She said Kagami and Tsukasa, which is what Hasaki looks like to her. *Which means this woman was together with Hasaki until now?* *No, that's impossible. I was definitely the one who walked home.* *I walked home from Mamiya Takuji's hideout by myself.* *I didn't see Hasaki.* Yuki: Now then... Time for the grand opening. *I slowly sat on the bed.* *Then I observed the woman's actions.* *The actions of the new "Minakami Yuki," who I was seeing for the first time.* Yuki: All right, for today... *She opened the paper bag and took out the CD.* Tomosane: So it was a CD inside. Yuki: ... Yuki: Huh? *The woman was surprised at the CD she bought for some reason.* Yuki: What is this? This is an anime soundtrack! Tomosane: Anime? *Anime songs, huh?* *Which means Takuji bought that CD.* *That must be why she's surprised about the CD she bought. But that means...* Yuki: Oh? *When she checked the CD name, she looked puzzled.* Yuki: The first album from the popular actress... Tomosane: Does that mean... *She has fabricated memories?* *I remember Yuki said there was a possibility that the new Yuki's memories were being overwritten so that she would think she did them.* *If that CD is an anime soundtrack, then "Minakami Yuki" didn't buy it herself.* *Mamiya Takuji bought it.* *Which means that "Minakami Yuki" thinks the memories from today (whether in whole or in part) are her own.* *And now that I think of it, she didn't react until several minutes after I first saw her.* Tomosane: She was like a puppet hanging from her strings. *That's probably when her memories were being altered.* *Her memories were altered just before her consciousness came to the surface.* *During that short time she probed the other personalities' experiences and rewrote them as her own.* *No... They weren't "the other personalities' experiences."* *She rewrote Mamiya Takuji's experiences as her own.* Tomosane: But then there's still one more question. *Why would she be given memories of buying the CD if they're only going to cause inconsistencies?* *The CD Mamiya Takuji bought was an anime CD.* *Even if her memory is changed, that fact won't change.* *But "Minakami Yuki" knew that she bought a CD.* *If her memories simply told her that she hadn't bought anything, this kind of inconsistency wouldn't occur.* *Why would her brain fabricate memories that would only cause inconsistencies?* Yuki: No, maybe... Yuki: Is this one of Kagami's pranks? I won't forgive her! *Minakami Yuki called that fictional person, Kagami, on the phone.* *There wasn't anyone on the other end.* *But she talked into the phone as if there was.* Tomosane: Haa... *I couldn't find an answer to that mystery.* *I laid down on the bed.* Tomosane: I don't get very many chances to be useful, do I? *I can't solve anything.* *...* *The ceiling in my room...* *It looked the same as it always did.* *Until just recently, it always bugged me how Yuki was always around.* *But now she couldn't see me at all.* Tomosane: Hehehe... That's comical. *I never liked having her around before, but...* Tomosane: I actually feel a bit lonely now that she's gone. Now that's a surprise. I'm actually lonely without her. *I closed my eyes.* Tomosane: Fuck! *Why am I so weak?* *Just like that...* *When I closed my eyes, tears ran down my cheeks.* *They must've welled up in my eyes before, and then they overflowed when I closed them.* *This is the worst... This isn't like me.* Tomosane: I knew it would happen. I wasn't supposed to be sad once it happened. *Even still...* *My tears didn't stop.* *This shouldn't be so sad. This shouldn't be so hard.* *I didn't think I was such a weak person. I never thought I would cry like this.* *I knew it would happen. I understood it perfectly, but...* *My tears didn't stop.* Tomosane: Damn it... Well, it's not like anyone's gonna see. Tomosane: I'm not crying out loud. A few tears won't hurt. *Silent footsteps approached.* *Is she going to sleep now? If so, I should go somewhere else.* Tomosane: No, I guess that's not necessary... *Yuki would just go right through me anyway. To her, I don't even exist.* *She couldn't see or touch me at all.* *So...* *Hug.* Tomosane: What? *Who... just hugged me?* Yuki: You dummy. I could hear you crying. Tomosane: Y-Yuki? Yuki: You dummy. Who else do I look like, Tomosane? Tomosane: B-But you're... Yuki: What are you talking about? You know I'm stubborn. I don't give up that easily, and I never get the hint when someone doesn't want me around. Tomosane: That's not the problem here. Yuki: It is. Yuki: I forcibly inserted the memory of that CD when her consciousness was coming to the surface. I made sure she wouldn't lose Mamiya's memory so that it would cause that inconsistency. Yuki: I knew it would cause an inconsistency if she still had the memory of buying that CD, which would cause a crack in her existence. I bet it all on that CD when I forced that memory in. Tomosane: Oh, but I just happened to bring that CD home. Yuki: I know. You brought it with you because you thought it might be related to me. Tomosane: But that was just a coincidence. You bet on that possibility? Yuki: That was the only possibility I had. Mamiya Takuji's control is too strong. Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji's control... Yuki: You saw how I was until just now. Tomosane: Yeah... Yuki: That's the new me. The 'Minakami Yuki' that Mamiya Takuji wanted. Tomosane: She can't see me at all, huh... Yuki: Sorry. You were by my side the whole time, but I didn't notice at all. Tomosane: But you did notice. Yuki: Ahahaha... But it took so long. Tomosane: What are you talking about? You fought back against the existence that created us and found me. That's really amazing. Yuki: Ehehehe. Been a while since I've heard a compliment from you. You're always telling me I'm a pain in the ass. Tomosane: You dummy. I didn't know you were still resisting having your existence erased. Tomosane: I didn't understand a single thing about how you felt the past few weeks. Yuki: Hehehehe. That's why I was bothering you so much. Tomosane: And I couldn't have imagined... Tomosane: I thought that the new 'Minakami Yuki' would be the same person as you. That's why I tried to leave Hasaki in your hands. Yuki: So what did you think of the new me? Is she prettier than me? Tomosane: You dumbass... This isn't the time for that. Yuki: This is totally the right time to ask. Tomosane: She looks just like you. Even her voice is the same. Yuki: That's right. So you should be fine even if I disappear, right? Tomosane: Dumbass... Tomosane: If I was fine... If I was fine, why would I be crying? Yuki: You cried for my sake? Tomosane: Shut up. Who would cry for you? Yuki: Oh, come on. Why were you crying, then, Tomosane? Tomosane: Shut up. I was just crying... because I was sad... Tomosane: I was just sad that you had disappeared. Yuki: Don't say that. That doesn't sound like you at all. You're gonna make me cry too. Tomosane: Shut up... Not my problem... *She's always stubborn.* *She always acts like she's okay.* *I'm the cold, heartless person who only believes in violence. Just like Mamiya wanted.* *I never try to understand the pain of others. I only use them for my own gain.* *That's the kind of person I was supposed to be... I tried to be...* *I use polite words when I'm threatening people to emphasize how coldblooded I am. I always take a nasty attitude to push people away.* *With Yuki... With Hasaki...* *I push everyone away.* *The reason is simple.* *I'm weak and pathetic. I'm not ready to accept my fate. I'm scared of everything.* *I pushed Yuki and Hasaki away because I was scared... I was scared of losing it all.* *If I was truly strong, I wouldn't have acted like that.* Tomosane: I'm a weak person. I'm not the Destroyer. I'm just worthless. Tomosane: I can't accept my own fate. That's why I hesitated to erase Mamiya Takuji before. Yuki: You dummy. If you're weak, then who on Earth is strong? Tomosane: At the very least, you're stronger than me. I'm worthless, losing to a woman. Yuki: Hehehe, of course you did. I'm your big sister. What kind of big sister would I be if I was weaker than you? Yuki: You're strong. You're the strongest person I know in this world, so don't worry about it. Tomosane: If I'm the strongest person in this world, then what are you? Yuki: That's easy. I'm the strongest person in the universe. Tomosane: You dummy. You're gonna get killed by Frieza. Yuki: Why would I be killed by a freezer? Tomosane: That's not what I meant. Yuki: Sure it is. *Yuki smiled and embraced me.* Yuki: I wonder how many more times we'll be able to meet. Yuki: No... This might be the last time. Tomosane: Is this the end? Yuki: No, we might see each other again. Tomosane: You dumbass... Which one is it? Yuki: Which do you think? Tomosane: Hehehe... We've had a lot of conversations like this before, right? Yuki: Yeah... We've had a whole lot of conversations just like this one. Yuki: It went by so quick, and yet it was such a long time. Such a long time, and yet it disappeared in an instant. Yuki: But... there were a lot of things we never got the chance to do. Tomosane: Things we didn't do, huh? *I wanted to feel Yuki right then and there.* *Not knowing whether it would be our last time together or not, I wanted to spend what time we had left as best I could.* *But... I didn't.* *Right now, we have to focus on the future.* *Even if it means sacrificing the present, we have to change the future.* *I have to figure out everything I can right now. I can't get caught up in the present.* Yuki: Yeah... We never slept together. Tomosane: You dumbass! Like I would do that with you! Yuki: You wouldn't? Tomosane: Not a chance in hell. Yuki: Oh really. You can't even be honest with yourself. I'll blow you, if you want. Tomosane: No thanks. Yuki: What's your problem? It's kind of irritating when you say it like that. Tomosane: Hey, what are you doing?! Yuki: I'm trying to unzip your pants. Tomosane: Seriously, stop! It's not funny! Yuki: Hahahaha, won't it be fine? You said you didn't get turned on by me... W-Wait? Tomosane: D-Dumbass! *When Yuki pulled down the zipper... my hard dick popped out. It touched Yuki's hand through my underwear.* Tomosane: Get away! Yuki: What the hell is this?! Tomosane: Stop! Yuki: Oh really? Tomosane: ... Yuki: This feels kind of nostalgic. Tomosane: N-Nothing good happens when you're around. Yuki: What are you talking about? You pushed me down, didn't you? Tomosane: N-No... It's because you were doing weird things. Yuki: Weird things? Tomosane: Th-That's right... Yuki: Weird things, huh? Not like I really care, but my underwear is showing again. Tomosane: Ah! Yuki: What, did you pull up my skirt on purpose when we fell? Tomosane: N-No! Yuki: Hehehe... A skirt can flip up on its own if you're thrashing about in bed. It was a joke. Tomosane: Don't make weird jokes at a time like this. Yuki: But I wasn't joking about my underwear showing, you know? Look... Tomosane: C-Cover yourself! Yuki: You don't like sexy things? Tomosane: Wh-What are you talking about? Yuki: Exactly what I said. You don't want to do sexy things? Tomosane: Y-You mean― Yuki: I want to do sexy things... with you. Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: Mm... Ah, Mmchu, mm... Tomosane: ... Yuki: Puhaa... Sexy... Tomosane: Wh-Why, you! Yuki: You didn't like it? Tomosane: I-I didn't say that... Yuki: Hmm... Then if you like it, use your tongue too. Tomosane: H-Hey... Yuki! Yuki: Mm, ah, mm... Tomosane: Mm, ah... *Yuki's tongue carefully made its way over my tongue, my teeth, and the inside of my mouth. It wasn't what I expected.* *Her tongue was warm and soft... It felt really good.* Tomosane: Ahm! Yuki: Mm... You're so cute, Tomosane. You can moan if you want. Does it feel good? Tomosane: N-No! Yuki: Doesn't it? It feels good for me... *Then Yuki's tongue entwined with mine again...* *Mm...* *Her lips upon mine.* *Our soft, wet lips meeting.* *I wrapped one arm around her back and moved my other hand behind her head.* *Yuki responded in kind by wrapping both her arms around me.* *We held each other close.* *Our warmth melted together into one as we pulled our bodies close and put lips to lips.* *The sound of our saliva mixing as our tongues grappled.* Yuki: ... *As I tasted her lips, her tongue darted around inside my mouth.* *Yuki moved her lips away from mine.* *Our entwined tongues came apart, a silver line of saliva trailing between them.* *She gulped once, swallowing her saliva and mine, and then she let out a hot gasp.* *Then...* Yuki: Wow... That was delicious. Tomosane: No, it wasn't... Yuki: The feelings. It felt good, at least. Tomosane: Oh, well... Me too. Yuki: Eheheheh, take this! *Yuki giggled as she put her arms around me and playfully kissed me.* Yuki: What should we do? Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: I'm getting really wet down here. Tomosane: Wha... Y-You dumbass, that's... Yuki: What? I didn't quite hear you. Go on. Say it. Tomosane: Are you fucking stupid?! Yuki: What? You don't like assertive girls? Tomosane: Th-That's not the problem here... Yuki: Then you like it when girls are forward with you? Tomosane: I told you... Yuki: Yeah. Go on. Touch it. Tomosane: Ah! *Yuki slowly moved my hand up her thigh, pressing it into her panties.* Yuki: Mm... Ehehehe, how is it? Tomosane: W-Well, it's... *The feeling of her thighs and underwear... It was incredibly soft and warm.* Yuki: Do you want to take my clothes off? Tomosane: Don't ask me that... Yuki: Or would you rather I kept them on? Tomosane: That's not what I said. Yuki: Then take them off me. I already unhooked my bra. Tomosane: ... *I felt myself gulping to wet my throat, which suddenly felt dry as the desert sand.* *I put my hand on her blouse. It slipped from her shoulders easier than I would've ever expected.* *The bra under her clothes was already unhooked, just like she said. I took it off without a problem.* Yuki: These strapless bras always make me feel so defenseless. Once you undo the hook, they're just sitting there on your chest. *Her tone was jocular, but her cheeks were rosy, and her eyes were wet.* *Yuki's chest seemed to sparkle white, and her bust was perfectly proportional to her body.* Tomosane: ... Yuki: What do you think? They're pretty big, right? Tomosane: I don't know. Aren't they about normal? Yuki: Jeez, you're such a virgin. They're way bigger than normal. Is your idea of average based on the girls you see in porn? Tomosane: Oh, uh... That's not what I meant. *I wanted to deny it, but I had a feeling Yuki was actually right about that.* *The only time I ever really thought about the size of a woman's breasts was in porn, magazines, and things like that.* Yuki: They're really soft, you know. Tomosane: ... *I ignored her teasing and instead moved my lips down to her breasts.* Yuki: Mm. *She let out a moan. She must've been making jokes to distract herself from the pleasure already flowing through her body.* Yuki: So that's what guys are thinking about when they do that. Tomosane: Don't read my mind. Yuki: I can't help it when you make a face like that! Tomosane: It's the truth, isn't it? Yuki: That's not true... is- Ah! *I didn't let her finish her sentence. I put my face to her breast and batted my tongue against one of her nipples.* Tomosane: ... Yuki: Ah... *She moaned again when I did that.* Yuki: ... *I licked all around her nipple with the tip of my tongue. I had never felt such a thing upon the tip of my tongue before. Her breast was soft, and warm, and so nice.* Yuki: ... *I could feel her breast cupped within my hand.* *It was so soft I could change its shape just by moving my fingers.* * Her luscious breast filled my hand perfectly.* Yuki: ... *I investigated one nipple with my tongue, and I used my hand to play with the other breast.* Yuki: Haa... Tomosane... *Her nipple stood stiffly on end, growing hard from the stimulation.* *I sucked on it with my lips again.* Yuki: Haa, ah, ahh... *Her nipple was supple, bouncing back into position every time I batted it with my tongue.* Yuki: Ah, ahh, Tomosane... *She let out a plaintive moan. The sarcastic Yuki had completely disappeared. She was completely absorbed in the sensations of her body. The hot breaths she breathed as she spoke made me feel a warmth building up in the center of my body as well.* Yuki: Hey, Tomosane, if you want you can... *Yuki moved my empty hand down to rub between her thighs.* *I felt the slick wetness upon her thigh.* *I knew her thighs were wet, but when I moved my hand further up, I couldn't believe how hot it was between her legs.* Tomosane: Wow... It's so hot down here. Yuki: Ahahaha... When I sweat, the exposed skin cools down right away, but it doesn't help cool down the skin under my clothes. Yuki: I'm sure it's even hotter than that inside me. *Then Yuki pushed my hand even further in between her legs.* Yuki: You can put your hand down my panties, you know. *I slipped my finger in her panties at her behest.* *It was even hotter inside her underwear, and it was wet and sticky.* *Her most important place... I could feel a swollen nub just a little ways north.* *I was really surprised by how good it felt.* Yuki: Ah, that tickles... Hehe, it feels good there, but you need to go a little lower. *Yuki giggled and pushed my hand further down.* *In that lush, secret valley, there was an even hotter place further down.* Yuki: Mm... Y-Yeah, right there. *My middle finger plunged in between the two soft, puckering lips of her nether valley.* *My hand, pushed deep into her crotch, rubbed against a small warm swelling.* *I investigated it with one of my fingers. It felt like a flower bud.* Yuki: Mmhaaaa! *Yuki's entire body trembled.* Tomosane: Ah! *I stopped my finger. Then Yuki giggled at me.* Yuki: Ahaha... Don't worry. It's not like it hurt or anything. Yuki: It just felt like you were keeping me waiting, so I was a little surprised, I guess? Tomosane: What do you mean? We just started. Yuki: You dummy. I've been waiting since the first time we met. *That statement was weird and really embarrassing, so I ignored it and pulled down her panties instead.* Yuki: Ah! *I must've taken her by surprise again, since she yelped.* Yuki: Wait... This is kind of embarrassing. Can you at least turn off the lights? Tomosane: Even if I did, I could still see. Yuki: Shut up, dummy. That's not what I'm talking about. It's all about the atmosphere. *I ignored her complaints and started rolling her nipple around with my tongue.* Yuki: Th-The lights... *After pricking at her nipples with my tongue for a bit, I moved my hand in between her legs again.* Yuki: Ahh! J-Jeez, Tomosane... *Even Yuki can get embarrassed sometimes, huh?* Yuki: Ah, th-that's... Ah, haa... Hey, don't think about me like that, you dummy! Yuki: Mfmm... Mm, ahh... *Yuki put her arms around my back and kissed me.* *Every time our tongues came together, I felt her getting wetter and wetter down there.* *The hot liquid on my fingers helped them move smoothly inside of her. I pushed my fingers in and out of her pussy faster.* Yuki: Mwah... Mm, aahh! *Yuki pressed her lips into mine and wouldn't let up. I continued to finger her with my free hand.* Yuki: Mm, no... Ahh... *Suddenly, she arched her body and shook her head.* *She pulled away and licked her lips a few times.* Yuki: A-Ahh, no... I'm getting so wet already, wow... Yuki: Ahaha... It's kind of embarrassing how good it feels... Ahh... *I had never seen Yuki like this before. Her provocative body inflamed the lust within me.* *...* *The liquid overflowing from her pot of honey clung to my fingers. I moved my hand faster still.* Yuki: Ahh, ah... N-No, whoa, I'm... Ah, soon... *Her teary eyes looked into mine.* *Her clitoris had swelled up from the excitement, so I pinched it in between my index finger and thumb.* Yuki: Ah, no... I'm going to cum... Sorry, but I can't hold it anymore... Tomosane: Don't worry. Go right ahead. Yuki: Ah, no, no, I'm cumming, ahh, ahh, no, here it comes! Yuki: Mmmnghaaa! Ahhh! Aaaah! *Yuki's body shook for a moment, and then it tensed up like she was being shocked. Finally, all the muscles in her body relaxed and she fell onto the bed.* Yuki: Haa, haa... *Yuki put her hand over her face.* Yuki: Waaaah! Why didn't you turn the lights off?! Tomosane: Yeah right. It would just be a total buzzkill if I stopped and got up to turn off the lights. Yuki: It's so embarrassing, since I was the only one who came. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: Come on, I could tell you didn't get as worked up as I did there. *Jeez... You don't have to worry about every little thing like that, Yuki.* *Yuki wiped her tears on her arm and pouted.* Tomosane: Worked up, huh? Didn't it look like I was enjoying it? Yuki: But I was moaning and stuff, and you just looked so calm. Waaah! I hate you! Tomosane: Worked up, huh... *I grabbed Yuki's hand and pulled her closer.* Yuki: Huh?! Tomosane: I'm not calm at all right now. Yuki: What's this? Your boxers are soaked. I didn't know boys could get wet like this. Ahaha, Hasaki-chan will be mad at me. Tomosane: Maybe she will... Yuki: You didn't cum, did you? Tomosane: Oh, no... Yuki: Hmm, is that so? *Yuki got on top of me and...* *My zipper was already down, so she had no trouble getting my pants off.* Yuki: Come on, take these things off. *After pulling my pants off, she put her hand on my boxers.* Yuki: Ahahaha... This is kind of embarrassing, actually. *When my boxers came off, my dick flopped out, the tip still wet from earlier.* Yuki: Wow. *Yuki stared at it in awe.* Tomosane: Don't act so surprised. You're the one who did it. Yuki: Oh, uh... I just expected it to be some kind of fearsome monster or something, but it's surprisingly cute, you know? Tomosane: Is that a roundabout way of saying my dick is tiny? Yuki: Oh, no, that's not what I meant. But you know, there's a certain atmosphere to it, right? I expected a python or something, with scales and everything. Tomosane: It'd be terrifying if it had scales. Yuki: That's why I thought it would be scary. *Where on earth did she learn about male anatomy?* *When Yuki grabbed my erect penis, it got even harder.* Yuki: Oh, it jumped again... He's a lively little guy, isn't he? *As she looked on in astonishment, her breath stimulated the tip of my member, sending sweet ripples of joy up my spine.* Yuki: Ahahaha... But this might be a bit big for me. *Her hand tightly gripped it again.* *Jump!* *It spasmed in response to the warmth and texture of her hand.* Yuki: This seems a little too aggressive. Will it be as jumpy when it's inside of me? Tomosane: I don't know. Why don't you try it and see? Yuki: Are you offering to have sex with me? Tomosane: I think it's pretty obvious at this point. *Yuki began to move her hand around my shaft, creating pleasure that I had never experienced before.* Tomosane: Ugh... Yuki: Hmm? That doesn't sound good. Did it hurt? Tomosane: No, it didn't hurt... It's the exact opposite of it. Yuki: And that would be? Tomosane: D-Damn you... Yuki: Stop, the native boy! Tomosane: What kind of native am I supposed to be? Yuki: If you don't answer my question, I'll stop here. Tomosane: Ugh... Damn you... Yuki: Come on, tell your big sister what feels good, Tomosane. *Sh-She's getting so cocky all of sudden.* Yuki: Hmm... Tomosane: What... *Realizing my frustration, Yuki let go of my penis.* Yuki: I'll just stop if you don't tell me how it feels. Tomosane: Grr... Tomosane: Y-Yeah, I don't need it after all. Yuki: Huh? Yuki: Come on. Don't get so serious about it. Tomosane: Shut up... Yuki: But you see, I really can't tell if it feels good or not. It just looks swollen to me. Tomosane: Leave it... *Her soft hand gently caressed my penis.* Yuki: Oh, you moaned again. And something leaked from the tip. Tomosane: ... Yuki: Hey... can I ask you for a favor? Tomosane: You want a favor? Yuki: Yeah. Tomosane: What is it? Yuki: Can I put your penis in my mouth? Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: For some reason, I'm beginning to want to suck your penis. And I don't hate the taste, either. *Yuki lasciviously licked my precum off of her hand.* Yuki: Mm... And it's kinda cute. Tomosane: Ugh... Yuki: Hey, is it okay? Can I suck your penis? Tomosane: A-Aren't you embarrassed? Yuki: I am. But I did it so I could see more of your embarrassed face. Tomosane: Go ahead... Yuki: Ehehe... I'll start sucking it, then. Tomosane: Wha-?! Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... Tomosane: Ugh... *Her mouth wrapping around it gave an euphoric sensation of warmth and softness beyond anything up to this point.* *Yuki moved her head closer, and began to nibble it with her wet lips.* Tomosane: Nn! Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... haa... Tomosane: Aah... *She opened her mouth and started working her way down the shaft.* *And whenever she bobbed her head, the numbing pleasure overwhelmed me.* Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... Tomosane... *As her lips slid down my shaft, small bursts of pleasure ran down my body.* *The relentless waves of pleasure ravaged my body.* Yuki: Mm... ah... The taste is getting stronger... So much precum is coming out... Tomosane: Nn... Yuki: I-It's weird... I can feel... your thing jumping around in my mouth... Tomosane: Aah... nn... Y-Yuki... Yuki: Hehehe... Thanks, Tomosane. You're getting off to my blowjob... Mm... mm... *The mixture of pleasure from her hands moving up and down the shaft and her lips kneading the head put me on the brink of losing control of my urges.* Yuki: Ah... mm... mm... Your penis is... moving... I'm gonna... *Yuki's lips were glossy with saliva and precum.* *And my dick, similarly covered in fluids, glistened lewdly.* Tomosane: Y-Yuki... I can't hold it in anymore... *I began to lose control over my impulse.* *The pleasure became so great that my hips were about to give out.* Tomosane: It's going to come one... I can't hold it in anymore... Stop it, Yuki... Yuki: Mm... It's fine... Tomosane, you can let it out... Tomosane: Ugh... I'm really gonna let it out... Yuki! Yuki: Mm... Tomosane: Ahhhh! Yuki: Ah... *The spasmic ejaculation covered Yuki with my semen.* Tomosane: Haa... haa... haa... Yuki: Aah... It just went all over the place, so I couldn't swallow it... It's on my face now. *She ran her finger over some of the semen on her face.* Yuki: Aah... You let out so much... Did it feel good? Tomosane: Sorry... I didn't want to get it on your face, but I couldn't hold it in. Yuki: It's fine. I was curious about facials anyway. *Yuki let out a mischievous smile and then grabbed tissues from a nearby tissue box.* Yuki: It's a pain when it get on my hair. Tomosane: You can't wipe it off? Yuki: It just dries up when I try to wipe it off with tissues. It ends up harder to clean. Tomosane: I see... Yuki: Ah, oh yeah. Tomosane: What? *Yuki used her finger to pick up some of the semen on her face and taste it.* Yuki: ... Yuki: Hmm... Tomosane: Did you really just do that? Yuki: I guess it tastes like... snot? Tomosane: I didn't ask. Yuki: Or... a booger? Tomosane: They're the same thing. Yuki: Hmm... There's nothing that I can really compare it to, but it does taste as bad as people say. Yuki: Haa... You sure came a lot. Yuki: So you really haven't gotten any action in a long time? Tomosane: Shut up... Yuki: But now it's proven. Tomosane: What is? Yuki: Since you were holding it in so much, there was probably even semen in your sweat! Tomosane: Of course there wasn't! Yuki: You want to put it in now? *Yuki spread her legs apart, revealing her crotch.* Tomosane: ... *My eyes drifted to it, but I quickly looked away after I realized her gaze was on me.* Yuki: Ahahaha... Your expression makes it worth the embarrassment. So you are interested in it, after all. Tomosane: O-Of course... Yuki: Then let's put it in. Tomosane: Are you okay with this? Isn't this your first time? Yuki: Well, we can try. Tomosane: Ugh. *Yuki clung to me in a tight embrace and rubbbed her flower, dripping wet with honey, against my hard dick.* *Our genitals, drenched in love juice, created squelching, wet sounds as we moved as one.* Yuki: Nn... ahah... It makes really weird sound if I rub mine against yours. Tomosane: Nn... This... *We grinded our genitals against each other, as if they were hugging other.* Yuki: Nn... This... feels really good, but it's making really embarrassing noises... Yuki: Hey, Tomosane... kiss me. Tomosane: Mm... Yuki: Mm... mm... mmm... *I felt Yuki's warm and soft membrane with my tongue and penis.* Yuki: Mm... Amazing... It feels really weird... I'm getting really wet... *Our saliva drooled on our cheeks, and our love juice dripped down our skin.* Yuki: Ah... nn... ah... mm... mmm... *Yuki rubbed her hips against mine, and because of the overwhelming pleasure, I couldn't even tell where my genitals were.* *And our bodies became completely drenched.* Yuki: Hey... I want to do it... Tomosane: Are you sure it's okay? Yuki: I don't know, but I want you, Tomosane... Tomosane: I see... *Yuki looked up to me with misty eyes, and gave a small nod.* *I knelt down in front of Yuki, pushed my rod toward her, and it just sank in.* *But...* Yuki: Nn... Tomosane: Nngh... *Her entrance was rather resistant. Actually, to be honest, I didn't know where the entrance was.* Yuki: Don't rush it... It's a bit lower... Yeah... Right there... *She guided my penis with her fingers.* Yuki: Well, I don't really know it that well myself, but I think it's here. *The place she specified felt like it would go further in compared to the other spots.* *I pushed my dick in that direction.* Yuki: W-Wait, that's the wrong place! That's my ass! Tomosane: O-Oh, I didn't know. Yuki: That's not it. Here... Right here. Tomosane: I can't really tell because it's so wet. Yuki: Half of the wetness is from you. *I couldn't tell what parts of Yuki I was pressed against, but I tried my best to insert my dick slowly and carefully.* Tomosane: Nn... *It felt different, as if my dick was being engulfed in something.* Yuki: Ow, oww, owww... Tomosane: Does it hurt? Yuki: K-Kinda? Tomosane: Should I stop? Yuki: I-If you stop now... I'll curse you to death... Tomosane: Why? Yuki: Isn't it obvious? Tomosane: Ngh! *Yuki embraced me tightly, and my dick sunk deep inside of her.* Yuki: Nn! Yuki: I-It's because I want you inside of me... Yuki: We've finally become one... *Normally, this would be a melodramatic scene.* *Yuki was crying and trying to hold it in, but even then the words she said were cute.* *But...* Tomosane: That was cute, but please don't say such awful cliches. Yuki: Shut up! Tomosane: Does it hurt? Yuki: It hurts... It hurts, but that's fine... I think it's going to turn into pleasure soon enough. *I gave her what she wanted.* Yuki: H-Hey... why don't you try moving? Tomosane: Are you okay? Yuki: Ahah... I-I said it hurts, but it'll feel good soon enough... Tomosane: You're avoiding the question. I'm asking if you're okay right now. Yuki: I won't be able to tell unless you move... Tomosane: I see... *I began to move slowly.* Tomosane: Nn... Yuki: Uu... uwah... haa... Tomosane, your thing is... Tomosane: Your voice is stiffing up... Yuki: Ah, ah, ah, aah... It really hurts... Tomosane: Should I stop? Yuki: There's no way we could stop here. Just blow your load inside of me already! Tomosane: Don't say things like that... Jeez. *When I tried to pull out, Yuki held onto my body tighter.* Yuki: Hey... sorry... Tomosane: About what? Yuki: Sorry... It might be a turn off, but it really does hurt... and I'm not really doing a good job of hiding it... Yuki: But it's true that I want you to move inside of me and cum inside of me, so... Tomosane: So you don't want me to pull out. Yuki: Yeah. It might hurt, but... I want you to go the whole way... for me... *...* *I stroked Yuki's hair and began to move my hips slowly.* *Yuki's flower entangled itself around my rod, and the honey overflowed.* Yuki: Haa, nn, nn, haa. *I kissed her cheek as I gently thrusted my hips.* *And when my lips touched her cheek, Yuki turned her head around to meet her lips with mine.* *Our tongues intertwined as if they belonged together.* Yuki: Nn... mmm... mm... *I gently massaged her clitoris.* Yuki: Nn... aah... Tomosane... aah... *It seemed like she was still in pain.* *I continued to move my hips and tried to stimulate my penis in such a way that I would ejaculate sooner.* Tomosane: Nn... It feels really good inside of you, Yuki... Yuki: Nn... haa... nn... nnn... Yuki: Tomosane... more... Tomosane... just use my body to make yourself feel good... That's all I want right now... Yuki: Tomosane... Tomosane... I love you... *The grip around my dick slowly grew tighter.* *We fiercely embraced each other.* *Our bodies were closer than ever.* *The heat from our body melded into one.* *The sensation of her skin was euphoric.* *We felt each other using all of our senses.* Tomosane: I-I'm gonna... Yuki: Aah... Tomosane... I'm... Tomosane... let it out... right there... Tomosane: Nngh... nn... Where are you talking about... Yuki: There... The place where your head is hitting... The deepest parts of me... Tomosane: Okay, I'll cum inside of you... Yuki: Please... Right there... Right there... Tomosane: Nn... I'm about to... cum... I'm gonna... *Yuki hugged my body tightly.* *At that moment, the semen building up inside of me was released inside her.* Tomosane: Ugh! Yuki: Nn?! Haa... guh... nn... nnn! Ah... Your stuff... is coming out... Tomosane: Ugh! Yuki: Nn... haa... Yuki: You let out a lot... Tomosane: S-Shut up... But now I've really done it... Yuki: Stop it with the whining. Regretting the sex right afterward is really rude to the girl. Tomosane: But you've been always calling yourself my big sister. Wouldn't that be incest? Yuki: Huh? But isn't it fine since our relationship's beyond that? Like I said, we're connected in every single way. Tomosane: Not just blood-related, but we're everything from muscle-related to brain-related. Our entire body is connected. Yuki: What are you talking about? That's not all. Tomosane: What more is there to it? Yuki: Our souls are connected. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Nn... Yuki: Why are you blushing? You're making me embarrassed too! Tomosane: You just said something really embarrassing! Be more self-conscious! Yuki: But it's the truth. Tomosane: Yeah, but don't say it with a straight face! Yuki: Jeez, you're really shy, Tomosane. Tomosane: It's just that you're so damn shameless! Yuki: Shame? You're into that kind of thing? What, you want me to get into exhibitionism? Tomosane: Of course not! Yuki: Ahahaha... Well, if it's so embarrassing, think of it as masturbation. Tomosane: Th-That's also pretty shameless... Yuki: Jeez, you're really being cute here. Tomosane: S-Shut up! Stop being so full of yourself, dumbass! Yuki: Well, you've always told me that I sucked at reading the mood. Tomosane: Then try to fix that. *This conversation with Yuki...* *I never thought something so normal could feel so precious to me.* *If I could, I wanted to continue this meaningless conversation forever.* Yuki: You mustn't covet your possessions, for you may never know what could happen in the future. Yuki: Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra's principal conductor, Evgeny Mravinsky, said that. Yuki: Knowing about the Great Purge of the Soviet Union, he felt that he might be considered unnecessary by his own country, and have to flee his motherland. Yuki: But he never said that we can't have too many spiritual belongings. Yuki: But Mravinsky, a devout Christian, must've believed that we can take our spiritual belongings to Heaven. Yuki: So... *The next words he said were...* *We can take our spiritual belongings, our treasures to Heaven, so...* *"Treasure the moment..."* *...* *But... I can't do that...* *Rather than treasuring the moment, I must change the future.* *I wanted to be with Yuki longer.* *But we live for the future.* *So we must work toward a better future, not some spiritual belongings.* *I wanted to be with Yuki, just like this.* *But I couldn't do that.* *There was something that I had to do...&* *I finally understood my purpose.* Tomosane: Do you know what Mamiya did today, or what he thought and felt today? *Rather than treasuring the moment, I chose to look to the future.* *Yuki looked at me and chuckled.* Yuki: I don't really know all the details. Tomosane: You don't? Yuki: Yeah. He's vehemently denying the memory of a certain point in time. Tomosane: Denying his memory? Yuki: Yeah. I think something happened today that Mamiya Takuji would never admit. Tomosane: Something he would never admit? Yuki: I can't see that part of his memory at all. He must really not want to remember it. It's completely gone. Yuki: I'm sure I'm not the only one. Mamiya Takuji himself probably doesn't remember that it happened, even though he experienced it firsthand. Tomosane: He can change our memories that much? Yuki: I'm not sure, but... Tomosane: But? Yuki: Tomosane, be careful. I think something is about to happen. Something absolutely unimaginable is going to happen. Tomosane: Unimaginable? Yuki: Yeah. I'm the Harmonizer, and you're the Destroyer, but pretty soon those roles are going to become meaningless. Tomosane: Meaningless? How could that happen? Yuki: Tomosane, don't you feel it too? Tomosane: ...Ah! *Of course I felt it, and today it was more certain than ever.* Tomosane: Yeah... Yuki: Today, Mamiya Takuji experienced something traumatic that could change our world itself. Yuki: Even if I am disconnected from you and Hasaki-chan, I'll do my best to figure out what's going on. Tomosane: Can you do that after you're disconnected? Yuki: I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. I'll do my best. Tomosane: Well, I'll trust that you know what you're doing. The problem is... Yuki: We might not be able to exchange information anymore. That might be a problem. Tomosane: We should both write notes and leave them in our room. Though the other you probably would forget to do that once you're disconnected. Yuki: No, it might work if I make a habit out of it. Tomosane: A habit, huh? Can you make a habit in such a short time? Yuki: Ahahaha... Probably not, but damned if I won't try. *Memory modification...* *That's not creation at all. Rather, his experiences are having an effect on Yuki's memory.* *To be honest, he could even be changing my memories too.* Tomosane: You're gonna practice writing memos to yourself, huh? Yuki: Yeah, I guess so. Tomosane: ... *How could the situation have changed so much in such a short period of time?* *Something that happened to Mamiya Takuji had this effect on him.* *Surely there must be some clues.* *When I looked up, Yuki had disappeared.* *Like always, she disappeared in an instant, without any warning, and then right after that...*

Yuki: Yeah... We never slept together. Tomosane: You dumbass! Like I would do that with you! Yuki: You wouldn't? Tomosane: Not a chance in hell. Yuki: Oh really. You can't even be honest with yourself. I'll blow you, if you want. Tomosane: No thanks. Yuki: What's your problem? It's kind of irritating when you say it like that. Tomosane: Hey, what are you doing?! Yuki: I'm trying to unzip your pants. Tomosane: Seriously, stop! It's not funny! Yuki: Hahahaha, won't it be fine? You said you didn't get turned on by me... W-Wait? Tomosane: D-Dumbass! *When Yuki pulled down the zipper... my hard dick popped out. It touched Yuki's hand through my underwear.* Tomosane: Get away! Yuki: What the hell is this?! Tomosane: Stop! Yuki: Oh really? Tomosane: ... Yuki: This feels kind of nostalgic. Tomosane: N-Nothing good happens when you're around. Yuki: What are you talking about? You pushed me down, didn't you? Tomosane: N-No... It's because you were doing weird things. Yuki: Weird things? Tomosane: Th-That's right... Yuki: Weird things, huh? Not like I really care, but my underwear is showing again. Tomosane: Ah! Yuki: What, did you pull up my skirt on purpose when we fell? Tomosane: N-No! Yuki: Hehehe... A skirt can flip up on its own if you're thrashing about in bed. It was a joke. Tomosane: Don't make weird jokes at a time like this. Yuki: But I wasn't joking about my underwear showing, you know? Look... Tomosane: C-Cover yourself! Yuki: You don't like sexy things? Tomosane: Wh-What are you talking about? Yuki: Exactly what I said. You don't want to do sexy things? Tomosane: Y-You mean― Yuki: I want to do sexy things... with you. Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: Mm... Ah, Mmchu, mm... Tomosane: ... Yuki: Puhaa... Sexy... Tomosane: Wh-Why, you! Yuki: You didn't like it? Tomosane: I-I didn't say that... Yuki: Hmm... Then if you like it, use your tongue too. Tomosane: H-Hey... Yuki! Yuki: Mm, ah, mm... Tomosane: Mm, ah... *Yuki's tongue carefully made its way over my tongue, my teeth, and the inside of my mouth. It wasn't what I expected.* *Her tongue was warm and soft... It felt really good.* Tomosane: Ahm! Yuki: Mm... You're so cute, Tomosane. You can moan if you want. Does it feel good? Tomosane: N-No! Yuki: Doesn't it? It feels good for me... *Then Yuki's tongue entwined with mine again...* *Mm...* *Her lips upon mine.* *Our soft, wet lips meeting.* *I wrapped one arm around her back and moved my other hand behind her head.* *Yuki responded in kind by wrapping both her arms around me.* *We held each other close.* *Our warmth melted together into one as we pulled our bodies close and put lips to lips.* *The sound of our saliva mixing as our tongues grappled.* Yuki: ... *As I tasted her lips, her tongue darted around inside my mouth.* *Yuki moved her lips away from mine.* *Our entwined tongues came apart, a silver line of saliva trailing between them.* *She gulped once, swallowing her saliva and mine, and then she let out a hot gasp.* *Then...* Yuki: Wow... That was delicious. Tomosane: No, it wasn't... Yuki: The feelings. It felt good, at least. Tomosane: Oh, well... Me too. Yuki: Eheheheh, take this! *Yuki giggled as she put her arms around me and playfully kissed me.* Yuki: What should we do? Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: I'm getting really wet down here. Tomosane: Wha... Y-You dumbass, that's... Yuki: What? I didn't quite hear you. Go on. Say it. Tomosane: Are you fucking stupid?! Yuki: What? You don't like assertive girls? Tomosane: Th-That's not the problem here... Yuki: Then you like it when girls are forward with you? Tomosane: I told you... Yuki: Yeah. Go on. Touch it. Tomosane: Ah! *Yuki slowly moved my hand up her thigh, pressing it into her panties.* Yuki: Mm... Ehehehe, how is it? Tomosane: W-Well, it's... *The feeling of her thighs and underwear... It was incredibly soft and warm.* Yuki: Do you want to take my clothes off? Tomosane: Don't ask me that... Yuki: Or would you rather I kept them on? Tomosane: That's not what I said. Yuki: Then take them off me. I already unhooked my bra. Tomosane: ... *I felt myself gulping to wet my throat, which suddenly felt dry as the desert sand.* *I put my hand on her blouse. It slipped from her shoulders easier than I would've ever expected.* *The bra under her clothes was already unhooked, just like she said. I took it off without a problem.* Yuki: These strapless bras always make me feel so defenseless. Once you undo the hook, they're just sitting there on your chest. *Her tone was jocular, but her cheeks were rosy, and her eyes were wet.* *Yuki's chest seemed to sparkle white, and her bust was perfectly proportional to her body.* Tomosane: ... Yuki: What do you think? They're pretty big, right? Tomosane: I don't know. Aren't they about normal? Yuki: Jeez, you're such a virgin. They're way bigger than normal. Is your idea of average based on the girls you see in porn? Tomosane: Oh, uh... That's not what I meant. *I wanted to deny it, but I had a feeling Yuki was actually right about that.* *The only time I ever really thought about the size of a woman's breasts was in porn, magazines, and things like that.* Yuki: They're really soft, you know. Tomosane: ... *I ignored her teasing and instead moved my lips down to her breasts.* Yuki: Mm. *She let out a moan. She must've been making jokes to distract herself from the pleasure already flowing through her body.* Yuki: So that's what guys are thinking about when they do that. Tomosane: Don't read my mind. Yuki: I can't help it when you make a face like that! Tomosane: It's the truth, isn't it? Yuki: That's not true... is- Ah! *I didn't let her finish her sentence. I put my face to her breast and batted my tongue against one of her nipples.* Tomosane: ... Yuki: Ah... *She moaned again when I did that.* Yuki: ... *I licked all around her nipple with the tip of my tongue. I had never felt such a thing upon the tip of my tongue before. Her breast was soft, and warm, and so nice.* Yuki: ... *I could feel her breast cupped within my hand.* *It was so soft I could change its shape just by moving my fingers.* * Her luscious breast filled my hand perfectly.* Yuki: ... *I investigated one nipple with my tongue, and I used my hand to play with the other breast.* Yuki: Haa... Tomosane... *Her nipple stood stiffly on end, growing hard from the stimulation.* *I sucked on it with my lips again.* Yuki: Haa, ah, ahh... *Her nipple was supple, bouncing back into position every time I batted it with my tongue.* Yuki: Ah, ahh, Tomosane... *She let out a plaintive moan. The sarcastic Yuki had completely disappeared. She was completely absorbed in the sensations of her body. The hot breaths she breathed as she spoke made me feel a warmth building up in the center of my body as well.* Yuki: Hey, Tomosane, if you want you can... *Yuki moved my empty hand down to rub between her thighs.* *I felt the slick wetness upon her thigh.* *I knew her thighs were wet, but when I moved my hand further up, I couldn't believe how hot it was between her legs.* Tomosane: Wow... It's so hot down here. Yuki: Ahahaha... When I sweat, the exposed skin cools down right away, but it doesn't help cool down the skin under my clothes. Yuki: I'm sure it's even hotter than that inside me. *Then Yuki pushed my hand even further in between her legs.* Yuki: You can put your hand down my panties, you know. *I slipped my finger in her panties at her behest.* *It was even hotter inside her underwear, and it was wet and sticky.* *Her most important place... I could feel a swollen nub just a little ways north.* *I was really surprised by how good it felt.* Yuki: Ah, that tickles... Hehe, it feels good there, but you need to go a little lower. *Yuki giggled and pushed my hand further down.* *In that lush, secret valley, there was an even hotter place further down.* Yuki: Mm... Y-Yeah, right there. *My middle finger plunged in between the two soft, puckering lips of her nether valley.* *My hand, pushed deep into her crotch, rubbed against a small warm swelling.* *I investigated it with one of my fingers. It felt like a flower bud.* Yuki: Mmhaaaa! *Yuki's entire body trembled.* Tomosane: Ah! *I stopped my finger. Then Yuki giggled at me.* Yuki: Ahaha... Don't worry. It's not like it hurt or anything. Yuki: It just felt like you were keeping me waiting, so I was a little surprised, I guess? Tomosane: What do you mean? We just started. Yuki: You dummy. I've been waiting since the first time we met. *That statement was weird and really embarrassing, so I ignored it and pulled down her panties instead.* Yuki: Ah! *I must've taken her by surprise again, since she yelped.* Yuki: Wait... This is kind of embarrassing. Can you at least turn off the lights? Tomosane: Even if I did, I could still see. Yuki: Shut up, dummy. That's not what I'm talking about. It's all about the atmosphere. *I ignored her complaints and started rolling her nipple around with my tongue.* Yuki: Th-The lights... *After pricking at her nipples with my tongue for a bit, I moved my hand in between her legs again.* Yuki: Ahh! J-Jeez, Tomosane... *Even Yuki can get embarrassed sometimes, huh?* Yuki: Ah, th-that's... Ah, haa... Hey, don't think about me like that, you dummy! Yuki: Mfmm... Mm, ahh... *Yuki put her arms around my back and kissed me.* *Every time our tongues came together, I felt her getting wetter and wetter down there.* *The hot liquid on my fingers helped them move smoothly inside of her. I pushed my fingers in and out of her pussy faster.* Yuki: Mwah... Mm, aahh! *Yuki pressed her lips into mine and wouldn't let up. I continued to finger her with my free hand.* Yuki: Mm, no... Ahh... *Suddenly, she arched her body and shook her head.* *She pulled away and licked her lips a few times.* Yuki: A-Ahh, no... I'm getting so wet already, wow... Yuki: Ahaha... It's kind of embarrassing how good it feels... Ahh... *I had never seen Yuki like this before. Her provocative body inflamed the lust within me.* *...* *The liquid overflowing from her pot of honey clung to my fingers. I moved my hand faster still.* Yuki: Ahh, ah... N-No, whoa, I'm... Ah, soon... *Her teary eyes looked into mine.* *Her clitoris had swelled up from the excitement, so I pinched it in between my index finger and thumb.* Yuki: Ah, no... I'm going to cum... Sorry, but I can't hold it anymore... Tomosane: Don't worry. Go right ahead. Yuki: Ah, no, no, I'm cumming, ahh, ahh, no, here it comes! Yuki: Mmmnghaaa! Ahhh! Aaaah! *Yuki's body shook for a moment, and then it tensed up like she was being shocked. Finally, all the muscles in her body relaxed and she fell onto the bed.* Yuki: Haa, haa... *Yuki put her hand over her face.* Yuki: Waaaah! Why didn't you turn the lights off?! Tomosane: Yeah right. It would just be a total buzzkill if I stopped and got up to turn off the lights. Yuki: It's so embarrassing, since I was the only one who came. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: Come on, I could tell you didn't get as worked up as I did there. *Jeez... You don't have to worry about every little thing like that, Yuki.* *Yuki wiped her tears on her arm and pouted.* Tomosane: Worked up, huh? Didn't it look like I was enjoying it? Yuki: But I was moaning and stuff, and you just looked so calm. Waaah! I hate you! Tomosane: Worked up, huh... *I grabbed Yuki's hand and pulled her closer.* Yuki: Huh?! Tomosane: I'm not calm at all right now. Yuki: What's this? Your boxers are soaked. I didn't know boys could get wet like this. Ahaha, Hasaki-chan will be mad at me. Tomosane: Maybe she will... Yuki: You didn't cum, did you? Tomosane: Oh, no... Yuki: Hmm, is that so? *Yuki got on top of me and...* *My zipper was already down, so she had no trouble getting my pants off.* Yuki: Come on, take these things off. *After pulling my pants off, she put her hand on my boxers.* Yuki: Ahahaha... This is kind of embarrassing, actually. *When my boxers came off, my dick flopped out, the tip still wet from earlier.* Yuki: Wow. *Yuki stared at it in awe.* Tomosane: Don't act so surprised. You're the one who did it. Yuki: Oh, uh... I just expected it to be some kind of fearsome monster or something, but it's surprisingly cute, you know? Tomosane: Is that a roundabout way of saying my dick is tiny? Yuki: Oh, no, that's not what I meant. But you know, there's a certain atmosphere to it, right? I expected a python or something, with scales and everything. Tomosane: It'd be terrifying if it had scales. Yuki: That's why I thought it would be scary. *Where on earth did she learn about male anatomy?* *When Yuki grabbed my erect penis, it got even harder.* Yuki: Oh, it jumped again... He's a lively little guy, isn't he? *As she looked on in astonishment, her breath stimulated the tip of my member, sending sweet ripples of joy up my spine.* Yuki: Ahahaha... But this might be a bit big for me. *Her hand tightly gripped it again.* *Jump!* *It spasmed in response to the warmth and texture of her hand.* Yuki: This seems a little too aggressive. Will it be as jumpy when it's inside of me? Tomosane: I don't know. Why don't you try it and see? Yuki: Are you offering to have sex with me? Tomosane: I think it's pretty obvious at this point. *Yuki began to move her hand around my shaft, creating pleasure that I had never experienced before.* Tomosane: Ugh... Yuki: Hmm? That doesn't sound good. Did it hurt? Tomosane: No, it didn't hurt... It's the exact opposite of it. Yuki: And that would be? Tomosane: D-Damn you... Yuki: Stop, the native boy! Tomosane: What kind of native am I supposed to be? Yuki: If you don't answer my question, I'll stop here. Tomosane: Ugh... Damn you... Yuki: Come on, tell your big sister what feels good, Tomosane. *Sh-She's getting so cocky all of sudden.* Yuki: Hmm... Tomosane: What... *Realizing my frustration, Yuki let go of my penis.* Yuki: I'll just stop if you don't tell me how it feels. Tomosane: Grr... Tomosane: Y-Yeah, I don't need it after all. Yuki: Huh? Yuki: Come on. Don't get so serious about it. Tomosane: Shut up... Yuki: But you see, I really can't tell if it feels good or not. It just looks swollen to me. Tomosane: Leave it... *Her soft hand gently caressed my penis.* Yuki: Oh, you moaned again. And something leaked from the tip. Tomosane: ... Yuki: Hey... can I ask you for a favor? Tomosane: You want a favor? Yuki: Yeah. Tomosane: What is it? Yuki: Can I put your penis in my mouth? Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: For some reason, I'm beginning to want to suck your penis. And I don't hate the taste, either. *Yuki lasciviously licked my precum off of her hand.* Yuki: Mm... And it's kinda cute. Tomosane: Ugh... Yuki: Hey, is it okay? Can I suck your penis? Tomosane: A-Aren't you embarrassed? Yuki: I am. But I did it so I could see more of your embarrassed face. Tomosane: Go ahead... Yuki: Ehehe... I'll start sucking it, then. Tomosane: Wha-?! Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... Tomosane: Ugh... *Her mouth wrapping around it gave an euphoric sensation of warmth and softness beyond anything up to this point.* *Yuki moved her head closer, and began to nibble it with her wet lips.* Tomosane: Nn! Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... haa... Tomosane: Aah... *She opened her mouth and started working her way down the shaft.* *And whenever she bobbed her head, the numbing pleasure overwhelmed me.* Yuki: Mm... mm... mm... Tomosane... *As her lips slid down my shaft, small bursts of pleasure ran down my body.* *The relentless waves of pleasure ravaged my body.* Yuki: Mm... ah... The taste is getting stronger... So much precum is coming out... Tomosane: Nn... Yuki: I-It's weird... I can feel... your thing jumping around in my mouth... Tomosane: Aah... nn... Y-Yuki... Yuki: Hehehe... Thanks, Tomosane. You're getting off to my blowjob... Mm... mm... *The mixture of pleasure from her hands moving up and down the shaft and her lips kneading the head put me on the brink of losing control of my urges.* Yuki: Ah... mm... mm... Your penis is... moving... I'm gonna... *Yuki's lips were glossy with saliva and precum.* *And my dick, similarly covered in fluids, glistened lewdly.* Tomosane: Y-Yuki... I can't hold it in anymore... *I began to lose control over my impulse.* *The pleasure became so great that my hips were about to give out.* Tomosane: It's going to come one... I can't hold it in anymore... Stop it, Yuki... Yuki: Mm... It's fine... Tomosane, you can let it out... Tomosane: Ugh... I'm really gonna let it out... Yuki! Yuki: Mm... Tomosane: Ahhhh! Yuki: Ah... *The spasmic ejaculation covered Yuki with my semen.* Tomosane: Haa... haa... haa... Yuki: Aah... It just went all over the place, so I couldn't swallow it... It's on my face now. *She ran her finger over some of the semen on her face.* Yuki: Aah... You let out so much... Did it feel good? Tomosane: Sorry... I didn't want to get it on your face, but I couldn't hold it in. Yuki: It's fine. I was curious about facials anyway. *Yuki let out a mischievous smile and then grabbed tissues from a nearby tissue box.* Yuki: It's a pain when it get on my hair. Tomosane: You can't wipe it off? Yuki: It just dries up when I try to wipe it off with tissues. It ends up harder to clean. Tomosane: I see... Yuki: Ah, oh yeah. Tomosane: What? *Yuki used her finger to pick up some of the semen on her face and taste it.* Yuki: ... Yuki: Hmm... Tomosane: Did you really just do that? Yuki: I guess it tastes like... snot? Tomosane: I didn't ask. Yuki: Or... a booger? Tomosane: They're the same thing. Yuki: Hmm... There's nothing that I can really compare it to, but it does taste as bad as people say. Yuki: Haa... You sure came a lot. Yuki: So you really haven't gotten any action in a long time? Tomosane: Shut up... Yuki: But now it's proven. Tomosane: What is? Yuki: Since you were holding it in so much, there was probably even semen in your sweat! Tomosane: Of course there wasn't! Yuki: You want to put it in now? *Yuki spread her legs apart, revealing her crotch.* Tomosane: ... *My eyes drifted to it, but I quickly looked away after I realized her gaze was on me.* Yuki: Ahahaha... Your expression makes it worth the embarrassment. So you are interested in it, after all. Tomosane: O-Of course... Yuki: Then let's put it in. Tomosane: Are you okay with this? Isn't this your first time? Yuki: Well, we can try. Tomosane: Ugh. *Yuki clung to me in a tight embrace and rubbbed her flower, dripping wet with honey, against my hard dick.* *Our genitals, drenched in love juice, created squelching, wet sounds as we moved as one.* Yuki: Nn... ahah... It makes really weird sound if I rub mine against yours. Tomosane: Nn... This... *We grinded our genitals against each other, as if they were hugging other.* Yuki: Nn... This... feels really good, but it's making really embarrassing noises... Yuki: Hey, Tomosane... kiss me. Tomosane: Mm... Yuki: Mm... mm... mmm... *I felt Yuki's warm and soft membrane with my tongue and penis.* Yuki: Mm... Amazing... It feels really weird... I'm getting really wet... *Our saliva drooled on our cheeks, and our love juice dripped down our skin.* Yuki: Ah... nn... ah... mm... mmm... *Yuki rubbed her hips against mine, and because of the overwhelming pleasure, I couldn't even tell where my genitals were.* *And our bodies became completely drenched.* Yuki: Hey... I want to do it... Tomosane: Are you sure it's okay? Yuki: I don't know, but I want you, Tomosane... Tomosane: I see... *Yuki looked up to me with misty eyes, and gave a small nod.* *I knelt down in front of Yuki, pushed my rod toward her, and it just sank in.* *But...* Yuki: Nn... Tomosane: Nngh... *Her entrance was rather resistant. Actually, to be honest, I didn't know where the entrance was.* Yuki: Don't rush it... It's a bit lower... Yeah... Right there... *She guided my penis with her fingers.* Yuki: Well, I don't really know it that well myself, but I think it's here. *The place she specified felt like it would go further in compared to the other spots.* *I pushed my dick in that direction.* Yuki: W-Wait, that's the wrong place! That's my ass! Tomosane: O-Oh, I didn't know. Yuki: That's not it. Here... Right here. Tomosane: I can't really tell because it's so wet. Yuki: Half of the wetness is from you. *I couldn't tell what parts of Yuki I was pressed against, but I tried my best to insert my dick slowly and carefully.* Tomosane: Nn... *It felt different, as if my dick was being engulfed in something.* Yuki: Ow, oww, owww... Tomosane: Does it hurt? Yuki: K-Kinda? Tomosane: Should I stop? Yuki: I-If you stop now... I'll curse you to death... Tomosane: Why? Yuki: Isn't it obvious? Tomosane: Ngh! *Yuki embraced me tightly, and my dick sunk deep inside of her.* Yuki: Nn! Yuki: I-It's because I want you inside of me... Yuki: We've finally become one... *Normally, this would be a melodramatic scene.* *Yuki was crying and trying to hold it in, but even then the words she said were cute.* *But...* Tomosane: That was cute, but please don't say such awful cliches. Yuki: Shut up! Tomosane: Does it hurt? Yuki: It hurts... It hurts, but that's fine... I think it's going to turn into pleasure soon enough. *I gave her what she wanted.* Yuki: H-Hey... why don't you try moving? Tomosane: Are you okay? Yuki: Ahah... I-I said it hurts, but it'll feel good soon enough... Tomosane: You're avoiding the question. I'm asking if you're okay right now. Yuki: I won't be able to tell unless you move... Tomosane: I see... *I began to move slowly.* Tomosane: Nn... Yuki: Uu... uwah... haa... Tomosane, your thing is... Tomosane: Your voice is stiffing up... Yuki: Ah, ah, ah, aah... It really hurts... Tomosane: Should I stop? Yuki: There's no way we could stop here. Just blow your load inside of me already! Tomosane: Don't say things like that... Jeez. *When I tried to pull out, Yuki held onto my body tighter.* Yuki: Hey... sorry... Tomosane: About what? Yuki: Sorry... It might be a turn off, but it really does hurt... and I'm not really doing a good job of hiding it... Yuki: But it's true that I want you to move inside of me and cum inside of me, so... Tomosane: So you don't want me to pull out. Yuki: Yeah. It might hurt, but... I want you to go the whole way... for me... *...* *I stroked Yuki's hair and began to move my hips slowly.* *Yuki's flower entangled itself around my rod, and the honey overflowed.* Yuki: Haa, nn, nn, haa. *I kissed her cheek as I gently thrusted my hips.* *And when my lips touched her cheek, Yuki turned her head around to meet her lips with mine.* *Our tongues intertwined as if they belonged together.* Yuki: Nn... mmm... mm... *I gently massaged her clitoris.* Yuki: Nn... aah... Tomosane... aah... *It seemed like she was still in pain.* *I continued to move my hips and tried to stimulate my penis in such a way that I would ejaculate sooner.* Tomosane: Nn... It feels really good inside of you, Yuki... Yuki: Nn... haa... nn... nnn... Yuki: Tomosane... more... Tomosane... just use my body to make yourself feel good... That's all I want right now... Yuki: Tomosane... Tomosane... I love you... *The grip around my dick slowly grew tighter.* *We fiercely embraced each other.* *Our bodies were closer than ever.* *The heat from our body melded into one.* *The sensation of her skin was euphoric.* *We felt each other using all of our senses.* Tomosane: I-I'm gonna... Yuki: Aah... Tomosane... I'm... Tomosane... let it out... right there... Tomosane: Nngh... nn... Where are you talking about... Yuki: There... The place where your head is hitting... The deepest parts of me... Tomosane: Okay, I'll cum inside of you... Yuki: Please... Right there... Right there... Tomosane: Nn... I'm about to... cum... I'm gonna... *Yuki hugged my body tightly.* *At that moment, the semen building up inside of me was released inside her.* Tomosane: Ugh! Yuki: Nn?! Haa... guh... nn... nnn! Ah... Your stuff... is coming out... Tomosane: Ugh! Yuki: Nn... haa... Yuki: You let out a lot...

Tomosane: Ah... Tomosane: Where am I? Tomosane: Right... I lost consciousness when I tried to erase Mamiya Takuji. Tomosane: This is the break period? How much time has passed while I was out? *I quickly pulled out my phone and looked at the time.* Tomosane: Two hours? W-Wait. *The date had already changed.* *An entire day had passed.* Tomosane: What is this? *The breaks in my continuity were getting worse.* *I was losing consciousness every time my concentration slipped.* Tomosane: Consciousness... *Now that I think of it, I feel like there was something I saw just before I lost consciousness last time.* *Something... Probably something I don't know...* *I don't know what that means.* Tomosane: Agh! *That feeling again. That feeling is...* *Him...* *That existence, growing stronger by the day.* *A strength that could swallow me at any moment.* Tomosane: That's not important... *I reached out and grabbed the shadow before me.* *And right when I did...* *The year* * 2012* * July* * 20* * th* * Sa* * nami* * Koto* * mi* * White* * Lot* * us* * Association* * Foun* * der* * 's prophecy* * Return* * to the sky* * The twins' mistake* * The savior* * is* * torn to pieces* Tomosane: Wha-! *What were those words?* *I knew some of those words.* *But a lot of them I had never seen before.* *A prophecy? July 20th, 2012?* *The twins...* *Torn to pieces...* *But my thoughts were suddenly interrupted.* Takuji: Yuuki Tomosane-kun. *Mamiya Takuji turned around.* *A revolting person.* *I felt a new, sickening revulsion when I saw him, worse than ever before.* *What's with him? There's something different about him. Did something happen?* *Confidence?* *How did he change so much in a single day?* Takuji: What's wrong? Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Mamiya, you're kind of... Numada: Huh? Mamiya-kun, what's up? *A nuisance came into the room.* *But I ignored them.* Tomosane: ...Mamiya. Nishimura: Mamiya-kun? Tomosane: Hey, you dumb piece of shit, what's up with that goofy grin? Takuji: My grin? Hahaha... Am I grinning, now? Tomosane: Are you talking back to me? Takuji: I'll apologize if I offended you... Sorry. Tomosane: Apologize? What the fuck are you talking about? Didn't I teach you a better way to apologize to me, you little shit? Takuji: A better way? *The atmosphere was clearly different.* *His attitude wasn't obedient at all.* *It was just the opposite.* *I know this Mamiya Takuji...* *I had met this Mamiya Takuji before, somewhere...* *In the distant past...* *And at that time, too...* * I was afraid* * of Takuji.* Tomosane: Show me you're sorry with money. Bring me 200,000 yen. That includes what you were short last time. *It felt like I was bluffing.* *I felt like a perfect fool.* *But still, I believed that I would get the same result, as if nothing had changed in the relationship between myself and Mamiya.* *He'll just cry because he can't do anything.* *No... That's only what I wanted to believe.* Takuji: Money, huh... So, when do you want it by? Tomosane: What, you don't care about the deadline? Takuji: Not really. Either way... I don't really care, I guess? Tomosane: What? Do you have a way of getting the money? Takuji: Maybe I do. So why do you want 200,000 yen? Tomosane: What'd you say? Takuji: While I'm at it, why don't I give 200,000 yen to Numada and Nishimura too? Tomosane: What? Numada: Huh? Seriously? You're gonna give us money? Nishimura: Did you win the lottery? Takuji: Hehehehe, maybe I did. Numada: Really? Seriously? You don't mind? You finally feel like paying your debts for all those drugs you stole from us, huh? Nishimura: Yeah, those must've been worth over 1,000,000 yen, you know. Tomosane: Shut up! Numada: Huh? Tomosane: Forget about it. Numada: Huh? But you just... Um, I wasn't kidding about those costing like 1,000,000 yen. If you can, you really should pay us back. Tomosane: No one said I was gonna pay you fuckers. Nishimura: But you won the lottery, didn't you? Tomosane: Either way, you bastards need to disappear. Numada: Huh? Tomosane: Don't make me say it again. Disappear. Nishimura: Eek! *They both ran off in fear when I yelled at them.* *Well, from their perspective, I offered to give them a ton of money and then suddenly got pissed at them.* Takuji: Impressive. Tomosane: Huh? Takuji: It really is impressive how you can make people submit to you out of fear. Tomosane: You little... Takuji: Do you want to talk? Should we go somewhere else? Tomosane: What'd you say? Takuji: Let's go to the roof. Tomosane: ... *Let's go the roof.* *For some reason, those words made my heart race.* *The rooftop...* *Mamiya Takuji... on the rooftop...* *Those two words seemed to resonate with just the wrong frequency, like they struck a dissonant chord in my heart.* Tomosane: ALRIGHT, Mamiya-kun! You know, Takuji, what you said today REALLY hurt my feelings! Takuji: ... Tomosane: You were so well trained, and now you've gotten REBELLIOUS. Takuji: ... Tomosane: This is the rooftop. Tomosane: And... Tomosane: Class just started. Tomosane: No one will come here. Tomosane: No-one-will-come-to-save-you. Tomosane: Even if you die, no-one-will-notice. *I said it dramatically like that to give myself some confidence. My heart was pounding, like it would never calm down.* *Takuji's eyes looked me up and down.* *As I looked into his eyes, I was taken in by the impression that I was gazing into portals to hell.* *Black pupils.* *Hell.* *Rooftop.* *Falling.* *Knife.* *Blood.* Tomosane: Ah! *Mysterious words suddenly flowed into my brain.* *Associations my mind had never made before.* *Connections between words.* *An unstable frequency.* *The racing beat of my heart.* Tomosane: Mamiya-kun? Is there something you want to say to me? Tomosane: You must've gotten the wrong idea after watching some dumb anime. Are you starting to understand the situation you're in right now? *A preemptive strike.* *I didn't put all my weight into the blow, since I expected him to dodge it.* *My fist slammed into his nose, sending blood flying through the air.* Takuji: Ugh! Tomosane: Has that pain reminded you of anything? Tomosane: In the end, that's all you are. That's all you're good for. Tomosane: You'll live your life being bullied by people who are stronger than you. Tomosane: There's nowhere for you to run. Tomosane: The only place you can run to is the grave. Tomosane: Go on, cry. Tomosane: Just like you always do. Tomosane: Cry... Takuji: ... Takuji: Hehehehehe... Tomosane: The hell?! Takuji: Hehehe, it hurts... Tomosane: ...Takuji. Takuji: It hurts... You gave me another nosebleed. Takuji: Ever since you broke my nose, I've started getting nosebleeds all the time. Tomosane: ... Takuji: Do you want to end up like Shiroyama? Takuji: I'll make your death gruesome enough to repay you for every punch. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Hmph... I wondered what you were gonna say. Tomosane: What are you on about? Did you cast some curse you read about in some occult magazine on Shiroyama? Tomosane: Hehehehe... What's with that crap? You really are stupid, huh? Tomosane: You really think I'm scared of that shit? Takuji: A curse? Takuji: It wasn't a curse. It was inevitable. Tomosane: Huh? What are you talking about? Takuji: He died, Takashima-san died, and now you're tormenting me. Takuji: It was all set up by my mother. * Sa* * nami* * Koto* * mi* *What was that?* *His mother's name?* *I think Sanami was her maiden name.* *No, that's not important right now.* *My mind is confused.* *Calm down. Just focus on the person in front of you.* Tomosane: H-Huh? What? What the hell are you going on about now? *It's true, something in Mamiya Takuji had changed, but I still would never forgive him.* Tomosane: Your mommy? Your mommy killed Shiroyama and Takashima? And you think she asked me to bully you? Takuji: Hehehe... You wouldn't understand, even were I to explain it. But I shall tell you this much. Tomosane: What? Takuji: Your role has ended. Tomosane: My role has ended? Takuji: That's right... It's over. Tomosane: Wh-What do you mean? Takuji: You existed only to discipline my mind. Today, your role has ended. Tomosane: Huh? What are you talking about? Tomosane: Discipline your mind? Hahahahaha! You're such a dumbass. Tomosane: Do you still have a brain left in that head of yours? Tomosane: I've always thought you had a screw loose, but I didn't know you'd gone off the deep end already. Tomosane: I was wondering what you were gonna say. Tomosane: Well then... Today I'll have to beat you harder than ever before. Tomosane: After I've given you the normal beatdown, I'll stick pencils in your ear and punch them. It'll be beyond painful. Tomosane: I'm gonna hurt you so bad you'll wish you could kill yourself. Tomosane: Here goes... Tomosane: Wha―?! *I didn't let my guard down. I'm sure of that.* *I was even more focused than when I fought Yuki, and yet he had no trouble grabbing me when I struck at him.* *He dropped me to the concrete before I could pull my arm back.* *If I didn't react, I would fall right on my head, so I sacrificed the joint he had grabbed instead.* Tomosane: Agh! Tomosane: Ugh... Tomosane: ... Takuji: Oh, look... *I prepared myself for the next blow.* *White hot pain ran through my arm, but the rest of my body was uninjured, since I took the hit well.* *More importantly, this battle...* *It's all happening in my mind.* *Unless Mamiya Takuji receives the same injury, I know it's not real. So if I just endure the pain, my arm will heal in a few minutes.* Tomosane: Y-You... *But I need to avoid any damage to my head.* *Damage to my brain will scatter my consciousness.* *If I lose consciousness here, there's no guarantee I'll get another chance.* *Especially now, since he doesn't desire the same result he once did―his own destruction.* *He wants to erase me, so that he alone will remain.* Takuji: Hehehehe... You're rather impressive... Takuji: I thought the battle would be over in an instant, but you really are strong. Tomosane: Wh-What'd you say?! Takuji: After all, I am the strongest person in the world. Tomosane: ...What are you on about? Takuji: Right now, I'm stronger than any person in human history. That's all. Tomosane: Y-You're crazy... Did you really lose your marbles? Takuji: Now it's my turn. *Mamiya Takuji's attack.* *He seemed downright reckless... Overconfident?* *But that was good news for me.* *I turned my back to him and quickly spun my body around.* *Of course, I lost sight of the enemy for a moment, but I knew I couldn't defeat Mamiya without taking at least some risks.* Takuji: Huh? *I hit Mamiya with a clean backfist.* Takuji: Chkh...... Tomosane: Ridiculous. You act like you're a black belt just because you learned a few tricks. Tomosane: You're gonna need another million years of training to match me. Takuji: This is... *He got lucky with that one. If I'd hit him in the right spot, I would've won right then and there.* *But I missed his jaw, where I was aiming, by about 10cm and ended up striking him in the cheekbone.* *A little lower... If I had hit him in the jaw, the result might've been different.* *Mamiya Takuji could still fight.* *I was on the verge of despair as I spat these next words at him.* Tomosane: Come on... I'll show you just how strong you really are. Takuji: Ugh! *I was right to be worried.* *I should've erased him sooner.* *By the time I realized, it was already too late.* Takuji: I can't believe he could do that. Takuji: Even after I was reborn... Tomosane: You haven't beaten me... until you've broken every bone in my body... Takuji: Ah! *I was losing my grip on consciousness.* *I heard a crunching sound as he dislodged one of my teeth.* *He must've kicked me.* *My head was spinning.* *But I held onto consciousness... somehow.* *But there was still nothing I could do.* Tomosane: ...Psh! Tomosane: Like hell you're the strongest. Knock it off with your delusions... You're gonna need to kick harder than that if you want to kill me. Takuji: ... Tomosane: Mamiya... remember this... Tomosane: If you don't kill me now... I'll end you next time... Tomosane: That's what it means to fight me... Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: ...Yuuki. Tomosane: I'm done playing along with your delusions. Takuji: My delusions? Tomosane: That's right... Your delusional world... No, your world itself will end. Takuji: My world itself? Tomosane: That's right... Takuji: ... Takuji: I see... I understand now. Tomosane: Understand what? Takuji: My preparation to become the savior is still not complete. Tomosane: You're still going on about that? Takuji: That's the reason you're so strong. Tomosane: Huh? What the hell does that mean? Takuji: You can come challenge me any time you like. Takuji: I'll make you bow to me every time. Takuji: Eventually, I'll make you bow down in spirit too. Takuji: I'll make you bow down before my glory. Tomosane: Y-You crazy bastard... Takuji: Hehehehehe... Keep on barking. You can challenge me any time you like. Takuji: Your existence is nothing more than a challenge for me to overcome on my path. Takuji: My battle with you is just training. Takuji: That's the reason my mother gave you such exceptional power. Tomosane: Your mother? Just how crazy are you? Takuji: Hehehehe... Well, go rest for today. You can't challenge me to a rematch with those wounds. Takuji: Hahahahahaha... *Mamiya let out a wild laugh in celebration of his victory.* *I was just thankful...* *That it wasn't night...* *That there was no knife...* *And that Hasaki wasn't there...* *Somehow, those thoughts floated up within me as I faded to black.*

*Utter defeat.* *Once I understood that, the conclusion was simple.* *My existence was no longer necessary.* *The personality created to erase Mamiya Takuji was instead defeated by him.* *More than anyone else on this planet, I was worthless and unnecessary.* *"So now what? Are you just gonna disappear?"* Tomosane: Who's that? *"You don't recognize me?"* Tomosane: Yuki? Yuki: That's right. Why the long face, pardner? Tomosane: Long face? Does that mean you can see me? Yuki: Of course I can. Tomosane: I thought I would never see you again. Yuki: Never again, huh? You said that before, too. Tomosane: Before? Did I say that? Yuki: Yeah, quite a while back. Don't worry about it. *The warmth of her skin...* *The scent of her body...* Yuki: Oh, right. I have a certain feeling to me, don't I? Tomosane: Yeah... Yuki: Then try lifting your consciousness to the surface. Tomosane: Lifting my consciousness? Yuki: Right now, Mamiya is sound asleep. It shouldn't be all that hard. Tomosane: Mamiya is sound asleep... *I was buffeted by the wind.* *I'd never felt such a cool wind at this time of year.* Tomosane: Where are we? *The trees rustled in the wind. A creek babbled in the distance.* Tomosane: It's a bit chilly. Is it autumn already? Yuki: What do you mean? Tomosane: No, I just thought maybe I was out for a long time. Like a few months or so. Yuki: If you were gone for that long, you would never come back. Tomosane: Then why is it so chilly? Tomosane: And besides... is that water I hear? It sounds like there's a stream nearby. Yuki: Open your eyes. Tomosane: My eyes? *Oh, my eyes weren't open. That's why it was so dark.* Tomosane: ... Yuki: Can you see? Tomosane: My eyes won't open. Yuki: Oh, really? Well, don't worry about it. Can you hear the sounds? Can you feel the wind? Tomosane: Yeah, I can, but... *I had forgotten how to open my eyes. I couldn't pry them open.* Yuki: Ahahahaha... Apparently, some people forget how to breathe, you know? Like when they're sleeping and stuff. But don't worry, you just need to calm yourself. Yuki: Calm yourself... and open your eyes. You can still see, I promise. Tomosane: Calm... Tomosane: What's... going on? Yuki: I'm carrying you. Tomosane: I can see that, but why are you carrying me? *Moreover, Yuki is wearing a martial arts uniform.* Yuki: You got the crap beaten out of you, remember? Tomosane: But that doesn't mean my body was actually injured. If it was, Mamiya Takuji would've been injured too. Yuki: So? Tomosane: So I'm fine. Now let me down. Yuki: Really? I thought you couldn't move at all. Tomosane: Huh?! *When I tried to get down, I could hardly move my body at all.* Tomosane: What's going on? Yuki: I told you, he beat the crap out of you. Tomosane: But that was just in my head... Yuki: What are you talking about? Those wounds aren't the only thing in your head. You and I only exist in your head too, you know? Tomosane: That's not what I mean. Yuki: There's no such thing as a fake wound. Pain is still pain. There's no faking that. Yuki: Well, I guess it does happen sometimes. Like if you go to the doctor, maybe he tells you there's no way that part of your body actually hurts, but then I'd probably just call the doctor stupid. Yuki: There's no such thing as illusory pain. If it hurts, it's pain. Those wounds you received weren't fake, either. Tomosane: Don't get philosophical on me now. Yuki: Well, if I'm being perfectly serious, I just forcibly pulled you up from your unconscious state. That's why you can't move right now. Tomosane: What do you mean? You can forcibly bring my consciousness to the forefront? Yuki: Well, there are a few risks involved. Tomosane: Risks? Yuki: Oh, don't worry about it. We're here. Tomosane: Here? Tomosane: Where are we? Yuki: The dojo, specifically the back door. We used to train here, remember? Tomosane: No, I don't. Besides, where is this, really? Yuki: The Mamiya dojo. Isn't it nostalgic? Tomosane: Mamiya's dojo? You mean our father's martial arts dojo out in the countryside? Yuki: Yeah, that's the one. Tomosane: Sure it's nostalgic or whatever, but more importantly... Why are we here? I mean, shouldn't it take like... Yuki: Hours and hours to get here from Tokyo? Tomosane: Yeah, it's not the kind of place you can just come to on a whim. Why are we here all of a sudden? Yuki: I know what you mean. Why do you think? Tomosane: We traveled here while I was unconscious? How long was I out this time? Yuki: How long do you think? Tomosane: I'm not really sure, but it doesn't feel like it was that long. Yuki: Oh, really... How long do you think, then? Tomosane: A night... or maybe a little longer. I'd say about a whole day. That's about how long it feels like. Yuki: And yet you're shocked to find that you've been transported to a far away place. Tomosane: Yeah, that about sums it up... So what's going on? Yuki: I don't know, what do you think is going on? Yuki: Oh, right, how's your body feel? Can you move yet? Tomosane: My body? Oh, you're right. *Before, I could hardly move my body at all, but now I could move it normally.* *It was like I had forgotten how to move my limbs... or maybe, like my entire body was weighted down with lead. That kind of feeling.* *That feeling was like...* Yuki: Like what? What's it like? *That's right. This particular feeling of unreality...* Tomosane: In just a day or two... I don't know exactly how much time has passed, but it doesn't seem like I could actually be standing here, so maybe... Tomosane: A dream... Is this a dream? Yuki: Hehehe... Bingo. You're smarter than you look. Tomosane: This weird feeling in my body is just like a dream, but... Yuki: Huh? Is something wrong? *What's different?* *I can't quite put my finger on it...* Tomosane: It's like my consciousness is too clear for this to be a dream... It's like I'm really awake. And besides, I've never been aware that I was dreaming while the dream was still going on before. Yuki: I know what you mean. Dreams should be a bit silly, right? Your thoughts and everything you see would be a bit off-kilter. Well, would you believe it was a dream if I was naked right now? Tomosane: You're welcome to try it. Yuki: As if! Tomosane: What's your deal? You're the one who was flashing me your panties a few days ago. Yuki: There's a big difference between panties and actual nudity. Panties are just cloth, you know. Tomosane: Who cares about that?! Anyway, are we in, uh... Tomosane: A lucid dream? Yuki: Oh, good job. I knew you would figure it out. Tomosane: No, I really don't know much about them. I've just heard other people talk about them. Yuki: Do you want me to explain? Tomosane: For future reference, I suppose... Yuki: Sure. It's important that you know what's really going on. At least if you feel up to it. Tomosane: Up to what? Yuki: Oh, don't worry about it. Anyway, lucid dreams are, uh... Well, to put it simply, it's a dream that you can control, one that you're completely aware of. Yuki: The frontal lobe and hippocampus in your brain... Uh, just think of them as the parts that control thought, consciousness, and long-term memory. Yuki: When you're awake, those parts process the information you see and hear. And when you're dreaming, you can partially wake up your frontal lobe and then it can control your dreams in cooperation with your hippocampus. Tomosane: Partially wake up my frontal lobe? I think I understand the idea, but is that really possible? Yuki: I guess it's possible if you practice enough. Tomosane: Practice? Does that mean this is a world created through practice? Yuki: I guess so. Tomosane: Coincidental fruits of our labor, I guess? Yuki: Well, there's a trick to it. Most people get really confused when their frontal lobe wakes up during a dream. Tomosane: Confusion, huh? I think I understand. When you say partially wake up, it makes me think of sleep paralysis. Yuki: Yeah, when people become aware of their dreams, they usually feel like they're trapped and can't move their bodies. Yuki: The difference between their real body and their dream body... That incongruence makes your hippocampus remember that you're sleeping. Tomosane: So even though you're not awake, your brain creates a situation where you believe you're awake? Yuki: Then your heart rate rises, your breathing speeds up, and finally you wake up. Tomosane: So that feeling from before where I couldn't move my body was because I was in a state of half-consciousness? Yuki: Yeah, because even in the dream you were still trying to move your real body. Tomosane: But I didn't wake up. Was that because of your power? Yuki: Who knows? Tomosane: I can't freely control my dreams. I can't imagine it wasn't your power. Didn't you say you practiced it? Yuki: Well, there are a lot of techniques for becoming aware of your dreams. The people on the Malay Peninsula have been developing their own technique for lucid dreaming for millennia. Tomosane: The technique for surviving erasure at Mamiya Takuji's hands... Even while your consciousness is locked away, you need to ensure a minimal level of conscious activity. Tomosane: Which means this power... Lucid dreaming would be the most useful skill for you to acquire. Yuki: You could say that. Tomosane: That must mean this is your dream. Yuki: Really? Tomosane: Well... is it not? Yuki: Isn't it a bit hasty to say it's definitely my dream? Tomosane: Huh? Why? What's hasty about that? Didn't you practice to acquire this skill? Yuki: Yeah, but still, wouldn't that be a bit weird? Tomosane: What would? Yuki: For instance, if Hasaki-chan was here, would that be the real Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: Huh? Of course not. Besides, Hasaki couldn't come here. Yuki: But it wouldn't be that weird if Hasaki-chan appeared in one of your dreams, right? Tomosane: But that would just be part of the dream. The real Hasaki could never appear in my dream. Yuki: Then if this is my dream, that would make you just a part of my dream. Are you an illusion that my brain is creating? Tomosane: No, wait, I'm not an illusion. Yuki: Then maybe it's the reverse, and I'm the one that's an illusion. Tomosane: No, wait... I'm not capable of controlling my dreams like this. Tomosane: Besides, what you're saying doesn't apply to us, since we share the same body. Yuki: Really? Is it that simple? Tomosane: Why? Yuki: For example, let's say this isn't dissociative identity disorder, or what most people call multiple personality disorder. Suppose we didn't have that. Tomosane: Huh? What do you mean? Yuki: Just listen for a second. For instance, what if there was only one body between us. Yuki: But in that one body, let's suppose that three souls had actually taken up residence. Each one of those souls could dream. Yuki: And when one soul dreams, most of the people in that dream would be people who don't share the same body. Let's say those people were just fabrications of a dreaming mind. Yuki: And let's assume that the only people in the dream who weren't just fabrications were two of the souls sharing the same body. Yuki: Isn't that a bit weird? Tomosane: Uh... That was sort of complicated, so I'm not really sure. First of all, there's no such thing as a soul. We're just the symptoms of an illness. Yuki: Oh, I see. So there's no such thing as a soul, huh? Okay, let's start from that assumption, then. Yuki: But you know, there's still the possibility that this dream isn't mine or yours, and neither of us truly exists. Tomosane: What are you trying to say? Yuki: Well, it's just, if you say that this world is someone's dream, then reality could be someone's dream too. Tomosane: That's not true. You can wake up from a dream. If you don't wake up, then it's reality. Yuki: I see. So an endless dream is reality, and you assume that you'll eventually wake up from this dream. Okay, if you say so. Tomosane: So then... why are we here? Yuki: Why not? You don't like the Mamiya dojo? Tomosane: It doesn't matter to me, but it's not like you or I have ever actually seen the dojo, right? Yuki: You think so? I suppose we didn't develop multiple personalities until quite a while after Mamiya Takuji was in Sawaimura. Tomosane: So why did you pick a place only Mamiya Takuji knows? Yuki: Hmm... I guess you don't even recognize this place in your dreams, huh? Tomosane: Of course not. I didn't exist until just two years ago, and it's been more than ten years since Mamiya Takuji stayed here. Yuki: Yeah... I guess you could say that, but it would make sense if you had the same memories, right? You share quite a lot of memories with him, don't you? Tomosane: Shared memories... Yuki: Memories about places are almost always shared, right? The layout of the school building, the road home... All those have to be shared or we'd get lost all the time, right? *Now that she mentions it...* *Place-based memories are almost always shared.* *And besides that, language, common sense, and other knowledge necessary for day-to-day life. Basic, normal knowledge a person should have is shared between us.* *Which means I should have memories about this place too.* Yuki: But you don't remember this place at all. Tomosane: Yeah, not even a little. Yuki: I see... So you don't remember it... That makes sense, I guess. Tomosane: What makes sense? Yuki: Who knows? All right, more importantly, I have a question for you. Tomosane: A question? Yuki: I guess it's just something I want to confirm. Something I need to confirm. Tomosane: Confirm what? Yuki: Yeah, um... No matter whether this is your dream or mine, this situation wouldn't come about unless someone wanted it to. Tomosane: Someone wanted this to happen? Yuki: Yeah, which in this case means you or me. One of us wanted to have a lucid dream. Normal dreams aren't like that, but you can't have a lucid dream by accident. Tomosane: Well, if you say so... Yuki: Answer this next question honestly. Tomosane: What question? Yuki: It's really important, all right? Tomosane: Yeah... Sure. Yuki: Ahem... First off * It's very hard to have a lucid dream, but it's very easy to wake up."* Yuki: But you can either keep dreaming, or you can wake up. Which means you can go back to reality. Tomosane: Reality? Yuki: That's right. If you wake up now, the Tomosane personality will return to the real world. Yuki: If you do that, you can go talk to the real Hasaki-chan, or even Master at Hakushuukyou. Tomosane: It sounds like you just said something really important. Yuki: That's right, I did. It's important that you understand that. Tomosane: Then let me ask... What if I don't wake up from this dream? Yuki: The next time you wake up will probably... no, it will definitely be your last battle with Mamiya Takuji. Tomosane: My last battle with Mamiya? Yuki: To put it simply, the deciding battle between Mamiya Takuji and you, Yuuki Tomosane. Yuki: And no matter who wins, that will be the last time 'Yuuki Tomosane' wakes up. Tomosane: The last time that I... that 'Yuuki Tomosane' wakes up? Yuki: If you wake up now... If you can wake up, then there's still time for you to do what you need to in the real world. Yuki: You were right earlier. Today is the 15th, and you've been out for about a day. Yuki: If you wake up now, there's still a bit of time left. Tomosane: And if I don't? Yuki: You won't have another chance. Tomosane: The final battle, huh... Yuki: Yep. I don't know why, but it seems like he has a clear goal in mind now. Tomosane: Yeah, it looks that way. When we fought, he said something really weird. Yuki: Yeah, that's why you've become an entirely unnecessary person in Mamiya Takuji's eyes. And as time passes, his self-certainty will only grow stronger. Yuki: This lucid dream right now is your last chance. If this dream ends, you probably won't be able to wake up before the last battle. Tomosane: How do you know I'll wake up at the final battle next? Yuki: Well, part of it is just my intuition, but he didn't finish you off last time, right? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Yuki: If he didn't finish you off, that means you two will have to fight again... That's all. Yuki: So I guess I can't be certain that there will be a battle. Yuki: But whether you choose to wake up or stay in this lucid dream, this could very well be the last of the time you have left. Tomosane: So this is the end... Yuki: You should know it too, right? July 20th, 2012. Tomosane: The prophecy... Yuki: Several decades ago, before Mamiya Takuji was even born, a religious leader prophesied that the world would end on this day. Tomosane: The White Lotus Association... Yuki: You know about it? Tomosane: No, not at all. That word just entered my brain when I made contact with Mamiya Takuji. It was a memory that he had. Yuki: Anyway, Mamiya Takuji believes that the world will be destroyed on July 20th, 2012. Yuki: And on the border of that day... on the 19th, he thinks he has to return it all to the sky. Tomosane: What does returning something to the sky mean? Yuki: You know what it means, Tomosane. Tomosane: Wha-?! *What was that just now?* Yuki: Returning something to the sky means exactly that. Returning it to the sky. Well, if those people could fly like birds, maybe they'd make it to the sky. Tomosane: They fall.. Yuki: And die. Tomosane: You said returning 'everything,' but what does that really mean? Yuki: According to the prophecy, it's a great number of people, but 'a great number' of people is entirely subjective. Either way, I'm sure that he wants to return as many people to the sky as he can. Tomosane: Hasaki isn't supposed to be one of those people, is she? Yuki: Who knows? Tomosane: What do you mean? Mamiya Takuji created you to protect Hasaki. Yuki: But hasn't he already broken those laws? Tomosane: Ah! Yuki: Those same laws say that you have to defeat Mamiya Takuji and strike him the final blow. Tomosane: Then what about Hasaki? Hasaki is the closest person to him, so if he wants to return all of humanity to the sky, then would he start with... Yuki: Are you worried about Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: Of course I am! Aren't you?! Yuki: I'm not the one who has to decide. I'm asking about your intention. Do you want to protect Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: Of course I do. If something happened to Hasaki... Yuki: Good. So go protect Hasaki-chan. Tomosane: You want me... to protect her? Yuki: That's right. To be honest, I don't think it's impossible that Mamiya Takuji might try to kill her. Yuki: Or it might be more logical to assume that he will. Tomosane: What?! Why didn't you say that earlier?! Yuki: But think it through. He doesn't think that returning to the sky means killing someone, he thinks it's the way to a better world. Yuki: Cults spring up all the time, right? There was a famous cult in the 90s that thought it wasn't bad to kill people because killing people was just 'Phowa.' Tomosane: So what's going to happen to Hasaki? Yuki: Well, it's already ended, so maybe he's satisfied as is, but... Tomosane: What do you mean? What's ended? Yuki: Oh, don't mind me. I'm just talking to myself. Regardless, protecting Hasaki is your job now, Tomosane. Tomosane: Yuki, are you... Yuki: I'm not coddling you anymore! You can't rely on me forever. Tomosane: Coddling? Yuki: That's right. If you want to protect Haskai-chan, then you'll have to be the one to protect her. Yuki: I mean, don't you get it? Those rules about the Destroyer and the Harmonizer, all that just got flushed down the toilet. Tomosane: Ah! Yuki: If you want to protect her, the best thing you can do is go back to the real world. Tomosane: You want me to go back? Yuki: Yeah, for instance, you could get Hasaki-chan to a safe place, where Mamiya Takuji can't reach her. Yuki: Well, you don't have to go too far. Wouldn't she be safe if you asked Master at Hakushuukyou to protect her? Tomosane: Master... could protect her. Yuki: Yeah, if that's what you want to do, then you should go back right now. You'll get to see Hasaki-chan again, too. If you're intent on protecting her, then that's the best way. Tomosane: But that's only one choice... is what you're saying. Yuki: Yep. Tomosane: Earlier you said that we're here because at least one of us wanted to be here, right? Here in the world of a lucid dream? Yuki: That's right. *This world appeared because either Yuki or I wished for it.* *I was struck by the impulse to just ask Yuki... "Were you the one who wished for it?"* *But I couldn't.* *That would just be relying on Yuki again.* *That's right... The one who wanted this world to exist...* Tomosane: I am here... because I wanted it. Yuki: That's a good answer. *Then why did I want this dream?* *A lucid dream, a kind of world I could control...* *What I wanted...* *To return from this place, to the real world. To spend the rest of the time I have left with Hasaki.* *To protect Hasaki. To accept the same fate as Mamiya Takuji.* *To return to the sky... In other words, to die.* *The other choice...* Tomosane: Yuki, you said we could manipulate this dream. What did you mean? Yuki: Hehehe. Didn't I just tell you about the lucid dream's structure, and how to have one? Tomosane: No, that's not what I mean. I'm not asking how to induce one, but how to control it. Tomosane: Something like this... Have you heard the story about when the swordsman, Itou Ittousai, learned his famous technique, the Annihilating Blade? Tomosane: Ittousai unwittingly spent the night with a woman who bore him a grudge. Tomosane: Once he feel asleep, she hid a blade under his pillow, and then beckoned dozens of assassins to come into his room. Tomosane: Ittousai was a hair's width away from death, but even in his sleep, he evaded his opponent's blades, and before he even awoke he had mastered the new technique. Yuki: But that story is bullshit. Tomosane: But Ittousai already possessed a secret technique called the Dream Blade. It was said to allow him to unconsciously cut his enemies down. Yuki: A lucid dream. Waking only one part of the brain during unconsciousness, and controlling your dream. When we invoke the mental state of the great swordsman of the past, we enter a lucid dream. Is that what you mean? Tomosane: Yeah. It's just my intuition, though. Yuki: Ahahaha, that's a good answer, Tomosane. Yuki: I see. So you want to find a mental state that eludes you outside your dreams... You think there might be an answer here in the lucid dream? Tomosane: Yeah, didn't you say that Mamiya Takuji could sense my movements even when he wasn't conscious? Yuki: Even when he's out like a light, he still knows what's going on in the world, just as if he was awake. Tomosane: I see... Yuki: Heh, hehehe... Tomosane: Wh-What's so funny? Yuki: Oh, come on. Use your common sense. There's no way my lucid dream could ever be the same as a famous swordsman's. Itou Ittousai was said to have never lost a duel in his life, and that was during the violence of the Sengoku Period. Tomosane: That's true, but... Yuki: Besides, the best I can do with my powers is watch the other two people in the same body. Tomosane: But still, that's hard... I don't understand it at all. Tomosane: And the person I'm fighting is not a master, an expert, or a virtuoso. Tomosane: The one I'm fighting is Mamiya Takuji. As you put it, one of those other people in the same body. Tomosane: If this mindstate will help me beat him, there's value in acquiring it even if it's useless against anyone else. Yuki: Hehehe... Just so you know, in all dreams, including lucid dreams, your perception of time gets messed up. What feels like an hour to you in a dream might be a few minutes in reality. Yuki: It's not the same as the master swordsman's technique, but you can clearly affect the amount of time the other personalities are conscious. Tomosane: Which means? Yuki: If you can acquire the right mindstate, you might be able to defeat Mamiya Takuji. Tomosane: Could I win? Yuki: Only if you really understand it, but it's not a simple thing to learn. Tomosane: I know that it's not simple. Yuki: I see... You haven't changed a bit, have you? Tomosane: I haven't changed? Yuki: Oh, I'm just talking to myself. All right, this is Yuki-nee's final lesson. Yuki: So that you can overcome everything... So that, at the end of it all, you will win. Yuki: We'll have a match. Yuki: What even I could do for the sake of those final moments. *Did Yuki just say something?* Tomosane: Huh?! Yuki: What's wrong? Why so surprised? *Wh-What was that? I didn't see her hit me at all.* Yuki: What, was it that surprising? Tomosane: I'm more than just surprised. That attack just now... Yuki: What, you couldn't see it coming? Tomosane: Yeah, it didn't feel normal at all. Yuki: What are you talking about? Of course it didn't. This is a dream. Yuki: In order for two people in the same body to read each other's moves, they would have to react after the electrical impulses were sent to the muscles in the body, right? Tomosane: Yeah... Yuki: But there's no real need for us to send those signals to the real body, so there would be no time lag to react to. Tomosane: In other words, I can't avoid your attacks because there's no delay before you hit me. Yuki: Hehehe... You think? Try attacking me. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Wha-?! Tomosane: Agh... Yuki: Weird, huh? I shouldn't be able to read your moves, since there's no delay. In other words, that should've hit. Tomosane: ...Ah! Yuki: And yet, it didn't hit. Plus, you can't even dodge my attacks. Tomosane: Ow! Yuki: Hehehe... Weird, huh? You can't hit me at all, and you can't defend yourself. *What's going on? She's not just reacting to my movements. It's like she's predicting them all beforehand."* Yuki: All right. You'll have to remember it by the pain in your body. The real training starts now. Tomosane: Grr... Tomosane: Haaa... Haa... Yuki: You're tired already? How can you get tired in a dream? Tomosane: Shut up... *Damn it... Yuki's right.* *Why am I breathing hard? This is just a dream.* Yuki: Come on, you can do better than that. I'm disappointed. *Now that I think of it...* *Why is Yuki so strong?* *She should be as strong as I am.* *Maybe it's because this is a dream?* *No, in that case...* Yuki: What are you spacing out for? That's no good. Yuki: Now you're just getting sloppy. You're letting me hit you with both hands. Tomosane: Damn it! *My attacks couldn't hit her. She avoided them all without difficulty.* *Why?* *Since this is a battle in a dream world, where our bodies don't really exist, there's no delay between our brain and our muscles.* *Because we don't have physical bodies here.* Tomosane: Ah! *How can I feel pain in a dream?* *I read in a book that you can hear, feel, taste, and smell in a dream.* *But it's supposed to be impossible to feel pain in a dream.* *So why am I feeling pain?* *What is... pain?* Tomosane: Agh... *I collapsed, falling to the ground.* Tomosane: Haa, haa, haa... *Even in the dream, it hurt to breathe. My entire body hurt.* *Why?* Yuki: I didn't think you were that dim, Tomosane. Yuki: At this rate, you're gonna run out of time. *Time...* *I'm going to run out of time?* *If I lose consciousness here, I might never wake up again.* *If this lucid dream ends, there will be nothing left for me except the end.* *I won't be able to protect Hasaki...* Tomosane: Ugh... Aaaahh! Tomosane: Agh! Yuki: Being reckless won't help you now. If this was the real world, I could beat you just by breaking your body, right? Yuki: But in a battle between minds, what good does that do? Tomosane: A battle between minds... *A battle happening between two minds.* *That's right. It hurt so bad, but it wasn't the real world.* *The world existed only in our minds.* *The pain I was feeling was only created by my mind.* *Only my mind.* Yuki: Now that you've abused your body and gotten yourself all beaten up, do you understand? Or is this all going to end before you figure it out? *Was there something I was supposed to understand from abusing my body?* *No... The truth is, I wasn't abusing my body at all.* *Then why did my body hurt so much?* Tomosane: So much? *It still hurt to breathe.* *Why did it hurt?* Tomosane: It hurts... to breathe? Yuki: ... Tomosane: ... *Mysteriously, Yuki smiled.* *Why?* *...* *Was that the answer?* *The pain of breathing... Is that the answer?* Tomosane: The reason it hurts to breathe in my dream is because... *Because in this state of half-wakening, the mind mistakes the sleeping body for a waking one.* *In other words, it's the same as sleep paralysis.* Tomosane: Sleep paralysis. Yuki: Only subjective time exists in a dream. If you believe that my attacks are unbelievably fast, then they will be. *I felt that Yuki's attacks were fast.* *Not just fast... unavoidable.* *Like my body was submerged in lead.* Tomosane: It's like my body's made of lead. Yuki: This mental world only has subjective time. Think about what it means that we're in a lucid dream. *Yuki's attacks were terrifyingly fast.* *They were ridiculously fast, but somehow, I had started to see them with my eyes.* *But...* *But I couldn't dodge it. Yuki's fist struck me in the chest.* *Dull pain flowed through my breast.* Tomosane: Gah... *The shock from the blow sent me sprawling backward several steps.* Tomosane: Next! *It was a straight punch. The hardest strike to dodge, because the distance is the shortest.* *But this time I could follow its trajectory with my eyes.* *Then I realized for the first time...* *The sound of her fist cutting through air was stretched out, and everything I saw appeared to be in slow motion.* *Yuki's attacks weren't fast. I was just very slow.* *I took another punch, unable to dodge it.* *Pain ran through my body.* *But I noticed that the pain also seemed to spread more slowly.* *Everything was slower.* *That's right. Yuki wasn't particularly fast to begin with. What I hadn't realized before was how slow I was.* Tomosane: Ah! *After the attack, time sped up to normal speed again.* *In the moment when Yuki attacked... no, when either of us attacked, time slowed down to a crawl, like we were underwater.* *It was just like...* Tomosane: A dream... Yuki: That's right. This is a dream, after all. *This is a dream?* *I felt slow because it's a dream.* *My opponent was moving at normal speed, but my own body would hardly move.* *Something very common.* *And I assumed the reverse of that common occurence.* *I didn't think I was slow.* *I thought Yuki was just very fast.* *But that's not the truth.* *This happens all the time in dreams.* Yuki: That's right. It happens all the time in dreams. So what are you going to do about it? *Yuki attacked again.* *The sound of her attack was slowly transmitted to me as her fist moved forward.* *Yuki wasn't fast. I was slow.* *Even knowing that, there was nothing I could do to react.* *I misunderstood the truth, but the result was the same either way.* *Yuki's attacks hit, and mine missed.* *No matter how hard I tried to push my body, it wouldn't move fast enough.* *Quite the opposite. The more I thought about it, the slower my body got.* *The next one struck me in the face.* *Then a thought occurred to me.* *Does getting punched really hurt?* *I expected the dull pain to erupt in my cheek.* *And when I thought that...* *The pain stopped and disappeared.* Yuki: You want to master the lucid dream, right? *Master it?* *I was trying to learn about lucid dreams from Yuki.* *I didn't come here to learn how to fight.* *My skills hadn't atrophied to the point where I needed lessons from Yuki.* *And of course, my martial prowess couldn't be inferior to Mamiya Takuji's either.* Tomosane: A lucid dream... I see. So that's what it is. *I found a simple answer.* *The most natural answer.* Tomosane: This isn't a lucid dream. Tomosane: This is just... a dream. Tomosane: No, since I'm partially awake, maybe it's cloer to sleep paralysis. Tomosane: Which means... *Yuki moved to attack me again.* *I didn't dodge the attack.* *I didn't run.* *I moved straight foward to meet her fist.* *A lucid dream isn't just a dream that you recognize as a dream.* *It's a dream that you recognize for what it is, so that you can control it.* *Which I means I can alter the dream as I wish.* *It's said that there was a tribe in southeast Asia that had trained themselves in the art of lucid dreaming since ancient times.* *That technique involved recognizing a dream for what it was.* *For instance, the tribe members would talk about dreams with each other when they were awake.* *By talking about them, the dreams became encoded in language, assuming a form that could be more easily grasped and understood.* *And then, there was one thing they had to do when they realized it was a dream.* *That one thing was simply not running away.* *Most lucid dreams are born of nightmares.* *A nightmare happens when a person creates an embodiment of their anxiety in a dream.* *And then they fear the nightmare.* *No, in truth it is that embodiment of terror within the nightmare which they fear.* *There's no need to fear something in a dream.* *But no one is free from fear.* *Because they can't recognize that the dream is just a dream.* *Recognizing the dream for what it is.* *That alone isn't enough to create a lucid dream.* *A lucid dream is the inability to run from the embodiment of fear dwelling in the bottom of your heart.* *The important part is to conquer that fear.* *If you can beat back the fear...* *If in your dreams you feel no fear...* Yuki: Oh, shoot... *Yuki's attack didn't even graze me, cutting through the empty air.* *I moved to hit her while she was open.* *I clenched my fist.* *No hesitation.* *"I might not hit."* *"I might be powerless."* *"I might not win."* *Eliminate all doubt.* *All I could think in that moment...* Tomosane: My fist will find its mark. Yuki: Whoa! *My fist slammed into Yuki's cheekbone.* *There was no pain in my fist.* *Yuki was blown away, just like that.* Tomosane: Yuki! Yuki: Oww! Hey now * take it easy."* Tomosane: S-Sorry. Yuki: Jeez. *Then she rubbed her cheek, and her split lip healed back to normal.* Yuki: And that's that. Tomosane: I see. So I was trying to have a lucid dream until now. Yuki: That's right. Tomosane: Then... what about the dream up until now? Yuki: It's your dream, of course. But it's my dream too. Yuki: We're just doing the same thing we did when we first met, only we're in the subconscious, in a dream, instead of fully conscious. Tomosane: Only in a dream? Yuki: That's right. Whenever we meet in the real world, that's not actually the real world. It's the exact same as this world. Yuki: It's a world contained within our minds. Yuki: When our entire brain is working all at once like that, for some reason we can't actually tell that we're fighting someone in our head, not a real person. Yuki: But the truth is, it's the same thing as this. Yuki: In our world, the person who wants it more gets the initiative. Yuki: You seem to be under the impression that Mamiya Takuji is the game master of this world and the two of us are just pawns on the chessboard, but you're wrong. Yuki: The fact is, there is no single game master who controls this world. Yuki: Reality bends to serve the person who believes harder. Yuki: That's why you wanted it to be a lucid dream. Yuki: So that you could pull Mamiya Takuji off his throne as the game master. Tomosane: Wait... If you can control lucid dreams, then why can't you stop Mamiya Takuji yourself? Yuki: You should've understood that from what just happened. A lucid dream is just believing in yourself and overcoming the fear within. Yuki: I can control dreams and subconscious worlds, but I can't control the real world. Tomosane: Is it possible to control the real world like that? Yuki: Right now, Mamiya Takuji absolutely believes that he can change the world by his will. He thinks he's the avatar of God on Earth. Tomosane: The avatar of God? Yuki: Yes. At some point he began to believe that he could control not only his own mind, but the entire world with his will. Yuki: There's no way my will could overcome someone like that, right? Tomosane: Maybe, but... Yuki: But what? If you think you can't beat him, you might as well give up now. Let me just say it now: if you're already hesitating, you won't win. Tomosane: Won't win... Yuki: Yeah... Tomosane: ... Tomosane: I remember you said this. Yuki: What? Tomosane: You said he was growing stronger, so this would be the end. Yuki: Yeah, that's right. Tomosane: That's not true. Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: I'm going to go find Hasaki before my battle with Mamiya. Yuki: Wait, that's impossible. There's no time... *I understood what Yuki was saying.* *This lucid dream will disappear.* *Yuki's lucid dream will end here.* *As Yuki floated in unconsciousness, she must've even thought that she would never be able to rise to consciousness again.* *That's why she said this would be the end.* *I understand that.* *I understand...* Tomosane: ...The time when you float to the surface. *I felt the presentiment.* *No, I felt the certainty.* *The future I believe in is undoubtedly the future that will come to pass.* *If he's the son of God, sent to save the world...* *If he truly is the savior...* *Then I will destroy his claim to divinity.* *I will become the hero.*

*There was a noise.* *It was in the way.* *An unnecessary existence.* *Something that should be removed.* *It is.* *But,* *If your position changes, that too,* *Changes.* *A difference in perspective.* *What sounds like plain noise to one person could be a revelation to another.* *In the year 1964, two researchers doing experiments in communication technologies discovered a certain noise.* *The unexplainable noise vexed the two researchers, so they attempted to rule out every possible source of the noise.* *Every possible source of interference, from the din of traffic to plain old bird shit on the antenna.* *Even after removing all possible interference, the noise wouldn't go away.* *Later, they realized the noise being recorded had its source in the genesis of the universe.* *It became clear that this radiation was left over from the Big Bang.* *They won the Nobel Prize for their discovery.* *A simple noise brought them glory.* *Humanity gained new scientific knowledge because they noticed a noise.* *If the position changes,* *If the observer changes,* *A simple noise can be the calling to a whole new world.* *"I see. So that's how it is."* *"The location of the soul. The model of a samsaric world."* *"Three shadows on the wall, shadow puppets accelerating into oblivion."* Tomosane: Why, you... *"I have a name, you know."* Tomosane: Who are you? *"Who?"* Tomosane: Tell me, who are you? *"I'm not anyone. I'm only watching an unending armilla from afar."* Tomosane: An unending armilla? *"A model of time. How amusing. All within it are mere toys and souls to be played with."* Tomosane: That voice... You're... Ayana: Hello, Mamiya-kun. I am Ayana. Who are you? Tomosane: I'm Mamiya Takuji. Ayana: Mamiya Takuji? That's a lie. Mamiya-kun is taking a little nap right now, you see. I made sure of that. *...* *What a bizarre response.* *I look like Mamiya Takuji to normal people.* *But the person standing before me had realized I wasn't Mamiya Takuji.* *And she just said he was taking... a nap?* *I could tell she wasn't a normal schoolgirl.* Tomosane: I'm Yuuki Tomosane, and you're... *Someone from a class in this school.* *I'm not sure, though.* Tomosane: One of Minakami Yuki's acquaintances... *I didn't know her myself, but memories of this girl were engraved in my hippocampus from Yuki's experiences.* Ayana: Yes, and I'm acquainted with Mamiya-kun as well. Not to mention one other person. *She pointed at me.* Tomosane: We just met. I wouldn't say we're acquainted... And more importantly, why are you here? Ayana: Hehe, Mamiya-kun called for me. Tomosane: He called for you? Ayana: Yeah, I was just playing on the water tank, and Mamiya-kun came looking for me. That's why I'm here. *Why would she be playing on the water tank in the middle of the night? I was a bit curious about that, but it didn't really matter to me.* Tomosane: So he was looking for you... What then? Ayana: We talked. Mamiya-kun tried to touch my soul, and he broke. *...* *An even stranger response.* *Normally, I would just think she was a bit of a mysterious girl, but...* *But, somehow...* *I got the feeling that this girl wasn't normal.* *But that's why...* Tomosane: All right. So there was a gap in his consciousness because he tried to touch your soul. What happened to Mamiya Takuji after that? Ayana: Isn't Mamiya Takuji always with you? Tomosane: But he's not here right now. Ayana: That's because you came here with a strong determination... Right? *I came with a strong determination...* *Me?* Tomosane: You said he broke, but should I take that to mean that Mamiya Takuji's consciousness was fractured? Ayana: Yes, there was a small fracture in Mamiya-kun's sense of self. You pushed through that fracture to get here. Tomosane: I pushed his consciousness aside... Ayana: Yes, which was quite the surprise indeed. The body you're inhabiting right now is almost entirely under Mamiya's control. Tomosane: Oh, so you were surprised that I came out... *Maybe it was surprising, but...* *But... I at least wasn't surprised that it happened.* *That's right. I had a feeling this would happen.* *Waking up at the final battle with Mamiya Takuji... Being completely unable to find my consciousness in this world for even a moment before the battle...* *That's what Yuki said would happen.* *But...* Ayana: You had a premonition. Tomosane: ...Yeah. *Somehow, I knew I would wake up again.* *Why?* Ayana: Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent. You should not peer lightly into the abyss. I would call that foolhardy, not brave. Tomosane: What do you mean? Ayana: More importantly, there's something important to you in this world, right? That's what anchored your consciousness to this world. Tomosane: Yeah... *That's right. This girl's ramblings aren't important right now.* *The most important thing right now...* *The reason why I fought to reclaim a moment of consciousness...* Ayana: Hehehe, at least you're honest. That's a good boy. Tomosane: Anyway, you said your name was Ayana? You have my thanks. Ayana: Why? Tomosane: I don't really understand, but you're the one who did this, right? Ayana: I don't understand either. *...* *I didn't know the reason.* *The only thing I knew for sure was that Mamiya Takuji tried to come in contact with her, and then he lost consciousness.* *Doubts still filled my mind.* *If Mamiya Takuji's soul was fractured by coming in contact with this girl...* *That meant she was capable of interacting with our souls, just like the three of us can.* *That's the same thing as sharing the same body with us, but...* Ayana: I don't share your body. Tomosane: Yeah... *And she could even read my mind.* *But right now...* Tomosane: When will Mamiya Takuji's soul return? *And when it does, what will happen to me?* Ayana: Don't worry about him. He won't be coming back for quite a while. Probably not until just before dawn. Tomosane: Just before dawn? Ayana: Yes, he won't return until then. Just before the sun rises. You are the ruler of that body until the sky glows orange again. But... Tomosane: Once it does glow orange, he will return. *So that's it...* *I looked at the time.* *It was the 17th, at 10:30 p.m.* *Hasaki had already returned home...* *Dawn would be after 4:30 a.m, so I just had to get home before then.* *If I hurried, I could make it in time.* Tomosane: Whoa! Ayana: What? Tomosane: Wh-Why are you following me? Ayana: I'm going home too. I guess we're going the same way. Tomosane: No, we're not. You followed me down from the rooftop. Ayana: Oh, but... you should be careful on your way home. Tomosane: On my way home? *The road home...* *That's right.* *I could tell something happened while I was unconscious.* *I learned how to control my lucid dreams, so I could perceive some of the things that Mamiya experienced.* *I wasn't as good as Yuki, so I didn't know the exact details, but I felt pretty sure that I was in a dangerous situation.* *Even if I didn't know the details, I was pretty sure there were people looking for me (at least here in the school).* *So I had to be careful in picking my route home.* *All right...* Tomosane: Thanks for the advice. I'll take it to heart... Wait, what? *...* *I was just lost in thought for a moment, and she disappeared when I averted my gaze.* *When I looked again, there was no one there.* Tomosane: Ayana... *I didn't even hear her footsteps.* *It was like she had just vanished into thin air.* *But more importantly, I had something I needed to do.* Tomosane: Haa, haa, haa... *I went into the sewers through the old pool's entrance.* *When I was in the water storage tank, I thought I heard someone, but I was careful not to let them hear me.* *I just needed to get back home.* *I wanted to go through the sewers into the irrigation canal, and then out through the hole in the fence.* *I took the fire escape down from the third story, then cut across the courtyard, climbed down the manhole, and then went through the sewers and the irrigation canal.* *I knew I couldn't just walk out the front gate today.* Tomosane: I'm a wanted man, apparently, and these guys know what they're doing. *I took the ladder out of the irrigation canal and came out on the street I normally walked down to get to and from school.* *It didn't look like anyone was watching this route.* *I didn't feel any eyes on me.* Tomosane: The train should still be running at this time of night. *I had plenty of time to get home.* *Hasaki...* *I began to run.* *If I ran to Suginomiya and got on a train, I could get home before Hasaki went to sleep.* *My final battle would be tomorrow, just before dawn.* *I had to see her before the sun rises.* *There was still something I had to do.* Tomosane: Haa, haa, haa... *Why are all the lights off? Is she sleeping already?"* Tomosane: Crap! Tomosane: Hasaki! *There was no answer.* *I didn't even hear the echo of my own voice.* *It was like my voice had been absorbed by the thick black curtain of darkness that covered the room.* Tomosane: Hasaki! Hasaki, are you there? *I yelled for her over and over.* *There was no answer.* Tomosane: Is she gone? Hasaki! *I searched the entire house.* *I looked in her room first, and then I searched my room, the study, and all the empty rooms.* *The bathroom, the bathtub... She would've yelled at me if she was in the bath, but I wasn't worried about that.* Tomosane: Hasaki! *Hasaki was gone.* *She wasn't anywhere I looked.* *That's strange. Why isn't she home?* *Maybe she's at our mother's apartment?* *No, there's no way she would stay there late at night.* Tomosane: Hasaki! *Why?* *Why isn't Hasaki here?* *Did Mamiya Takuji take her?* Tomosane: No, it's probably... *That's not it.* *I really hope that's not it.* *If Mamiya Takuji tried to do something to Hasaki, there would definitely cause a disturbance in my consciousness. There would be some kind of disturbance or signal that I could feel.* *Thanks to Yuki's training, I could feel fragments of Mamiya's perceptions in the world of our subconscious.* *I would have definitely felt something if he had hurt Hasaki.* *Which means Mamiya Takuji hasn't done anything to Hasaki.* *I think...* Tomosane: Then why isn't Hasaki here? Hasaki is gone... *"Huh? Is that you, Tomosane-kun?"* Tomosane: Ah! *I instantly reacted to the voice behind me.* *I shouldn't have let my guard down, even if I was in my own house.* *I can't believe I let someone sneak up on me. If he hadn't called out, I would've been done for.* Tomosane: Who are you?! *"Wh-Whoa! Wait, wait!"* Kimura: Ahahahaha, good evening. Tomosane: Wh-Why, you! Kimura: Um... You're Yuuki Tomosane-kun right now, aren't you? Tomosane: How do you know my name? And why are you in my house?! Kimura: Whoa, w-wait a second. You're looking for Hasaki-chan, aren't you? Tomosane: Did you take her?! Kimura: Wh-Why would I do that? W-Wait just a second, ah, ahh. Tomosane: Tell me! What did you do to Hasaki?! Kimura: Ah, ahh... Tomosane: ...Hey! Kimura: Th-There's a light at the end of the tunnel... Kimura: H-How rude! You nearly killed me! Tomosane: S-Sorry... You suddenly popped up behind me. Besides, I'm allowed to defend myself against intruders in my home. Kimura: I guess you do, but I have permission. Look, I have a key. Tomosane: Why do you have a house key? Did you― Kimura: No, no, Hasaki-chan asked me to wait here. She wanted me to tell her if you came back. Tomosane: Me? Kimura: Yeah, Hasaki-chan said she didn't really want to come back to this house. Tomosane: She doesn't? Hasaki said that? Kimura: Yeah. I think she said something like, 'There's no one left in this house who knows me.' Tomosane: Kimura... You seem to know my, well, our secret. Kimura: Yeah, you have multiple personality disorder, right? I could hardly believe it at first. I thought only real nutcases had that. Tomosane: So where is Hasaki right now? Kimura: She's at Hakushuukyou bar. The place where she works. Tomosane: At Hakushuukyou? Kimura: Yeah, I guess she's been staying there the past few nights. Master is protecting her. Tomosane: Master is? Kimura: Yeah. He was your teacher, right? I heard he was an instructor in an ancient style of martial arts, so if anyone can keep her safe, it's that person, right? It seems like the right decision to me. Tomosane: I see. So she was at the shop... Kimura: She was really down, too. She said the only personalities left were Mamiya Takuji and a new personality, right? Kimura: A new personality... Minakami Yuki-san, I think? Tomosane: I guess so... Tomosane: Wait. How do you know all of that? Kimura: Hasaki-chan trusts me. Tomosane: Damn it, Hasaki... This guy is just a shady reporter. Kimura: What? How am I shady? Tomosane: How are you not shady? Every time I see you, I wonder if you're going to get arrested today. Kimura: Oh, I've had a few run-ins with the police. *So he has... I'm surprised he's still working this job.* Kimura: But I'm not a bad person, you know? The Master at Hakushuukyou always consoles me, telling me I'm a real journalist. Tomosane: That means he wants your precious little boy hole. Kimura: Huh? Seriously? Tomosane: Either that, or he just wants to cheer you up so you'll spend some money. Kimura: Oh, that might be it. Tomosane: You're always interacting with the target of your investigations. Shouldn't you be hiding and watching, or something like that? Kimura: The target of my investigations is Mamiya Takuji. I'm pretty sure he doesn't know about me. Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji is your target? Kimura: Yeah, I'm not interested in you or Minakami Yuki-san. The one I'm interested in is Mamiya Takuji. Tomosane: Why? Kimura: You really don't know? I see. So you really aren't aware of what's happening when the other personalities are in control. Tomosane: No, I know a little bit about it. Mamiya Takuji is using the Internet to spread fear... And he's gathering people. Kimura: Huh? You know about it? I thought you didn't know anything about the times when you were unconscious? Tomosane: That was true before. Things have changed, and now I can tell a bit about what he's doing. Kimura: Really? Th-Then there's a lot I need to ask you. Like, on the night of the 15th, he called Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko to the site of the suicide, right? Tomosane: I told you, I only know a little bit. I don't know any details. Only the big picture. Kimura: Oh, really... That's too bad. Tomosane: More importantly... You're still following me, huh? Kimura: Of course. I was investigating the use of drugs among the youth, but then one of my leads died in an accident, and then a girl from that same school participated in a group suicide. Kimura: And then the teacher fell and died too! If I didn't investigate this, I wouldn't be a journalist. Tomosane: A journalist, huh? It's just a shitty, third-rate paper, isn't it? Kimura: Journalism is all about perseverance in the face of adversity. Maybe it's not a big national paper, but it's not third-rate, either. Tomosane: Well, that's a wonderful philosophy you have there, but I don't care. Kimura: So anyway, I can't meet Mamiya Takuji himself, but I have met the other personality... The new one. Kimura: Or maybe I should say I saw her? The one named Minakami Yuki-san, that is. Tomosane: How do you know you met her? We all look the same to you. Kimura: Yeah, the difference is pretty subtle. I would never guess you had multiple personalities if I hadn't been told. I'm surprised how good you guys are at camouflaging your three different personalities. Kimura: At first, I imagined that your voice, your attitude, and your choice of words would all change when your personality changed. Tomosane: But our choice of words does change, doesn't it? Kimura: I guess so, but even I use different words in different circumstances. I might say 'Excuse me.' to a stranger, but I would say 'I'm terribly sorry, Sir!' to my boss. Kimura: And someone's personality can vary too, depending on whether they're happy or sad, cheerful or depressed. It's really strange when you think about it. Tomosane: What is? Kimura: It's just something I thought about when I was watching you. You have multiple personalities, but the changes I could see were just normal things that could apply to anyone. Kimura: How can we be so sure that there's only one personality inside all the other people we know? Kimura: Having the same body isn't the same as having the same soul. And even someone's body can look completely different depending on the circumstances, right? Tomosane: That's why we say a person is 'nicer than he looks on the outside' or 'that person has changed.' Kimura: Yeah, we never know what someone's like on the inside. All those phrases exist because we believe the person we're talking to is just one, single person. Tomosane: Um, I don't have time to sit around and talk with you. It's really important that I see Hasaki. Tomosane: Let me thank you for the information, at least. I won't waste any more of your time. *I ran to the entranceway.* Kimura: W-Wait a second. Tomosane: Shut up. I told you I don't have time to talk to you. The last train is leaving soon. Kimura: The last train? You won't make it in time, even if you sprint the whole way. Tomosane: Well, that's too bad! Now get out of my way! Kimura: W-Wait! Tomosane: Shut up! I don't have time! Kimura: Hold on. I have a car. I can drive you over to the bar in Suginomiya. Tomosane: A car? Kimura: Yeah, besides, Hasaki told me to bring you over if you showed up. You don't need to worry about the train. Tomosane: O-Oh, okay. *What's going on?* *I didn't expect that at all.* *I was riding in that shady journalist's, Kimura's, car.* *Apparently, this Kimura guy was pretty well acquainted with Hasaki and Master.* *Somehow, that happened without me knowing about it at all.* *But maybe I should've expected that.* *I had a vague sense of Mamiya Takuji and Minakami Yuki's experiences, but I didn't have a clue what was going on otherwise.* *I had no idea what Hasaki had been doing the past few days.* *I was just glad...* *I was glad to hear that she was safe.* *I opened the bar's distinctive, heavy door.* *How long has it been?* *It hadn't been that long.* *But it felt nostalgic, like I hadn't been there in months.* Tomosane: Good evening. Is Hasaki here? Master: O-Oh? Kimura: Hello... It's me, Kimura. Master: Oh, does that mean... Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Yeah... It's me, Tomosane. Hasaki: Uwaaaah! Tomosane: Wh-Whoa, Hasaki. Hasaki: I thought I would never see you again. I was so sure. Things were just getting crazier and crazier with Takuji Nii-san. Tomosane: Crazy, huh? I guess so... Hasaki: You probably don't know what's been happening, but a lot of people have been dying and going missing. Tomosane: No, I can follow the traces of his memory. I do share the same brain with that bastard, for what it's worth. Master: Huh? You can do that? Tomosane: I learned how to do it just recently. I got a bit of training. Master: Hmm, and it seems like you've grown up a bit since I last saw you. Something's changed, for sure. Did something happen? Tomosane: Nothing in particular, really. After Mamiya Takuji beat me up, I spent a lot of time wandering through a dream. Master: A dream? Tomosane: Yeah. I met Yuki for a little while. Master: Yuki? Oh, I see. Hmm... Tomosane: What? *Master gave me a knowing smile.* Master: Hahahaha, I can still see a bit of her in you. Tomosane: Who? Master: Oh, nothing. I'm just talking to myself. Besides, don't you need to talk to Hasaki-chan about something? Tomosane: Yes. Master: Weren't you in a rush? Go right ahead. Tomosane: All right. Master: Hm? Tomosane: But first... Master! Master: What? Tomosane: Please step outside! Master: Outside? What, you want to talk to me alone? Tomosane: No. I'm telling you to step outside with me! Master: Huh? Master: You want to hook up?! Tomosane: No! I'm telling you to step your ass outside! Master: Hehehe... What's wrong? This is rare from you. Tomosane: It's not just rare. It's the first time... Asking your instructor to step outside is like suicide. Master: But you're still saying it? Tomosane: Yes... Please. Master: All right. Hasaki: Huh? Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: The truth is, I came home just to tell you one thing, but there's something I have to confirm before I can say it. Hasaki: U-Um, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I had a dream... Hasaki: A dream? Master: That's what you said earlier. You met Yuki, right? Tomosane: Yes, I met Yuki, and she taught me how to control my dreams. Master: Controlling your dreams, huh? Like a lucid dream? Tomosane: You know about it? Master: Yeah, that state of mind is often used in the world of martial arts. Tomosane: Is it? Then I definitely need to ask you something, so please step outside. Master: Jeez, is that the hip new catchphrase that all the fresh meat are saying? Tomosane: Please don't call me fresh meat. That's disgusting. Hasaki: Huh? Wh-What? Hasaki: Master? Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Just give us a moment. Hasaki: B-But I haven't seen you in so long... Tomosane: Don't worry about me. I'll be right back. *The location was... the roof of the bar.* *It wasn't very big.* *But it was still a lot bigger than the inside of a dojo.* *Though not nearly as big as the school's rooftop.* Master: Let me ask you this first. Why did you learn to fight? Tomosane: I'm not really sure myself. Mamiya Takuji learned it, and that's how I met you. Master: That's not what I mean. Why did you continue to train? Master: Yuki and Takuji-kun didn't keep training, at least. You're the only one who continued to train under me. Tomosane: I don't know for sure. Master: Then let me change the question... Why are you standing before me now? Master: This is the last of the time you have left, isn't it? Why aren't you spending it with Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: Because... *The last of the time I have left...* *No one told him this was the end. He must've figured it out when he saw my expression.* *Why didn't I spend the last time I had left with Hasaki-chan instead?* Tomosane: One reason is... because I have to surpass my instructor. Master: Hehehehe... You're awfully confident. Don't you know how much stronger than you I am? Tomosane: Yes. I doubt I could win one match out of a hundred against you. That's what I truly believe. Tomosane: You're a lot stronger than me, you're much more skilled, and you have far more experience, too. Master: But you said you were going to surpass me, didn't you? Tomosane: Yes... That's my first goal. Master: Why is that? Tomosane: So that I can be with Hasaki forever. Tomosane: So that I can protect Hasaki from now on. Master: From now on? Forever? Tomosane: Yes, for the rest of my life. Tomosane: That's why I have to make the impossible possible. I have to fight a battle that I have no chance of winning. Master: A battle you can't win, huh? *My battle with Mamiya Takuji.* *Certainly, I had no chance of winning that battle.* *What I knew for sure from my training with Yuki in the lucid dream was...* *The one thing that decides the victor in a battle between our different personalities is force of will.* *No, it's not force of will... It's simply the belief in one's own victory.* *If my power was greater than Mamiya Takuji's, my consciousness wouldn't have been sealed away until today by his.* *Since he was able to seal my consciousness away, that means Mamiya Takuji was stronger than I was.* Master: Is the opponent you intend to fight really that strong? Stronger than me? Tomosane: He's not stronger than you are. If you fought him, I think you'd easily defeat him. Tomosane: But a battle between two people in the same body doesn't work the same way. Tomosane: The battle isn't decided by the body, but rather by the mind. Tomosane: And in that regard, there's a world of difference between us. Tomosane: So let me fight you, Master, since you're stronger and more skilled than me. Master: I see... So if you can beat someone who's stronger and more skillful than you, the deciding factor would be your indomitable willpower. Tomosane: Yes... and please don't hold back. Even if you were to break every bone in my body, you would at least put an end to Mamiya Takuji's crazy scheme. Master: In other words, you want me to send you to the hospital... Tomosane: Yes, and I'll fight with every intention of hospitalizing you, too. Master: Hmm... Master: Well, aren't you cocky... Don't worry, I'll fix that for you. *The atmosphere changed.* *There was a different vibe in the air.* *That was my master's... Minakami Toshio's power.* *He was an instructor in the dojo for decades.* *He's been virtually undefeated for his entire life.* *The only stain on his record was a result of his fight with the master of the Mamiya dojo.* *And that master was my paternal grandfather.* *Mamiya Ryuu, the descendant of a family of ancient Shinto practitioners.* *Toshio's loss to my grandfather was the first and only loss he suffered.* *At the time, Minakami Toshio was about twenty years old, and my grandfather was already growing old.* *Toshio was so much taller and heavier that he made his opponent look like a child.* *But he was utterly defeated, without laying a single finger on my grandfather.* *Mamiya Ryuu was apparently quite exceptional, even among practitioners of the ancient martial arts.* *He had strong religious views, and the only people he bowed to were Shinto priests.* *Rather than calling him a martial artist, it would be more apt to say he was capable of wielding supernatural powers.* Master: All right, then... Tomosane: Huh?! *He wasn't fast or slow. There was no movement at all. It was like his leg didn't have to move because the floor had done the work for him and the distance shortened all by itself.* Tomosane: Ugh?! *I tried to take the blow as best I could, but he adapted to my movement.* *Right as he grabbed my wrist, my joint seized up on its own.* Tomosane: Gwaaah! *My body twisted in reaction, and then I was flipped over and smacked down on the ground.* *Of course, that was my intention. Otherwise, he would've broken my wrist.* *I should've been able to save myself from the fall, too.* *But I was so focused on protecting my wrist that the lower half of my body slammed right into the concrete below me.* *It was more than just painful.* *I lost all feeling in my body.* *I couldn't tell if I had broken a bone, or if I was just bruised. It happened all too quickly.* Master: Haaaaa! *A stomp.* *I moved my face, dodging it by mere centimeters.* *If I had taken that to the face, he would've smashed my head into the concrete. My skull would've split open on the concrete.* Tomosane: Hmph! *I took up my stance.* *He was right in my face again.* *No mercy.* *I instinctively protected my ears.* *I narrowly avoided a massive fist aimed right at my temple.* *For a second, I felt illusory pain, as if I had actually been hit.* *If I took a direct blow, I could actually die.* Tomosane: Ah! Master: What? Tomosane, you're hardly putting up a fight. I'm still not going all out, you know? Tomosane: I know. Master: All right, good to hear. Tomosane: Ah! *His fist found its mark.* *I could see blood where it landed.* *I couldn't defend myself at all.* Tomosane: Guh... *After all, Master had been practicing martial arts since long before I was even born.* *He was cut from a different cloth.* *And I heard rumors that he was a bouncer for the Yakuza before he started this bar.* *Apparently, that's how he got the money to buy this place.* *His skills weren't just for sport. He hadn't just trained for official matches.* Master: Well, you should just be glad we're not inside. Tomosane: I know... but you're the one who would have a problem then, right? Master: Yeah. We would've broken everything. *As a martial artist with years of experience as a bouncer, Master's weapons weren't limited to his hands and feet.* *His greatest weapons were the ground, the walls, glass bottles, knives, chairs... His skills could've put all of those to use.* *He didn't fight me inside, where all his weapons were, as a sign of his affection, I guess.* *But I was the one who picked this fight.* *I wonder if it was a good choice.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: H-Hasaki? Kimura: Ahahaha, I couldn't stop her. She insisted... Hasaki: Master, stop it! Tomo Nii-san looks awful. Tomosane: Shut up! Just be quiet, Hasaki! *I suddenly yelled at her.* *Damn it. I knew this would happen. That's why I didn't want her here.* Hasaki: Ah... Master: Oh... Is that what you really want to say to her? Hasaki: ...I'm not going to shut up... Hasaki: I'm not going to shut up! Do... Do you understand how I feel seeing... Tomosane: I understand. Hasaki: You don't understand! You're only saying that because you don't understand! Tomosane: That's not true! Tomosane: It's not because I don't understand. I'm only saying this because I really do understand. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I only came back because there was one thing I needed to tell you. Tomosane: If I say those words, then nothing else matters. Hasaki: That's what I mean! You don't understand at all! You can't just say one thing and leave! I want to sit and talk with you more... I want to talk with you as long as I can, Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: But you always make up your mind and decide things on your own. Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. You're right, Hasaki. I'm always being stubborn and making selfish decisions. Hasaki: Then why is there just one thing? That's nowhere near enough! I want to talk to you more! Just one thing isn't enough! Tomosane: Hasaki... How many is enough? If this one thing I came to tell you isn't enough, then how many is? Hasaki: I don't know. I just want to talk to you more, more, more... As much as I can... That's all. Tomosane: Me too... Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: I want to talk to you, Hasaki! Not just about one thing, but as much as I can! Tomosane: That's why I came here tonight to tell you this one thing! Hasaki: Huh? You mean... Tomosane: I won't disappear! I will beat Mamiya Takuji! And I'll still be here to protect you! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: It won't be Yuki or Master protecting you... It will be me! Tomosane: Hasaki! I'll come home alive! I'll definitely come back for you! Tomosane: So don't worry! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I'll beat this stupid tranny, and then I'll beat Mamiya Takuji! Master: Who's a stupid tranny? That's not how you should talk to your master, especially after he just beat you up. Tomosane: Sorry, Master... I shouldn't have said that, but... Tomosane: I will defeat you! Master: I can see your knees quaking, you know? Tomosane: A warrior shakes with anticipation before a battle! Master: You've sure changed. Tomosane: I'm fed up with all this shit. I don't care about being cool and mysterious or whatever anymore. Tomosane: I'm totally done with that shit, so yeah, I've changed. *My legs were trembling because of the damage I already took.* *I had lost all feeling in my hands and legs from getting hit so hard.* *I was covered in a colorful collage of blood and bruises.* *Anyone could tell that I was outmatched.* *A desperate situation.* *From the beginning, I knew it was impossible.* *If Master and I fight, he should win...* *And yet, I challenged him to a fight.* *Why?* *Because...* Tomosane: Master, you never could beat the master back at the dojo, my grandfather. Master: Of course not. Who could? Master: This school of ancient martial arts, passed down from the Sengoku Period, has just a few hundred basic techniques. Master: There are tens of thousands of different combinations of those techniques. Master: But for him, that wasn't a problem. He had some sort of primal instinct... Well, that was a very religious dojo, and each successor to the dojo had something like psychic powers. Tomosane: That blood flows in my veins too... That's probably what I'm feeling right now. Tomosane: I gave you my word... Tomosane: Now it's my turn. Master: Your... turn? Tomosane: Controlling one's dreams... I only understood the meaning of those words by standing here before you, Master, in the real world. Master: Grr... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! *He moved to block.* *He was more than just fast.* *His movements were completely unlike what they were before.* *He really was holding back.* *But then I remembered something.* *It was a story told by a master of Aikido.* *The time period was the beginning of the Showa era.* *It was right before a battle.* *The master visited a cannon inspections officer in the old Japanese army.* *When the master saw the test firing of the cannons, he looked at the officer and said this.* *"Those cannons couldn't hit me if they tried."* *Those words were the trigger, and the master had to prove them by standing out on the firing range.* *But there were six people firing at him with handguns.* *Each one had an effective range of 25 meters.* *Instead of wooden targets, they made the master stand and be their target.* *They started to count down before firing.* *One.* *Two.* *Three...* *All six guns fired simultaneously, kicking up a cloud of dust.* *It sounded like something had been thrown.* *Every man in the firing squad doubted his eyes. In the next instant, one of the six was thrown through the air.* *The master said this.* *A flash of light comes before the bullet... It's just a matter of dodging the flash.* *Or when your opponent has a sword, a glimmer of white will flash before the blade. If you dodge the glimmer, then you will also dodge the sword.* *Which means that dodging is simple.* *The words of the master.* *The master's name was Ueshiba Morihei, and his best pupil, Shioda Gouzou, himself among the greatest practitioners of Aikido, spoke of "psychic powers" in reference to the master.* *He said that such powers couldn't be explained by practice and dedication, but that they must have come from some unknown power the master held.* *It's said that Ueshiba Morihei was very religious.* *Much like Mamiya Ryuu.* *Everyone who saw my grandfather fight said that he hardly even moved to dodge an attack.* *It looked more like his opponents were intentionally missing. That's the impression he gave.* *If that was just a trick...* *Then I was about to take a direct hit.* *But I didn't dodge the attack.* *This is blood...* *This feeling which I first understood in a lucid dream...* *I wanted to test whether it applied to the real world as well.* *My instincts told me that it would definitely work.* Master: ...Huh? *Master's attack sailed past me, cutting through empty air.* *His fist grazed my ear, lacerating the side of my face, but that didn't matter.* *To hit Master back, I had to find an opportunity to get close, just like this.* *I clenched my fist.* *No hesitation.* *"I might not hit."* *"I might be powerless."* *"I might not win."* *That's not the end of the story about the Aikido master.* *A man who made a living hunting wild beasts tracked him down after hearing rumors about him.* *When held at gunpoint, this is what he said.* *"This battle... is over."* *"Because your bullets will hit."* *Why?* *The guns held by the firing squad were all aimed at a person.* *But the master said this to the hunter.* *You don't aim your bullets.* *You simply believe that they will hit.* *Maybe it's a ridiculous story, but now I think I understand what it means.* *Master's fists were far slower than bullets.* *I avoided them, and then countered without hesitation.* *I didn't need to aim.* *I only needed to hit.* *Eliminate all doubt.* *All I could think in that moment...* Tomosane: My fist will find its mark. Master: Ugh! *I drove my fist into the pit of his stomach.* Master: Whoa... Take... it easy... *Master collapsed on the spot.* Tomosane: ...I did it! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! You're covered in bruises... Kimura: Wow... He won. Master: Hey, isn't anyone worried about me? Hasaki: Does it hurt? Tomosane: I would be lying if I said it didn't. *The two of us, alone on the roof...* *Master gave us some privacy.* *Still, she didn't have to bring the first-aid kit up here just for me.* Hasaki: You're covered in bruises. Tomosane: Well, I got in a bit of a fight. Of course I am. Hasaki: Why would you do that? Jeez, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I told you. I did it so I could protect you. Hasaki: But... Tomosane: So that I can be with you from now on. Hasaki: You'll be with me... from now on? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, you won't go away? Tomosane: Of course not. I'm not going anywhere. We can talk for as long as you want. Hasaki: Really? Tomosane: Really. Hasaki: But you always lie to me like that. Tomosane: Heh... I guess I do. Hasaki: Honestly, I want to tie you up with duct tape so you can't go anywhere. Tomosane: That might work. Hasaki: Yeah, but... Hasaki: I believe in you, Tomo Nii-san... Hasaki: I've been betrayed so many times before, but I still believe in you, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Why? I'm such a good-for-nothing brother. Hasaki: Because you're my hero. Tomosane: Hero? Hasaki: That's right. The hero is stronger than the savior. Tomosane: What? That doesn't make any sense. Hasaki: But it's true. Tomosane: You're right. Tomosane: I'm stronger than him. Tomosane: I definitely won't lose. *As I laid my head in her lap, Hasaki brought her face closer to mine.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Wha-?! *For a moment, I didn't know what had happened.* *When I finally realized what had occurred...* *Hasaki's lips were pressed against my own.* *Hasaki's lips were tinged with a darker shade of red than before, and they were ever so slightly moist.* Tomosane: H-Hasaki?! Hasaki: Oh, I'm... sorry. Sorry, I just... Tomosane: Y-You just... Hasaki: I-I said sorry! Sorry! I'm sorry! Hasaki: Auh... *Hasaki averted her eyes, but I could see her cheeks blazing red.* *I couldn't look straight at her, either.* Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: Sorry... Hasaki: But... that kiss wasn't a joke. Hasaki: Ahahaha... It wasn't a joke. Does that make it worse? Hasaki: But I've always... wanted to do that. Hasaki: You're the only one for me, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: But I'm your brother... Hasaki: You only say you're my brother when it suits you. Every other time you act like we're just strangers. Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: But... I do the same thing. Hasaki: I was glad we were brother and sister, since it meant we could be together forever... But I didn't want to be brother and sister if it meant that we couldn't be any more than that. Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: So I did the same thing in my mind... I wanted to be siblings when it was convenient for me. Sorry. *Tears rolled down her cheeks and dripped onto my face.* *Why is she crying?* *Why is she sad?* Tomosane: Hasaki... *I brought my hand to Hasaki's tear-stricken cheek.* *It was very warm and soft.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... I... I... *More tears poured from her eyes.* *Hasaki's tears fell in drops on my face, one after another.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, I wish you really were a complete stranger, someone with the surname Yuuki... Tomosane: But then we couldn't have lived together. Hasaki: Yesterday, you were a Mamiya, but from today on, you should be a Yuuki... Then I would... I would... *The girl I wanted to protect.* *I lived my life thinking only of her.* *Yuki said it too. Hasaki was always the only girl in my heart.* *At the time, I thought maybe she was exaggerating.* *But now I can say it.* Tomosane: Yeah. I've always felt the same way, Hasaki. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: You dummy... That's why I was avoiding you. Tomosane: I was always fond of you. And at some point, you became more than just a little sister to me. Tomosane: I knew that my feelings had changed, so I avoided you. Tomosane: I was afraid of admitting how I felt, so I avoided you. Tomosane: So please don't cry, Hasaki. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... *Our lips came together once again.* *At some point, I had even forgotten.* *I always held feelings for Hasaki that were more than just brotherly affection.* *Perhaps even from the moment I came into existence...* *Or maybe I loved Hasaki long before then, before I even existed at all.* *That's what I think.* *I slowly undid the buttons on Hasaki's clothes.* *I opened her blouse, revealing her modest breasts that moved up and down with the rhythm of her breathing.* *Her white skin was tinged with a flush of pink.* *I perceived a slight, sweet fragrance.* *I embraced her petite body, afraid that it might shatter between my fingers.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... *As we held each other, we kissed again.* *Hasaki's body was so small and frail. The one girl who I would always protect.* Hasaki: Do you want to? Tomosane: You dummy... What are you talking about? Hasaki: Oh, uh... Well, you know... *Who gets to decide whether one person is allowed to love another person?* *God?* *But I've never believed in God. God can eat shit, for all I care.* *If some capricious god decided to punish us for this after standing by and idly watching all the calamities in the world...* *Then I would kick his ass.* *Restrictions on love are bullshit.* *There are no rules for falling in love.* *I embraced Hasaki.* *As proof of my love...* *So that I wouldn't disappear...* *So that we could fortify our bonds...* *Hasaki said...* Hasaki: Please, go all the way. *When I unhooked her bra, her small breasts jiggled a little bit.* *Just a little bit, though.* *At that moment, Hasaki glared at me.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, your thoughts are written all over your face. Tomosane: Th-Then don't look at my face. *There was a quivering pink bud on the tip of each breast.* *I touched her soft, supple, rosy skin gently, like touching an ice sculpture that might break under the slightest pressure.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomo Nii-san... *She let out a quiet moan, reacting to my fingers on her sensitive skin.* *I kissed the nape of her neck.* *I moved my hands up to her chest, touching her hard, protruding nipples.* Hasaki: Aaahh... Mnghaaa! *Her body jumped in surprise.* *I felt a bit of warmth under my fingers. Her skin was slick with sweat.* *I ran my fingers down her stomach, moving down.* *She started at my touch again.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Hmm? What's wrong? Hasaki: U-Um... *Hasaki looked down and mumbled.* Hasaki: P-Please, go ahead... *Go ahead, huh?* *Go ahead and do what?* Hasaki: Uaaahhh... *My finger found its way between her soft folds.* *She didn't even have any pubic hair.* *Well, that's about what I expected.* *I could tell she was already getting wet from the sound of my fingers inside her.* *I gently moved my fingers back and forth.* Hasaki: Mm, Aahh... T-Tomo Nii-san... Ahhh... Tomosane: What's wrong? Why are you covering your mouth? Hasaki: Um, well, I have to cover my mouth or someone will hear. Tomosane: Who cares if they hear? Hasaki: This is Hakushuukyou, you know. I can't do that. They'll hear us down there. Hasaki: Mm? *Hasaki covered her mouth again so her voice wouldn't leak out.* Hasaki: Ahh... Haaa... Nghaaa Hasaki: Mngh... Aaah... Ahhh! Aaahhh! *But it was pointless. Her hand slipped from time to time, letting her moans slip out.* Hasaki: Haa, haa... Tomosane: Whoa, whoa, you don't look so good, Hasaki. Hasaki: U-Um... When I covered my mouth, I couldn't really breathe, so I didn't have enough oxygen. Tomosane: I can tell. Don't push yourself, all right? *I brushed my lips against Hasaki's again.* *I wrapped my tongue around her nipple.* *First I batted it with the blade of my tongue, then I used just the tip to flick her nipple.* *Hasaki still covered her mouth and tried not to moan.* *I could see beads of sweat on her forehead.* *As I stimulated her chest with my tongue, I traced the folds of her hot flower with my fingers, then I softly touched her clitoris.* Hasaki: Ah! *My fingers, wet with her juices, gently rubbed the button between her legs.* *Hasaki's body convulsed in waves, and her garden of flowers pulled my fingers deeper inside.* Hasaki: Ah... They're going to hear... Tomosane: Don't worry about it. Hasaki: Haa, haa... B-But what if Master and Kimura-san hear... Tomosane: It won't be a problem. Hasaki: Ah! *I rolled her clit with my thumb.* *I put a bit more force into my thumb on her clit, and the prepuce rolled back easily, exposing her swollen red button.* Hasaki: Hnn, aaannnh!!! *She arched backward and then fell limp after moaning from the wave of pleasure.* Tomosane: Hasaki... Are you sure? Hasaki: W-Why are you asking me? Tomosane: You're right. Sorry... *Hasaki looked up at me with cloudy eyes.* *I bent Hasaki's knees and placed my member against her petals before driving it inside of her.* Hasaki: Aaah...! *Although something resisted my entrance.* *So much so, that it made me want to pull my hips back the moment I saw her grimace in pain.* *Hasaki didn't let me, though.* *Instead, she wrapped her hands around my waist and pulled me toward her.* Hasaki: Khhhaaa... *I burrowed deeper inside of her.* *She seemed at ease once I was fully inside of her.* Tomosane: Does it hurt? Hasaki: No, not at all... I'm actually happy. Because... we're finally... Hasaki: We're finally one... Tomosane: ... Hasaki: Ah, you can move... Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: But doesn't it hurt? Hasaki: Didn't I just say it doesn't hurt? I'm happy... *I gently stroked her head, then slowly began to move my hips.* *A streak of blood trickled out from her petals.* Hasaki: Mngh... Aaah... Uuunnn... Kh... *I kissed her cheek as I thrust inside of her.* *Hasaki responded by moving her face so that our lips could meet.* *Our tongues soon connected.* Hasaki: Mm... *We tightly embraced one another.* *Our skin pressed together.* *The warmth of our two bodies melted into one.* *I cherished the touch of her skin.* *Her nails dug into my back.* *She likely wasn't even aware of that. However, that pain made me feel a bit better.* *Because it really bothered me that I was the only one feeling pleasure when she was in such pain.* *"Until the very end..."* *That was her wish.* Tomosane: Hasaki, I'm gonna... Hasaki: Ah... Keep going... please... Tomo Nii-san... please... Tomosane: All right... I'm gonna... cum inside you... Hasaki: Please, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Ahh... *My member swelled up, releasing semen deep inside her.* Tomosane: Ugh! Hasaki: Aaahh... Tomosane: Aaaahhh! *We became one under the great blue sky.* *We didn't have a long time together, but it was the first moment that we had become more than just brother and sister.* *Under this sky...* *Hasaki and I became one.*

*Our lips came together once again.* *At some point, I had even forgotten.* *I always held feelings for Hasaki that were more than just brotherly affection.* *Perhaps even from the moment I came into existence...* *Or maybe I loved Hasaki long before then, before I even existed at all.* *That's what I think.* *I slowly undid the buttons on Hasaki's clothes.* *I opened her blouse, revealing her modest breasts that moved up and down with the rhythm of her breathing.* *Her white skin was tinged with a flush of pink.* *I perceived a slight, sweet fragrance.* *I embraced her petite body, afraid that it might shatter between my fingers.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... *As we held each other, we kissed again.* *Hasaki's body was so small and frail. The one girl who I would always protect.* Hasaki: Do you want to? Tomosane: You dummy... What are you talking about? Hasaki: Oh, uh... Well, you know... *Who gets to decide whether one person is allowed to love another person?* *God?* *But I've never believed in God. God can eat shit, for all I care.* *If some capricious god decided to punish us for this after standing by and idly watching all the calamities in the world...* *Then I would kick his ass.* *Restrictions on love are bullshit.* *There are no rules for falling in love.* *I embraced Hasaki.* *As proof of my love...* *So that I wouldn't disappear...* *So that we could fortify our bonds...* *Hasaki said...* Hasaki: Please, go all the way. *When I unhooked her bra, her small breasts jiggled a little bit.* *Just a little bit, though.* *At that moment, Hasaki glared at me.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, your thoughts are written all over your face. Tomosane: Th-Then don't look at my face. *There was a quivering pink bud on the tip of each breast.* *I touched her soft, supple, rosy skin gently, like touching an ice sculpture that might break under the slightest pressure.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomo Nii-san... *She let out a quiet moan, reacting to my fingers on her sensitive skin.* *I kissed the nape of her neck.* *I moved my hands up to her chest, touching her hard, protruding nipples.* Hasaki: Aaahh... Mnghaaa! *Her body jumped in surprise.* *I felt a bit of warmth under my fingers. Her skin was slick with sweat.* *I ran my fingers down her stomach, moving down.* *She started at my touch again.* Hasaki: Ah... Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Hmm? What's wrong? Hasaki: U-Um... *Hasaki looked down and mumbled.* Hasaki: P-Please, go ahead... *Go ahead, huh?* *Go ahead and do what?* Hasaki: Uaaahhh... *My finger found its way between her soft folds.* *She didn't even have any pubic hair.* *Well, that's about what I expected.* *I could tell she was already getting wet from the sound of my fingers inside her.* *I gently moved my fingers back and forth.* Hasaki: Mm, Aahh... T-Tomo Nii-san... Ahhh... Tomosane: What's wrong? Why are you covering your mouth? Hasaki: Um, well, I have to cover my mouth or someone will hear. Tomosane: Who cares if they hear? Hasaki: This is Hakushuukyou, you know. I can't do that. They'll hear us down there. Hasaki: Mm? *Hasaki covered her mouth again so her voice wouldn't leak out.* Hasaki: Ahh... Haaa... Nghaaa Hasaki: Mngh... Aaah... Ahhh! Aaahhh! *But it was pointless. Her hand slipped from time to time, letting her moans slip out.* Hasaki: Haa, haa... Tomosane: Whoa, whoa, you don't look so good, Hasaki. Hasaki: U-Um... When I covered my mouth, I couldn't really breathe, so I didn't have enough oxygen. Tomosane: I can tell. Don't push yourself, all right? *I brushed my lips against Hasaki's again.* *I wrapped my tongue around her nipple.* *First I batted it with the blade of my tongue, then I used just the tip to flick her nipple.* *Hasaki still covered her mouth and tried not to moan.* *I could see beads of sweat on her forehead.* *As I stimulated her chest with my tongue, I traced the folds of her hot flower with my fingers, then I softly touched her clitoris.* Hasaki: Ah! *My fingers, wet with her juices, gently rubbed the button between her legs.* *Hasaki's body convulsed in waves, and her garden of flowers pulled my fingers deeper inside.* Hasaki: Ah... They're going to hear... Tomosane: Don't worry about it. Hasaki: Haa, haa... B-But what if Master and Kimura-san hear... Tomosane: It won't be a problem. Hasaki: Ah! *I rolled her clit with my thumb.* *I put a bit more force into my thumb on her clit, and the prepuce rolled back easily, exposing her swollen red button.* Hasaki: Hnn, aaannnh!!! *She arched backward and then fell limp after moaning from the wave of pleasure.* Tomosane: Hasaki... Are you sure? Hasaki: W-Why are you asking me? Tomosane: You're right. Sorry... *Hasaki looked up at me with cloudy eyes.* *I bent Hasaki's knees and placed my member against her petals before driving it inside of her.* Hasaki: Aaah...! *Although something resisted my entrance.* *So much so, that it made me want to pull my hips back the moment I saw her grimace in pain.* *Hasaki didn't let me, though.* *Instead, she wrapped her hands around my waist and pulled me toward her.* Hasaki: Khhhaaa... *I burrowed deeper inside of her.* *She seemed at ease once I was fully inside of her.* Tomosane: Does it hurt? Hasaki: No, not at all... I'm actually happy. Because... we're finally... Hasaki: We're finally one... Tomosane: ... Hasaki: Ah, you can move... Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: But doesn't it hurt? Hasaki: Didn't I just say it doesn't hurt? I'm happy... *I gently stroked her head, then slowly began to move my hips.* *A streak of blood trickled out from her petals.* Hasaki: Mngh... Aaah... Uuunnn... Kh... *I kissed her cheek as I thrust inside of her.* *Hasaki responded by moving her face so that our lips could meet.* *Our tongues soon connected.* Hasaki: Mm... *We tightly embraced one another.* *Our skin pressed together.* *The warmth of our two bodies melted into one.* *I cherished the touch of her skin.* *Her nails dug into my back.* *She likely wasn't even aware of that. However, that pain made me feel a bit better.* *Because it really bothered me that I was the only one feeling pleasure when she was in such pain.* *"Until the very end..."* *That was her wish.* Tomosane: Hasaki, I'm gonna... Hasaki: Ah... Keep going... please... Tomo Nii-san... please... Tomosane: All right... I'm gonna... cum inside you... Hasaki: Please, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Ahh... *My member swelled up, releasing semen deep inside her.* Tomosane: Ugh! Hasaki: Aaahh... Tomosane: Aaaahhh! *We became one under the great blue sky.* *We didn't have a long time together, but it was the first moment that we had become more than just brother and sister.* *Under this sky...* *Hasaki and I became one.*

*Once Hasaki calmed down and went to sleep, I quietly got up.* *It's all right, Hasaki. I'm not a liar.* *I will definitely come home.* *Then we can talk as much as we want.* *I will protect you.* *Always.* Tomosane: Now then... *I still had a little bit of time left before dawn.* *"Though, to be honest, I don't know how long it is till sunrise. It would be easier if it was just 4:30."* *Dawn is approximately that time, but it's hard to tell when he's actually going to come back.* *It would be really bad if he showed up while I was here with Hasaki.* Tomosane: I need to find a deserted place so we don't drag anyone else into this. *I guess that means the rooftop.* *When I left the rooftop last time, I didn't lock it, so it should still be open. That should work.* *"Are you going?"* Tomosane: Haa... You're onto me, huh? Kimura: Are you going to fight Mamiya Takuji? Tomosane: Who knows? Kimura: I think you do. Otherwise, there would be no reason to fight your Master. Tomosane: Don't tell Hasaki. Kimura: You're keeping it a secret from Hasaki-chan? Tomosane: There's no reason to tell her. I'm going to come home alive. Kimura: I see... Kimura: Where are you going to do it? Tomosane: Does it really matter? Kimura: I guess not... All right. Tomosane: ...Hey. Tomosane: Um, if something happens to me... Tomosane: Look after Hasaki for me... Please. Kimura: ... Kimura: Ahaha... You've never been polite to me before. Tomosane: There's a certain way to ask a favor of someone... And besides, I might've misunderstood you. Tomosane: It seems like you helped her out a lot while I was gone. Kimura: That might've just been convenient for me too, you know. Tomosane: Then I'm glad that it was convenient for you to protect Hasaki. I have to thank you. Kimura: Oh? That's awfully nice of you. I'm not used to hearing that from you. Tomosane: Well, I really am thankful. Tomosane: So if anything happens to me, please continue to take care of her. Kimura: All right, but nothing's going to happen, right? You're going to win and end this whole mess. Tomosane: Yes, and your investigation will probably end here too. I'm going to put it all to an end. Kimura: Really? Tomosane: Yeah, I'll end it. *I returned to the school rooftop before sunrise.* *The place where I'll spend the last of my remaining time.* Tomosane: No, I have to fight so that this isn't the last... *I wanted this time just so that I could say one thing to Hasaki.* *To be honest, I don't know if I can keep my promise.* *No, there's a pretty good chance I can't.* *I did win against Master, but...* *My fight with Mamiya Takuji will be on a different level altogether.* Tomosane: Ayana... Ayana: You came back to this place. Tomosane: Yeah... The place doesn't really matter, though. Ayana: But you chose this place. Tomosane: I thought this was the most suitable place... So where is Mamiya Takuji? Ayana: You still have a little bit of time left. Tomosane: Oh... Tomosane: Do you know what he's planning to do? Ayana: He's trying to return it all to the sky. Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Ayana: To the End Sky... Tomosane: The End Sky... What is that? Ayana: It's just a name. It doesn't speak of anything. Tomosane: Oh... It's just a name? Ayana: Yes. Tomosane: Really? Then let me ask you a question. What are you? Ayana: Me? I'm called Otonashi Ayana. Tomosane: But that's just a name, isn't it? That doesn't explain anything. Ayana: Hehehe, then what are you? Tomosane: Me? I'm Yuuki Tomosane... And... *I tried to say something...* *But the words caught in my throat.* *I tried to speak of myself, but I was lost for words.* *Hahahaha... That's right.* *That's just how it is.* *In talking about oneself, it's impossible to say anything more than you could find on a person's resume.* *The woman in front of me wore the same school uniform as I did.* *I could tell from the color of the trim that she was in the same year as me.* *She was female, and I was male.* *For the two of us standing there and looking at each other, there was nothing else for either of us to say.* *What are you? That's such a vague question... A meaningless question.* Tomosane: I guess that's about right. I'm Yuuki Tomosane―nothing more and nothing less. Ayana: Okay. Then let me ask you a question. Tomosane: A question? Ayana: Yes. A question I asked both Mamiya-kun and Minakami-san. Tomosane: What question? Ayana: Tomosane-kun, are you afraid of dying? Tomosane: Dying? Huh? That's a very straightforward question, isn't it? Tomosane: But still... Several people have died in the past week or so. In this school alone, three people have died. Tomosane: A week that stinks like death. Many students have gone missing as well, and it's likely for the same reason. Tomosane: And the person who's behind it all is... Mamiya Takuji. Ayana: Mamiya-kun was afraid of Takashima-san's prophecy... And of his mother's prophecy. Tomosane: So it seems. I don't know much about Takashima's prophecy, but I know what his mother said. It was carved deep into his memory. Tomosane: The world will be destroyed. All existence will cease, and the world will be erased. Tomosane: What Mamiya Takuji was afraid of was his mother's prophecy... and by extension, death itself. Ayana: Fear of the prophecy is the same as fear of death, as well as fear of the prophesied erasure. Ayana: Are you afraid too? Tomosane: Hehehehe... Me? Before, I would've said this. Ayana: Said what? Tomosane: I'm not really afraid of dying. I'm destined to disappear, after all. Ayana: Destined... Tomosane: I'm just a personality created to destroy Mamiya Takuji... Or maybe I should say I was just a personality? Ayana: Mamiya-kun, the Creator, Minakami-san, the Harmonizer, and then Tomosane-kun, the Destroyer. *This woman knows everything.* *No wonder she always puts me on edge.* *To think that she knows so much about us... It's almost like our souls are connected.* *But she's different from us. She's not one of the personalities inhabiting this body.* *Then what is she?* *It's clear that she's not a normal person.* *Which means she's another irregularity, but she's not quite the same as us...* Ayana: What's wrong? Tomosane: Nothing... Tomosane: What you were just talking about, with the Creator, the Harmonizer, and the Destroyer... He was the one who put that system in place. Tomosane: But this is the end result. The Creator is trying to destroy the Destroyer. Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji couldn't accept his own fate of destruction. Tomosane: No, that's not quite right. There simply weren't enough actors on stage. You could even say that Mamiya Takuji released me from my role as the Destroyer. Tomosane: Which means that I've lost my fate. Ayana: What will you do now that you've lost your fate? Tomosane: Now I should just wait to be destroyed and erased by the Creator. That's how Mamiya Takuji's new script reads. Ayana: Are you afraid of being erased? Tomosane: Of course I'm afraid. I'm afraid of being erased, and I'm afraid of pain. Either way, it's terrifying. Death is a thing to be feared. Ayana: Then you don't want to die? Tomosane: Don't want to die? I'm not sure... I don't know what that question is supposed to mean. Ayana: But you're afraid of death. Tomosane: Yeah, of course. But somehow, all of the other things in this world which people fear doing, becoming, or happening are things that can actually be experienced, except death. Ayana: The doing, the becoming, and the happening... Tomosane: Exactly. For instance, most people wouldn't want to be tortured... Maybe a real masochist would want it, though. Tomosane: Or else they don't want to go bankrupt. They don't want to become homeless. Tomosane: But those are things which are possible to experience, so it's possible to fear the doing, the becoming, and the happening of them. Tomosane: But there is no way to experience death. Tomosane: Death is all around us. Even the nearest graveyard is full of dead people. And yet there isn't a single person who has experienced death. Tomosane: Death is impossible to experience. That's the first principle. Tomosane: Taking something which is impossible to experience and speaking of it in the same breath as things which can be experienced strikes me as a perversion of logic. Ayana: We cannot speak of that which can't be experienced the same way as that which can. Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. But people speak of death as if it could be experienced. Why is that? Ayana: Why? Tomosane: I don't really know myself. Maybe death only has meaning because it's a perversion of logic. Ayana: Death only has meaning because it is a perversion... Tomosane: Yeah... Isn't that what a perversion is? Tomosane: At first, sex was just an act of biological reproduction. However, various perverted ideas throughout history have led people to think all things, create all things, and do all things of which they are capable. Tomosane: Sexual fetishes, for example. But not only that. Also, romantic love. Physical lust and romantic love are impossible to tease apart. Tomosane: So how did Mamiya Takuji respond when you asked him that question? Ayana: He was angry. He wouldn't allow himself to admit that he was afraid of death. Tomosane: I see... What about Yuki? Ayana: About the same as you. No one can experience death. It is impossible for a human being to experience death. Ayana: Let us reflect in another way, and we shall see that there is great reason to hope that death is a good; for one of two things, either death is a state of nothingness and utter unconsciousness, or, as men say, there is a change and migration of the soul from this world to another. Tomosane: Socrates, huh? Sounds like Yuki... Ayana: And these were Socrates' last words. Ayana: The hour of departure has arrived. Ayana: And we go our separate ways, I to die, and you to live. Ayana: Which of these two is better only God knows. Ayana: Then holding the cup to his lips, quite readily and cheerfully he drank off the poison. Tomosane: I see... But I'm confused. These words from the great philosopher of ancient times... I wonder if his answer really was correct. Tomosane: Everyone knows that. Ayana: Everyone? Tomosane: Socrates' words... To modern people, the meaning is almost too obvious. Tomosane: Even now, at this very moment, there are people dying. Tomosane: From the distant past until now, an unbelievably large number of people have died. Tomosane: Especially in this country, a great number of people have died without believing in any afterlife. Tomosane: People die every day with the understanding that death is not the road to another world, but rather simple oblivion. Tomosane: When you think about it, it's really bizarre. Death is the most terrifying thing within each of us, so we all think of it as the worst tragedy that could ever befall us. Tomosane: And yet people die every day. People die and it doesn't even matter. Tomosane: If death was such a frightful thing, there would be revolution every day as the people desperately tried to escape their deaths. Tomosane: But the truth is far from it. Most people don't thrash or cry in fear of their death. They simply die. Tomosane: Well, it is true that many people experience regret when sentenced to death, but at the moment of death, they are perfectly calm. Tomosane: In other words, everyone knows that death isn't worth lamenting. It's perfectly obvious. Tomosane: It's a perverted impulse that even leads people to contemplate death. Ayana: Then you aren't afraid of dying? Tomosane: No, I'm afraid. Of course I am, but I don't fear it any more than everyone else on this planet. Ayana: Everyone fears death? Tomosane: Yeah... It's the same reason that a newborn infant cries, don't you think? Ayana: The reason a newborn infant cries... Tomosane: One who came before existence might loathe existence just as we loathe death. Tomosane: For instance, if a newborn infant cried to curse its own life... Tomosane: I actually... had a dream like that several times. Ayana: A dream? Tomosane: Yes, a dream. It was a premonition. Tomosane: I'm sure it was a premonition. Ayana: What kind of premonition? Tomosane: A baby is born. Ayana: Whose? Tomosane: I don't know. Tomosane: I don't know, but... Tomosane: A baby is born. Tomosane: And that baby... cries. Tomosane: Wah, wah... Tomosane: Everyone laughs as they hear the baby cry. Tomosane: They all bless the child. Tomosane: The mother... Tomosane: The father... Tomosane: And everyone else in the room. Tomosane: The child's life... Tomosane: They bless it. Tomosane: The world is full with blessings for life. Tomosane: However... Tomosane: However, that's wrong. Tomosane: And then... Tomosane: I... Tomosane: I alone feel fear. Tomosane: Fear. Tomosane: Because... Tomosane: The baby is cursing the world. Tomosane: Truly... Tomosane: The newborn baby curses the world into which he is born. Tomosane: He curses the very fact that he was born. Tomosane: I... Tomosane: I freeze in that spot. Tomosane: As everyone laughs. Tomosane: In blessed ignorance. Tomosane: I alone... Tomosane: I stumble... Tomosane: I stumble and stagger, but somehow... Tomosane: I come closer to that baby. Tomosane: And I try to stop its crying. Tomosane: And I know I have to do this. Tomosane: Why? Tomosane: I don't know why, but... Tomosane: That baby, you know? Tomosane: He was born. Tomosane: And I think about the cruelty in my life. Tomosane: And I think... Tomosane: That this could be... Tomosane: This could be my one way to atone for my sins. Tomosane: Sins against who? Tomosane: Probably... Tomosane: Against that baby... Tomosane: And... Tomosane: Against something else, too... Tomosane: I think... Tomosane: I would strangle that newborn baby. I would try to end his life right there. Tomosane: I would end his life. Tomosane: As everyone else laughed. Tomosane: I would... I would put my hands around his neck. Tomosane: But... Tomosane: I can't do it. Tomosane: With my hands around the neck of that crying baby... Tomosane: I... Tomosane: I can't bring myself to throttle him. Tomosane: Why? Tomosane: Why is that? Tomosane: Even as I'm confronted with my one means of atonement, I can't do it. Tomosane: Though I know I must bring an end to his cries. Tomosane: I can't do it. Tomosane: I can't give that baby meaning to his life. Tomosane: I can't give him any possibilities. Tomosane: I know it's the one thing I can do to atone, but... Tomosane: I can't do it. Tomosane: I collapse on the spot. Tomosane: Right there... Tomosane: I break into tears. Tomosane: I cry like a baby. Tomosane: I'm utterly pathetic. Tomosane: Even in a dream. Tomosane: I can't do a thing. Tomosane: I cry and cry. Tomosane: A grown man. Tomosane: How pathetic. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: And as I do... Tomosane: The crying of that baby... Tomosane: It changes. Tomosane: It becomes... normal. Tomosane: Then... Tomosane: The baby simply cries like any other. Tomosane: As I listen to its cries... Tomosane: As I myself cry... Tomosane: I think to myself, thank goodness... Tomosane: Thank goodness... Tomosane: Why? Tomosane: I don't really know, but... Tomosane: Thank goodness... Tomosane: Nothing was really resolved. Tomosane: Nothing really changed. Tomosane: Just... Tomosane: Just thank goodness. Tomosane: I cry. Tomosane: And I think... Tomosane: The fact that I was born... The fact that I'm alive today is probably... Tomosane: I think it's the same thing. Tomosane: Yes... Tomosane: And then I said... Tomosane: I said this was a premonition. Tomosane: That's what I think. Tomosane: It's a premonition of my own life. Tomosane: The first question... You asked if I was afraid of death. Tomosane: Death is fearsome, but death will never come to any of us. That's the truth, and I understand it as such, yet I still find myself afraid. Tomosane: The fear of death germinates in a mind which thinks itself either blessed or cursed. Tomosane: Without that blessing, or that curse, man would not fear death, just as wild animals do not fear it. Tomosane: That blessing tortures man; that curse tortures man. Tomosane: At the same time, that blessing saves man; that curse too saves man. Tomosane: I guess that doesn't answer your question... Ayana: No... That is a very good answer. Tomosane: Ayana... You called it the End Sky? Ayana: End Sky. Tomosane: Can I see it too? Ayana: Yes. Tomosane: Will I really be able to see it? Ayana: You will... but the last sky isn't yours. Tomosane: The last sky isn't mine? Ayana: Yeah, he's coming back soon. I guess he's done ravishing me. Tomosane: Ravishing you? Are you talking about Mamiya Takuji's delusions? Ayana: Yes. Look... Tomosane: Huh? *A shadow?* *No, that's not it. This is the same as before.* *A shadow that wasn't there a moment before... That shadow gradually took shape before my eyes.* *That shadow, standing between me and Ayana, took a human form.* Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji... Takuji: What... What did you just do to me?! Ayana: I didn't do anything. I just watched. Takuji: You did something! Ayana: Hehehe, you just got caught up in your delusions. I didn't do anything. Takuji: What did you say?! There's no way that was a delusion! If I had such a realistic delusion like that, I wouldn't... I wouldn't even be able to tell the difference between reality and my delusions! Takuji: That's right! I definitely felt the warmth of your skin! That couldn't have been an illusion! Ayana: Warmth... Ayana: How nasty. Takuji: Wh-What are you saying?! Takuji: You're just some perverted futanari girl! You came everywhere! Ayana: Like I said, I'm not a futanari. Takuji: No, I'll prove you're a futanari! Takuji: See, I knew it. Takuji: Huh?! Ayana: ... Takuji: ...It's not there? Ayana: Mamiya-kun. Takuji: Agh... Blood? Ayana: Mamiya-kun, that was over the line for a prank. You deserved to get punched for that. Hehehe, your nose is bleeding. Takuji: Ugh! Takuji: Agh... Oww! Ayana: If you want to pull a prank the next time you see me, you should be satisfied with just flicking my forehead. Ayana: Otherwise, I'll break your nose again. Takuji: Y-You... Ayana: But... maybe there won't be a next time. Takuji: ... Ayana: Hehehe... I am Otonashi Ayana. That's what they call me. I am not your Riruru-chan's dregs, and I am not a shadow. I am not one of your delusions. Takuji: Riruru-chan isn't a delusion! Ayana: Yes, that isn't a delusion. Ayana: But that might be how it is. It refuses to recognize itself as a delusion, just like I do, and just like you do. Ayana: I'm not a delusion, and neither are you standing in front of me, but... Ayana: I am Otonashi Ayana. Ayana: In this setting, I am human. Ayana: But you're not a human anymore. Takuji: O-Of course not. I'm the savior! Takuji: I'm going to save humanity. There's no way I could be a normal human! Takuji: And I'm not the property of that pathetic soul called Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: I'm the person who will return the world to the sky! I am the savior! I am the one who controls the Holy Surge! Ayana: Yes, you will return it to the sky... That sky is called... Takuji: The limit of the world. The final sky. End Sky. Ayana: Yes. You will reach the End Sky. Takuji: The infinite and finite connect. The finite and the infinite connect. A spinning Ouroboros. Takuji: Circulation... eternal recurrence... continuity... eternity... circular motion... death and resurrection... destruction and creation... the base of the universe... the infinite... immortality... perfection... omniscience and omnipotence... Ayana: Hmm... That sounds complicated. Takuji: The awakening of Jormungandr is at hand! It encircles Midgard. The great sea serpent grasping his own tail will awaken! Takuji: It is at hand! Takuji: Therefore, we must return to the sky! Ayana: Hehehehe... That's nice. Ayana: You've found a reason for your existence. Takuji: What? Takuji: It's not such a simple, vulgar concept as you think. Ayana: Hehehe, of course. Ayana: Minakami Yuki... Ayana: Yuuki Tomosane... Takuji: Wha―?! Takuji: Wh-What about them?! Ayana: Hehe. Ayana: Even now, you react to their names. They still bother you. Takuji: Wh-Why would I care about them? There's no reason for me to. Ayana: Those two are living completely different lives than you are, saying completely different things than you are. Ayana: Each one sees different things, does different things, yet those things are the same. Ayana: The three are at the same time both disconnected and unified. Ayana: Creation, Harmony... and Destruction. Ayana: Their natures are completely different, but they're the same. Ayana: One who names it. One who speaks it. One who erases it. Ayana: Yuuki Tomosane-kun... He said... Takuji: What did he say? Ayana: A crying... Takuji: Huh? Ayana: A crying infant. He couldn't stop it from crying. Ayana: And the fact that he couldn't might be man's original sin, and because of that, its benevolence. Ayana: For a human to live is benevolence in the form of original sin. Ayana: The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Ayana: In that case, the road to hell is made of hope. Takuji: Hope... Ayana: Yes, to live is to hope. Ayana: But... Ayana: You don't need that anymore, since you're trying to do what Yuuki-kun was originally supposed to do. Ayana: The roles of the gods change. The Destroyer becomes the Creator. The Creator becomes the Harmonizer. Each of their roles change. Ayana: The Destroyer has lost his right to destroy, since the Creator is ending everything. Ayana: After rebirth, the god that was supposed to rule over harmony can't do anything. The Creator has given up on being the Rebirther. Ayana: The Creator is trying to destroy the world he created. Ayana: The Destroyer speaks of hope. Ayana: The Creator speaks of despair. Ayana: The Harmonizer hesitates and stops in place. Ayana: Stops and looks at where the world is going. Ayana: Now that the rotation has begun, it can't be stopped. Ayana: The final puzzle for man is the infinite and the finite, rotation and suspension. Takuji: Shut up! Shut up! I'm tired of listening to you! Takuji: I'm... I'm the person who will reach the End Sky! Takuji: I'll say it again! I'm the person who will reach the End Sky! Takuji: I'll say it again! I am the herald of the End Sky! Takuji: I'll say it again! I hate you! Takuji: I am the forerunner of prophecy, who will reach the complete world. Ayana: Today is already the 18th. There's just a little longer to go until the last sky. Takuji: That's right. The final sky. The last sky. The world's limit is approaching. Soon, soon I'll see the world's limit. Takuji: There's not much time until the 20th. No, I have to end it before then. I have to return everything to the sky. Everything. Takuji: I have to return all the people gathered in the ark. Takuji: The end is right there. The sky's limit is right there. The boundary line... The world's last... The End Sky is right there. That's it... Look. Takuji: Just look. It looks so big. It looks so massive. Tomosane: Wha―?! *What is that?* *The sky looked... strange.* *Is this what Mamiya Takuji was speaking of?* Takuji: Beyond the limit... The limit is a door... Yes, a door. And beyond that door is a sea... An incredibly deep sea... Takuji: Look, that is the world's limit... The final sky. Ayana: You're right. Takuji: The End Sky has already come this far... There are only a few more inches between us and the edge of the world. Takuji: Even now would be fine... I wouldn't mind jumping now. Ayana: Then why haven't you done it yet? Takuji: I won't do it yet. I won't do it yet. I won't do it yet... Because I still have things to do here? Tomosane: Ah! *That's right. Something I still have to do. Something I have to do, and something Mamiya Takuji has to do.* *That's right. This is the answer.* *I took a deep breath and yelled out his name.* Tomosane: Mamiya Takuji! Takuji: Huh? That voice?! Takuji: You... How long have you been there? Tomosane: I've been here the whole time, much longer than you knew. Right here beside you. You haven't forgotten about me now that you've become the savior, have you? Takuji: Yuuki Tomosane... Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. I'm Yuuki. The person you so feared... Yuuki Tomosane-sama. Takuji: Heh... What's with you? I haven't seen you in a while, but it seems like you've changed. I always thought you were just a dumb thug. Tomosane: Well, things happen, you know? I've actually always been like this. Takuji: So what do you want from me? Tomosane: You didn't finish me off. I'm sure you knew this was coming, right? I'm sure you could sense it. Takuji: Sense what? Tomosane: Your fate. To be erased by me. Takuji: Ha! Takuji: Is that what you came here to say? You're going to erase me? Some lowlife thug off the streets is going to erase me, the savior? Takuji: Ahahaha... Don't you think you're a bit out of place here? Tomosane: Out of place? Takuji: Yeah. Exactly. You're the stupidest, lowest person I know. All you know how to do is talk with your fists, right? Takuji: Yeah, you're stupid, so maybe you don't know this, but talking with your fists means using violence. Takuji: In the furthest reaches of the universe, under the End Sky, why would I meet a vulgar man like you? Takuji: The past times I've come here, I've met White Riruru, the Father Himself, Black Riruru's incarnation Otonashi Ayana, and other metaphysical existences beyond comprehension. Takuji: So then, why are you here? Takuji: A physical being like you appearing here is so out of place. It's like if Mori no Ishimatsu suddenly appeared in Der Ring des Nibelungen and asked, 'Anyone want sushi?' Tomosane: Oh, really? Sorry about that, then. But didn't I say it before? Tomosane: The battle between you and me will go on until one of us is destroyed. Did you think you could end it just by hurting me? Takuji: More or less. Tomosane: Oh, really? You've underestimated me, then. Takuji: What are you talking about about? You can't talk after hiding away from me all this time. Tomosane: Hiding? Are you stupid? *You're the one who tried to erase me.* *But it's not worth explaining that to him.* Takuji: I guess you were just waiting till the last moment, right? Were you off training somewhere? Tomosane: That's right. Takuji: So you're planning to give me a performance worthy of the final act on the stage that is this world? Tomosane: Yeah, that's it. These are the fruits of my labor. Takuji: Labor? What labor? Tomosane: My labor... working to destroy you. Takuji: Working to destroy me? Tomosane: Yeah. The three principles that you don't understand. Work, courage, and fucking courage! Takuji: You really have changed. Were you always such a run of the mill thug? Tomosane: I've never been serious until now. I've always hidden my power. But this time, I'm serious. I've seriously come to kill you. Takuji: This might be a silly question, but why do you want to erase me so badly? Tomosane: Hehehehe... Why? That's a stupid question, Mamiya Takuji. Takuji: Stupid? Would I be wrong to say it's because you've been infected by the Black Surge? Tomosane: Black Surge? I see you've come up with some new delusions. I don't remember you using that word the last time we met. Takuji: Come up with? Are you utterly thoughtless? I didn't come up with it. I learned it. I learned the truth. Tomosane: You believe every single one of your silly delusions, huh? Takuji: Delusions? Hehehe... It must all sound delusional to someone who hasn't even a fragment of knowledge. Tomosane: Delusion, huh? Just like Copernicus' heliocentric theory was called delusional, right? Takuji: So you do understand. Tomosane: In ancient times, even though Philolaus believed that the Central Fire was at the center of the universe and the earth, the sun, and all other celestial objects rotated around it... Tomosane: He believed the sky rotated around the earth. Do you know why? Takuji: What? Tomosane: He already had his answer, and he changed reality to fit his notions. His worldview became warped. Tomosane: The center of the world is right here. That was a given. Even if it was mistaken, they couldn't accept that their world revolved around another celestial object. Tomosane: Preconceived notions... Reality forcibly fit to those notions... Doing that warped their worldviews. Tomosane: The facts that you want to be true coincidentally happen to align with reality. How often does that happen to you, Takuji? Tomosane: But they still wanted to believe they were they the center of the world and everything revolved around them. They alone were special in the world. Tomosane: Hey, Takuji... You want to believe, do you? You can't accept the real world. Tomosane: You aren't the center of the world, and you aren't special! You aren't any sort of savior like your mother thought you were! Takuji: Yuuki! *He came right at me with a straight punch.* *I saw exactly where his fist was headed.* *His anger and reckless abandon showed me the path his fist would take.* *Once I saw the attack, there was no problem.* *I had only to hold strong in my heart.* Takuji: Huh?! *I dashed in, right next to his face.* *My arm was already locked under his armpit.* *Then I lowered my waist.* *I lowered my waist and lifted him to nearly vertical in my hold.* *And then...* *His body went flying through the air.* Takuji: Gh... Aagh. *A perfectly executed move.* *Since his arms were stretched to their limits, I destroyed his joints while simultaneously slamming him down onto the concrete.* Takuji: Ah... Is this dislocated? Tomosane: How about that? The all-knowing savior should know about that move, right? Takuji: Wh-What was that? I've mastered every martial art on the planet. There's no move I don't know. Tomosane: You do know that move. You just forgot it is all. Takuji: Grr... Agh... Tomosane: It looks like you're serious, huh? Takuji: Serious? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Tomosane: I thought I was born just to erase you. I denied myself and tried to erase myself. Tomosane: I thought I was created. Takuji: Wh-What are you... Tomosane: I am the Destroyer. An existence born to end things. To destroy worlds with order. An existence that gives birth to new order. Tomosane: I was supposed to be a person created just for that purpose. Takuji: Huh? Tomosane: Are you scared? Can't you admit it? Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Tomosane: What am I talking about? Tomosane: Are you stupid? I'm talking about Hasaki, of course! Takuji: Wh-What are you talking about? Tomosane: Haa... Even now... Even at the end, you can't hear it. Tomosane: Her name. That's it, isn't it? You tried to protect Hasaki by forgetting about her and pretending she was dead. Tomosane: For that at least, I have to commend you. No matter how crazy you got, you always put Hasaki's happiness first. Takuji: What's that? What are you saying? Tomosane: Her name won't reach you until the very end, huh? Tomosane: Whenever the words you hear aren't convenient for you, you distort them or erase them. Tomosane: Especially when it comes to Hasaki. You've tried to erase or change all your memories of Hasaki. Tomosane: You've used every technique to erase, replace, or ignore Hasaki's existence. That's bravery. That was your own form of bravery. Takuji: Wh-What is it? You... Why haven't you been saying the most important parts?! Don't hide your words! Tomosane: You're the one who hid them! Tomosane: It was you who hid them. But remember that I was the only one with a connection to Hasaki. Neither you nor Minakami Yuki, but I, the person who is fated to disappear! Takuji: Are you crazy? Tomosane: Crazy? Hehehehe... Are you really asking that? Here, in this place... No, in this world, there is not a single person who isn't crazy! Tomosane: You should know it... The world you've birthed. The world you know. The world you created is filled with nothing but madmen! Takuji: Tch... Takuji: Ah... *He couldn't even cushion his fall when I threw him. He only managed to twist his neck and disperse the force of the blow.* *He's pretty tough, though.* Takuji: Gah... Aah... Tomosane: How about that? You can't even see straight now, right? Takuji: Aa... Aah... Tomosane: You haven't learned a single new trick. While you were playing around with your delusions, I was training so hard that I pissed blood in order to master some new techniques. Takuji: Ah... Aah... Tomosane: This is the limit of your delusions. Tomosane: Your delusions... will be ended by my reality. Takuji: E-End... Tomosane: This is the opposite of last time. Tomosane: Last time, I was there, leaning against the fence, and you looked down upon me. Tomosane: Now it's the opposite. You're the one who's fallen bloody to the ground, Mamiya. Takuji: I've... fallen... Tomosane: That's right. This is the end. Tomosane: Let's end it here, Mamiya Takuji. Takuji: What? Tomosane: We're under the End Sky, so shouldn't it be fine? Tomosane: Isn't it a fitting end for us? Takuji: An end for us? Tomosane: Yeah. Let's end it here. We don't need to drag anyone else into this. Tomosane: Don't drag everyone else into your games. The only ones who need to go along with your end of the world are me and her. The three of us are plenty. Tomosane: This sky is the end for just you and me. Tomosane: This is where it will end. Tomosane: Isn't that good enough, Takuji? *I always carried this knife around for some reason.* *I don't know why it was in my pocket.* *I don't know who first put it there.* *I just felt that I had to end it here, with this knife.* Tomosane: It won't hurt. I'll aim for the heart. Tomosane: Aren't we both tired of this painful game? *"No! You can't!"* Tomosane: Huh? *Someone's voice...* *I recognized that voice. That voice was...* Hasaki: Y-You can't... Tomo Nii-san, you can't do that. Tomosane: Why did you follow me? Kimura: Ahahaha... Sorry about that. Tomosane: Damn it, Kimura... Tomosane: Crap. I forgot to lock the door. If I had locked it, you wouldn't have been able to follow me up here. Hasaki: You can't... Tomo Nii-san, I-I won't let you do that! Tomosane: Hasaki... *From her perspective, it must have looked like I was pointing a knife at my own chest.* *In reality, I was about to plunge this knife into my own chest.* Hasaki: If that's what you were planning to do... I should've just tied you up and never let you leave. Tomosane: I told you, that was also an option. Tomosane: Ah?! Takuji: Yuuki! *Hasaki couldn't see the change that just happened.* *The knife moved from my hand to Mamiya Takuji's.* *Mamiya Takuji's willpower grabbed hold of the knife.* *Damn it...* *It was his knife all along.* *The moment I realized that...* Tomosane: Ah... Takuji: Your heart is right here. It's right here, isn't it? Hasaki: NOOOOOO! Hasaki: No, Tomo Nii-san! NOOOOO! Tomosane: At the very end, I still messed up, huh? Takuji: Messed up? What are you talking about? This was inevitable. This is pre-established harmony. *The knife had definitely carved its way deep into our physical body. In other words, both Mamiya Takuji and I had been stabbed.* *Just from the feeling of that knife, I could tell that neither of us were safe.* *I could tell the knife had been driven very deep into the flesh.* Tomosane: Pre-established... harmony, huh? Tomosane: I see. So in your eyes, I've already outlived my purpose. Takuji: Yeah, that's right. You were just a hurdle for me on my path to becoming the savior. Takuji: An existence for me to surpass... It's true, I underestimated you. I underestimated you too much. I have to thank you for teaching me that. Takuji: The savior should never let his guard down. No matter how insignificant his opponent seems, he should never let his guard down. Takuji: You've taught me that... Thank you. Tomosane: Hey, Hasaki... I'm sorry... Tomosane: It looks like I won't be able to keep my promise. This is the end for me. Tomosane: Haa... I couldn't do anything for you, Hasaki... could I... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Hasaki: That's not true... That's not true... Tomo Nii-san, don't go... Tomosane: There's nothing I can do... I've been beaten... Tomosane: Nothing I can do... huh? Tomosane: Is this too reality? Tomosane: Then I can only accept it... Takuji: Yes, accept it. This is reality. Takuji: I am the savior, and I will return the world to the sky. That is the reality. Tomosane: I see... Good job, then... Tomosane: Haa... If this is how it was going to end, I shouldn't have used the last of my time like this... Tomosane: I should've spent my time with you... Tomosane: Hahahaha... I've been an awful brother too... Tomosane: I haven't changed at all... Tomosane: Now then... Farewell, Mamiya Takuji. Congratulations. You've won. Tomosane: And I've lost... Hasaki: ...Uwaah... Kh... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Don't go. Tomosane: You dummy... Don't come near me. It's dangerous. Tomosane: This body will be Mamiya Takuji's soon. I'm going to disappear. Hasaki: You can't disappear, Tomo Nii-san! Please! Tomosane: Yeah... I don't really want to disappear. Tomosane: I wanted to be with you longer. Hasaki: Then please, don't go! Let's go home. Let's go home together. Let's just go home... Tomosane: You're right... That was the promise. Hasaki: Yeah, it was... Tomosane: To be together forever... and talk as much as we wanted... Hasaki: Yeah, you promised we could talk as much as we wanted... I still want to talk to you, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: We didn't talk enough, did we? *I wish I could've talked with Hasaki more.* *I was only paying attention to meaningless stuff. I couldn't see the most important thing in my life.* *Because I would be disappearing, because I was fated to disappear, I tried not to make any memories with Hasaki.* *Now that I think back on it, that was a really foolish thing to do.* *All people eventually disappear. I'm not the only one fated to disappear.* *Just because we're all going to disappear doesn't mean our memories aren't still precious.* *So...* Tomosane: Let's... talk. Hasaki: Yeah, I-I... Last night, I saw a big sunflower. Hasaki: A big sunflower, yellow and beautiful in the sky... Tomosane: A sunflower... *For some reason, I saw a great sunflower stretching into the night sky.* *For just a second...* *That sunflower...* *Sometime, somewhere before...* Hasaki: It's already summer, you know? It's the middle of the summer... Hasaki: Summer break is coming soon. I wish I could've gone somewhere with you this year, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Summer, huh? Hasaki: Yeah. You said you wouldn't ever leave me, so I wanted to go on vacation somewhere this summer. Hasaki: Because this summer, it seemed like we were getting along again. Hasaki: This summer break... let's go back to our old town, together. Tomosane: Our town? Hasaki: That's right. Our town. Where you and I were together before. Tomosane: That... *That sunflower...* *With Hasaki...* *That's right...* *Because I'm her big brother...* *I should've done more things like that with her.* *Huh?* *Just now...* *That landscape...* *Oh, right. That landscape...* *I knew it once.* *A sunflower along the path...* Tomosane: How did I forgot that? We were there together before. Hasaki: Yeah, so this summer... let's go back. Tomosane: This... summer? Hasaki: Yeah, Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Yeah, of course. Tomosane: This... summer? *The blue sky and the sunflower.* *With marshmallow clouds drifting by overhead.* *And Hasaki wearing a big hat.* *And she walks with me.* *Forever and forever.* *The two of us.* *On that path.* *To reach the top of the hill.* *And there, waiting for us on the other side of the hill...* * is a beautiful scene in the future.*

*6.373* *The world is independent of my will.* *6.374* *Even if everything we wished were to happen,* *this would only be, so to speak, a favour of fate, * *for there is no logical connexion between will and world, * *which would guarantee this, and the assumed physical connexion itself we could not again will.* *Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein - "Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus"* *I wonder how long it's been since my twin brother died.* *Time has stopped for me since that day.* *That's why I still carry around that doll.* *If only I was a shadow, and that doll was the real me...* *I thought that would be nice.* *If only I could disappear...* *Those two saved me.* *One of them was Yuki-san.* *She came back to me.* *She brought Tomo Nii-san with her, and they came back to me.* *Minkami Yuki-san... A kind old sister.* *Tomo Nii-san loved her.* Master: Huh? You're here awfully early. Hasaki: Oh, good morning. Master: How was he today? Hasaki: It was Tomo Nii-san this morning. Master: Oh, so it was Tomosane this time. Hasaki: Yes, and he was as cold as ever. Master: I figured as much. He's always been like that, though. Hasaki: Yes, he's always like that. Master: Haa... I wonder if he'll ever get better. Hasaki: Ahaha... If he went to the hospital... Master: It's not a sickness that he has. Master: That's why Yuki came. She came to save Tomosane. Hasaki: Master... Master: A curse... That's a curse... Master: There's no way that's just PTSD or anything like that. Master: He was the best student I had. Master: He had a strong heart. He wouldn't leave you behind just because of something like that. He wouldn't just run away. Hasaki: A curse... is it? Master: That's why Yuki came to him. Master: Because she can fight alongside him. Hasaki: Against the curse? Master: That's the curse of the shrine maiden in the town of the walking dead. The curse of the savior. The two of them should be able to beat it together, though. Hasaki: Okay. *A curse.* *The curse of the town of the walking dead.* *The people in Sawaimura, especially the people of the Mamiya dojo, believe in that.* *The doctors call it Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.* *They say it's trauma caused by that incident.* *That's the reason Nii-san went mad.* *Whether it's the curse of a dead boy...* *Or PTSD...* *I don't know what the truth is.* *But I have one hope.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san will come back, right? Master: Of course. If he doesn't, I'll have to give God a good punch right in the nose when I meet him. Hasaki: Ahahaha. Okay. *God...* *God, who created the world in six days.* *And rested on the seventh day.* *Why didn't he use that day to rid the world of all pain and suffering?* *Why did he give my brother such a cruel fate?*

*How long has it been since Tomo Nii-san disappeared?* *The last time I saw him was the day before yesterday.* *I should've been more selfish back then.* *Every time he leaves, I never know if I'll ever see him again.* Hasaki: Haa... *I came to Kita High again.* *I was hoping to meet Tomo Nii-san again.* *But the Nii-san I saw at school was Takuji Nii-san, and then later there was a Yuki-san that I didn't know.* *They all look the same, but they're different people.* *I've heard that humans are creatures of habit.* *Whether it's good or bad, if it happens every day, it just becomes normal.* *Maybe that's why, even if I didn't have any reason...* *I had a feeling that someday he would go back to normal.* Hasaki: Ahahaha... There's no guarantee of that. *Sometimes I even thought he could stay with me forever.* Hasaki: I'm not a student here, so he told me not to come to school too much. Hasaki: Well, here goes... *If I do something Tomo Nii-san told me not to, maybe I'll be able to see him...* *Maybe it's silly of me to think that.* *Yuki-san bought lunch at the store, so I didn't have anything to deliver.* Hasaki: I don't have any real reason to be here... What am I doing? *I hugged my rabbit.* *Its head slumped to the side when I squeezed it.* *This doll was larger than I was when I got it from Nii-san, but now it's so small.* *So... sometimes I feel like I'm still as small as I was when I got it.* *I feel like I'm just one of the rabbit's dreams. Like the life I'm living now is just a dream I had when I was a child.* *Even I know that's just one of my delusions, though.* *But knowledge and emotion don't always agree.* *With its inclined head, the rabbit looked like it was asking me a question.* *But I couldn't hear its voice.* *Even though it always listened to me.* Hasaki: Huh?! *What? Is someone there?* *It was just a quiet sound.* *It was almost inaudible. It was more like a disturbance in the air.* Hasaki: Ah! Kimura: Huh? Hasaki: Who... are you? Kimura: Oh, uh... Well, uh... Hasaki: That's a big camera. Kimura: Oh, uh... I'm a landscape photographer... Hasaki: Oh, is that so? Kimura: Um... Well then... Hasaki: Ha! Kimura: Huh? Kimura: Aaaahh! Hasaki: You were taking pictures, weren't you? Kimura: Ow, ow! You're a martial artist too?! What kind of siblings are you?! Hasaki: Me too? What does that mean? Kimura: Ow, ow! You're gonna break it! Hasaki: Were you... taking pictures of Tomo Nii-san? Kimura: Tomo Nii-san? Hasaki: Oh, uh... I mean Takuji Nii-san. Kimura: A-Ahaha... Why would you think I was taking pictures of your brother * Aaaah, ow, ow!"* Hasaki: You know, I heard you mention siblings. I'm not gonna let you go now. Kimura: E-Eek... Sorry, uh... could you loosen your grip a little? Hasaki: No. You're following Nii-san around, aren't you? Maybe I should break one of your arms just to be safe? Kimura: Wait, you're scaring me! Hasaki: Why are you following Nii-san? Kimura: Uh, well, I'm a landscape photographer, so.. * Gyaawawa, ow, oww!"* Hasaki: If I push a few more centimeters, I'm sure you know what'll happen to your arm. Kimura: Y-You're a lot scarier than you look. You really are Takuji-kun's sister. Hasaki: You can stop wasting your breath. Tell me why you're following Nii-san. Kimura: U-Um! At first I was investigating the drug problem in today's youth. Hasaki: Drug problem? Kimura: Yeah, lots of college students grow pot nowadays. My client wanted me to gather material about that. Hasaki: What does that have to do with my brother? Kimura: Well... he's famous around here. His name came up a lot when I was investigating around here. Hasaki: Why would his name come up? Kimura: He extorts people and takes their drugs. All the drug dealers around here have noticed him. Kimura: ven the yakuza have their hands in drugs, you know? And they're being targeted by some random guy off the street. Hasaki: What did he do? Kimura: Like I said, he takes drugs away from people. Hasaki: Huh? So he's doing drugs? Kimura: Ahaha... At first, that's what I thought too. I was sure he was a junkie that needed to feed his habit. Kimura: But after a while I noticed... it was way more than any one person could ever use. I thought maybe he was selling it. Kimura: So I tailed him for a while. It would've made a great article if I had found him stealing drugs from other people and reselling them. Hasaki: So... was he? Kimura: I was way off the mark. He wasn't selling it at all. He threw them all away. Hasaki: Oh... Kimura: Yeah... Why does he do that? It's so dangerous, and there's no real reason for him to do it. Hasaki: ... Kimura: So I investigated, and I found out about Mamiya Takuji's past. Kimura: And I found a lot of interesting stuff. The White Lotus Association... Your mother was involved with them, right? Hasaki: So you investigated all that too. Kimura: Yeah. I was reading old news articles about the White Lotus Association, and it said your mother was involved with the cult founder. Hasaki: You're missing the most important part. Kimura: W-Wait! Why do you two both act the same way?! I'm a pacifist! Stop! Hasaki: We're siblings. We have to protect each other... So I have to eliminate problems before they come up. Kimura: No, no, wait. I don't think it's that simple. Hasaki: What do you mean? Kimura: Well, the way you're saying it, it sounds like everyone in the world is either trying to help or hurt you. Hasaki: I wouldn't say that. Kimura: So let's just calm down. I know this camera makes me look suspicious, but does that mean I'm trying to hurt you? Does that make me an enemy? Hasaki: I definitely can't think of you as an ally. Kimura: Gyaaa... I-I told you, you can't just divide the world into enemies and allies. Hasaki: What are you trying to say? Kimura: There are lots of strange things happening in this school, and you're brother is at the center of it. Hasaki: What? In the school? Kimura: Yeah, that's right. You didn't know? In the past few days, two students from this school have died. Hasaki: Two students... have died? Kimura: Yeah. In that short time period, there have been two deaths. Kimura: The first was Shiroyama Tsubasa. He was a third-year student. I saw him buying and selling drugs a few times during my investigation. He liked going out at night and hanging out at clubs, too. Hasaki: What happened to him? Kimura: He died. It was five days ago, I think. He probably had an accident while he was on drugs. He fell from the school roof. Hasaki: Who was the other? Kimura: Takashima Zakuro. Hasaki: Huh? T-Takashima Zakuro... Kimura: Yeah, she was a girl your brother knew. They were seen together several times in the days before she died. Hasaki: How did she die? An accident? Kimura: No. Didn't you see it on the news? Hasaki: I don't watch TV much. Kimura: It was pretty sensational, so it got a lot of air time. Takashima and two girls from other schools jumped off an apartment building near Suginomiya station. Hasaki: Two girls from another school? Does that mean it was a suicide? Kimura: Who knows? There hasn't been an official announcement yet, but it definitely looks like a suicide. They're saying on TV that they probably met online and formed a suicide pact. Hasaki: They met online? Kimura: Oh, well, they weren't friends before they committed suicide. It's just an inference. Kimura: But I couldn't find any posts they made on any sites about suicide. Kimura: I don't think it was a suicide pact... Hasaki: Then what do you think it was? Kimura: I'm not the only one. Some people online have noticed the same thing. Their deaths weren't just a bunch of people meeting up and committing suicide. Hasaki: Some people online? Kimura: Yeah. We don't have any proof, but there are a lot of people sleuthing around. Hasaki: Sleuthing? Kimura: Yeah, people on the Internet have a lot of free time, and there are a bunch of people trying to figure out what happened. Kimura: But they're at a dead end. There's one thing they can't investigate. Hasaki: What's that? Kimura: There's a lot of speculation surrounding this one site... Kimura: The school's underground message board. Hasaki: Underground message board? Kimura: Yeah... Well, technically it just means a message board that's not recognized by the school. Kimura: Everyone's talking about it, but only people with an account can see the message board. Hasaki: Um, I don't know much about the Internet, so I'm not sure what you mean. Kimura: You have to get approved by the administrator just to see the message board, and the administrator is pretty strict about who can make an account. Kimura: It's hard for an outsider to see the site at all, and anyone who looks suspicious can get banned in a second. Kimura: Sometimes people get in, and they copy-paste threads onto other forums, or post screenshots. Hasaki: U-Um, I don't know what those words mean... Kimura: Oh, sorry, that's just net slang. Anyway, a lot of people on the Internet are paying attention. This could turn into a major incident. Hasaki: A major incident? Kimura: Yeah, Kita High's Shiroyama Tsubasa... and then Takashima Zakuro, Tsukigawa Usami from Ebisugawa High, and Mizuo Ayumi from Seinogawa Girls' all died, and some people think this might just be the beginning. Hasaki: The beginning? You mean... Kimura: And your brother is at the center of it all. Hasaki: ... Kimura: Do you know about the prophecy that's supposed to be fulfilled this year? Hasaki: ... Hasaki: The world's final day will come... and everything will return to the sky... Kimura: Apparently, the date carved in Mayan ruins corresponded to the year 2012. Though that's supposed to be in December. Kimura: But several people predicted the world would end on July 20th. Kimura: One of those people was the founder of the White Lotus Association. Hasaki: But the founder retracted his statement. He said he had caused a miracle and avoided the disaster. Kimura: Hehehe... You know all about this, huh? The founder of the White Lotus Association has retracted his statement, but that was seven years ago. Kimura: There are still people who believe in the prophecy. Hasaki: ...What are you trying to say? Kimura: Your mother... Or should I say, your former mother? I heard she got divorced. Her maiden name was Sanami, I believe. Hasaki: She didn't get divorced! Our father died! Her name is still Mamiya Kotomi! Kimura: Oh, is it now? Kimura: But... your mother still believes. There's another site on the Internet that's been getting a lot of attention. Hasaki: The website my mother made, right? Kimura: Yes, the predictions of the Web Bot Project. It still says that the world will end on July 20th, 2012. Kimura: The White Lotus Association denies the prophecy, but she still believes the world is going to end. Hasaki: Haa... You sure did do a good job finding all that out. Kimura: Ow, ow! Kimura: W-Wait. Even if you beat me up, someone else will find out the truth soon. Kimura: It's not just people online. There are other journalists asking around. Kimura: If anything else happens, the police will probably start investigating too. Kimura: The mistress of the White Lotus Association's founder is running the Web Bot Project! Kimura: And her son, Mamiya Takuji, is likely at the center of the latest incidents. Kimura: Gah... Hasaki: Huh? Master: Jeez, the mass media sure is garbage... Hasaki: Master... Master: Don't worry, I didn't kill him. I just put him to sleep. Let's bring him back to the shop, instead of talking here. Hasaki: S-Sure... *Master picked up the self-proclaimed journalist and carried him on his back.* Master: So... who is this? Hasaki: He's a journalist, apparently. Master: A journalist, huh? Well, what should we do with him? Hasaki: You're always sexually harassing Tomo Nii-san, so why don't you fulfill your urges with this guy? Kimura: Huh? Huh?! Wait, what do you mean by that? Hasaki: Exactly what I said. *Master woke him up once we got to the store. It's amazing how he's always perfectly in control of the situation.* Master: Hmm... He's not really my type, but.. * I do like virgin boys..."* Kimura: No, wait, I'm not a virgin... Though I've only done it with prostitutes. Master: Ahahaha... What are you talking about? Kimura: Ahaha, y-yeah, that's ridiculous. Master: I was talking about your anal virginity. I love showing little straight boys how to walk on the wild side. Kimura: Whoa, w-wait! They stuck their fingers in my ass, so I'm not a virgin there either! Master: Ahahaha, a girl's fingers can't take away your virginity. You have to get a real man to stick something nice and juicy up there. Kimura: E-Eeeek! Hasaki: U-Um... Th-That's really nasty. Master: Oh, sorry about that.. * So you're a jouranlist, Kimura-san?"* Kimura: Huh? H-How do you know my name? Master: Not just that. I know your address and your phone number too. I searched all your stuff. Kimura: N-No way... Master: Not like I really care, but why the heck are you toting around this huge camera? You must stand out with this thing. Kimura: Ah, don't touch that. I just got it fixed! Master: Hmm... So, back to our conversation earlier. Kimura: What do you mean? Master: You said there were lots of people talking about the incidents at Kita High. Kimura: Well yeah, a lot of crazy stuff went down. Master: Crazy stuff, huh... Hasaki: He said two people that Nii-san knew have died. Hasaki: And... Mom's site... Master: I thought that site hadn't been updated in ages? Hasaki: Yeah, she's just been sitting in front of the computer every day since then. I don't think the site has been updated. Kimura: How long has it been? There are lots of rumors going around that the site hasn't been updated for a while. Master: Why are there rumors about that? Kimura: Well, the site looks like it's operating automatically, and apparently the predictions actually come true... Master: Really? Hasaki: No... I wonder... I think it uses a program... Kimura: What? So it uses a program to predict the future? Hasaki: I wouldn't really say it predicts the future... Kimura: Does that mean a program is writing those predictions? Hasaki: Well... According to Yuki-san, it takes trending keywords on the Internet and uses those to write the predictions. Kimura: Huh? What do you mean? Hasaki: It's writing predictions for things that already happened. Kimura: What good is that?! Hasaki: It's in beta right now. All it can do right now is take popular keywords and post them as predictions. Kimura: How can you call that a prediction? Hasaki: Um... From what I've heard, the time required to post the predictions will grow shorter and shorter, and ultimately it will be able to post the predictions before anyone else on the Internet mentions it. Kimura: That's ridiculous. Hasaki: Really? At first it took several days to post a prediction, but now it can post them within seconds. Hasaki: That's why she said it would overtake the future soon. Kimura: It won't, though... Master: Don't you think it's pretty impressive, though? Hasaki: Yeah, Yuki-san spent a lot of time on it when she was bored. Apparently, it's really close to overtaking the future. Kimura: I told you, that's not the problem here... Kimura: I started researching the Web Bot Project on the Internet, and it's supposed to be way more than just that. Hasaki: Yeah, Yuki-san said something like that. Hasaki: She said occult stuff like the Web Bot Project was impossible. Hasaki: She said it wasn't a problem of just improving the system, but that the theory itself is flawed... That's why she said it was just a superstition. Master: Haa... That sure sounds like Yuki, all right... Master: She says it's impossible, but she was still too curious to pass up a chance to play around with it. Master: So that means Yuki is part of the problem here... Hasaki: Ahaha... I guess so. Maybe we should delete the page. Kimura: No, I don't think you should. If you do, the only thing left behind will be the rumors about its predictions coming true. Kimura: If it's just making predictions after the fact, people will figure it out eventually. Master: I guess so... If we delete it, we won't have any proof that it's fake. Kimura: On the Internet, it just takes one piece of decisive evidence to prove something true or false, but... Master: If there's no way to prove it either way, people will speculate about it for years. Kimura: Of course, most people on the Internet are just curious. It's not like they actually believe in prophecies, but still... Kimura: The Web Bot Project website hasn't changed at all in the past few days. Kimura: Rather, the rumors on the Internet right now are all about the Web Bot Project's past predictions. If the system's predictions are what people are talking about on the Internet, then... Master: There's no need to make a new prediction. Kimura: Though that'll change once something new crops up. Hasaki: Putting that aside, what do you mean by occult? I don't really know anything about that stuff... Master: Well, that's... Hasaki: Huh? N-No way... B-But... Kimura: What? You must've made some crap up, old man... The occult isn't the kind of thing that would make a girl blush! Master: Jeez, how can you tell? Maybe I should fix that dumb mouth of yours for good... Kimura: Oh, no, don't mind me. Ahahaha. Hasaki: Either way, Yuki-san said that the system can't make a prediction right now. Kimura: But still, I'm really amazed that no one's figured it out... Though I have to say, I'm kinda skeptical that it could make those predictions in just a few seconds. Master: So what kind of rumors have there been about Kita High lately? Kimura: The Web Bot Project has designated July 20th of this year as the date of a tragedy. It said those girls committed suicide in order to escape the disaster. Hasaki: They committed suicide in order to escape? Master: If they were so afraid of dying, why would they commit suicide? Kimura: Don't ask me. I just heard that those girls claimed the world would end on July 20th just before they committed suicide. Hasaki: Oh... So she... Master: Did you know the girl who committed suicide, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Oh, no. I wouldn't say that. I just met her once when I was with Tomo Nii-san and Yuki-san... Kimura: You keep mentioning him, but who is Tomo Nii-san? Master: Shut up, would you? You're not in a position to be asking questions. Kimura: I thought Takuji-kun was your only brother... Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san isn't my only brother... Kimura: What do you mean? Master: I told you to shut up... Kimura: Agh! Hasaki: So are they talking about my brother on the Internet too? Kimura: Hmm... Well, no one's mentioned him by name, but there are definitely rumors that something big is gonna happen at Kita High. Kimura: They say the ringleader is a male student from Kita High, but no outsiders have access to the underground message board, which is the epicenter of all the rumors. Hasaki: So that's... Takuji Nii-san... Master: ... Master: How much do they know about him? Kimura: I'm not sure, but I realized it, so other people with good intuition might've noticed him too. Master: Is it true that people on the Internet can track down your address if they know your real name? Kimura: I guess so? I couldn't say for sure, but it's certainly possible that they could find his address and phone number. Master: Do you think we're fine for now? Kimura: Right now... Well, people are just trying to gather information without causing a fuss... But depending on what they find out, you might start getting unsolicited calls. Hasaki: Calls? You mean from people we don't know? Kimura: Yeah, they do that on the Internet sometimes. They call businesses or famous people and post the conversations online Hasaki: What for? Kimura: Well, I guess some of them do it to get information, but most people just do it as a form of harassment. Master: You mean like when someone calls and immediately hangs up? Kimura: Well, it's a bit different from that old prank. Usually, they record the call so they can post it online. Master: Huh... They must have a lot of free time. Kimura: Most people do it to kill time, after all. Master: They harass people just to kill time? There are an awful lot of terrible people in this country nowadays. Kimura: Well, there are laws against public indignation and the sort... Hasaki: But we don't have a phone at our house. All we have is an Internet connection. Kimura: I think it's more common to call someone's school or work than their home. Master: So they could do it any time, couldn't they? They already know that he goes to Kita High, don't they? Kimura: Like I said, people just seem to be investigating right now. Master: So it's just a matter of time until they find out where the Mamiya house is... Kimura: Probably. Master: I see.. * Okay, Hasaki-chan."* Hasaki: Yes? Master: From now on, you're staying here. Hasaki: Huh? B-But... Master: Write down everything you need. Kimura: That might be a good idea. It might get a little noisy over at your house. Master: Yeah, so make this Kimura guy run and get whatever you need from the house. Kimura: Me? Master: That's right. I guess you don't have to... if you don't care about your camera. Kimura: That's my beautiful fighting Nikon D3 Camera! Master: Oh, this camera can fight? Maybe I should use it as a weapon next time I get a chance. Kimura: Wait, that's my heart and soul! Master: Then I'll tear your heart out. You know, they used to call my fist the 10cm Bomb... Kimura: What?! Are you some kind of mercenary boxer? Hasaki: Maybe I was Youhei? Kimura: Uh, wait, no one but old men are going to get that joke. Really, that wasn't funny at all. Master: I'm not an old man! I'm an old woman! Kimura: Gughah! Hasaki: Th-That's what you're mad about? Master: And that last part was a parody of Dr. Narihara. Kimura: Y-You're crazy... Jeez... Kimura: Eek! I-I'm here... Master: What took so long? Kimura: There was too much stuff. Are you moving in or what? Master: Of course there's a lot. She's a girl, so she has to have her necessities. Kimura: But why does she need the entire dresser?! Master: That's a dumb question! We can't let you touch her underwear, now can we?! Kimura: Haa... So that's why. Master: Of course! Hasaki: Ahaha... Sorry... Master: The room upstairs is free. Hasaki: No, it's not. There's only your room up there. Master: I told you, you can have that room. Hasaki: What about you? Master: I'll go sleep with my boyfriend. Kimura: Ahaha... It's kinda nasty hearing you say that. Kimura: Gughah! Hasaki: Um, Master... If you don't mind, I'd like to sleep in the store. Master: No way. I can't let a girl sleep in a place like this. Hasaki: Really? I could sleep on the sofa in the back. Master: What are you talking about? You'll be sore and tired when you wake up. Hasaki: No, I won't. It's plenty big enough for me, so I won't notice at all, and besides... Master: What? Hasaki: If Tomo Nii-san or the old Yuki-san comes in, I want to be the first one to meet them. Master: Hasaki-chan... Hasaki: Really, I would rather stay at home, but to be honest, it's really hard to watch Yuki-san when she treats me like that. Hasaki: So I really have to thank you for letting me stay here. Master: What? You could've asked any time. Hasaki: Sorry... but I didn't want to be selfish. Master: Silly girl. Hasaki: Ah... *Master gently embraced me.* Master: You're the girl she gave her life to protect, so you're my daughter... Master: And Tomosane is my son. Even now, she's protecting you both. I'm sure of that. Master: The doctor might disagree... Maybe most people would disagree... Master: But... I believe. She protected you before, and now she's protecting Tomosane. Master: From all the curses... From all the ghosts... Hasaki: Yes. *I hugged Master back.* *Our father died, and our mother ended up like that... Ever since, it's been Master Minakami who's been looking out for me and my brother.* *Maybe he's been spoiling me.* *I cried into Master's chest.* *I don't know why. I just needed to cry.*

*I couldn't tell if my eyes were open or closed.* *A world without light.* *...* *There was light.* *When my eyes focused, I saw that I was within a faint light.* Hasaki: This isn't... my ceiling. Hasaki: Ah... *I jumped up and checked my surroundings.* *Oh, that's right. I'm okay.* *I'd been staying here at the bar since yesterday.* Hasaki: What time is it? *I would normally be able to tell the time of day from the sun streaming in through the window, but in this darkness, I couldn't tell at all.* *I looked at the clock. It was just after 9 a.m.* *The bar's interior is always dark, even during the day.* *According to Master, the walls and doors are thick so that gang members can't break in.* *Bars where gangs would gather used to be built with unusually heavy walls and doors to protect against break-ins.* *But of course, that only happens in other countries.* *In a way, the bar is a lot safer than the house.* *When the doors are locked, no one can come in, and no one can see in from outside.* Hasaki: Haa... Hasaki: Huh? *Did I just hear someone... knock?* *I can't imagine any customers coming at this time of day.* Kimura: Are you up? Hasaki: ...Oh. *I stood in front of the large door.* *I raised my voice a little to answer.* Hasaki: Is that you, Kimura-san? Kimura: Yeah, it's me, Kimura. The demon Kimura, the Journalist Esquire Kimura. Hasaki: What's that? Kimura: There have been a lot of new happenings. I got some valuable new info. Hasaki: You investigated some more? Kimura: Yeah, I haven't slept at all! Isn't that amazing? Let me in! *What should I do? Master told me not to let anyone in until he got back, but...* Hasaki: Well, okay... Kimura: Good morning, Hasaki-chan. Hasaki: You're awfully chipper. Kimura: That's because I haven't slept! Kimura: Oh, can I have a beer? Whiskey, please! Hasaki: We're not open yet... *I reluctantly stood at the counter, even though I usually work back in the kitchen.* Hasaki: Have you eaten yet? Kimura: Nope! Can you cook, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Well, the only cooking I've done is here at the bar... Kimura: Yay. Hasaki: What do you want? This is the menu. Kimura: Let's see... Pickled Celery, a Penne all'Arrabbiata, a Margarita Pizza, and... Hasaki: Um, we're out of celery. We haven't restocked yet. Kimura: Then a Whiskey.. * aged 1000 years!"* Hasaki: We don't have any whiskey like that... Kimura: Ten years, then. Kimura: Puhaa, you're a good cook, Hasaki-chan. It tastes great. Hasaki: Thank you. Kimura: Oh, and I need a refill. A Glenfarclas from the year one billion! Hasaki: Are you okay? You're bright red. Kimura: Have I fallen for you? Hasaki: ...Jeez. Kimura: Ahahahaha, did your heart skip a beat? Are you intoxicated with my adult charm? Hasaki: I think you're the one who's intoxicated... Oh, behind you. Kimura: Behind me? Master: Why did you let Kimura in? Hasaki: He said he found some new information... Master: Don't let him fool you like that. You're so careless. Master: Um... Hasaki: What are you doing? Are you looking for something? Master: Huh? I'm taking the money out of his wallet before I throw him out. Hasaki: You can't rip people off like that! Master: So what's this new information you were talking about? Kimura: It's amazing. You'll understand what a great journalist I am now. Master: Oh, you don't have to convince me. You're a perfect example of mass media scum. Truly, you are a real journalist... and that's not a compliment. Kimura: That's right, I'm a true journalist. Don't you agree? Master: Yeah, I got it. Now what's this new information? Kimura: Well... I was looking around online, and there were posts saying something was happening around the station in Suginomiya, so I went out to Suginomiya. Master: And? Kimura: Suginomiya is where that girl committed suicide, so I stood watch at that apartment building... and I saw two girls there. Master: Hmm... And? Kimura: They picked something up and took it home. Master: ...How is that new information? Kimura: First of all... those two girls were Kita High students. Master: But why should we care about this amazing new information of yours? Kimura: Those two girls... are Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko. Master: And? Kimura: Those two were the students who were bullying the girl who committed suicide, Takashima Zakuro. Master: What proof do you have of that? Kimura: Well, I was originally investigating the proliferation of illegal drugs. Several Kita High students' names came up. Kimura: These two girls came up in my investigations more than once, so I already investigated them. Kimura: There was an incident in the past which could've resulted from bullying on Kita High's Building C. Master: Hmm... What does that mean? Kimura: Amazing! Master: What is? Kimura: I'm amazing for finding all this out! Master: You're not amazing. You don't know anything. Kimura: What are you talking about?! You can't solve a mystery in one day! It takes time! Master: Then tell us when you've solved it all. We don't care if you found a new clue. Kimura: B-But it was really hard to gather all this information! Master: But that's your job... Kimura: It's my job, but I haven't slept at all! I'm working twenty-four hours overtime! Master: You're proud because you're not getting any sleep? Are you stupid? You're not gonna get laid if you keep talking like that, you know? Kimura: What does that have to do with it?! Master: Everyone knows that it's just annoying if you tell them about how little sleep you get. Popular guys don't talk about that stuff. Kimura: I'm an exception! Master: ...What kind of exception would that be? Hasaki: Do you have a girlfriend, Kimura-san? Kimura: Ahaha... I've decided to preserve my chastity until we start dating, Hasaki-chan. Kimura: That hurt... Master: You're over thirty and you're still a virgin... Kimura: Why?! I'm such a perfect, nice, hardworking, funny guy! Master: Then how did you stay a virgin this long? Kimura: That's because... I was waiting for the moment I met you, Hasaki-chan. Master: Don't give her that romantic spiel. I know you go to the titty bars in town. Kimura: Um, Master, please don't hit me every time I say something. I was just making a joke... Master: Your face didn't look like you were joking. Kimura: You're so cruel... Kimura: What do you think, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: A-About what? Kimura: About me! About my humor! Hasaki: Um... You're a lot of trouble... Kimura: Huh? How so? Hasaki: Oh, uh, I guess I get kind of tired of hearing you make bad jokes over and over... Kimura: Really? I guess you're right. I always go overboard trying to make people laugh, you know * Ahahahaha."* Hasaki: Y-You really shouldn't... Kimura: So what do you think of me as a man? Hasaki: Uh, I think you're a lot of trouble... Kimura: Oh, I know that I'm a lot of trouble. I'm always getting into trouble! Master: I think you have a different definition of trouble than the rest of us. Kimura: Doesn't that mean I'm amazing? So, what else do you think of me? Don't you like me? Hasaki: I don't know you well enough for that. Kimura: Then maybe we can get to know each other better? Master: No way. Hasaki-chan already likes someone else. Hasaki: Huh? Kimura: What? Really? Who is it? Master: About that... Hasaki: W-W-Wait! Oh, that's right! You need to go to the store, Master! Quick! Master: Oh, I can do that later tonight. Hasaki: Um, you know, Kimura-san! Kimura: Huh? What? Hasaki: We're closed! Go home! Master: We haven't even opened yet. Hasaki: That's right! So get out! Kimura: Wh-Wh-Wh-Wha... Hasaki: Master! Master: Ahaha, sorry, sorry. Hasaki: Jeez, don't say weird stuff like that! Master: Oh, it was just a joke. Or is there really someone you like? Hasaki: N-Not... at all. Hasaki: I-I'm going to the store! Master: Huh? But the store isn't... Hasaki: I'll be back soon! Hasaki: Haa, haa, haa... *Why does this all have to happen right in the morning?* Hasaki: Haa... *I looked at the clock. It was just before eleven.* *I said I was going to the store, but then I realized that the store wouldn't open till noon.* Hasaki: What should I do? *I brought the shop's wallet with me too. If I went back without buying anything, I would just look dumb.* Hasaki: Haa... *Oh well...* *I haven't gone to see her in a few days. Maybe I should check in on her.* *White Lotus Apartments...* *I didn't really want to come here.* *My other relatives have even told me to stay away from her.* *But I come to the apartment here every few days.* *The person who abandoned me...* *The person who denied my existence...* *That's who lives here.* *So... I won't abandon her.* *And of course, that's not because I love her or even because I'm a philanthropist.* *The person who abandoned me...* *If I abandoned her after she became powerless, I would be no different.* *I hate her.* *But her blood runs through my veins.* *And I don't want to do the same thing she did.* *I won't abandon her.* *She abandoned me, but... I won't abandon her.* *Because...* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... was the same way. *Tomo Nii-san hated our mother more than anyone.* *He tried to protect me.* *But even Tomo Nii-san couldn't truly hate her in the end.* *He couldn't throw her away.* *That's how she ended up like this.* *And even now...* Hasaki: Hahaha... You're such a coward, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: You always said you were gonna kill her, but in the end, you could never do it. Hasaki: If you couldn't do it, then how could I? Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Kimura: Hm? Who's Tomo Nii-san? Hasaki: Huh? Aahh! Kimura: Is that Tomo Nii-san guy the person you like? Does one of your friends have a cute big brother? Kimura: Does that mean you really do like older guys? Hasaki: Why are you here?! Kimura: Because I was worried. I chased after you. Hasaki: You mean you followed me? Kimura: Come on... Who knows what could happen, right? A weak, young girl like you needs a big, strong bodyguard like me. Hasaki: Oh, really? So you'll be my bodyguard, huh? Kimura: Of course! Hasaki: Hold out your hand. Kimura: Huh? What? You want to hold hands? Or can you read palms? *I grabbed his hand.* Kimura: Gyoah, gyah! Hasaki: Now, try to escape. Kimura: O-Ouch... I-I can't! It hurts! Let me go! *I sighed and let his arm go.* Hasaki: If you can't even escape a weak, young girl's armlock, I don't think you could protect me. Kimura: N-No... I'm the cultured type of guy. I'm not all that strong or good at sports, but I'm really good at other things, like not sleeping. Hasaki: Haa... *I wonder what his problem is.* *I looked at Kimura-san's face once more.* *He had a huge grin on his face.* *...* *But, I guess he's not a bad person.* *And he gives us the information he finds. It must've been hard to get all that info.* *Part of it is just because he wants to get information from us, I'm sure. Still, he always tells us everything, even if he doesn't have to.* *Even now, he could have just followed me instead of showing his face.* *And more than anything...* Hasaki: Master seems to be pretty fond of you, doesn't he? Kimura: Master? What? No, I'm not into guys. I only have eyes for you, Hasaki-chan. *Is he even listening to what I'm saying? Or maybe he just doesn't understand what he's hearing.* *But wouldn't it be a problem if a reporter was so bad at listening?* Hasaki: Haa... Anyway, please don't follow me like that. Kimura: Ahahaha... Sorry. Hasaki: Haa... Well, now that you came all this way... Do you remember that Web Bot Project I told you about last night? Do you want to see it? Kimura: Huh? Here? Hasaki: Yes. This is my mother's apartment. Kimura: Oh, wow... The name is exactly the same. Hasaki: Yes, but the White Lotus Association tells her not to use their name. They even sent us a cease and desist order. Kimura: Oh, then she's not related to the White Lotus Association? Hasaki: Not at all. There's only the name left. Now, only my mother lives here, and the only person who ever comes to see her is the home helper. Kimura: But you come to see her too. Hasaki: I am her daughter, unfortunately... Hasaki: Go ahead. Kimura: Ahaha, thank you... Kimura: Whoa. *"..."* Hasaki: Oh, that's my mother. Kimura: Oh, you're Hasaki-chan's mom? Uh, my name is Kimura! Hasaki: That's pointless. No matter what you say to her, she can't hear you. Kimura: She can't hear me? Hasaki: Yes. *Kimura-san looked into my mother's face.* *Even when a complete stranger was staring her in the face, she didn't react at all.* *Kimura continued his bizarre performance in front of my mother for a few seconds before he was finally convinced.* Hasaki: She's been like this for over seven years now. Kimura: Seven years... Hasaki: Do you want some tea, Kimura-san? Kimura: Oh, you don't have to do that for me. Hasaki: Um, do you want cold oolong tea or warm green tea? Kimura: Um, whichever one's easier for you. Hasaki: Are you taking notes? Kimura: Yeah, sorta. So then, what exactly happened seven years ago? Hasaki: I can't tell you that. Kimura: Huh? Why? Hasaki: You're taking notes because you want to write an article about this, right? Kimura: Not at all. I would consider your family's circumstances before doing that. Hasaki: Either way, I don't want to talk about it. Go investigate it yourself if you really want to know. Kimura: Ahaha, that's a bit harsh. Well, I don't blame you. Hasaki: Kimura-san, it was Nii-san... It was Takuji Nii-san you were investigating, right? Kimura: Yeah. At first, I was just following the leads, but he caught my interest after his name kept popping up. Hasaki: What did you think of him? Kimura: What do you mean? Hasaki: Don't answer my question with another question. Just answer the question. Kimura: Hmm, well... It's hard to sum it up in a single sentence. I talked to him quite a few times, and he broke my camera twice. Kimura: To be honest, it doesn't feel like he's really a central figure in the recent events. Or rather, I don't want to believe he's involved in all this. Maybe that's it? Kimura: The Mamiya Takuji I met was certainly violent and even a bit ruthless, but... Hasaki: But? Kimura: Does anyone ever come to visit this apartment? Hasaki: Huh? No, not really. What does that have to do with it? Kimura: The floor was vibrating just now. I think someone's coming up the steps. Hasaki: You heard someone? *Kimura pointed to a strange machine.* *It was a small machine with a cord that reached the floor.* Hasaki: What's that? Kimura: A vibration monitor. Normally, it's used to check for broken parts in machines, but you can use it to tell when someone comes into a building by watching the readout. Hasaki: It's that sensitive? Kimura: Well, it depends on the construction of the house too, but in a steel-frame apartment building like this, it's pretty accurate. Hasaki: That's awfully convenient, isn't it? Kimura: Let me ask you again. Do people ever come to visit here? Hasaki: A maid comes to clean the apartment once a day, but... Kimura: What time is that? Hasaki: That's during the evening. Kimura: Are you expecting visitors at this time of day? Hasaki: No. Kimura: Who could it be? Hasaki: Relatives, maybe? But I think they would be working today, since it's a weekday. Kimura: Maybe someone else in the industry is trailing me. Or maybe it's a snake who tracked us down online? Hasaki: What should we do? Kimura: I'll go check. Hasaki: You can't do that. How would I explain that if it was one of my relatives? Kimura: What if it's someone dangerous? Hasaki: Would you be able to do anything? Kimura: Of course. For your sake, I'll make the impossible possible! Hasaki: Please just hide. Kimura: Huh? Why? Isn't this the part where we kiss? Hasaki: It would be dangerous if you went out, no matter who it is, so please just hide. Here, take this knife. Kimura: Whoa... Is this a sashimi knife? I'm pretty sure the tip will break off if you stab someone with one of these. Hasaki: Just go hide already. I'm going out! Kimura: Whoa, wait! *I pushed him into the closet.* Hasaki: Hmm... *Now, what's happening outside?* *I peered through the peephole and looked out.* *Whoever it was, they weren't standing outside the door. I didn't see anyone out there.* *And besides, I'm not sure if Kimura-san was right about someone coming up the stairs.* *I locked the door with the chain and then opened it a little bit so I could see outside.* Hasaki: Huh? *I unlocked the door right away.* Mamiya: Ah... Hasaki: ... *Nii-san was standing outside.* *Only Tomo Nii-san and the first Yuki-san knew about the White Lotus Apartments.* *Which meant it had to be one of those two.* Mamiya: U-Um... Hasaki: Wh-Why are you here? *I was too happy to say anything else.* *But then I recovered my composure.* *There was no guarantee that the person before me was actually who I thought it was.* *I closed the door right away.* *Almost immediately.* Mamiya: S-Sorry... I-I'm not a burglar or anything. Hasaki: Wh-Who are you right now? Mamiya: Huh? Hasaki: Who are you? Mamiya: Um, my name is Minakami, you see... Hasaki: Minakami... Yuki... *Yuki-san...* *But the way she's talking... This isn't the same Yuki-san.* *This Yuki-san doesn't know who I am.* *But I heard that the other Yuki-san had replaced me with two characters called Kagami and Tsukasa.* *That Yuki-san shouldn't see me for who I am.* *What's going on?* Hasaki: Ah, ahaha... Minakami Yuki? You're the Minakami Yuki from Kita High, right? Mamiya: Y-Yes... Wait, how did you know? *I knew it. This isn't the same Yuki-san I know.* *Then why doesn't she think I'm the twin sisters?* Hasaki: U-Um, what did you come here for, Yuki-san? Mamiya: Oh, nothing... Um... Hasaki: ... *I was at a loss for words. If nothing else, I could be sure this wasn't the same Yuki-san I knew.* Hasaki: Do you want to come in? Mamiya: Huh? Hasaki: Do you want to come in... to the house? *Mom and Kimura-san were inside.* *Kimura-san was hiding, so he wouldn't be a problem.* *There was no need to hide my mother. Maybe I could even tell what sort of person this Yuki is from her reaction when she sees her.* Mamiya: Well, I guess, if I wouldn't be a bother. Hasaki: You won't be. *She stepped into the apartment.* *Tomo Nii-san always scowled when he stepped into this apartment.* *Then he would always look at our mother from afar.* *For some reason, Yuki-san would always pat me on the head after she saw my mother there.* *How will this person react?* Hasaki: What would you like to drink? Mamiya: Oh, don't worry about me. Hasaki: Does oolong tea sound fine? Mamiya: Oh, sure. *I made some oolong tea for Nii-san.* *It was the first time I had ever needed to act so polite around my brother.* *Takuji Nii-san couldn't see me. Tomo Nii-san and the previous Yuki-san both talked to me like a normal sibling would.* *But the new Yuki-san always saw me as two twin girls I've never heard of.* *So this was new for me.* Mamiya: But before that, could I ask why you know my name? Hasaki: Sorry. You're right. That was a little creepy, wasn't it? Mamiya: Oh, no, that's not what I mean. Hasaki: My name is Mamiya Hasaki. Mamiya: Mamiya Hasaki... Huh? Mamiya? Hasaki: Yes. He's in your class. Mamiya: Mamiya Takuji... Hasaki: Takuji is my father. Mamiya: Huh? *I couldn't tell how much she actually knew about me, so I gave her a completely ridiculous answer.* *Just like Yuki-san taught me.* *When someone asks you a question, giving a nonsensical answer allows you to understand something about that person, such as how well they know themselves.* *The slower they are to react, the less they know about themselves.* *It's strange using a technique on Yuki-san... that I originally learned from Yuki-san.* Mamiya: That's... Hasaki: It was a joke. Mamiya: Oh, riiight. Wait, a joke?! Hasaki: Takuji is my husband. Mamiya: Huh?! Hasaki: That was also a joke. Mamiya: No... Enough with that, already. Hasaki: Excuse me. Hasaki: I just thought it would help break the ice. Mamiya: No, well... You don't have to worry about me. Hasaki: Excuse me. *It seemed like a joke Yuki-san would have told, but the new Yuki-san didn't find it funny.* *It was painfully clear that this wasn't the same Yuki-san I knew.* Hasaki: The truth is... I'm Mamiya Takuji's little sister. Mamiya: Little sister? Hasaki: Yes. *She apparently recognized me, but she didn't even know that I was his sister.* *I couldn't tell if this was the new Yuki-san I heard about, or yet another Yuki-san that had just been created.* *It was hard to tell.* *I heard the sound of a cup falling in the other room.* *My mother must've knocked over the tea I made for Kimura-san...* Hasaki: Ah... Mother. *I grabbed some tissues and wiped up the oolong tea she spilled.* *Maybe I should've told Kimura-san to take his cup with him.* *It would've been kind of weird though, seeing him with a knife in one hand and a cup of tea in the other.* *I saw Yuki-san peering in from the other room.* *When she saw my mother, there wasn't any sign of recognition on her face.* Hasaki: Ah, excuse me. My mom just... Mamiya: Your mother, you said... Hasaki: Yes. You can probably tell by looking. Our mother is a bit... *...* Mamiya: Is she sick? Hasaki: Yes. Hasaki: More importantly, why are you here at this house, Yuki-san? Even Nii-san doesn't come here. Mamiya: Ah, sorry. I came after I saw this. *She showed me some pages she had printed out.* *And then I understood what happened.* *This Yuki-san must have been investigating the incidents at Kita High.* *And she followed the clues until she ended up here.* *After that, I talked with Yuki-san a lot.* *As I did, I gradually figured something out.* *She must have recognized me as Mamiya Takuji's little sister when she saw me in this house because that made her worldview consistent.* *It would be a problem if the twins showed up here.* *So at least for now, she recognized me as Mamiya Hasaki.* *But she still saw me as a complete stranger. As Mamiya Takuji's little sister.* *That was really sad, but I was still glad that I was able to talk to Yuki-san again.* *It felt like I was talking to the same old Yuki-san.* *She was trying to solve the problem just like the old Yuki-san would have.* *How ironic.* *She had to uncover the mystery of all these incidents being caused by someone living in the same body as her.* Mamiya: Sorry for taking up your time like this. Hasaki: Oh, no. It's not a big deal. Mamiya: Well then... Hasaki: U-Um... Mamiya: Yes? Hasaki: Ah... excuse me. It's nothing. Mamiya: Hmm? Hasaki: If something's ever troubling you, please come here any time. Mamiya: Sure thing. Hasaki: And if you meet my brother, tell him his little sister asked him to stop by once in a while. We're all waiting for him. Mamiya: You haven't seen your brother lately? Hasaki: No. It seems like I can't. Hasaki: That's probably part of the curse. Mamiya: Curse? Hasaki: Oh, it's nothing. Mamiya: Anyway, if I see him, I'll tell him what you said. Mamiya: Look, I know it might not be my place to say this, but I don't think it's anything like that. Hasaki: Huh? Mamiya: After all, Hasaki-chan, I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't want to have a cute little sister like you. So I'm sure he hasn't forgotten about you. Hasaki: ... Hasaki: Um, Yuki... Mamiya: Yes? Hasaki: You have a childhood friend, right? Two of them, actually. Mamiya: Oh, yeah. The Wakatsuki sisters. Hasaki: Do you like them? Mamiya: Huh? What's this, all of a sudden? Hasaki: Oh, nothing... Uh... Mamiya: ... Mamiya: Of course I like them. They've been my friends since we were little. Hasaki: Okay. Hasaki: Thank you. Mamiya: Yeah. See you. Hasaki: Bye. *I wish I could tell Yuki-san everything.* *But I know that would be pointless.* *Because the old Yuki-san that knew everything got erased, and this one replaced her.* *If I told this new Yuki-san everything, so she could understand it all... the result would be the same.* *The new Yuki-san would be erased too.* Kimura: That was Mamiya Takuji, right? Hasaki: Yes. Kimura: Hmm... *I expected a barrage of questions to follow, but for some reason, Kimura-san just looked out the window with a pained expression.* *He must have heard us talking from inside the closet, but he didn't ask any more questions about it.* *All he said was...* Kimura: Even if something big does go down, I don't think your big brother will be to blame. Kimura: That's what I think. And I'm sure you believe in him, too. *That's all.* *My conversation with Yuki must have sounded odd, but he didn't question me about it.* Hasaki: Something big, huh... *Kimura-san was trying not to intrude on our lives too much.* *But still, even I could feel that something big was about to happen.* *It seemed inevitable by that point.* *Which means...* Hasaki: My brother is related to all this, isn't he? Kimura: ... *Kimura-san was lost for words.* *He didn't have any response to that.* *That's right. Something else is going to happen soon.* *It's going to happen, whether I want it to or not.* *And I can't do anything about it.* *All I can do is be protected by others. I can't solve the problem.* *Seven years have passed. Can't I change this destiny?* Kimura: Are you thinking about doing something? Hasaki: ... *Kimura-san suddenly looked at me and asked that.* *I couldn't answer.* *All I could do was grimace in resignation.* Kimura: I've fallen into your brother's clutches more than once. I couldn't believe how strong he was. Kimura: He looks skinny, but it's like he can tell what you're going to do before you do it. He made me look like a helpless little kid. Kimura: I was really impressed. Kimura: But he's always careful that he doesn't seriously injure anyone. It hurt like hell, but he was careful not to break my bones or anything. It was only a few minutes before the pain went away. Kimura: They say that strength is kindness. I agree, but today I realized that real kindness is found in dedication. Hasaki: Kindness is dedication? Kimura: Ahaha... It's kind of cliche to say that strength is kindness, but you probably haven't heard anyone say that kindness is dedication, right? Hasaki: I haven't. Kimura: All too often, kindness is a transient thing. Showing kindness for just a moment isn't kindness at all. At best, it's pity. Hasaki: Transient kindness is just pity? Kimura: A transient kindness doesn't involve any pain, sacrifice, or risk. Kimura: It's not in just one moment, but over a great span of time, that kindness is really shown. Even if it might not benefit the person giving their kindness, they still persevere for someone else's sake. That's true kindness. Hasaki: Persevering for someone else's sake is true kindness... Kimura: It's very easy to say some kind words on cue, which might make other people think you're a kind person. Kimura: But those are actually the people who are least kind. Kimura: Flatterers are the worst of friends. Their empty promises mean nothing when you find yourself in real trouble. Kimura: Those who are willing to risk misfortune falling upon themselves to aid a friend... They're easily much kinder. Kimura: When he attacked me, he could've done much worse to me, and he could've used more of his moves on me. Kimura: He was careful not to leave any bruises, and above all, he treated me like a person. Kimura: Not as a paparazzo or an annoying journalist. He treated me like an equal. Maybe that's not the smartest thing to do nowadays, though. Kimura: Your big brother... is a really nice guy. Kimura: He even risked himself to get those drugs off the street. Kimura: That signals absolute confidence in one's ability. And most of all, he places other people's comfort over his own. Kimura: No one thanks him for what he does. He only does what he thinks is good. Kimura: And it's his stubborn will that keeps him going. Kimura: It's that same stubborn human will that underlies all real kindness. Kimura: A determination to see things through to the end. Hasaki: I don't really understand what you're trying to say. Kimura: You used the same skills on me, and that's when I knew that you two really were brother and sister. Kimura: Your brother is very strong, yet also very caring. You're strong and caring just like he is. Hasaki: You're just flattering me. I'm not strong, and I'm not a nice person either. Kimura: Yeah, that might be true. Even now, your resolve is wavering. Hasaki: Wavering? Kimura: You're fighting against your own determination to see things through. Hasaki: Against my own... determination? Kimura: In the past few years, since that great change seven years ago, what thoughts have you had? Kimura: You've resolved to do something in that time, haven't you? Hasaki: H-How did you... Kimura: No, I'm just going off my intuition. I just had a feeling. Kimura: Something happened seven years ago, didn't it? It must be the reason why your mother acts like that. Kimura: And now you're trying to accomplish something. Hasaki: Something I've tried to accomplish... Kimura: You know what I mean. But your determination is wavering. Hasaki: ... Kimura: This whole incident might end up being bad news for you, but it'll be worse if you don't do something about it. Hasaki: Worse? Kimura: Yeah. You probably don't have to worry about the world actually ending, but there certainly could be a bad outcome. Hasaki: ... Kimura: I've been investigating this incident. It would be a huge scoop if I could report on it. Kimura: But I'd rather it didn't turn into a terrible accident. Hasaki: Thank you. Hasaki: Um... Why did you come to the school? Kimura: Well, I heard there was a mystery here at Kita High. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. There's an old Japanese phrase: 'You can't find a tiger cub without going into the tiger den!' Hasaki: Haa... This is completely unrelated, but can I ask you a question? Kimura: Anything! Hasaki: In that old phrase about the tiger, do you know why someone would want to find a tiger cub? Do they want one as a pet? Kimura: I'm not sure. Tiger furs are really valuable, right? Hasaki: You would kidnap a tiger cub just for money? You really are a bad person. Kimura: I'm not a bad person! Hasaki: Well, it's not like you're actually going to do it. Hasaki: But won't you get reported to the authorities if someone sees you going into the high school? Kimura: It's okay. *Kimura-san walked into the school with me.* Hasaki: U-Um... Kimura: Whoa! Teacher: You there! Wait a second! Kimura: I-I'm not a bad person! Hasaki: Ahaha... I knew you weren't allowed in here. Teacher: Hey, wait! Hasaki: What are you trying to do? Hasaki: Kimura-san! Kimura: I-I was scared. He would've dragged me all the way into the staff room. Hasaki: Of course they would. Someone like you really sticks out in the school. Kimura: Why? Don't I have a baby face? Hasaki: That's not what I'm saying... That camera is really suspicious. Kimura: Maybe I should've put on a uniform... Hasaki: I don't think that's the real problem either. Hasaki: Besides, what are you trying to investigate? Kimura: Well, you know, there's more activity on the underground message board when your brother is at school. Kimura: And when he's at home, there's no activity at all. Hasaki: So you think my brother is somehow related to that message board? Kimura: Well, yeah, I guess so. Hasaki: You're not very sure of yourself. Kimura: Not really... Hasaki: Tell me everything. Don't hold back. Hasaki: If there's a way to stop the disaster that's about to happen, I have to know everything. Kimura: Everything... Okay. *Kimura-san took a moment to think and then opened his mouth to speak.* Kimura: It was yesterday. Somewhere by that same apartment building in Suginomiya, Akasaka Megu and Kitami Satoko found something. That's what they said. Hasaki: So that's why you were there in Suginomiya. Because you read online that something was going to happen there... Kimura: Yeah... To tell the truth, I was watching your brother before that. Kimura: They said they found something, but your brother actually planted it there right before they came. Hasaki: I see. That really is important information. Kimura: Yeah, but I wasn't sure if I should tell you all of that. That's why I hid that part. Kimura: I was trailing him because of what he had done before. It was just a coincidence that I saw him plant that. Kimura: I'm probably the only person who knows. No one online knows about that. Hasaki: He's trying to make something happen... That's what you think, right? Kimura: Yeah. Sorry, but that's what I really think. This whole incident doesn't just happen to revolve around him. He's the one causing these things to happen. Kimura: He's doing it all... Hasaki: Kimura-san, you should take a look at his computer. Kimura: His computer? The one in the house? Hasaki: No, there's probably nothing on that one. I'm talking about the other computer, the one he keeps in his secret base. Kimura: He has another one? Hasaki: The manager of the Kita High underground message board is probably Takuji Nii-san. Kimura: I see. Hasaki: So you're not even surprised. That's what you were thinking too. Kimura: Well, I was watching him for quite a while. But do you know where that computer is? Hasaki: Yes. I've never been there, but I'm pretty sure I know where it is. Kimura: Then we should sneak in there tonight. Hasaki: We don't have to wait till then. It should fine for us to go right now. Kimura: Well, I would love to go right now, but the school authorities really don't seem too fond of me. *That was putting it mildly.* Hasaki: We don't have to go through the school to get there. Kimura: Oh, really? Kimura: I-Is it really down here? Hasaki: Yes, it should be just ahead. Kimura: But this is... Kimura: A sewer, isn't it? Hasaki: Yes, that's right. Oh, here it is. Kimura: Here? Kimura: What is this room? Hasaki: It was the pool's water tank, I think. Kimura: The water tank? There's no water in here, though. Hasaki: It's the tank for the old pool that doesn't get used anymore. Now then... Kimura: Ah, Hasaki-chan! Kimura: Wh-What is this? Hasaki: What does it look like? Kimura: The foundation... Why is there such a large foundation under this school? Hasaki: I'm surprised too. The foundation is really massive. Kimura: So this is the first time you've seen it too, Hasaki? How did you know this was here? Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san said... Oh, uh, I mean Nii-san told me about it. Kimura: I see. Kimura: Oh, is this a generator * Wow, this secret base is really something."* Hasaki: I turned on the electricity. Kimura: It looks like there's a light over there. *There was a slight luminescence over where Kimura-san was pointing.* Hasaki: Huh?! Kimura: Wh-What? *I grabbed Kimura-san and hid behind the pillar.* Kimura: Wh-What, you finally got me alone? Hasaki: He's here. Kimura: Your brother? *In the center of the foundation, there was a silhouette of a person looking at the ceiling.* *I couldn't see his face, but I knew it had to be Nii-san.* Kimura: Oh, you're right. That could be bad. He probably noticed us when we turned on the light. Hasaki: No, it should be fine. Kimura: Will it? Wouldn't he notice if the lights suddenly came on in the dark? Hasaki: Just look at him. He's not moving at all. *He was still standing in exactly the same position, looking up at the ceiling.* Hasaki: I've seen him in that state more than once before. Right now he probably isn't receptive to any information from the outside world. Kimura: He isn't receptive to any information? Hasaki: Yes, so I think we'll be okay. Kimura: Really? B-But... Hasaki: Anyway, we should go check it out. Follow me. It's over here. Kimura: Ah, Hasaki-chan... Kimura: W-Wow, what is this? Hasaki: I think it's my brother's secret base. Kimura: A secret base, huh? This is amazing... Oh, here's the computer. Hasaki: He's probably getting on the Internet from this computer too. He hardly touches the one at home. Kimura: Oh, lucky! He doesn't have a password on here. Uh, Hasaki-chan, can you just give me a second here? *Kimura-san pulled out a thumb drive and stuck it into the USB port.* Kimura: Just a second. I just need to copy some of these files. *Kimura-san sat down in front of my brother's computer.* *And I looked around at Nii-san's secret room for the first time.* Hasaki: Books... Lots of books. *There were dusty shelves on the wall, filled with all sorts of difficult books.* *Those books belonged to Yuki-san and Tomo Nii-san. Why were they all here?* *Oh, that's right... I think Nii-san did say that he kept losing his books before he could finish them.* Hasaki: No wonder... *Maybe Takuji Nii-san hid these difficult books here because he doesn't like them.* *He's quite the nuisance for Yuki-san and Tomo Nii-san, though.* *I looked at the other shelves too. There were a bunch of manga and light novels cleanly arranged on most of the other shelves.* *These must be Takuji Nii-san's...* Hasaki: He used to read all sorts of hard books before. *I guess that's his way of distancing himself from his past.* *It used to be Tomo Nii-san that didn't like to read hard books.* *I guess it was probably Yuki-san's influence that made him start reading more.* *Because Tomo Nii-san really liked Yuki-san...* Hasaki: Huh?! Kimura: A cell phone? Huh? Hasaki: It's not mine. It's probably Nii-san's. Kimura: Your brother's phone? Hasaki: Let's go. He's going to wake up soon. Kimura: Wait, really? Uh... *Kimura-san shut down the computer and pulled out his USB drive.* Hasaki: Hurry! Kimura: Y-Yeah... *I saw the silhouette move to look at the ringing phone.* *We could still get away without being noticed.* Hasaki: Kimura-san, hurry. Kimura: Y-Yeah. Hasaki: Haa, haa, haa, haa... Kimura: So this is where it leads. Wow... Hasaki: Kimura-san, we need to hide. We can't be seen inside the school. Kimura: Sure. *Kimura-san and I hid in the brush.* *If we just followed the hedge row, we could get all the way over to the school's back fence without being seen.* Hasaki: Kimura-san, hurry up! Kimura: Wait a second! Hasaki: Huh? Kimura: Your brother came out of the manhole. Hasaki: He did? *He had come out of the underground base too.* *He looked like he was worried about something.* *Did something happen?* Kimura: Is something bothering him? Kimura: Ah. Hasaki: Someone's here. *We hid and watched.* *There were quite a few students gathered around my brother.* *He looked like he was shocked at the number of people.* Kimura: They're surrounding him. What's going on? Kimura: That's Akasaka Megu, and that's Kitami Satoko. And that one is... Tachibana Kimika, I think. Hasaki: You know them, huh? Kimura: I investigated a whole bunch of them. I know the names and faces of quite a few students in this school. Kimika: U-Um, Mamiya-sama... Takuji: ... Kimika: I-I saw it... Takuji: N-No... Th-This is... Kimika: Mrs. Senagawa really died! I was so moved! Your power did it, my savior! Takuji: U-Um... Takuji: ... Kimika: I was waiting in the courtyard, just like you ordered me to... and Mrs. Senagawa really fell. She splattered all over the ground. Takuji: Wh-What? Kimika: It was the rooftop above the fourth floor, so she fell from five stories up. I didn't think that was high enough to kill someone outright, but she just went splat. Kimika: Yes. You specified the time and location, didn't you? Takuji: R-Really? *Kimura-san and I were at a loss for words.* *That meant that another person had died here at this school.* Kimura: Th-This is bad. We need to get away from the school. Hasaki: Huh? Oh, right. *I was confused and didn't know what to say.* *Another person had died.* *And according to the conversation just now, my brother had predicted that person would die.* *Which means...* Kimura: Hasaki-chan! I know this is scary, but we have to get out of here! Kimura: Someone just died here. If we're found loitering around the crime scene, we could be mistaken for the perpetrators. Kimura: Come on! *He pulled my hand as we ran around the backside of the school and went to hop over the back fence.* Kimura: Hasaki-chan, hurry up! Hasaki: Y-Yeah. *I hopped over the fence too.* *Then, right when we came out into the alley behind the school...* Teacher: Hey, you! Why were you in there?! Kimura: Eek! Teacher: You're that guy from earlier! Kimura: R-Run away! Hasaki: Y-Yeah! Master: And then? Kimura: They saw my face. Master: Careless. Master: So basically, the school and the police think that you're the most suspicious person. Kimura: I-I didn't do anything! Master: Tell that to the police. Kimura: I can't tell them that! Master: Don't worry about it. They'll investigate you for a few days, and then it'll be over. Kimura: You can only say that because you've never experienced it. You don't know how scary it is to be interrogated by the police! Master: Of course I haven't experienced that. It happens to you because you're so careless. Kimura: Oh god, do you think there will be wanted posters up tomorrow? Ones with my face on them? Master: Well, it's not like we know this person was murdered. All you know is that they died. Kimura: That's true, but... Master: Besides, there's nothing on the news. If they thought it was a homicide, they would be covering it on the news, don't you think? Kimura: I-I guess so. Master: Haa... I can't believe another person has died at that school. Kimura: Yeah. What the hell is going on? Hasaki: How much information did you get off Nii-san's computer? Kimura: I won't know until I take a look at it. For what it's worth, I copied all his passwords and all the data from the message boards. Kimura: Most of the stuff on his computer was just stupid videos, but it wasn't hard to find the work data. Hasaki: Um, here. *I handed a key to Kimura-san.* Kimura: What's this? Hasaki: The key to the house. It's the spare, though. Kimura: Why did you give me this? Hasaki: There's another computer in the house. You should investigate that one too. Kimura: Huh? Me? Are you sure? Master: Of course she's sure. It's not like you can betray us now. You're in more trouble than any of us. Hasaki: And besides, I don't know anything about computers, so I wouldn't know what I was looking at. If you know what you're looking for, then you should go. Kimura: Oh, uh, that should help me out a lot. Thanks. Hasaki: And, uh... Kimura-san. Kimura: What? Hasaki: Um... *The words were stuck in my throat.* *But it was too late to be hiding things now.* Kimura: What's wrong? Hasaki: If Nii-san comes home and tells you that his name is Tomosane... Kimura: Yeah, I understand. If he says his name is Tomosane, then bring him here, right? Hasaki: Huh? Kimura: I couldn't believe it myself, but I think I know what the situation is. Kimura: The brother you love is the one called Tomosane, right? Kimura: That arrogant, brutish sort of guy, right? Hasaki: Y-Yeah... Kimura: Understood. If he comes home, then I'll bring him to you here. Hasaki: Thank you. Master: Hmm? Kimura: What's so funny? Master: I'm just surprised that you're such a good man. Kimura: Me * Oh, come on. You don't need to state the obvious."* Master: Now I just want to... eat you up! Kimura: No, stop it!

*That day, it was evening before I woke up.* *After what happened yesterday, I couldn't sleep until early morning.* *Master closed the store down for the day, so I just slept until now.* Hasaki: Th-The phone... It's Kimura-san! Hasaki: Kimura-san? Kimura: Yeah, it's me. Hasaki: What happened? Kimura: Well, that incident from yesterday is being treated as a suicide, so no one is accusing me of being a murderer. Hasaki: Oh, that's good. Kimura: The police don't think that I'm the culprit, but they're investigating me as a person potentially involved with the past several deaths. Hasaki: R-Really? Kimura: Apparently, a drug dealer was attacked by a young man last night. Hasaki: A drug dealer? Um... Kimura: Illegal drugs, of course. After that, the members of some sort of gang moved to protect themselves, and the police have been moving in response to them. Kimura: People have told me that I should just hand myself in to the police. The police would put me in jail at worse, but this gang would kill me if they caught me. Hasaki: W-Will you be okay? Kimura: I was investigating the drug trade in this town, so it's not like I'm completely unrelated. One of my friends is trying to help clear up the misunderstanding. Kimura: I met with a bunch of people who wanted to talk about that stuff, so I wasn't able to gather much information today. Sorry. Hasaki: You don't have to be sorry. You had a lot on your plate. Kimura: I sure did. I'm not completely cleared of all guilt yet either, so it's not like this is past tense. Kimura: If we can bring the truth to light, people will have no reason to doubt me anymore. Then I won't be targeted by anyone. But right now both the police and the thugs are looking for me. Kimura: The police think that the deaths might've happened under the influence of illegal drugs, even if they weren't homicides. They're definitely still investigating the situation. Hasaki: Under the influence... Kimura: Yeah. That's the reason why I wanted to investigate the drug trade here. This city is pretty famous for being the center of a lot of drug activity. Hasaki: What about my brother? Kimura: It doesn't seem like he's being targeted. All the attention is focused on me right now. Kimura: But that's just a matter of time. Kimura: The police say that they've gotten the names of several students who were in frequent contact with the dead drug dealer, though. Hasaki: Did my brother know those people? Kimura: I don't think the police will hear his name from any of them. At the very least, I've never seen him talking to any of them. Kimura: But if any of the students who were buying drugs happen to get caught, there's a good chance they might snitch on your brother. Kimura: I've seen him taking drugs away from them with my own eyes. Hasaki: I see... Kimura: And the things that happened at Kita High... Like when your brother injured a teacher. Hasaki: Did something like that actually happen? Kimura: They say that he smashed a flower vase over a teacher's head during class. Kimura: The school hasn't told the police about what happened, but that's probably just a matter of time too. Kimura: Because of his unusual behavior, people will assume that he's got his hands in the drug trade as well. Hasaki: Oh... Kimura: Well, for better or worse, they're chasing me because I was in the school when Mrs. Senagawa jumped off the roof and killed herself, so they're not focused on anyone else right now. Hasaki: Sorry. It seems like I've gotten you into a lot of trouble. Kimura: What do you mean? This is my job. I got involved because I wanted to. It's a lot of fun being right in the middle of everything, though. Hasaki: Hahaha, try to be serious here. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you. Kimura: What if it did? Are you worried about me? Hasaki: Of course I'm worried about you. Kimura: That must be my adult charm at work. Hasaki: You don't have any of that. Kimura: Oh, you're so quick to cut me down. Kimura: Oh, right. There's one more thing, but I'm not sure if I should tell you about this. Hasaki: What is it? Kimura: Your brother... He came home. Hasaki: Huh? Kimura: I don't know whether he's the man you call Tomosane, though. Kimura: Anyway, I have somewhere else I have to go right now. Hasaki: U-Um, Kimura-san! Hasaki: He hung up... *Nii-san is in the house?* *That was probably the new Yuki-san.* *She was always the one I saw at the house.* *But if it was Tomo Nii-san...* Hasaki: If Tomo Nii-san went back to the house, he wouldn't know that I'm staying here. *I hadn't thought of a way of telling him that.* *I thought Kimura-san might be able to tell him, but Kimura-san wasn't watching the house at all times.* *If Tomo Nii-san came home when no one was there...* Hasaki: No one would be able to tell him where I am. Hasaki: I don't know who's in the house right now, but... *But still, if that was Tomo Nii-san...* *And even if it wasn't him, the other two wouldn't be able to recognize me at all.* *In the classroom, they just recognize me as the twins, but in the house I would probably be removed from their consciousness in order to maintain consistency.* Hasaki: Maybe... *Maybe I should leave a note for Nii-san, in case he comes home, telling him that I'm at the Hakushuukyou bar.* Hasaki: There's no danger, right? *I knew I was just making convenient excuses for my actions.* *No matter what the reason, though, I wanted to be sure.* *It'd been so long since I saw Tomo Nii-san... I just wanted to see him again.* *If there was even a small chance of seeing him again, then I'd bet it all on that.* *I took the train from Suginomiya back to my house.* *It wasn't that far.* *It always felt like a quick ride before, but this time it was a very long train ride.* Hasaki: Haa... *As I watched the scenery drift by...* *I thought about a lot of different things.* *About today.* *About the past.* *About Tomo Nii-san's relationship with Takuji Nii-san. And about Yuki-san, who protected me.* *And, after that... the days I've lived with him since that day.* *No, not just with him.* *I lived those days with Tomo Nii-san and Yuki-san, and Takuji Nii-san as well.* *The incident that changed everything in my life, and the incident that completely changed my family...* *Everything from that moment in time, leading up to me being here today...* *Tomo Nii-san's kindness...* *Takuji Nii-san's curse...* *And Yuki-san's...* Hasaki: Ah! *I was lost in thought, but then a sign flashed by with my station's name on it.* *The train slowed as it approached the station.* *I arrived at my destination.* *There was a light on in the house.* *So he really did come home.* Hasaki: I wonder who it is. *There was a light on in the living room.* *Someone was in my brother's room on the second floor.* *I quietly went upstairs.* *He was doing something with his phone in the middle of the room.* *That wasn't his phone.* *None of them really spend that much time playing with their phone.* *I wonder who it is...* Mamiya: They were deleted just yesterday, so I should be able to retrieve all the important messages. Mamiya: There was a list of the different messages from Takashima around here. *He was doing something with the phone while watching the computer out of the corner of his eye.* *He must be investigating something.* Mamiya: Whoa... There are a ton of them. *I wonder whose phone that is.* Mamiya: This doesn't seem like a ghost. It looks like someone was leading Mrs. Senagawa on. *Mrs. Senagawa. She's the one who died yesterday.* *He must be investigating Mrs. Senagawa's death, which means...* Hasaki: It's Yuki-san... Or maybe Tomo Nii-san? *Which one is it?* *I couldn't tell because he wasn't saying much.* *If I come out now, Yuki-san won't recognize me, but Tomo Nii-san will.* *Then I should just go for it.* Mamiya: I'm just curious. *He called someone with the phone in his hand.* *And then...* Mamiya: Huh?! *There was a quiet ringing sound in the room.* *Which means that the phone he called was in the room.* Hasaki: ... *For some reason, he was shocked by that fact.* *It was like he couldn't believe what he was hearing.* Mamiya: Why is the sound coming from inside this room when I called Takashima-san's phone? *He called Takashima-san's phone?* *Then that ringing just now was Takashima-san's phone?* Mamiya: What the―! *He pulled open the desk drawer where the sound was coming from.* *And lying there was...* Mamiya: This is... *That cell phone.* *It was the phone that Takuji Nii-san brought back to the house a few days ago.* *I remembered how he was touching it and mumbling something to himself.* *I remembered that it was creepy how the case was broken.* *That was... Takashima-san's phone.* *But why would Takuji Nii-san have something like that?* Mamiya: Takashima... Zakuro's cell phone? *He fearfully picked up the phone.* *He probably didn't know that Takuji Nii-san was the one that put it there.* *Does that mean this is the new Yuki-san?* Mamiya: N-No way... Wait. For the moment, just calm down. *After looking at the phone, he collapsed back into his chair.* Mamiya: Wh-What am I doing... Kuh... What's this? *When he sat down, he knocked some white powder off the table...* *What is that powder?* Mamiya: Wh-What am I doing? *He opened the window and tried to dump the powder out the window, but then the wind blew it all over the room.* Mamiya: What's wrong with me? Hasaki: Whoa. *I looked at the door post that I was holding onto and saw fingerprints on it.* Hasaki: They use this stuff in detective shows, right? *It was some kind of powder that reveals fingerprints.* *I didn't know he had something like that.* Mamiya: Huh? What is this? *I heard a note of despair in his voice.* Mamiya: These are... *The scattered powder showed all the fingerprints in the room. On the desk, on the drawer, on the closet...* *Nii-san trembled at the sight of those fingerprints.* Mamiya: Th-They're the same as the ones on Takashima-san's desk... Why? Mamiya: Wh-Why? Her cell phone is in my room, as well as the same fingerprints that were on her desk. Mamiya: Why? *It was the new Yuki-san.* *And she was under a terrible misunderstanding.* *Those were her own fingerprints.* *She thought those were someone else's fingerprints. They're probably the fingerprints of the culprit she was chasing after.* *In other words, they were Takuji Nii-san's fingerprints.* *She was probably terrified because she saw Takuji Nii-san's fingerprints all over the room.* *Of course his fingerprints were all over the room.* *Because Yuki-san and Takuji Nii-san are the same person, they have the same fingerprints.* *It's not surprising at all that his fingerprints would be all over the room.* Mamiya: This is... *When I saw Yuki-san trembling like that, I ran into the room without thinking.* Mamiya: Huh? *When she saw me, Yuki-san's expression froze.* *Oh, shoot...* *I was just worried about Yuki-san.* Hasaki: U-Um, Yuki-san, wait! Hasaki: Calm down! You don't need to be afraid of me! Mamiya: Eek! *N-No good. She probably did recognize me, but she refused the information.* *When someone refuses to recognize something, that recognition always turns to fear.* *So right now I must be terrifying to her.* Hasaki: I'm sorry, Yuki-san. Hasaki: Um... Mamiya: Aaaaaahh! Hasaki: Yuki-san! Hasaki: ... *What was I doing?* *I probably only confused Yuki-san even more, and in a situation like that... I'm really the worst.* Hasaki: Haa... *Anyway, I should clean this up.* *I wiped off all the powder on the surfaces in the room.* *Then...* Kimura: Hasaki-chan, you came back to the house. Hasaki: Oh, yeah... *Kimura-san apologized when he saw my expression and figured out what had happened.* Kimura: I guess I shouldn't have said anything. It wasn't him. Hasaki: Yes. Kimura: Oh... Sorry, I guess my information wasn't useful this time. Kimura: I had someone watching the house for me. He told me someone was in the house, so I came back to see who it was. Hasaki: What about the job you were doing? Kimura: Yeah, we're pretty much finished. Kimura: I can't do anything about the police, but I managed to clear up the misunderstanding with the people I work with. Hasaki: That's good to hear. Kimura: And I did a bit of digging while I was there. Kimura: You said something happened seven years ago, so I went through all the national and local newspapers from that time period. Kimura: I found out about a certain incident that took place in a town called Sawaimura. Kimura: Everyone involved was underage, so there were no names. I got in touch with the reporter, though, and made him give me the names. Kimura: This tragedy began on that day. Kimura: I'm right, aren't I? Hasaki: Yes. Kimura: Tell me if I'm wrong about any of this... Or, well, I understand if you don't want to talk about it. Pretend like I'm just talking to myself. Kimura: But if my inference is correct, then I might be able to find this Tomosane-kun that you've been looking for. Hasaki: ... Kimura: The Mamiya Takuji-kun here today... isn't the real Mamiya Takuji-kun. Hasaki: ... Kimura: The person who is called Mamiya Takuji today isn't listed as Mamiya Takuji on the family register. Kimura: According to official records, Mamiya Takuji is already dead. Kimura: He's a person that no longer exists. Kimura: The family register says that the only living brother you have today is the eldest Mamiya brother, Mamiya Tomosane. Kimura: The person you call Tomo Nii-san. Kimura: Is that correct? Hasaki: ... Hasaki: Yes. Kimura: And during the incident which happened seven years ago, he killed Mamiya Takuji-kun. Hasaki: Ah... Hasaki: No, that's not true. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san didn't kill him. Hasaki: It's not his fault! Tomo Nii-san was just― Kimura: I understand. I heard what happened back then. Kimura: Tomosane-kun was the victim. It wasn't his fault. Kimura: It was a classic case of self-defense. Mamiya Takuji-kun was the one at fault. Kimura: He was just protecting you from Takuji-kun, who threatened you with a knife, and then Takuji-kun was killed in the struggle. Kimura: It was a complete accident. Kimura: No one has any reason to blame Tomosane-kun. Kimura: That was the official ruling as well. Kimura: But there were some people who thought differently. Kimura: One was your mother, and the other was... Kimura: Tomosane-kun himself. Kimura: He felt so much guilt for killing his own brother, Mamiya Takuji, that he denied his own personality. Kimura: He wanted to do something for Mamiya Kotomi-san, who had been traumatized by the loss of her Takuji-kun... and so his personality changed, as if Takuji-kun's soul had been transferred into his body. Kimura: he doctor's diagnosis was secondary structural dissociation associated with PTSD. Personality misidentification thought to be a type of dissociative disorder or depersonalization. Kimura: The symptoms include a disassociation of the experiencing self and the observing self, but it's rare for the disassociated self to take the shape of a dead person like Mamiya Takuji-kun. Kimura: To put it simply, he has a disease which causes him to mistake himself for another person. That was the diagnosis. Kimura: I met the doctor who first diagnosed him. Kimura: Normally, he wouldn't be able to tell me any of this, but he opened up when I told him that Tomosane-kun might be related to the recent deaths. Kimura: But the doctor didn't know how far his case had progressed. Kimura: He was shocked when he heard that the disassociated self had split into a third personality. Kimura: The third personality... In other words, he has dissociative identity disorder, which is more commonly known as multiple personality disorder. Kimura: These symptoms appeared after he got out of the hospital. Kimura: From what I've heard, his mother made a unilateral decision to stop all treatment. Kimura: It's still a mystery why Minakami Yuki and Tomosane-kun's personalities later reappeared. Kimura: And something else I heard from the doctor... There's no clear medical reason why he would begin to believe his own name is Yuuki Tomosane rather than Mamiya Tomosane. Kimura: The only thing they can say for sure is that these symptoms appeared in his particular case. Kimura: After that, your mother raised Tomosane-kun as if he was actually Takuji-kun. Kimura: That's why he's listed as Mamiya Takuji in the school records. Kimura: Of course, that's inconsistent with the family register, but the school never had a reason to investigate him. Kimura: Kotomi-san also must've forged quite a few official documents. Otherwise, there are too many things that can't be explained. Kimura: We don't know whether she did all this maliciously, or if she was simply out of her mind. Kimura: The tragedy unfolding right now was engendered by the tragedy of seven years past. Hasaki: That's not true. Kimura: ... Hasaki: What happened seven years ago isn't causing all of this to happen. Hasaki: My birth itself set into motion all the events leading up to today. Hasaki: The tragedy began in the moment that I was born into this world. Kimura: That's wrong. Hasaki: No, it's true. My life―my cursed life―brought unhappiness to everyone around me. Hasaki: I killed Takuji Nii-san, and I made Tomo Nii-san bear that curse. Hasaki: And Yuki-san, who was completely innocent... I got her wrapped up in this too. Hasaki: The entire tragedy came about because I was born. Kimura: No! That's not true! Kimura: Please don't say that! Kimura: What about the woman who saved your life so many years ago? What would she think if she heard you saying that? Kimura: The young daughter of Master Minakami, the one who protected you. Kimura: What about her? What would she think if she heard you saying such sad things about yourself? Hasaki: Yuki-san... Kimura: Minakami Yuki was the daughter of Master Minakami, the owner of Hakushuukyou. Kimura: His daughter put her life on the line to protect you both, so now he treats you like you're his own children. Kimura: He chose to give up his life as a warrior and live together with the two of you. Hasaki: Yes. Kimura: Your birth didn't cause any of this to happen. Kimura: It's not your fault. It's not Tomosane-kun's fault either. Kimura: So... Kimura: So we have to stop Mamiya Takuji. Kimura: We have to expel his vengeful spirit. Hasaki: Kimura-san... Hasaki: Aren't you completely unrelated to all of this? I wouldn't want to cause you more trouble. Kimura: What are you talking about? I'm here of my own free will. I want to be here for you until the end. Hasaki: Kimura-san... Kimura: Have I finally captivated you with my adult charm? What do you think? Hasaki: Kimura-san, are you an idiot? Hasaki: I... I only love Tomo Nii-san. Kimura: Hahaha, I know that. Kimura: I'm cursed to be a virgin forever. Kimura: I understand. Kimura: The kind of wonderful woman that I would fall in love with will always have someone else in their thoughts. Kimura: I'm used to getting turned down. Kimura: So go ahead and cry it out. Kimura: You can cry on my shoulder. Hasaki: Kimura-san... Hasaki: Are you seriously trying to seduce me? Kimura: Huh? Did you think I was joking? Hasaki: I mean, you and me... No matter what happened, that's a bit... Kimura: I guess so, hahaha. *Kimura-san patted me on the head.* Kimura: It's a joke. Just a joke. I know how much you love your Tomosane Nii-san. Kimura: There's no way you could fall in love with an old man like me. Hasaki: I might've considered it if Tomo Nii-san wasn't alive. Kimura: Huh? Hasaki: But Tomo Nii-san is still alive, so I can't. Kimura: I figured... *Kimura-san drove me back to Hakushuukyou.* *On the way home...* *We passed over a hill I'd never gone over before.* *As I crested that hill...* *I saw the night's sun.* *It was in the same neighborhood where I'd grown up, but I never even knew these huge sunflowers were here.* *The downy flowers sparkled white with dew.* *The moon was blue and the flowers were yellow.* *It looked as if the sun and moon each stood in the other's place.* *The ever-dazzling sun stood upon our Earth, and the moon in the sky finally shone with its own brilliance.* *The yellow of the sunflower was dyed with the blue of the moonlight.* *It was a beautiful sight to behold.* *But the vigorously blooming sunflowers looked somehow frail.* *Sunflowers reaching out to the darkness of a night sky.* *My eyes chased after the sunflowers even as I sat inside the car.* *Like suns reflecting the light of the moon.* *Suns bathed in blue...* *My eyes followed them until they faded from view.* *I never told Master where I was going, so he was very stern with me.* *He was so mad at me that he made me cry.* *But when I saw how upset he was, I felt like I really understood what Kimura-san was trying to tell me before.* *Master... Yuki-san's father... He loves us like his children.* *The very same children who Yuki-san gave her life to protect.* *Kimura-san escorted me to the bar and then went back to the Mamiya house.* Kimura: There are still a lot of things I need to investigate. Kimura: Next time I see him, I'll bring him to you if I can confirm who he is. Kimura: I just need to check whether or not he's your Tomo Nii-san. *.........* *......* *...* *Near midnight, the bar's heavy door opened.* *The bell on the door tinkled quietly.* *Even though the sign had read closed all day.* *Master tried to tell the customer that we weren't open today.* *Then he froze in place.* *A familiar face stood in the doorway.* *A face I'd seen just hours before.* *But something was a little different.* Master: O-Oh? Kimura: Hello... It's me, Kimura. Master: Oh, does that mean... *Kimura took a bow, as if he was introducing a royal guest.* *The person that Kimura-san had brought with him...* *There was only one person it could be.* *It was exactly who I was looking for.* *My jaw shook as I tried to say something.* *The words were stuck in my throat.* *I couldn't get the words to come out right.* *Just one word...* *It's just my brother's name.* *I gathered all my courage...* *Just so that I could speak.* Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san? *The man in front of me gave a sly smile.* *Then he finally answered.* Tomosane: Yeah... It's me, Tomosane. Hasaki: Uwaaaah! Tomosane: Wh-Whoa, Hasaki. *I jumped into his arms so fast that he fell back against the door. I couldn't restrain myself.* *I couldn't hold back. I just cried into his chest.* *It was Tomo Nii-san, right here with me.* *The Tomosane Nii-san who I fell in love with.* *The person who was always, always there by my side.* *He tried to mask his embarrassment by laughing at me.* *His was a smile that neither Yuki-san nor Takuji Nii-san could ever replicate.* *There was only one person in the world that could show me a smile like that.* *That's why...* *That's why I...* Hasaki: I thought I would never see you again. I was so sure. Things were just getting crazier and crazier with Takuji Nii-san. Tomosane: Crazy, huh? I guess so... Hasaki: You probably don't know what's been happening, but a lot of people have been dying and going missing. Tomosane: No, I can follow the traces of his memory. I do share the same brain with that bastard, for what it's worth. Master: Huh? You can do that? Tomosane: I learned how to do it just recently. I got a bit of training. Master: Hmm, and it seems like you've grown up a bit since I last saw you. Something's changed, for sure. Did something happen? Tomosane: Nothing in particular, really * After Mamiya Takuji beat me up, I spent a lot of time wandering through a dream."* Master: A dream? Tomosane: Yeah. I met Yuki for a little while. Master: Yuki? Oh, I see. Hmm... Tomosane: What? *Master looked very happy.* *Master never told Yuki-san's personality that he was actually her father.* *Neither did Yuki-san ever know that she had been Master's daughter when she was alive.* *People view Yuki-san as nothing more than a split personality, the side effect of a disease.* *As if she was nothing more than another one of Tomo Nii-san's delusions.* *But Master always believed.* *He always believed that the Yuki-san personality really was his daughter, and that her soul had gone into Tomo Nii-san's body so that she could save him.* *He told me that Yuki-san was still here on Earth because she needed to protect Tomo Nii-san and expel Takuji's curse from his body.* *Dissociative identity disorder.* *It's easy to rationalize the phenomenon with a label, but the human heart has more intricacies than that diagnosis could ever convey.* *And the soul, too, holds its own secrets.* Master: Hahahaha, I can still see a bit of her in you. Tomosane: Who? Master: Oh, nothing. I'm just talking to myself. Besides, don't you need to talk to Hasaki-chan about something? Tomosane: Yes. Master: Weren't you in a rush? Go right ahead. Tomosane: All right. *Then Nii-san took a step away from me.* *He saw the disappointment on my face and held up one finger, as if to say that it would only be for a moment.* *Even a moment together with him was precious to me.* Master: Hmm? Tomosane: But first... Master! Master: What? Tomosane: Please step outside! Master: Outside? What, you want to talk to me alone? Tomosane: No. I'm telling you to step outside with me! Master: Huh? Master: You want to hook up?! Tomosane: No! I'm telling you to step your ass outside! Master: Hehehe... What's wrong? This is rare from you. Tomosane: It's not just rare. It's the first time... Asking your instructor to step outside is like suicide. Master: But you're still saying it? Tomosane: Yes... Please. Master: All right. Hasaki: Huh? Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: The truth is, I came home just to tell you one thing. But there's something I have to confirm before I can say it. Hasaki: U-Um, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I had a dream... Hasaki: A dream? Master: That's what you said earlier. You met Yuki, right? Tomosane: Yes, I met Yuki, and she taught me how to control my dreams. Master: Controlling your dreams, huh? Like a lucid dream? Tomosane: You know about it? Master: Yeah, that state of mind is often used in the world of martial arts. Tomosane: Is it? Then I definitely need to ask you something, so please step outside. Master: Jeez, is that the hip new catchphrase that all the fresh meat are saying? Tomosane: Please don't call me fresh meat. That's disgusting. Hasaki: Huh? Wh-What? Hasaki: Master? Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Just give us a moment. Hasaki: B-But I haven't seen you in so long... Tomosane: Don't worry about me. I'll be right back. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! *I tried to chase after him.* *Then Kimura-san stopped me.* Hasaki: Kimura-san! Kimura: alm down. They're probably just going up to the roof. Hasaki: The roof? Kimura: Yeah, they go up there if they're going to practice martial arts. That's what I heard, anyway. Hasaki: Why do they need to practice? Kimura: No, today they're not practicing. Hasaki: Wh-What are you talking about? Kimura: Tomosane-kun is trying to surpass his master, Minakami-san. Hasaki: Huh? He's trying to beat Master? Kimura: Yeah, that's right. Hasaki: Wh-Why? Kimura: I think you should hear that from Tomosane-kun. Hasaki: Kh! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: It's been so long, Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: H-Hasaki? Kimura: Ahahaha, I couldn't stop her. She insisted... Hasaki: Master, stop it! Tomo Nii-san looks awful. Tomosane: Shut up! Just be quiet, Hasaki! Hasaki: Ah... Master: Oh... Is that what you really want to say to her? Hasaki: ...I'm not going to shut up... Hasaki: I'm not going to shut up! Do... Do you understand how I feel seeing... Tomosane: I understand. Hasaki: You don't understand! You're only saying that because you don't understand! Tomosane: That's not true! Tomosane: It's not because I don't understand. I'm only saying this because I really do understand. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I only came back because there was one thing I needed to tell you. Tomosane: If I say those words, then nothing else matters. Hasaki: That's what I mean! You don't understand at all! You can't just say one thing and leave! I want to sit and talk with you more... I want to talk with you as long as I can, Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: But you always make up your mind and decide things on your own. Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. You're right, Hasaki. I'm always being stubborn and making selfish decisions. Hasaki: Then why is there just one thing? That's nowhere near enough! I want to talk to you more! Just one thing isn't enough! Tomosane: Hasaki... How many is enough? If this one thing I came to tell you isn't enough, then how many is? Hasaki: I don't know. I just want to talk to you more, more, more... As much as I can... That's all. Tomosane: Me too... Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: I want to talk to you, Hasaki! Not just about one thing, but as much as I can! Tomosane: That's why I came here tonight to tell you this one thing! Hasaki: Huh? You mean... Tomosane: I won't disappear! I will beat Mamiya Takuji! And I'll still be here to protect you! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: It won't be Yuki or Master protecting you... It will be me! Tomosane: Hasaki! I'll come home alive! I'll definitely come back for you! Tomosane: So don't worry! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I'll beat this stupid tranny, and then I'll beat Mamiya Takuji! Master: Who's a stupid tranny? That's not how you should talk to your master, especially after he just beat you up. Tomosane: Sorry, Master... I shouldn't have said that, but... Tomosane: I will defeat you! Master: I can see your knees quaking, you know? Tomosane: A warrior shakes with anticipation before a battle! Master: You've sure changed. Tomosane: I'm fed up with all this shit. I don't care about being cool and mysterious or whatever anymore. Tomosane: I'm totally done with that shit, so yeah, I've changed. *He was already beaten up.* *He got knocked around by Master before I came.* *He was covered in bruises and cuts.* *Anyone could see that there was a difference in absolute power here.* *The situation was desperate.* *And still, he fought on.* Tomosane: Master, you never could beat the master back at the dojo, my grandfather. Master: Of course not. Who could? Master: This school of ancient martial arts, passed down from the Sengoku Period, has just a few hundred basic techniques. Master: There are tens of thousands of different combinations of those techniques. Master: But for him, that wasn't a problem. He had some sort of primal instinct... Well, that was a very religious dojo, and each successor to the dojo had something like psychic powers. Tomosane: That blood flows in my veins too... That's probably what I'm feeling right now. Tomosane: I gave you my word... Tomosane: Now it's my turn. Master: Your... turn? Tomosane: Controlling one's dreams... I only understood the meaning of those words by standing here before you, Master, in the real world. Master: Grr... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! *It felt like time stopped in that moment.* *Time stood still, not moving into the past or the future.* *Like something that simply exists.* *The next moment seemed to stretch into eternity.* *The two silhouettes sprang into motion.* Master: Ugh! Master: Whoa... Take... it easy... Tomosane: ...I did it! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! You're covered in bruises... Kimura: Wow... He won. Master: Hey, isn't anyone worried about me? Hasaki: Does it hurt? Tomosane: I would be lying if I said it didn't. *I went and got the medicine box.* *Why did he have to get beaten up right after he came back?* *He's just like he always was.* *Every time Tomo Nii-san comes back to me, it's just like this.* Hasaki: You're covered in bruises. Tomosane: Well, I got in a bit of a fight. Of course I am. *Every time you come back, you look like this...* *I almost said that, but then I stopped.* *Tomo Nii-san had no memory of the distant past.* *He was convinced that he was actually Mamiya Takuji, and his personality was just created by Takuji Nii-san.* *So... Tomo Nii-san had thrown away all of his own memories.* *And all of our happy days in Sawaimura, too.* Hasaki: Why would you do that? Jeez, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: I told you. I did it so I could protect you. Hasaki: But... Tomosane: So that I can be with you from now on. Hasaki: You'll be with me... from now on? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, you won't go away? Tomosane: Of course not. I'm not going anywhere. We can talk for as long as you want. Hasaki: Really? Tomosane: Really. Hasaki: But you always lie to me like that. Tomosane: Heh... I guess I do. Hasaki: Honestly, I want to tie you up with duct tape so you can't go anywhere. Tomosane: That might work. Hasaki: Yeah, but... Hasaki: I believe in you, Tomo Nii-san... Hasaki: I've been betrayed so many times before, but I still believe in you, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Why? I'm such a good-for-nothing brother. Hasaki: Because you're my hero. Tomosane: Hero? Hasaki: That's right. The hero is stronger than the savior. Tomosane: What? That doesn't make any sense. Hasaki: But it's true. Tomosane: You're right. Tomosane: I'm stronger than him. Tomosane: I definitely won't lose. *My promise with Tomo Nii-san.* *He broke the last promise, but...* *I still believe.* *Because he's my brother, and he's my hero.* *So I'll believe in him.*

*...* *The wind made no sound.* *Until just now, I had heard the wind blowing.* *Why did the wind stop blowing?* Hasaki: Huh?! Hasaki: I'm in the store? Hasaki: B-But I was on the roof just now. Kimura: Tomosane-kun carried you down here. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san? Hasaki: Th-Then where is he now? Kimura: Um... Hasaki: Kimura-san! Kimura: I don't think I can tell you that. Hasaki: Kimura-san! Kimura: Y-Yeah, uh.. * This is a promise between men."* Hasaki: A promise between men? Kimura: Yes, because I could never hold back a man who has set off for battle. Hasaki: To battle? Okay, great. Thanks, see you later! Kimura: Huh? Kimura: Whoa! Why are you running off? Hasaki: There's only one place where Tomo Nii-san would go to fight! Kimura: Huh? Why? Hasaki: If he's going to fight with Takuji Nii-san, then Kita High is the only place! Kimura: But do you know where in Kita High? Hasaki: I won't know until I get there! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Kimura: So... where is he? Hasaki: What, didn't he tell you? Kimura: Nope, he didn't tell me a thing. Hasaki: Then he didn't make you swear not to tell! You just didn't know! Kimura: Well, I guess. Hasaki: Huh?! Who's that? Kimura: Huh? Wh-Where? *There on the moonlit rooftop...* *There was only one silhouette.* *There was only one person...* *But it looked like he was facing off against some adversary.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! *A statue underneath the moon.* *A lone figure.* *Something at his chest glittered and gleamed.* *The hand held in front of his chest grasped the same knife from before.* *It was the same pose as the one from seven years ago.* *The only difference was that a single figure stood in the darkness, not two.* *The knife's tip was aimed at his own heart.* Hasaki: No! You can't! Tomosane: Huh? *I saw his face in the shadows, and I instantly knew who it was.* *There's only one person in the world who could make that expression, a mixture of kindness and irritation.* Hasaki: Y-You can't... Tomo Nii-san, you can't do that. Tomosane: Why did you follow me? Kimura: Ahahaha... Sorry about that. Tomosane: Damn it, Kimura... Tomosane: Crap. I forgot to lock the door. If I had locked it, you wouldn't have been able to follow me up here. Hasaki: You can't... Tomo Nii-san, I-I won't let you do that! Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: If that's what you were planning to do... I should've just tied you up and never let you leave. Tomosane: I told you, that was also an option. *In that moment, when Tomo Nii-san was worrying about me...* *His expression changed for just a split seocnd.* *For a split second, his expression changed into... someone else's.* *I tried to scream.* *But it ended before I could get the scream out of my mouth.* *That thing ended...* *Like fibers cracking upon steel. Then, blood and flesh...* *The sound rang out, lonesome in the dark.* *The dirge of the end...* *It was a messenger, telling me that this was the end.* Tomosane: Ah?! *Cold iron flashed in the dark.* *Bright red blood danced across the blade.* *An endless, jet black sky hung over our heads.* *The moon tinted our lacquer sky with shades of blue.* *The steel flashed.* *The red blood flowed.* *Everything turned white.* *All I could see...* *Was white.* *Those words I never could say...* *Those words I never could hold back...* *All those words caught in my throat, and then my breath came out as a scream.* Hasaki: NOOOOOO! Hasaki: No, Tomo Nii-san! NOOOOO! *I could only scream.* *Tears ran down my face as I screamed for him.* Tomosane: At the very end, I still messed up, huh? Tomosane: Pre-established... harmony, huh? Tomosane: I see. So in your eyes, I've already outlived my purpose. *Tomo Nii-san whispered as if he was talking to himself.* *He must have been talking to Takuji Nii-san.* *I couldn't tell what had happened to the two of them.* *All I knew was that Nii-san had stabbed himself in the chest with a knife.* *As a result of that action, no one could be the victor.* *If his phyiscal body died...* *It would mean the death of three souls.* *Why did it have to come to this?* *I crumpled and fell on the spot.* *My voice caught in my throat.* *The tears wouldn't stop.* *The trembling wouldn't stop.* Tomosane: Hey, Hasaki... I'm sorry... Tomosane: It looks like I won't be able to keep my promise. This is the end for me. Tomosane: Haa... I couldn't do anything for you, Hasaki... could I... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Hasaki: That's not true... That's not true... Tomo Nii-san, don't go... Tomosane: There's nothing I can do... I've been beaten... Tomosane: Nothing I can do... huh? Tomosane: Is this too reality? Tomosane: Then I can only accept it... Hasaki: ...Uwaah... Kh... Tomosane: Haa... If this is how it was going to end, I shouldn't have used the last of my time like this... Tomosane: I should've spent my time with you... Tomosane: Hahahaha... I've been an awful brother too... Tomosane: I haven't changed at all... Tomosane: Now then... Farewell, Mamiya Takuji. Congratulations. You've won. Tomosane: And I've lost... *I ran over to Tomo Nii-san.* *I put my arms around him and held him close.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Don't go. Tomosane: You dummy... Don't come near me. It's dangerous. Tomosane: This body will be Mamiya Takuji's soon. I'm going to disappear. Hasaki: You can't disappear, Tomo Nii-san! Please! Tomosane: Yeah... I don't really want to disappear. Tomosane: I wanted to be with you longer. Hasaki: Then please, don't go! Let's go home. Let's go home together. Let's just go home... Tomosane: You're right... That was the promise. Hasaki: Yeah, it was... Tomosane: To be together forever... and talk as much as we wanted... Hasaki: Yeah, you promised we could talk as much as we wanted... I still want to talk to you, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: We didn't talk enough, did we? Tomosane: Let's... talk. Hasaki: Yeah, I-I... Last night, I saw a big sunflower. *The flower I saw on the hill at night.* *I saw that sun of the night on a road I never passed by.* *In a world ruled by the azure, the sunflowers shone bright with yellow.* *I told him about the sunflowers.* *The sunflowers on the hill.* Hasaki: A big sunflower, yellow and beautiful in the sky... Tomosane: A sunflower... Hasaki: It's already summer, you know? It's the middle of the summer... *I knew that sun in the night.* *Because we had seen that same sun together before.* Hasaki: Summer break is coming soon. I wish I could've gone somewhere with you this year, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Summer, huh? Hasaki: Yeah. You said you wouldn't ever leave me, so I wanted to go on vacation somewhere this summer. Hasaki: Because this summer, it seemed like we were getting along again. Hasaki: This summer break... let's go back to our old town, together. Tomosane: Our town? Hasaki: That's right. Our town. Where you and I were together before. Tomosane: That... *Tomo Nii-san gently laughed.* Tomosane: How did I forgot that? We were there together before. Hasaki: Yeah, so this summer... let's go back. Tomosane: This... summer? Hasaki: Yeah, Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Yeah, of course. Tomosane: This... summer? Hasaki: Kimura-san, call an ambulance! Takuji: What?! Hasaki: Ah! *Nii-san pushed me away and stood on his own two feet.* Takuji: What is this?! Takuji: Ow, damn... Hasaki: Nii-san, don't move! *I tried to stop him, but he slapped away my hand.* Hasaki: N-Nii-san... Kimura: Th-That's... *His face was different from before.* *His voice was different.* *He looked precisely the same, and yet it was like he was a completely different person.* *As he stood up, there in the moonlight, he looked like a vengeful demon back from the grave.* Kimura: Hasaki-chan, be careful! Hasaki: Nii-san! Kimura: Don't do it! That's not Tomosane-kun! That's the man who tried to kill you! Hasaki: Nii-san! Nii-san! Kimura: It's dangerous! Stop! You know how dangerous Mamiya Takuji really is! Kimura: Now he has hundreds of believers under his control too! Hasaki: Nii-san! Nii-san! Please, come back! Kimura: It's dangerous! Get back here! I'll call the police and the ambulance! Takuji: But... I still have so many things I have to do... Takuji: Agh... Takuji: Now, let's go home, to the ark. The final day is at hand. *He disappeared into the shadow of the building, holding his wound.* Kimura: Hasaki-chan! Hasaki: I'm sorry! Kimura: Whoa! Hasaki: Kimura-san, I'm really sorry, but... *I chased after my brother.* *I found a small door over where he'd disappeared. There was a steel ladder hanging there.* Hasaki: ... *The ladder led all the way down into the darkness underground.* *I was definitely scared, but...* *Still, I went.* *It was packed full of people down there.* *An incredible number of people.* *Just how many people could they cram into a place like this?* Hasaki: Nii-san... *I tried to find my brother among the crowd of people.* *Just find him...* Kimika: Huh? *Someone saw me and then started to talk to me.* Kimika: Why are you here? Hasaki: Huh? Kimika: Oh, that's right. You don't know about me, do you? Kimika: I just know about you because I investigated the savior's background and personal details. Hasaki: Do you know my brother? Kimika: Well, yeah, I do. Hasaki: Where is he? He's in a lot of trouble! Kimika: ... *That woman stopped to think hard about something.* *She then laughed caustically.* Kimika: That's right, isn't it? He's not just our savior. He's also your brother, too. Kimika: I have to eliminate anyone who would interfere with the plan. Hasaki: ...Ah! Kimika: I thought I was ready to do anything, but I'm not that cold-hearted. I wonder if there's anything I can do. Kimika: The savior is in the room toward the back. Kimika: Follow the wall right next to the ladder, where you came down. Hasaki: Th-Thank you so much. Kimika: Well, God only knows what will happen now. Hasaki: God only knows? Kimika: Yeah, so * I'm just saying that now your brother has to decide whether he wants to be our savior, or your brother."* Kimika: It would be better if God had decided that. Hasaki: ... *That was his secret room.* *I came here with Kimura-san before.* *It was disguised to look like part of the wall. The only reason I saw it before was because the curtains were lifted.* Hasaki: Nii-san... Takuji: ... Hasaki: Nii-san! Takuji: ...... *Nii-san...* *Takuji Nii-san was mumbling something to himself.* *My voice didn't even reach him.* *Because Takuji Nii-san hated me. Because he thought I should just disappear.* *So he couldn't even see me.* *I understand.* *But...* Hasaki: Just forgive him! Just forgive Tomo Nii-san, please! Why can't you just disappear already?! Hasaki: Disappear! Takuji: Who are you? Takuji: The Wakatsuki sisters? Hasaki: No! I'm Hasaki. I'm the sister you hated, Mamiya Hasaki! Takuji: The twins are here, huh? Hasaki: No! That doll wasn't my twin! Hasaki: You and I were the real twins! Hasaki: You and me! Hasaki: Not this rabbit doll! Hasaki: You and I are twins, Takuji Nii-san! Takuji: ... *He just looked at me.* *His eyes were full of hate.* *Just like they were back then.* Takuji: Oh, look. Two sources of the Black Surge just walked right on into the ark. Hasaki: Nii-san... Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san, why... Why would you do that to Tomo Nii-san? Takuji: I see... Yuuki's actions... His abnormal strength... Takuji: Hahaha... Is that it? I thought that hurdle was too high for my mother to have set. He was too strong. Takuji: It was you. You two lent him your power as sources of the Black Surge, just like the White Surge's Riruru did for me. I see. Takuji: So that's what Otonashi was talking about. It all makes sense now. The Destroyer, huh? Takuji: Yuuki was a Dark Savior created by you two to destroy me. He was created to prevent humanity's salvation. Takuji: It all makes sense now. Why he was so strong, why he hated me so much. It makes perfect sense. Takuji: But sadly for you two, this is the result. Takuji: The Dark Savior has died. Takuji: The Dark Savior was erased, and I, the true savior, remained on this earth. Takuji: This is my victory. That's right. I've won. Takuji: The battle between light and darkness... The battle between the White Surge and the Black Surge... I've won. The White Surge has won. Takuji: The savior has won. Hasaki: Why can't I reach you in there? Why? Hasaki: Are you satisfied now, Takuji Nii-san? Jeez... Takuji: Disappear... Hasaki: Why don't you just disappear? Takuji: I told you to disappear from my sight. Stop spreading the Black Surge. Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san, why? Why? Takuji: If you won't stop the Black Surge, then I guess I have no choice. Takuji: I'll forcibly expel you from this world. Takuji: Call the people! Yasuko: Huh? What? Takuji: Anyone will do! Call a bunch of men here! *A bunch of people came over.* *Everyone was glaring at me.* Male Student: What is it, my savior? Takuji: You've been having sex for ages now, right? Male Student: Well, uh... I wouldn't say for ages... Takuji: You like sex, right? You like adultery, right?! Male Student: Uh, yes! I love it. Takuji: Defile this woman. Male Student: Huh? Can we? Male Student: Are you serious? Hell yeah! Hasaki: Ah! Takuji: Not her! Male Student: Huh? Not her? But she's the only one here. Takuji: Don't touch that woman! Make her watch as her sister is defiled and then killed. Make her watch it all. Male Student: Um, what do you mean? Who is her sister? Takuji: That one with the long ears and the red eyes. That woman made out of cloth! Male Student: Huh? Y-You mean... Male Student: A-Are you serious? Are you talking about this doll? Takuji: That's right. We will defile her, and after she's been so defiled that she wants to die, we'll kill her... in the most painful way possible. Hasaki: Wh-What? Takuji: Hold her down! Male Student: Oh, okay... G-Got it. Hasaki: Noo! That's the doll that Tomo Nii-san made! Tomo Nii-san made it for me! Takuji: Your little sister? Yeah, I got it. I won't hurt her. All I really need is for you two to disappear from my sight. Takuji: The reason it turned out like this is because you were so defiant and got in my face every time you could... I'll forgive Tsukasa. Takuji: Your sister can't do anything without you, right? All she can do is hide behind you. Hasaki: Nii-san! Can you hear me, Tomo Nii-san?! Please, Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: They're going to break the doll you made for me! Takuji: Shut up! Rape her! Male Student: R-Rape... Um, rape this? Takuji: It'll be fine. She won't resist. She's more worried about her sister. There's nothing to be afraid of. Male Student: Worried about her sister? You really mean this doll here? Male Student: Wait, wasn't this other girl your sister, my savior? Male Student: That's why we can't rape her, right? Takuji: What? Are you going to defy my orders? Male Student: Oh, no! We'll do it! Please, let us do it! Male Student: Hey, get over here, you guys. You have to fuck her too. Male Student: Huh? Me too? Male Student: It's the savior's order! Everyone: Yeah! Male Student: All right, we're starting to get into it! Takuji: Knock her out before you start. Male Student: Knock her out? Oh, okay! We'll give her a few good licks! Male Student: It's an order! Beat her up! Everyone: Yeah! *The men all moved in and started to beat up the doll that Tomo Nii-san made for me.* *The parts that Yuki-san fixed up for me got torn open again.* Hasaki: No, stop it! Male Student: Ehehehe... Wow, what a pose. Male Student: Hehehehehe, it's just to make sure the ritual goes smoothly... Are you stupid? Why would we stop? Hehehehe, the fun time is just beginning. *Who are they talking to?* *They were kind of... mumbling and talking to the doll. It looked like all of their eyes weren't focused on any single point, too.* *Could they hear some voice that I couldn't?* *I was too scared to say a thing.* *I was trembling with fear, and Nii-san laughed with pleasure when he saw me trembling.* Takuji: Hahaha, all you need to do is watch as your sister is defiled. Male Student: Now it's time for the show to begin. I can't wait. Hehehe, she's shaking already. I guess she's starting to figure out what's going to happen to her. Male Student: Ahahahaha, of course she is! She knows! She knows exactly what's going to happen! Male Student: What's this? Male Student: She's not wearing any... Male Student: Do you always walk around without any panties? Hasaki: ... *I couldn't really hear what they were mumbling about as they hiked up the doll's skirt.* *Apparently, they were complaining that the doll wasn't wearing underwear. I don't really know why, though.* Male Student: Whoa, her thigh really is soft! I can't take it! Male Student: I-I want to touch her too. Male Student: Wow, I can't stand it... Her pussy is totally pink. Male Student: P-Pull it open... Male Student: Whoa... Her pussy is so tight, like a child's... *They pulled open one of the tears on the doll's underside. They were breaking the doll.* *The doll was already pretty old.* Male Student: Open it wider. Male Student: The labia minora are inside the labia m-m-majora, right? Male Student: Y-Y-Yeah, that's r-right... So then, what would it be in th-this situation? *His words became even more difficult to understand.* Male Student: I don't really know, uh, the de-de... de-de-details uh, ah... Male Student: Her p-p-pussy, it's... uh, i-it's, uh... Male Student: H-How does it feeel? Uh, feels good? Male Student: Uh, ooh, she, she's being... d-d-d-def, uh, defiii― Male Student: Hey, answer us! How is it? Male Student: Sorry, d-don't, don't yell, n-n-n-n-n-noo, not yell... Male Student: Wh-Wh-What are, you... doing? S-Stop you... scary me... Male Student: Hehehehehe... Scared? The saver toold us, we can, we c-can break... you. Scared? Scary? Male Student: Sc-sc-sc-scar―, scaryscaryscaryscary... It, the light, it's... scare, scary. Male Student: Less you it. Her pussy... Male Student: Yeah, lest you it, have to. Male Student: N-No please, scare, scarescaryafraidscaryafraid, ee-eek, ah... Male Student: Look hard, hard, it hard. The bitch her critical lisp finally, she hard in... the window, the window now― Male Student: Her chitinous cliffff... She's ready for us. Her look, frigid itch whah, uh... Ho, ah! Male Student: soscarescaryscary―SCAREPLEASENOTTTHERE Male Student: Ahahahaha, do it more, more. Rub a dub dub, I'm in a tub. Male Student: Yeah, scare her, scare her, right in her PLEASE, NOT THERE! You had your meal, now eat your just desserts! Male Student: Ahahaha, that's great, that's amazing. I think my headache went away, away... Male Student: Sc-sc-scare her, scare her, give it to her there. We're on top of the fucking world. Sc-Sc-Scare her, scare her, cum in her hair. Hasaki: Ah! *All the men were spouting pure nonsense, and then they suddenly started taking off their pants.* *I covered my eyes.* Male Student: Suck it, bitch! Suck me dry like magnets and r-r-rye. Male Student: Love the cocks, love, love them aaaaallll, eeeehehehehe... Male Student: N-No, please, my mouth is so full with dicks, dicks and cocks, c-c-c-cock and balls... Male Student: Whoa, whoa ho hooooo! A d-dick here, a cock there, dicks and cocks all in the air! Male Student: Wh-What's it like? Her mouth, h-h-how izzz, her mouth inside her mouth like cream and custard, cust-t-tard, cast, cas―ji... Male Student: Ahwha, whawhaaa... Your mouth better get, get, get along with yeast and barleeeyy... Male Student: Ah, ahh... Ah, my Magnum, the day is not yet won! Male Student: Ah, ahhhh... I'm gonna cum. To arms, men! Male Student: The moment of ejaculation is truly... The moment of victory! I'm cumming! Male Student: Ah, we have won! Ahh, victory is on the horizon! Ooouhgh... Male Student: The moment of ejaculationn truly isss... true... victory... ohhgh. Male Student: M-More... Call more people! L-Let's do it over here... Male Student: Y-Y-Yeah, let's do it. We need more men to con... c-c-continue the fight... Male Student: Huh? But scary... I'm scared to fight... to fight... Hasaki: No, don't... *The men carried the doll over to a larger open space nearby.* Hasaki: No! Why would you do such horrible things?! Yasuko: Wh-What's going on here? Male Student: S-Say something, anything you want... We are praying for victory. Yasuko: M-Me, say something? To this doll? Male Student: H-Hurry, please... We will win, yes, we will triumph over the Black Surge. Kimika: Haa... Come on, just say something. Yasuko: Tachibana-senpai... Kimika: The girl in front of you is the elder of the two Wakatsuki sisters. Yasuko: Huh? This doll is? Kimika: Yeah, it is, you dumb bitch. Will you ever be saved if you can't even recognize evil when you see it? Yasuko: W-Wait, please. Uh... S-So you're the Wakatsuki sisters... Whatever, not like I care. Let's get started already. Male Student: H-H-Hurry, hurry up. Faster, faster... Yasuko: What are they doing? Kimika: They're going to make her masturbate for them. Yasuko: Huh? They're going to make the doll masturbate? Kimika: Haa... Here, take some more elixir. You clearly haven't reached enlightenment yet. You need to drink a lot more before you'll understand. Yasuko: O-Okay... Thank you. *The entire crowd was looking at the rabbit doll.* *Everyone just stared at the unmoving doll.* *What did they see? There were a lot of people getting really worked up and excited.* *There were also a lot of other people that didn't understand what was happening.* *There were even some people that looked deathly afraid of the doll.* *I wonder what those people saw there.* Female Student: She's not doing it at all. Yasuko: I-If you don't do it right... all of the men will rape you. Kimika: Hehehe... You're really good this at this, Yasuko-chan. Yasuko: You masturbate every day, right? Now, think about the most important person in your life and masturbate. Male Student: Ah, ahh... I might achieve victory for a second time... Ah, ahh, victory, here I cum... Male Student: Right now, my ejaculation leads me to victorrryyy! Male Student: Ah, I'm right behind you, I'm cumming to victory too! I'm cumming! Male Student: I'm gonna blow. *They violated...* *My doll...* *My past self was defiled right before my eyes.* *The embodiment of a precious time in my life, when time stopped for one part of my soul... That is what they defiled.* *My very memories.* *My very self, from a time past.* *It was defiled at the hands of strangers.* *I was violated.* *My memory was desecrated.* *My past self was ripped and torn to shreds.* Takuji: How's that? How does it feel? Hasaki: Y-You're awful... Awful... Why would you do this? You're terrible... Takuji: Hehehehe... Kagami's totally broken. Hasaki: Why? Why would you do that? She's my... my precious, precious... Takuji: Your precious sister is broken. She's utterly broken. Hasaki: Huh? Takuji: Ah? Huh? Hawha, whahahawha? Hasaki: N-Nii-san? *His eyes suddenly rolled back, and then his face started convulsing.* Hasaki: U-Um! Takuji: I-I'll break you. I'll totally break you... I'll break you, once and for all. Takuji: M-M-Making a fool... Making a fool of me... Takuji: Someone get a hammer! Someone get a ladder! Get the stakes! It's a crucifixion... I'll crucify you. I'll crucify you, crucify you, crucify you, crucify you, crucify you, crucify you, crucify you. Hasaki: Huh? Wh-Why? Why? Takuji: Shut up! I can't let her go after she challenged me like that! This time I'll really break this fucking rabbit! Hasaki: No, stop! Takuji: That concrete pillar... Crucify her on that pillar. High up. Much higher than here... Crucify her. Crucify that bitch. Crucify her, crucify her, crucify her. *The boisterous atmosphere in the room disappeared as people ceased to talk, one by one.* *One by one, they realized...* *And soon, the entire ark was silent.* *There was no one with me.* *In that enormous underground space, I could only cry.* *It was all I could do. I just cried.* *"Tsukasa..."* *There was a person there, someone who called me... Tsukasa.* *But I didn't want to meet anyone who would call me that.* *"This is... This is Kagami, right?"* Hasaki: No, that's... That's not her name. *"How did this happen? Why?"* Hasaki: What do you mean, why? You did it, of course. *"This is awful... Who could do such a thing?"* Hasaki: Nii-san... *I looked at my brother.* *His face was Tomo Nii-san's.* *But that wasn't Tomo Nii-san's soul in there.* *That person was not the person I most wanted to see.* *"That's right..."* *"Kagami... Let's go home."* *Nii-san carried the doll in his arms.* *"Let's go... home."* Hasaki: ... *The two of us walked through the city streets at night.* *It was too late to catch a train.* *It would take us at least an hour to walk all the way home.* *The two of us just walked in silence.* *Then...* *"Back then, I carried you home on my back like this, didn't I?"* *"That time, you tried too hard, and sprained your ankle running."* Hasaki: That's... *"I came right away when I heard about it from Tsukasa."* *"And then, this is what you said."* Hasaki: No... Hasaki: That was me... Hasaki: That story about the hill... Hasaki: That hill, where the two of us found the sunflowers. Hasaki: I told you that I would climb that hill and go find Dad's soul somewhere out there. Hasaki: I thought I could go out beyond that hill and find Dad's soul, so that he could come back to us. *"How would you do that?"* *"Where were you going to go looking, anyway?"* Hasaki: I don't know. Hasaki: It's just... there was a big hill with sunflowers, and we could never go past it. Hasaki: The road of sunflowers, where the sunflowers stretch their stalks out to heaven above. I thought that I could climb that hill and go beyond it, to the place where Dad's soul was laid to rest. *"A big hill?"* Hasaki: Yeah, the big hill in Dad's hometown. *"Was it really that big?"* Hasaki: Not now it isn't, but back then, when I was a child, it seemed so big. Hasaki: I thought it was the wall at the end of the world. Hasaki: I thought if I could just get to the top of that hill, it would be the limit of the world. Hasaki: But I was wrong. Hasaki: When I got to the top... Hasaki: There was more of the city, just like here. Hasaki: There was a hill after that, and another after that one too. Hasaki: The city continued on forever. Hasaki: That was when I realized the world has no end. *"Wasn't that when you started crying?"* Hasaki: Yeah. Hasaki: Because that's when I knew Dad's soul wasn't coming back, so I got sad. Hasaki: That's when I learned that there are things in this world which will never come back. Hasaki: And then you came, Tomo Nii-san. That's how it always was. Hasaki: You always came for me when I was crying. Hasaki: Because I'm always crying... Because I can't do anything... Hasaki: So I wanted to become stronger... I tried to be stronger. *"I know you did. But maybe you tried too hard."* Hasaki: I'm no good, huh? I couldn't do anything. *"That's not true. I'm still amazed at how hard you tried."* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... *He couldn't see me.* *Some other person's soul was in his body. He couldn't see me.* *But no one except Tomo Nii-san could say the things he was saying.* *Even if he couldn't see me anymore, this person was still my brother after all.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san. *I quietly hugged his back.* *Then he stopped walking.* *"Kagami, we're home."* *He suddenly stopped in front of a house I didn't recognize.* *"Your parents are probably going to be really sad when they see what happened to you."* *"But you said you wanted to go home, right?"* *"Kagami..."* Old Lady: Yes? *"..."* Old Lady: E-Excuse me? *"..."* *"Please forgive me... I... I couldn't protect Kagami."* *"I let them do this to her!"* *"I'm so sorry!"* Old Lady: Um... Old Lady: Who are you? *"Huh?"* Old Lady: Is something wrong with your doll? *"Huh?"* *"What's happening?"* Old Lady: Um... What are you talking about? *"No, that's not it. This was Kagami just a second ago. Wakatsuki Kagami-san."* Old Lady: Is that the doll's name? *"No, that's not it. Kagami lives here, right? She's your daughter."* Old Lady: Um, it's getting pretty late. If you don't mind, I'd really rather not keep talking like this. *"But, Mrs. Wakatsuki!"* Old Lady: Um... We're the Hasegawa family, not Wakatsuki. *"Huh?"* Old Lady: Um... If you don't leave, I'm going to have to call the police. *"What's this? What's happening? I don't..."* *"Tsukasa!"* Hasaki: Are you satisfied yet? Hasaki: Jeez! I don't even know who you are anymore! Give me back my Tomo Nii-san! *"Eek!"* *"AAAAAAAHHHHH!"*

*The school bell rings even in the dead of night.* *The sound echoed in the darkness.* *I came back to Kita High without even thinking about it.* *The doll I held onto for so long was no longer with me.* *It was the first time in such a long time... that I had to stand alone, on my own two feet.* *With nothing to support me, all I had was...* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... *I should've just died back then.* *All this happened because I didn't die all those years ago.* *It was Takuji Nii-san's hateful spirit that possessed Tomo Nii-san.* *It was a curse.* *It made perfect sense.* *It wasn't a mental illness.* *It was a curse.* *A curse that he cast on all of us who survived that day.* *Maybe Takuji Nii-san wasn't the only one cursing us. Maybe Yuki-san cursed us when she died as well.* *That's why all this happened.* *Nii-san stabbed himself in the chest.* *He destroyed the other half of my self.* *And now, he wanted to return so many more people back to the sky.* *The day when everyone must return to the sky.* *The day when he'll return their souls to the sky.* *And what Takuji Nii-san did to me that day...* *His actions, in killing Yuki-san...* *That's exactly what he was trying to do again.* *And this time, he wanted to take far more people with him.* Hasaki: Nii-san... *"Hello."* Hasaki: Huh? *I heard a voice from somewhere.* *"Over here."* Hasaki: Huh? Wh-Where? *"It's not a place. I'm trying to tune in."* Hasaki: Tune in? *"That's right. The Mamiya family has practiced Shinto since ancient times. You have the ability to match your mind to the frequency of another. And your mother's Sanami blood is nearly the same."* *"So just take your time and match your frequency to mine."* Hasaki: Ah... *"See? I'm right here."* Hasaki: Who... are you? Ayana: I am Ayana. You are Mamiya Hasaki-san. Hasaki: Y-Yes... *Who is this? I'd never met her before.* *Is she a student at this school? She was wearing the uniform, but...* Hasaki: Who are you? Ayana: I told you, I am Ayana. Hasaki: Are you human? Ayana: What if I'm not? Hasaki: I don't know. Ayana: Hehe. Ayana: We're about to go see. Hasaki: See what? Ayana: The End Sky. Hasaki: End sky? Ayana: Yes. Hasaki: The sky in my mother's prophecies? Ayana: Yes. The sky that your mother fell madly in love with. Ayana: This world's critical point. Ayana: The point which allows the soul to repeat as many times as it wishes. Ayana: Until you find the exit, you will repeat it over and over. Hasaki: Repeat? I don't know what you mean, but I've never heard of that kind of sky before now. Ayana: Before now? Where is your 'now'? Hasaki: That's not what I'm talking about. Ayana: So then, will you look at what comes after this? Hasaki: After this? Ayana: Yes. After the End Sky. Hasaki: After the End Sky? Ayana: The point where the soul ceases to be reborn. Hasaki: What... is that? Ayana: The sky beyond that point. Can you see it, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: I'm asking you, what is that? What is there beyond that sky?! Ayana: Hehehehe... The cyclical rebirth of the soul. The endless, winding corridor. The mental construct of time. Ayana: It is what lies beyond the armillary sphere. It is what lies behind the shadows cast on the cave wall. Ayana: I am the gate. Ayana: The key and the gate. Ayana: All-in-One and One-in-All of limitless being and self. Ayana: The outer manifestation of the Primal Chaos. Ayana: The lurker at the threshold. Hasaki: You are... Ayana: Otonashi Ayana. Ayana: Even if no one has given it shape, anyone can understand it. Everyone already knows it. Ayana: Even if such a scene has never appeared in this world, such a scene should not frighten you. Ayana: It's a very common world. Hasaki: A common world? Ayana: Yes, beyond the bounds of this world, there is another, very common world. Hasaki: What is that? Ayana: The Wonderful Everyday. Hasaki: The Wonderful Everyday? Ayana: Yes, sub specie aeternitatis. Hasaki: Will I look at... what lies beyond this sky? Hasaki: I... *I walked forward.* *I took one step forward.* *Alone.* Hasaki: There isn't anyone with me. Ayana: There isn't anyone here. Ayana: Because the sky isn't anywhere down here. *I couldn't see her anymore.* *I could only hear her voice.* Hasaki: This place isn't the sky... Ayana: There is only one road that leads to the last sky. Ayana: There is only one road that leads out of this ark. Ayana: That road is much longer than the hill which you, as a child, could never climb. It reaches to heaven itself. Hasaki: Who are you?! Ayana: I am Otonashi Ayana. Nothing more or less. Hasaki: Do you mean... that steel ladder? *...* *The ladder stretched endlessly upward.* *It was like a mirage, seen by a traveler wandering silently through the desert of eternity.* Hasaki: ... Hasaki: The wind... *I heard the wind in the distance.* *In the distance, far, far ahead of me.* *From far up the ladder, I heard the sound of the wind.* *The sound of the wind, which was so far off, gradually grew louder and louder.* *The sound of the wind.* Hasaki: ... Takuji: It's time. Takuji: It looks like you want to stay in this time forever, Hasaki. Takuji: I will go ahead, even in this world of endless rebirth. Takuji: My soul will come to reside in another body. *Nii-san's body floated up into the air.* *I silently flew after him.* *Oh... Now I understand.* *This must be how Yuki-san felt.* *There was no logic involved.* *The only thing that mattered was that someone I loved was about to plunge into the sky.* *I tried to grab onto him.* *I tried to―*

*A summer day.* *I walked along the side of the road.* *The rays of a summer sun pierced me.* *A blue sky stretched overhead.* *Great white clouds dotted the sky.* *The trees were full of green.* *I walked through just such a scene.* *Every time the wind blew, I smelled the wild grass.* *The babbling of a brook.* *The smell of earth under our feet.* *My father was born in this town.* *It was called Sawaimura.* *Though, to be honest, I couldn't tell you where it was located in Japan.* *Both the summers and winters, though, were colder than those in Tokyo.* *As a young boy, that was all I understood about this place.* Tomosane: Um... Hasaki should be coming soon, right? *I checked the time.* *People in this village don't seem to pay attention to the time like we do in the city, so I had to bring an alarm clock from home.* *It was already long past the time we promised to meet.* *The alarm I had set already rang a long time ago.* *It was probably pointless setting an alarm in the first place.* Tomosane: They said they were coming at three o'clock in the afternoon. Jeez. *Hasaki was coming to Sawaimura.* *To get away from that damn witch, especially now that our father was being hospitalized.* Tomosane: I wish he would just divorce that stupid witch. *"Hahaha... You shouldn't say that."* Tomosane: What? Whoa! Tomosane: Huh? D-Dad? Hiroo: Tomosane-kun, how have you been? Tomosane: Which tree did you pop out from? Hiroo: Sorry, sorry. It takes a long time to walk from the bus station. Tomosane: Oh. So, where's Hasaki? Hiroo: Huh? Hasaki: Eek! *Someone jumped in surprise and then hid behind Dad's leg.* *She was very small, but even she couldn't completely hide herself behind him.* Tomosane: Jeez, are you hiding again? Hiroo: Ahaha. Come on, Hasaki-san. It's okay. Tomosane: C'mon, why are you hiding? Did you forget me already? It's only been three years. Hiroo: Don't say that. Hasaki was still little when you were in Tokyo. Tomosane: So she doesn't remember me? Hiroo: Well, maybe she doesn't. Hasaki: U-Um, are you my brother? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right! I'm Tomosane, your brother! Hasaki: Ah! Tomosane: Why are you hiding again?! Hiroo: Come on now, don't yell at her. She's scared of you. Tomosane: Takuji is the scary one, not me. Hiroo: W-Well, you might be right about that... Tomosane: Is Takuji the same as ever? Hiroo: I guess so. Tomosane: Are they still abusing Hasaki? Hiroo: No, there's no abuse, but... Tomosane: It is abuse. That stupid witch... You should just let Hasaki live here. Hiroo: Hahaha... You really don't like your mom, huh? Tomosane: Of course not! She betrayed us! I'll never forgive her! Hiroo: I'm sorry to hear that. You should be mad at me, not your mother. Tomosane: Why do you always say that?! Tomosane: Why don't you just give that stupid Takuji a good slap in the face?! Or that woman?! Hiroo: Violence isn't the answer here. Tomosane: But Takuji is using violence against Hasaki, isn't he? Hiroo: Well... I'm watching out for that. Tomosane: Jeez... You're scared of that woman, aren't you? Hiroo: Tomosane-kun, you really shouldn't call your mother 'that woman.' Tomosane: She's not my mother. I've told you before, she was the first one to betray us. Hiroo: Yeah, I understand your feelings, but... Tomosane: I'm stuck out here because you won't break up with that woman. Hiroo: Sorry... Tomosane: Jeez, why are you apologizing? Why don't you just break up with her? Tomosane: She has Takuji. Isn't that enough for her? Hiroo: That's not true. Your mother loves you and Hasaki too. Tomosane: That's impossible! Hiroo: ... Hiroo: Come on, don't yell. You're scaring Hasaki-san. Tomosane: Like I care! Hasaki: H-Hau... Tomosane: What does 'hau' even mean?! Hasaki: Ah, auh, auh... Tomosane: Make up your mind already! Hiroo: Stop it. You're scaring her. Tomosane: Hmph. Hiroo: I have to head back to the city tomorrow. Tomosane: Tomorrow? That soon? Hiroo: I'm going to be in the hospital for a while starting tomorrow. Tomosane: Tomorrow? I thought you still had more time. That's too soon. Hiroo: Don't worry, they just want to do some tests. I should be out in a few days. Tomosane: Of course you will. What would our family do without you? Hurry up and get better. Hiroo: Ahaha, I knew you would say that. Tomosane: Well, I'm glad I didn't disappoint you, then. Hasaki: Daddy, please come back soon. Hiroo: Yeah, don't worry about me. Hasaki: He's really scary, so if you don't... Tomosane: Wait, you mean me?! Hiroo: Sure sounds like it. Tomosane: I'm not scary! Hasaki: Hau! Tomosane: Don't just keep making that sound! Tomosane: Jeez, I can't believe this wimp is actually related to me. Hiroo: Hasaki is a girl. She's not tough like you boys are. Tomosane: But girls should be tough too! Hiroo: Why do you think that? She's a girl, you know. Tomosane: Yuki-nee is super strong, though. Hiroo: Yuki-nee? Who's that? Tomosane: Yuki-nee, the assistant here at the dojo. That violent woman. Hiroo: Here at the dojo? Minakami-san... Oh, you mean old Minakami-san's girl. She's always been a strong girl. Tomosane: Yeah, her. There aren't very many people at the dojo who can beat her. It's not like girls have to be weak. You're really behind the times, you know? I mean, look at your wife. She's stronger than you are. Hiroo: W-Well, that's true... Tomosane: So, Hasaki! Hasaki: Auh... Tomosane: Don't say 'auh'! Say 'Yes, sir'! Hasaki: Yessauh! Tomosane: Which one was that? Tomosane: You'll get stronger living here. Hasaki: S-Stronger? Tomosane: Yeah, a lot stronger. Hiroo: She doesn't need to get stronger. Tomosane: Yes, she does! Takuji's still bullying her, isn't he? Hiroo: B-But she shouldn't use violence... Tomosane: Jeez, that's why he keeps doing it. Tomosane: Did Takuji get any stronger, Hasaki? Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: He was always a mouthy kid, so I used to fight him sometimes. Is he stronger than he used to be? Hiroo: Well, it's not like Hasaki is hitting back. It's just Takuji doing it. Tomosane: Yeah, and every time we fought, that dumb witch would hit me. Why is it any of her business what we do? Hiroo: I'm sure she was just stopping you guys from fighting. Tomosane: No, she wasn't. She always takes Takuji's side. That's why I had to hit her too. Hiroo: And that's why we had to send you out here, you know. Hiroo: Jeez... Domestic violence at your age... Tomosane: Like I said, that woman is not my mother. And I can't believe you forgave her for what she did. Hiroo: Tomosane-kun... Tomosane: But I can't hate you, so make sure you rest up and get better in the hospital. Hiroo: Hahaha, thanks. Tomosane: And Hasaki should stay here all year round, not just during the summer. Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Takuji and that woman aren't here, so it's a lot more peaceful. Hasaki: B-But I want to be with Daddy... Tomosane: Ahaha, that's just a matter of time. If you were here, I'm sure he would give up and come live with us. Hasaki: Huh? Would you, Daddy? Hiroo: Hey, don't I get a say in all this? Tomosane: Anyway, Hasaki... Hasaki: Y-Yes? Tomosane: Takuji is bullying you, isn't he? Hasaki: Y-Yeah... Hasaki: It's my fault Takuji Nii-san is still an inadequate savior. Tomosane: Dad.. * Don't let her think like that!"* Hiroo: I already told her that's not true. Tomosane: But Takuji and that woman are still saying that... Unbelievable. Hiroo: Yeah. I told her to stop, but she won't listen. Tomosane: She won't listen to anything you say, Dad. That's just how she is. Tomosane: Well, whatever * Hasaki!"* Hasaki: Wh-What? Tomosane: You're still getting bullied by Takuji, right? Hasaki: Y-Yeah... Tomosane: He pinches you and hits you and stuff, right? Hasaki: Yeah... Tomosane: Then you know exactly what it feels like when someone hurts you. Hasaki: I-I guess... Tomosane: Then you should understand the opposite, too. Hasaki: The opposite? Tomosane: Of course. If you only get hit, then you'll never understand the world. You can only understand it by getting hit and then hitting back. Hasaki: Hitting back? Hiroo: Tomosane-kun, don't teach her weird stuff like that. Tomosane: Boys hit and get hit by each other, but that just helps them understand each other. Hasaki: B-But I'm a girl... Tomosane: But it's the same for girls, Hasaki! Hiroo: Don't say that! She's a girl! Tomosane: You're being too naive, you stupid old man! Tomosane: I'll teach Hasaki how I beat Takuji every single time we fought. Hiroo: Jeez, what are you talking about? *On a summer day...* *Hasaki and I were reunited after several years apart.* *Even though Hasaki didn't remember me when she saw me. It was like our first time meeting.* *Dad said that it was just because she was young, but honestly, I don't remember her being that young when we met before.* *It actually seemed like Hasaki's days in Tokyo had been erased.* *It was always hectic in the Mamiya house when I was in Tokyo before. All because my mother was involved with that bizarre cult.* *She believed that Takuji would become the savior.* *As a result, Hasaki was abused by Takuji and his mother.* *What an unusual household.* *My dad was the only one searching for a peaceful solution.* *But to a young child like me, his peaceful solutions just seemed irritating.* *Though I didn't manage to solve anything, either.* *I just lashed out.* *When Hasaki had bruises from the abuse, I would lash out at Takuji and his mother.* *I still don't regret that.* *But the violence escalated until one of us received a stab wound.* *For the record, it was my mother that was injured, but she was also the one holding the knife.* *When she pulled out the knife, I fought back and she ended up getting hurt.* *And thankfully, I was entrusted to my father's relatives in Sawaimura after that incident.* Hiroo: You seem energetic today, Tomosane-kun. Tomosane: Yeah, I feel great. Hiroo: Good. *He just said that and laughed as he patted my head.* *For some reason, his face looked really sad, but I didn't understand why.* *Even after growing so much over the years, I was still just a little brat.* *That's why I couldn't understand the meaning hidden behind my father's last smile.* *He was always pushing his mind and body to their limits.* *He experienced hardships in his life that a brat like me could never understand.* *All for the sake of his family.* *That was the last time...* *That I ever saw my father smile.*

*Hasaki came to the village yesterday.* *Apparently just for a summer, but that was plenty of time to tell her about all the fun things we can do here.* *This was the first time she'd been to the village. There were lots of things here that she could never see in Tokyo.* *After my morning training, I went straight to the kitchen to see if my breakfast was ready.* *They told me it would be done soon, so I went to get Hasaki out of bed.* *I cut through the dojo, where the others who had just finished their morning training were all resting.* *As I was passing through, I heard someone say that detestable name.* Dojo Student: I heard that one of the Sanami children was living with the Mamiyas... Tomosane: ...Ah! Dojo Student: You mean Tomosane, right? What's the big deal? Dojo Student: No, not him... Tomosane is a Mamiya, not a Sanami. Dojo Student: Yeah, Tomosane is definitely Mamiya Ryuu's blood. You can tell from his eyes. Dojo Student: And he's way stronger than the other kids... He definitely has Mamiya blood in him. Dojo Student: Minakami seems to have taken a shine to him, too... Dojo Student: Of course, he's a strong kid. Dojo Student: Tomosane hates his mother, doesn't he? She's a Sanami. Dojo Student: Really? Dojo Student: I heard that's why he's living here in Sawaimura. Dojo Student: Oh wow... Dojo Student: Yeah. I heard there was an incident with a knife, actually. Dojo Student: Huh? Tomosane tried to stab her? Dojo Student: No way... It was his mother. She tried to use a knife on her own son, I heard. Dojo Student: Her own flesh and blood? Dojo Student: What else would you expect from a Sanami? Dojo Student: Well, I've seen that Sanami girl before. She's the kind of mentally unstable person that would actually do it, too. Dojo Student: So then who were you talking about? Who is the Sanami child? Dojo Student: Huh? Tomosane is the only Sanami around here. Dojo Student: Haven't you heard? That Sanami woman had a child with the founder of some new wave religion that's been all over the news lately. Dojo Student: Huh? Did she and Hiroo-san get divorced? Dojo Student: No, they didn't. Dojo Student: Isn't that weird? Then why is she having children with that other guy? Dojo Student: Come on, that's what I'm saying... Tomosane: ... *"Hey, you over there! You haven't even finished the cleaning! Don't just sit there and chat!"* Tomosane: Huh? *I turned and saw Yuki-nee standing right behind me.* Dojo Student: Whoa, Yuki-nee! Yuki: Come on! I'll tell Master that you were slacking if you don't get to work! Dojo Student: Wait, please don't! Yuki: Watch out, or Master might have to beat some sense into you. Dojo Student: Eek! Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: Huh? You look like you're having fun, Tomosane. Tomosane: Does it really look like I'm having fun? Maybe you're just blind as a bat? Yuki: Blind as a bat? Tomosane: Whoa, what're you doing? *Suddenly, everything went black.* *It was like the world was plunged into darkness... Or rather, like it was covered with some kind of black fabric.* Tomosane: Hey! What're you doing, Yuki-nee?! Yuki: Oh my, what are you doing under my skirt there, Tomosane-kun? Tomosane: Y-Your skirt? What? Yuki: Yep! How does it feel? Does it feel nice in there? Tomosane: Y-You dummy! You're such a dummy! Yuki: Oh, don't move around too much. Oh? Oh? Oh? Tomosane: L-Let me out! Don't you have any shame?! Yuki: Ahaha, don't move around like that. Whoa, I'm serious Tomosane, uhahahahahaha, ahn! Tomosane: Wah, wah, let me out! Yuki: Uhahahahahaahhnn, auh, ahh... Tomosane: Haa, haa, haa... Wh-What's wrong with you? Yuki: You look excited, Tomosane. Tomosane: That wasn't exciting at all! I was scared! Don't just stuff someone under your skirt, okay?! Yuki: Aww, what's the matter, Tomosane? Did you get all hot and bothered while you were in there? Tomosane: Yeah, right! Why don't you learn to have a little shame? Yuki: Why would I be embarrassed? You're just a little kid. Tomosane: I-I'm not a little kid! Yuki: Yes, you are. Tomosane: Wh-What? Why are you looking at me like that? Yuki: Oh, noooothing. You're just so childish. Tomosane: What?! I told you, I'm not a little kid! Yuki: Oh, is that so? Then why don't you show me? Can you prove you're not a little kid? Tomosane: Wha― Hey, hey! Stop it! Yuki: What, can't you show me? Which part of you isn't a little kid? Tomosane: What are you doing? What are you pulling my pants down for? Yuki: Hahaha, never mind. I guess a kid wouldn't get that joke. Tomosane: That's not what I'm talking about! Yuki: Oh? *I finally got away from Yuki-nee and took up my fighting stance.* Tomosane: You keep calling me a kid and making fun of me, damn it! Why don't you fight me right here, right now, Yuki-nee?! Yuki: You want me to fight you? Tomosane: That's right! Yuki: Hmm... Fight you, huh? You mean like this? Tomosane: Ah! *She disappeared from my sight for a split second.* *I tried to prepare myself for a tackle, but...* Tomosane: Uh, whoa, whoa! Wait, stop * Don't pull my pants down!"* Yuki: Hahaha, do you think a true martial artist solves all his problems by beating people up? Tomosane: Do you just fight by pulling people's pants down?! Yuki: Sometimes! Tomosane: That's dumb! You're just making fun of me! Yuki: Oh? Tomosane: You're underestimating me, you stupid, violent woman! Yuki: Violent? You're the one being violent, Tomosane. Tomosane: Shut up! Yuki: Oh? Jeez, kids are always like that. They just get mad if you beat them in an argument. Yuki: Oh, Tomosane, you're so scaaaary. I think you've gotten better. You're so fast. Woe is me * Oh?"* Yuki: Oh, you actually are pretty fast, Tomosane. Tomosane: How about that?! I've been practicing that one for months! Yuki: I'm surprised you even know what the word practice means! Oh! Whoa! Tomosane: Take that! And that! And that! Yuki: As if that'll work on me. Tomosane: Whoa?! *Yuki-nee quickly twisted my arm and yanked it upward.* *It was so simple for her.* Yuki: You've gotten faster, but this isn't boxing. You can't just throw hooks, you know? Tomosane: Guh, agh. Yuki: A straight punch is a good fundamental. A straight line traces the shortest distance from you to your opponent, after all. But it's too monotonous if you just throw punches. *Yuki-nee laughed and then let me out of her grip.* Yuki: Well, you're pretty strong for a kid, anyway. Tomosane: Don't call me a kid! Yuki: What are you talking about? If you're not a kid, then what am I? Tomosane: An old hag... Yuki: Oh, really? Does that mean you're into grannies? Tomosane: Why would I be? Yuki: Because you're in love with me, right? Tomosane: N-No way! Yuki: Ahahaha, what are you blushing for? Tomosane: A-Are you teasing me again? Yuki: I'm not teasing you. You fell in love with me a long time ago. Tomosane: That's ridiculous! Yuki: Is it really? Tomosane: You're my enemy! Why would I love my enemy?! Yuki: You can't fall in love with an enemy? Tomosane: Of course not! Yuki: You won't ever get stronger with that mindset. Do you know what the strongest technique in martial arts is? Tomosane: The strongest technique? Yuki: It's becoming good friends with someone who tried to kill you. Tomosane: Th-That's a dumb answer. There's no way that's true! Yuki: Hehehe... You're so naive. One of the greatest martial artists of our time said those words. Tomosane: Wh-Who? Yuki: The greatest martial artist of our time... Minakami Yuki. Tomosane: But Master is stronger than you, Yuki-nee. Yuki: Yeah, but who cares about that? Yuki: I want to be friends with that girl behind you. Tomosane: There's a girl behind me? *I turned around and saw...* Tomosane: Hasaki? How long have you been there? Hasaki: U-Um... Yuki: Let's be friends. Hasaki: D-Does that mean... you're my enemy too? Yuki: Huh? Why? Tomosane: You just said that the greatest technique in martial arts is becoming friends with your enemies. Yuki: Oh, that's not what I meant, not at all. The enemy is this guy over here. *Then Yuki pointed at me.* *What a jerk.* Hasaki: So Nii-san really is my enemy? Yuki: That's right. Let's defeat him together. Tomosane: Now you're just contradicting yourself. You were just saying you wanted to become friends with your enemies and you were against violence. Yuki: Ahahaha, that's right. The true meaning of martial arts lies in justice and friendship. *She's just making stuff up...* *What kind of philosophy is that, anyway?* Yuki: Who cares about that, though? Hasaki-chan, you're Tomosane's little sister, right? Hasaki: Um... how do you know Hasaki's name? Yuki: Well, you just said it yourself. Hasaki: Huh? Did I? Tomosane: Hey, don't ask me. I don't know what to tell you Yuki: Your sister is so cute, Tomosane. She's wasted on a brat like you. Tomosane: Shut up... Yuki: Nice to meet you, Hasaki-chan. I'm Minakami Yuki. One of the instructors at this dojo is my dad. Hasaki: Yuki-san? Yuki: Yeah, but you can call me Yuki-nee if you want. Hasaki: Yuki-san. Yuki: Ahaha... I guess that was a bit much, asking you to call me Yuki-nee all of a sudden. Yuki: Are you from Tokyo? Hasaki: Y-Yes, from Tokyo... Yuki: I see, I see. It's summer break for you, huh? Yeah, this is a pretty nice place. Yuki: The air is a lot cleaner here, too. Tomosane: This is a great place, and yet that's the only reason you can come up with? Yuki: What else do you want me to say about the village? Tomosane: Like I care! Yuki: The stars are really pretty, too. Tomosane: That's basically the same thing you just said, since the air is clear. Yuki: And because there aren't so many lights out here! Tomosane: Of course not. We're pretty far out in the country. Yuki: What's your problem?! What about you?! Do you have anything good to say about the village?! Tomosane: Uh, not off the top of my head... Yuki: Well, regardless... This is a pretty nice place to live. Hasaki: Okay... Yuki: Oh, right. It's about time for breakfast. Tomosane: Oh, I forgot... Yuki: What are you doing after breakfast? Tomosane: I don't really have anything planned. Yuki: Let's go to the beach! Tomosane: Wh-Why? Yuki: There aren't any beaches in Tokyo, right? Tomosane: It's not like there aren't any, but you can't really swim in the ocean there. Yuki: The beaches in Sawaimura are great. Everyone says they're as good as the beaches in the Caribbean. Hasaki: Wow... Really? Yuki: Yeah, that's what everyone says. Tomosane: No, they don't. Yuki: Jeez, Tomosane, you're so contrary all of a sudden. What's wrong with Sawaimura's beaches anyway? Tomosane: It's not like anyone in this village has ever been to the Caribbean. Yuki: You wouldn't know. Maybe I took a vacation in the Caribbean once. Tomosane: Have you? Yuki: Nope, but still. Tomosane: So you haven't. Yuki: But I've been to Sawaimura's beach! Tomosane: Well, of course you have. You were born and raised here, after all. Yuki: Oh, forget it. Come on, Tomosane! Let's go! Tomosane: Me? Yuki: Yeah, you and Hasaki-chan! Hasaki: U-Um, I don't have... a swimsuit... Tomosane: You didn't bring a swimsuit? Hasaki: No... I didn't know there was a beach here. Tomosane: You didn't? *Come on, Dad, you should have at least told her that.* * There's nothing to do here except go hiking in the mountains or go to the beach.* Tomosane: Now that you mention it, you really didn't bring much with you, Hasaki. Hasaki: Yeah... They decided to send me here all of a sudden. Tomosane: All of a sudden? Hasaki: Yeah, we were super rushed. *I see... They only told me she was coming the day before she showed up.* *I thought they just didn't tell me about it, but apparently it was decided at the last minute.* Hasaki: Dad said something urgent came up... *Something urgent? He must have been talking about the hospital.* *I thought he was just going in to get checked up. Why would they be doing that at the last minute?* Yuki: ... Yuki: Oh. Then we should change our plans. Let's go to the city and buy Hasaki-chan a swimsuit. Tomosane: What? Why are you making plans for us? Yuki: Hasaki-chan, do you want to? Hasaki: I-I want a swimsuit, but... Yuki: Ahahaha, don't worry about the money. Nee-san can pay for it. Hasaki: Huh? R-Really? Yuki: Yeah, leave it to me! Hasaki: B-But... Yuki: You shouldn't let strangers buy you things? Hasaki: No, uh... I know you're someone my dad trusts. Hasaki: He told me that there was a lady called Yuki-san here, and I should listen to what she says. Yuki: Then there's no problem. Hasaki: Oh, b-but if Tomo Nii-san doesn't want to go... Yuki: Oh, so you're the problem here! Tomosane: Wh-Why me? I never said I didn't want to go. Hasaki: U-Um, it just seemed like you didn't want to... Yuki: Tomosane, do you want to go or not?! Tomosane: Why wouldn't I? Hasaki: Th-Then we can go? Tomosane: Haa... Why do you need my permission, anyway? Hasaki: Dad told me to listen to what you said. Tomosane: D-Dad said that? *Why would he say that? Hasaki shouldn't be listening to someone like me.* *Wasn't Dad always scolding me for what I do and say?* *Why would he tell her to listen to me?* Yuki: Ahaha, I knew Hiroo-san would say that. Tomosane: Wh-What do you mean? Yuki: Ahaha, you don't understand? Tomosane: Wh-What are you even talking about? Yuki: For a kid like you, that's the most effective thing he could've said. Tomosane: Effective? Yuki: You're that kind of kid. He knew you'd get your act together if he told Hasaki to listen to you. Tomosane: Ugh... *I-Is that true?* Yuki: Well, you really are Hasaki's guardian here, so make sure you don't goof up. Yuki: You can't be talking like some little brat for the rest of your life, either! Yuki: Okay, see you later. I'll come find you after we eat! Hasaki: Yuki... san. Tomosane: Yeah, that's Yuki-nee. She's really mean, so watch out for her. Hasaki: She's a good person. Tomosane: Hey, you should listen to what I tell you! Hasaki: Eek! A-Are you a scary person, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Wh-Why would you say that? *I didn't really have any reason to say no to Yuki.* *So after we ate, we ended up going with Yuki-nee to buy Hasaki a swimsuit.* *There weren't any stores selling swimsuits in Sawaimura.* *The village was so far out in the boonies that we didn't even have a convenience store.* *It took us an hour on the bus just to get to the next town.* *We all rode into the city.* *After crossing three mountains, we arrived in a big city with a huge shopping center called Jasco.* *Though only someone from Sawaimura would think it was a big city.* *Someone from Tokyo would feel like they were way out in the sticks.* *But for us, the city was enormous.* *It was quite the trip to get there, though.* Yuki: Now then, what should we get? Hasaki: Ummm, umm... Well... Yuki: Oh, I'm not trying to rush you. Take your time and pick one out. We have plenty of time. Hasaki: O-Okay... Yuki: Here. Hasaki-chan, what about this? Hasaki: Oh, um... Tomosane: ... Yuki: Whoa, look at this. Would it be hot if I wore a tight little swimsuit like this? Tomosane: ... Yuki: Hey, look at this, Tomosane. Do you think Hasaki-chan would look cute in this? Tomosane: ... Yuki: Come on, Tomosane! Say something! Tomosane: Why would I have anything to say? They just sell girls' swimsuits here! Yuki: Wow! You're still just a kid, huh? Can't you act more mature for once, Tomosane? Tomosane: Maturity has nothing to do with it... Yuki: It has everything to do with it. A mature person wouldn't act like you are. Tomosane: Okay, then how would an adult respond? Yuki: Well, let's see... 'Th-This would look great on you, Hasaki-chan... But maybe this one would be cuter? Haa, haa, haa, Onii-san wants to see Hasaki-chan in her school swimsuit, too.' Something like that? Tomosane: That's dumb. Yuki: What's so dumb about it? Tomosane: That's not mature at all. I don't really know what it is, though. Yuki: It is mature! But an adult shouldn't say those words! Remember that! Tomosane: Then it's not mature at all, is it? Hasaki: I-I don't want a school swimsuit... Yuki: Oh, you don't have to buy a school swimsuit. Tomosane just said that because he's a pervert. Tomosane: Why is it my fault now?! Hasaki: Huh? Do you want me to wear that instead, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Of course not! I didn't even say that. That was Yuki. Yuki: Then you should pick something for Hasaki-chan. Tomosane: Me? Yuki: Or would you rather choose mine? Look, this one hardly covers anything at all! Yuki: Come on, what do you think? Even if I wore this, it wouldn't cover anything but the nipples. Feels like I'd fall right out of it. Tomosane: D-D-Don't ask me! Wh-Why are you making me pick out your swimsuit anyway?! Yuki: What are you blushing for? What, did you just imagine me wearing it? Tomosane: N-No way! Hasaki: Uuh... Tomosane: Ow! Ow! Why are you pinching me, Hasaki?! Hasaki: You won't pick one out for me, but you want to pick Yuki-san's, don't you? Tomosane: Th-That's not true. Yuki-nee can get whatever she wants! Hasaki: But you looked really happy just now. Tomosane: N-No, I didn't. C-Come on, let's look over here. These ones might fit you better. Tomosane: Now then, I wonder which ones would look good on you, Hasaki. *Wait... Why am I making excuses and trying to change the subject now?* *Damn it. It's Yuki-nee's fault for saying all those weird things.* *I reluctantly went over to the swimsuits and started looking for one that would look good on Hasaki.* *Although I really had no idea what would look good on her.* *They told me to pick one out, but I had no idea what I was looking for.* Tomosane: Um... you like rabbits, right? Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: What? Am I wrong? Hasaki: No, no, I-I like rabbits. Tomosane: Then why did you look so surprised? I thought I was remembering wrong. Hasaki: B-But... why would someone I never met before know what I like? Tomosane: I told you already, we lived together until three years ago, even if you don't remember it! Hasaki: Hau... Tomosane: Don't do that! I'm not scaring you! Yuki: You're yelling at her, so of course she's scared. Still, I'm impressed. Tomosane: Impressed? What for? Yuki: I was just thinking, even a brat like you can kind of understand a girl's heart, you know? Tomosane: A girl's heart? Yuki: Look... Tomosane: Look where? Tomosane: Whoa, she's crying. Yuki: You made her cry. Tomosane: B-Because I was yelling? S-Sorry. Please don't cry here, Hasaki. Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Ah, Yuki-nee! Help! Yuki: Huh? This is your time to shine. Tomosane: What? *For some reason, Hasaki just cried and clung to my shirt.* *Why?* Hasaki: Thanks, Tomo Nii-san! I can't believe you still remembered me! Tomosane: Huh? U-Um... Yuki: Hey, you player. Nice going. Most guys forget stuff like birthdays and anniversaries overnight. Tomosane: I-It's nothing. Anyone would remember what their little sister liked! Tomosane: Oh, uh... *Everyone was looking at us.* *D-Do they think I made her cry?* *N-No...* Yuki: Hahaha... That's why you're still just a kid. *Yuki-nee laughed when she saw how flustered I was.* *I was too shocked to even think about laughing.* *Jeez, Yuki-nee...* *.........* *......* *...* Yuki: So? Tomosane: How about this one? It has rabbits on it. Yuki: But these rabbits look like they're eating people. Tomosane: That's why it's cool. Yuki: Cool? Tomosane: Yeah, they have to be strong rabbits if they're eating people, right? Yuki: O-Oh... I see... Yuki: I didn't think you could be so blunt. Hasaki: What about this... Is this all right? Yuki: W-Well, I guess? This kind of stuff is popular right now. Stuff that's gruesome on the surface, but sort of cute underneath. Yuki: Though I think you should get a cuter one, Hasaki-chan. Man-eating rabbits don't really fit your image. Hasaki: No, I want this one. I want this one! Yuki: R-Really? Hasaki: Yeah, it's so cute. Yuki: Ahaha... Okay... Yuki: This is actually branded merchandise, so it's surprisingly expensive. Tomosane: Did you say something? Yuki: No, it's nothing, it's nothing. Ahaha. Let's buy this. Yeah, it's gotta be this. Yuki: Jasco was really fun, huh? They have everything. Hasaki: Yeah, there's nothing like that in Tokyo. *I'm sure there are places like that in Tokyo, but they're probably out on the fringes of the city.* *Where we lived, there weren't any shopping centers like that.* *That's just what the city is like.* Yuki: Ahaha, we need to hurry or we'll miss the bus. Tomosane: Oh, Sawaimura is way out in the country, isn't it? There won't be any buses going that way after dark. Yuki: And we have to cross three mountains, too. Hasaki: Th-Three of them? Tomosane: Yeah. Unfortunately, we're on the wrong side of three whole mountains. It'd take us more than a day to walk that far. Hasaki: Th-Then we should hurry. Yuki: Yeah, let's go. Hasaki: Okay... *We were about to run, but then Hasaki suddenly stopped.* Tomosane: Hm? *Hasaki was looking at something.* *There was a big rabbit doll sitting in the window of a small store selling stuffed animals.* Hasaki: ... Tomosane: Hasaki? *She must really love rabbits.* *She probably didn't remember it, but something like this happened before when we were in Tokyo.* *She stopped and stared at a huge rabbit doll.* Tomosane: What's wrong, Hasaki? Hasaki: Oh, n-nothing... Tomosane: Nothing, huh? *Hasaki has always been like that.* *She never asks for anything she wants.* *She's always endured it instead of asking for things, even when she was just a toddler.* Tomosane: Why do you like rabbits, Hasaki? Hasaki: Huh? Um, well, it's more like... Hasaki: Rabbits die if they get lonely, so I want to be with them so they won't get lonely. Tomosane: Why do you have to keep them company, though? Hasaki: Um... I'm not really good for anything, so that's at least one thing I can do. That's what I always thought, since I was real little. Tomosane: ... Yuki: Hey! The bus is here! Tomosane: Oh, Hasaki, we have to go home. Pretty soon we're gonna get stuck walking home. Hasaki: Oh, yeah... *Hasaki and the rabbit.* *An animal which dies when it gets too lonely.* *And a girl who was always alone.* *That's why the two of them became twins.* *So that they could always be together.* *Only now do I really understand what she meant.*

Yuki: All right, we're ready to go! Hasaki: Ready! Yuki: What about you, Tomosane? Tomosane: Yeah, sure... Yuki: You duummyy. Tomosane: Ow, ow! What are you hitting me for?! Yuki: You're spacing out! Are you underestimating the ocean or what?! Tomosane: Why do you think I'm spacing out? Come on, we haven't even left yet. Yuki: We have to be prepared, just like the knights of old! Unguard! Yuki: Do you understand?! Tomosane: Not at all... Yuki: You dummy! Tomosane: Don't hit me every time I say something! Yuki: What? You were just telling me to stop taking it easy on you before. Make up your mind already. Yuki: Everyone knows that you have to be unguard at all times to protect yourself! That's one of the fundamentals, so remember it well! Tomosane: I have no idea what you're talking about, but I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be en garde, not unguard. Yuki: Anyway, if you underestimate the ocean, you'll be in trouble. Big trouble! Tomosane: I think you're the one who'll be in trouble. Yuki: What do you think, Hasaki-chan? Shouldn't he respect the ocean a bit more? Hasaki: I-If you're not careful, you can get in a lot of trouble, I think. Yuki: Look! You're the one who's going to be in trouble, Tomosane. Tomosane: No, I'm not underestimating it or anything. Yuki: Then let's do this one more time! Everyone ready? Hasaki: Ready! Yuki: What about Tomosane? Tomosane: Yeah, I'm ready. Yuki: All right! Let's go! Tomosane: Why do you have so much luggage, anyway? Yuki: Because the ocean is scary! Tomosane: Oh, okay. *I knew it wasn't worth the effort to argue with her.* *Yuki-nee attached the luggage carrier to her bicycle and started pedaling.* *Good luck getting that carrier home.* Yuki: Wow, the beaches here in Sawaimura are great. It's like we have our own private beach. Tomosane: That's probably only because no one would want to come to a beach out in the country. Yuki: Well, it's a pretty far drive for most people. Tomosane: More importantly... Yuki-nee, where are we going to change? Yuki: Hehehe, look at this! Tomosane: Hey, you dummy, we're still in public! Yuki: Were you surprised? Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: I have my swimsuit on underneath. Tomosane: Oh... You shouldn't just lift your skirt up like that, though. Yuki: Why not? I have a swimsuit on, so it's fine. Tomosane: What about Hasaki? Hasaki: I need to change. Yuki: Here, I brought a poncho. Tomosane: A poncho? What's that? Yuki: They wear these in South America. It's a big piece of fabric with a hole for your head. They sell them for people to use when they're changing. Tomosane: I see... Yuki: You'll probably just go behind a rock and change or something, right Tomosane? Tomosane: No way. Yuki: Tadaa * How's it look?"* Tomosane: Don't ask me. Yuki: Jeez, you're so boring. This is my new swimsuit, you know. Tomosane: What did you expect me to say? Yuki: Oh, Hasaki-chan, did you finish getting changed? Hasaki: Uh, yeah... Hasaki: H-How is it? Tomosane: Don't ask me... Hasaki: D-Does it look bad? Yuki: You dumbass! Tomosane: Wh-What's your problem?! Yuki: Are you really her big brother? Or has it been that long since a girl asked you to compliment her? Tomosane: Y-Yeah... Yuki: Can't you say something better than that, Tomosane? Tomosane: I told you, you're expecting way too much. Yuki: Hasaki-chan is younger than you, dummy. Don't make excuses now. It's your responsibility. Tomosane: R-Really? Yuki: You're her big brother, and you picked out that swimsuit for her, too. Yuki: I put down some real dosh for that swimsuit you picked out! *Now what's she talking about? It's not like I made her buy it.* *She must be mad since it was so expensive.* Yuki: Did you say something? Tomosane: I-I didn't say anything! Yuki: It's written all over your face. *She's way too perceptive.* Hasaki: Um, Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Now you're just being annoying, Hasaki. Hasaki: A-Auh... Tomosane: I picked out that swimsuit because I thought it looked good on you! You don't have to ask me every time you wear it! Hasaki: U-Um... Tomosane: I-It looks good on you... Don't worry! Hasaki: R-Really? Tomosane: Yeah, really. Don't make me say it again. Hasaki: Okay. Thanks, Tomo Nii-san! Yuki: What about me? Tomosane: Like I care. Yuki: Whoa, that's cold! Yuki: Oh well. Good for you, Hasaki-chan. Hasaki: Yeah, thank you too, Yuki-san. Yuki: That's right. You better be thankful. That swimsuit was pretty dang expensive. Hasaki: A-Auh... Thank you... *Yuki-nee, that's really petty.* *You're not supposed to talk about money with little kids.* Yuki: All right then, come on! We're at the beach! Tomosane: Thanks for stating the obvious. We've been at the beach for a while now. Yuki: Duuummyy! Tomosane: What'd you hit me for that time?! Yuki: You'll die if you keep saying stupid crap like that, Tomosane! Tomosane: Huh? Why would I die? Yuki: Hasaki-chan would be really sad if Tomosane died, huh? Hasaki: Huh? Tomo Nii-san is gonna die? Huh? Yuki: Look, I told you! Now she's crying! Tomosane: You're the one who made her cry, though. Yuki: You dummy! Tomosane: Don't hit me! Yuki: Then dodge it. I've been testing you this whole time, you know? You always say you want to fight me, so I was just testing whether you were up to it. Tomosane: ... Yuki: Now then, let's do some warm-up exercises before we go swimming. Gotta limber up! Hasaki: Limber up? Yuki: Yeah, yeah, we're gonna stretch. Here, I'll show you how. It's kind of like a dance. Tomosane: You're gonna dance? Yuki: First, put your hand like this! Tomosane: My hand? Like this? Yuki: Yeah, then put your palms facing down, about level with your chin. Then swing your hands over to the right. Tomosane: S-Sure... Hasaki: I did it! Yuki: All right, let's go. Yuki: Stretch * Stretch!* * Reach out to the sky!"* Yuki: To the end of the sky! Tomosane: What is this crap? Yuki: Shut up and do it! Yuki: All right * Stretch!* * Stretch!* * Reach out to the sky!* * To the end of the sky!"* Hasaki: Stretch * Stretch!* * Reach out to the sky!* * To the end of the sky!"* Tomosane: S-Stretch, stretch, reach out to the end of the sky. Yuki: Then shake your hips back and forth! Yuki: To the right? Yuki: To the left? Yuki: To live? Yuki: Or to die? Yuki: Will tomorrow come? Yuki: Look to the sky! Yuki: Here we go again! Yuki: All right * All right!"* Yuki: Stretch * Stretch!* * Reach out to the sky!"* Tomosane: What's the point of this? * Do some normal stretches already!"* Yuki: Oh, come on. I'm sure our older fans could appreciate that one. Tomosane: Not like you have any fans. Hasaki: Stretch * Stretch!* * Reach out to the sky!* * To the end of the sky!"* Tomosane: You should just forget that, Hasaki. It's just some weird dance. Yuki: But it's so fun. Only our older fans will get it, though. Tomosane: What are you even talking about? I don't get it. Yuki: All right, let's swim! Tomosane: What do you have that board for? Yuki: Oh? You don't know what a surfboard is? Tomosane: No, that's not what I was asking. Why did you bring something like that? Yuki: Yuki-nee is now departing for the deep blue sea. I'll leave Hasaki-chan in your hands. Tomosane: Aren't you supposed to be the adult here?! Yuki: Right now I am, but I'm going out to sea, so you're in charge until I get back! Tomosane: Jeez, you just got done telling me about how the sea is a scary place, and now you're leaving two children alone? Yuki: Ahahaha, so now you want me to treat you like a child * I thought you said you were an adult?"* Tomosane: Wha―! Yuki: Sometimes there are freak waves, so watch out. You might think it's just a little wave, and then a huge one comes out of nowhere. Tomosane: A-All right, but... Yuki: What's wrong, Tomosane? You can look after Hasaki-chan, right? You're an adult, after all. Tomosane: Jeez, this is the only time you call me an adult. Yuki: Anyway, you should talk to her. I'm pretty sure she wishes she could talk to you more. Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: Be ambitious, my boy. I'll see you later. Say hi to the ambassadors for me! Especially that Magma guy, and Ambassador Shoutoku too. Tomosane: Yuki-nee... *...* *C'mon, Yuki-nee...* *Prince Shoutoku wasn't even an ambassador.* *She messed that joke up so bad, I don't even know where to start.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: What do you want to do, Hasaki? We're here at the beach, so let's play. I don't mind playing with you today. Hasaki: Yeah, um, well, there's lots and lots of things we can do! Tomosane: Yeah, whatever you want. Hasaki: A-Auh... N-No, Tomo Nii-san, not there... Tomosane: It'll be okay. Look, I almost got it in there. Hasaki: A-Ah... If you touch it like that, you'll break it... Tomosane: Whoa. It's so wet. Hasaki: Waaaah... B-But you were rushing me... Tomosane: All right. I just need to get a little further in. Hasaki: N-No, Tomo Nii-san, ah, auhh! Tomosane: Hmm... It just won't go in. Hasaki: N-No, wait... If you push it in like that, it'll break... Tomosane: Don't worry. Leave it to your big brother. Hasaki: Auh... Hasaki: A-Aaaahh! Tomosane: Ah... Hasaki: Look, you broke it... Tomosane: H-Huh? It fell apart. Hasaki: It's cuz you were digging too fast. You have to slow down when you're making the tunnels. Tomosane: But it'll get destroyed if we don't hurry up and finish before the tides comes in. Hasaki: Yeah, it was dry here before, but now the sand is getting wet. If you dig down a little bit, there's water. Tomosane: Well, I should've picked a better spot I guess. I didn't think the tide was going to come in this far. Hasaki: Let's make another one over there. Tomosane: Yeah, we just need to find a better spot. Tomosane: Let's make a real big one this time. Hasaki: Yeah. *The first thing she wanted to do when she came to the beach wasn't to swim. She just wanted to play in the sand. It was no different than playing in the sandbox in the park.* *I remember I played in a sandbox with Hasaki once before, when we were in Tokyo.* *We were both a lot younger back then.* Tomosane: Hey, Hasaki, I know I haven't seen you in a long time, but have you been okay while I was gone? Hasaki: Y-Yeah... I guess... *I heard the hesitation in her voice.* Tomosane: Is that woman still alive? Hasaki: You shouldn't call her 'that woman.' She's our mom, you know? Tomosane: Yeah, I know. *That's right.* *To me, that woman is just a traitor. But to Hasaki, she's still Mom.* *Even though that woman is disturbed.* Tomosane: How's Takuji doing? Hasaki: ... Tomosane: Oh, uh... You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san is always studying. He does a lot of sports too. Tomosane: Oh, really... Same as ever, huh? Hasaki: He said he's had to work himself to death ever since I was born. Tomosane: I told you, that's wrong! Hasaki: Ah! Tomosane: Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. Sorry. Hasaki: Thanks. Hasaki: I think I kind of forgot what you were like, Tomo Nii-san. But now I think I remember you. Tomosane: Ahaha, you remembered I was a mean guy back then too? Hasaki: No, I don't remember that at all. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, you were the only person who was on my side. Tomosane: Huh? R-Really? Hasaki: Yeah! Tomosane: B-But Dad is there too. Hasaki: Dad isn't just on my side. He does try to be nice to me, though. Tomosane: W-Well, yeah. But you know, I might not always be on your side, either. Hasaki: Really? Tomosane: Yeah, of course. I just try to be true to myself. Hasaki: What does that mean? Tomosane: Well, if something bothers me, then I'll say that. It doesn't matter if it's my parents or what, I won't just accept the way things are. I'll fight back if I have to... That's all. Hasaki: R-Really? Tomosane: That's why I said I might not always be on your side. I'm just a selfish brother. Hasaki: A selfish brother... Tomosane: That's right. I hate the cult that brainwashed that stupid woman. The world's going to end? That's just ridiculous. Hasaki: They said 2012, right? Tomosane: That's right. They were talking about how the world was going to be destroyed a few years back, too. Hasaki: When? Tomosane: Oh, right. That was around the time you were born, I think. Hasaki: Oh, really... I didn't know that. Tomosane: Yeah, it was a long time ago. Nothing actually happened, though. Hasaki: Oh... Tomosane: They've been predicting the end of the world since the time of the cavemen, but it still hasn't happened, not even once. Tomosane: That's why the prophecy is just a lie. They say it's your fault Takuji couldn't be the savior, but that's just a load of crap. Hasaki: Yeah... Tomosane: What, don't you believe me? Hasaki: Ah, that's not what I meant. I believe you. You're right. Tomosane: But it doesn't really sound like you believe me. Hasaki: Oh, uh... Huh? I wonder why... *Why would she have to wonder? She either does or she doesn't.* *Though Hasaki has been told those lies ever since she was born.* *I guess I see why she would have trouble accepting it's a lie after all these years.* *Either way, Hasaki thinks that she made her Mom, Dad, and brother unhappy because she was born.* Tomosane: Think of it this way, Hasaki. Hasaki: Hm? Tomosane: If he's the savior, then I'm your hero! Hasaki: Hero? Tomosane: That's right. He might save the world. Well, I'm pretty sure he won't. Hasaki: Ahaha. Tomosane: But if he's going to save the world, then I've gotta be the hero who protects you. Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san? You're my hero? Tomosane: Yeah, I'm a superhero in disguise. Hasaki: You can transform? Tomosane: Yeah, I totally can. I can turn into Gangaru, Atranger, and even Cyroid. Hasaki: What about Pretty Cure? Tomosane: No way. Hasaki: Oh, okay... Tomosane: Wait, uh, i-if you really want, I could probably transform into that. Hasaki: What about Sailor Moon? Tomosane: Oh, uh... Y-Yeah, I could do that. I'm your big brother, you know, so maybe just for you... I'll think about it... Hasaki: Really? Tomosane: Yeah, really. Tomosane: Remember this... If Takuji is the savior, then I'm the hero. Tomosane: I'll stand up to protect you any time you're in trouble. Tomosane: When you're in trouble, you can just think of it as a performance. Hasaki: A performance? Tomosane: Yeah, of course. A performance. A hero is someone who turns a bad situation into an opportunity. Hasaki: Someone who turns a bad situation into an opportunity? A hero? Tomosane: Yeah, I'm your hero. No matter what happens to the world, I'll protect you! V for Victory! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... You're so cool. Tomosane: Yeah, your big brother is really cool. Hasaki: Okay. I believe in you, Tomo Nii-san. You'll come back to save me, no matter what kind of trouble I'm in. Tomosane: Yeah, the only problem is with the performance. Tomosane: But the ending will be more exciting that way, right? Hasaki: Yeah, of course! Tomosane: So even if bad things happen, you'll be okay. We'll sit and laugh after it's all over. Tomosane: Because you have a hero here to protect you! Yuki: Tomosane! Tomosane: Huh? Tomosane: Hey, whoa! Tomosane: Wh-Why do you have seaweed on your head? And what happened to your swimsuit? Yuki: It got swept away with the tide... It wasn't a good idea to go surfing in a bikini. Tomosane: R-Really? Yuki: Waaah. I usually wear a wetsuit when I go swimming, but I wanted to wear a bikini since I came to the beach with you, and it ended up getting washed away! Tomosane: Then why don't you come play with us instead of surfing? Yuki: Oh, come on! I was trying to be a considerate big sister for you guys. You two haven't had any alone time since you got here. Yuki: It's not like I actually wanted to go out in the ocean alone. I wanted to play with Hasaki-chan, too. Tomosane: You liar. I saw you having fun out there. Yuki: Yeah, there's no wind today, so the waves are beautiful. You just have to ride it like a rollercoaster. You can feel the wave cresting behind you. Tomosane: So you were having fun! I don't know all those technical terms, either. Yuki: Waaah! But now I'm bummed 'cause I lost my top... Tomosane: Yeah, yeah. Go put a shirt on, will you? Yuki: Waaah, I guess I will. Tomosane: So... what are you doing here now? Yuki: What's wrong? Come on, let me build something. Tomosane: Jeez, what're you gonna build? Yuki: Cinderella's castle. Tomosane: How are you gonna make that?! Yuki: Then what are you making, Tomosane? Tomosane: A really cool gundam! Hasaki: Oh... S-So that's what you were trying to make. Tomosane: Huh? Can't you tell? Hasaki: I-I was trying to make... a castle... Yuki: See, I told you! Tomosane: I-I guess... *I was hoping that Hasaki would understand how cool heroes in disguise are, since she thought it was cool when I told her I would be her hero.* *Damn... No such luck, huh?* Yuki: So let's make a castle. I'll get the concrete ready. Tomosane: What are you going to do with concrete? Yuki: Don't worry about that. Come on, Hasaki, let's do it. Hasaki: Y-Yeah... Yuki: So? What kind of castle do you wanna build? Tomosane: An evil castle, right? Dracula's castle. Yuki: Who cares about that guy? Don't you think Cinderella's castle sounds like more fun? Hasaki: Yeah... I want Cinderella's castle. Tomosane: What kind of castle did Cinderella have, anyway? Hasaki: I think it had a bunch of towers and stuff on it. Tomosane: A bunch of watchtowers? *Well, they did call it an impenetrable fortress. I guess that sounds about right.* Yuki: All right, get to work on your side, guys. Hasaki: Yeah. Yuki: I can't wait to get started. Tomosane: An impenetrable fortress... Well... Yuki: It's done... Whoa?! Hasaki: Huh? Yuki: What's that on top? Tomosane: I mean, this is what I think the castle should look like. Yuki: What the hell is it? Yuki: Avert your eyes, children. You shouldn't look at this. Yuki: All right, let's head home. You didn't forget anything, right? Hasaki: Nope. Tomosane: All right, let's go. Yuki: Okay, but remember we're not out of danger yet, so don't let your guard down. Tomosane: Sounds like we're in for it... *I guess the danger didn't end at the sea.* *Maybe a tidal wave will hit and pull us back into the water.* *That would be a real disaster.* *Yuki-nee pedalled the bike, pulling a luggage carrier with all our things.* *Not only our luggage, but also Hasaki's bike and Hasaki herself.* *Riding uphill, at that.* *I was kind of surprised.* *She had no trouble pedalling the bike.* *It was all downhill on the way over, but now we have to go back up those very same hills.* *But I guess that doesn't matter to Yuki-nee.* Yuki: Here we are.. * Ahaha, Hasaki-chan fell asleep."* Tomosane: Yeah, I'm pretty sure this is the first time she's gotten to play like this, you know? Yuki: Really? Tomosane: You've heard people here at the dojo talk about our family before, right? Yuki: Oh, well... Just rumors, really. Yuki: Especially about Sanami Kotomi-san... Oh, sorry, that's her old name. Now she's Mamiya Kotomi. Yuki: She was famous in this village. Tomosane: That woman... My mother, what is she? Why does everyone pay attention to her? Yuki: What is she? Well, she's still just human... Yuki: I'm pretty sure it was before I was born, but one of the nearby villages became a ghost town. Tomosane: A village? Yuki: Yeah, it was really underpopulated. But around here, it's still pretty famous. Tomosane: A famous village? Yuki: There's a shrine there. I hear it's called Sanagi Shrine. Yuki: Well, it's an old legend, so I don't actually know much about it, but people say that the souls of all the people that die in this area gather at that shrine. Tomosane: Wow... Yuki: They say there's an enormous hole under the spot where the shrine was built, and the hole is actually a path to the underworld. Tomosane: Is that true? Yuki: Doesn't it sound like a lie? Tomosane: I guess so. Yuki: Like I said, it's just an old superstition. Yuki: Something ridiculous like that can't actually exist. Yuki: Kotomi-san was born at that shrine. Tomosane: Oh, I've heard about that. It's supposed to be some kind of weird shrine where they practice the occult. Yuki: The occult, huh? Well, that part might be true. Yuki: People in this area believe that the women from that shrine can control the dead. Tomosane: But can they? Yuki: That's my question. Tomosane, have you ever seen your mother controlling a dead person? Tomosane: No, never. Yuki: I guess not. Yuki: So it's just superstition. Yuki: The truth is probably that Kotomi-san has no special powers, but people in this village are weak to old superstitions. Tomosane: Everyone believes it... Yuki: Maybe not everyone. I don't know what they all believe, but it's definitely a bit creepy to think even some of them believe that's true. Yuki: It's no coincidence that she married into the Mamiya household, a family of traditional martial artists and Shinto practitioners here in Sawaimura. Tomosane: You think? Yuki: Do you remember Grandpa Mamiya? The one that died a few years ago? Tomosane: Yeah, but he died right after I moved here, so I don't really remember him. I heard he was the strongest person in the dojo. Yuki: Yeah, he was incredibly strong. I watched an exhibition match once, but my dad got beat up in a few seconds. Tomosane: Huh? Your dad was in an exhibition match? Yuki: Yeah, but this guy was on a different level. Tomosane: But it was just an exhibition, right? Yuki: If you fight a man like that, you fight to the death. Of course it was an exhibition. Tomosane: To the death? Yuki: My dad was really stupid, so he came and tried to challenge the whole dojo when he was younger. Yuki: After that, he swore to never fight Grandpa Mamiya outside of an exhibition match ever again. Tomosane: The old man was really that strong, huh? Yuki: He was born before the war, you know? He went to the mainland during the war, and he fought and killed more people than you could count. Tomosane: But he was such a small man. Yuki: When he faced an opponent, he knew everything. Tomosane: Knew everything? Yuki: What kind of attack would come next, what the opponent was thinking... Tomosane: What are you talking about? That sounds like magic. Yuki: Well, yeah. It does, but that's what I've heard. Yuki: Something happened a long time ago, when my dad stayed here as an apprentice. Yuki: In the middle of the night, the old man yelled and woke everyone up. Yuki: It was amazing. He yelled, 'What the hell are you doing?! There are rats eating our rice cakes, you fools!' Tomosane: His hearing was good, then. Yuki: Good doesn't even describe it. He was sleeping in another building. He wasn't even close to the dojo. Tomosane: R-Really? Yuki: Yeah, really. I've heard a lot of other stories like that too. Tomosane: So he really was that strong. *I only have a fuzzy memory of him.* Yuki: Traditional martial arts were passed down by Shinto practitioners, so the Mamiya family might have some element of spiritual power in their martial arts. Tomosane: By spiritual power, you really mean superpowers, right? Yuki: Well, I guess that's the easiest way to think about it. You mean like supernatural abilities and stuff like that? Tomosane: Like throwing someone across the room without even touching them? Yuki: Oh, no, I never heard about anything like that, but apparently he could read people's minds like it was nothing. Tomosane: Wow, really? Yuki: I dunno. Don't you think it's true? At the very least, my dad definitely didn't want to fight him ever again. Tomosane: I guess so... I never knew. Yuki: And in the neighboring village, there was a priestess from Sanagi Shrine, with the blood of Sanami. The Mamiyas were the only family that would take someone like that. Yuki: The Mamiya family practiced the ancient techniques for hundreds of years to acquire their spiritual powers. Tomosane: Oh, really? I never knew. Yuki: So if you make your mom too mad, she might send zombies after you. Tomosane: What are you talking about zombies for? Yuki: I dunno. I just thought it sounded cool. Tomosane: Don't worry. There's no way that woman has any special powers. Yuki: I guess so. Yuki: But that's why the people from this village feared Sanami Kotomi like the plague. Tomosane: Like the plague? Yuki: It just means they were really afraid of her. That's not all, though. Fear usually turns into violence, you know? Tomosane: Violence? What do you mean? Yuki: People often strike out at what they fear. Tomosane: Strike out? Yuki: In other words, they discriminate. Tomosane: Discrimination? You mean like bullying? Yuki: Yeah, something like that. When a bunch of adults bully someone, it's called discrimination. Tomosane: When adults bully someone, huh? That's crazy. Yuki: Yeah, and that kind of bullying can really change someone when it's that bad. Especially at school and stuff. Tomosane: I see. Yuki: At that time, the only person who helped her was your father. Tomosane: My father... Yuki: Your father was a really nice guy. He couldn't stand to see someone discriminated against because of some old superstition. Tomosane: Doesn't mean he had to marry her! Yuki: No, no, at first he was just trying to be nice, but in the end the two fell in love. Yuki: So they eloped together to escape the persecution here in the village. And that's how you were born. Tomosane: I see. She was hated by the village people, so they ran away to Tokyo. Tomosane: I guess that's why the people around here kind of look at me funny. Yuki: The Mamiya family is well respected by the villagers. Besides, Hiroo-san was really smart and very nice. No one thinks less of you because you're his son. Tomosane: Hmm... I guess, but even if they liked one of my parents, they still hated the other one. Tomosane: But Hasaki is different. Hasaki doesn't have Mamiya blood in her veins. Yuki: Haa... So you think people from the village will discriminate against Hasaki? Tomosane: Don't you? Yuki: I wonder if people really believe in that stuff anymore. Tomosane: But I heard some people at the dojo talking. They said Hasaki is one of the Sanami. Yuki: But that's just a rumor, right? It's just people making idle chatter. Tomosane: I can still tell they have different feelings toward Hasaki, though. Yuki: Jeez... Okay, okay. I can't deny that. Yuki: Even if it's just an old superstition, some of the people in this village still haven't caught up with the times. Yuki: There aren't very many houses with cable television, and it takes over an hour to bike to the next village if I want to play at the community center. Yuki: If you don't have cable television, you can't watch Discovery or History. You can't get those channels unless you have cable. Tomosane: ... *That's all you care about?* Yuki: Is there some kind of problem with Hasaki? Tomosane: O-Of course there is. Do you think Hasaki deserves to get bullied too, just because she has Sanami blood?! Yuki: Not at all. Of course I don't think that. I really like Hasaki. Tomosane: Then what're you gonna do? Yuki: What do I need to do? There's no problem, right? Tomosane: There is a problem! A big problem! Yuki: I don't think there's a problem. She has a hero to save her if she gets in trouble, after all. Tomosane: Huh? Yuki: From what I hear, there's a transforming action hero looking out for her. Do you know anything about him? Tomosane: Y-You were listening?! Yuki: Yeah, I heard most of it. Tomosane: Y-Yuki-nee! I never expected you to be an eavesdropper! Yuki: Oh, come on. I wanted to say something, but it sounded like you were talking about something important. I didn't want to interrupt the conversation, you know? Tomosane: Yuki-nee, you, you... Yuki: Ahahaha, but it shouldn't be a problem, right * No matter what happens here in the village, she will always have a hero to protect her, right?"* Yuki: That said, I don't think you have anything to worry about it. No one from Sawai is going to try to hurt Hasaki. They might talk about her, but that's all. Yuki: This is modern Japan. Look, you can just go to Jasco if you want to buy something. They're not going to discriminate against a little girl just because of some old superstition. Yuki: Besides, I'm here for her, and so is my dad. There's the whole Mamiya family, too. Tomosane: Yeah... Yuki: So don't worry about it. Yuki: You just have to do your part and look after her. Tomosane: All right. Yuki: All right, that's what I wanted to hear. Anyway, I'll see ya later, Tomosane! Tomosane: ... *Yuki-nee really is an adult, huh?* *Someday...* *Someday, I want...* Tomosane: I want to beat her. *That's right. She's like my rival―someone who I have to overcome because I'm a hero.* *I felt tired from going to the beach, but I couldn't really sleep.* *I guess I just sat on the shore and built sandcastles, so I wasn't actually all that tired.* *I looked at the clock. It was past ten.* *In the countryside, night comes early.* *Back in Tokyo, there would still be plenty of lights on. But in this village, everything is dark by this time.* Tomosane: My mother, huh? *I had never heard anything about her life before.* *I heard that she went to live with the Mamiya family when she was still a child, and then she eventually married their oldest son, my father.* *But I never heard the reason why she was living with the Mamiyas before now.* *I knew her maiden name was Sanami, but I hadn't heard the details.* *I just heard a bunch of creepy rumors.* *Her relationship with the fuckers at the White Lotus Association started there too.* Tomosane: So she's descended from a shrine maiden that could lead the dead, huh? *Just the atmosphere around her makes my skin crawl, so it's definitely fitting.* Tomosane: But they say that those shrine maidens could control the dead. *That's nonsense.* *If my mother could do that, she would've already killed me and Hasaki.* *Especially me. She already tried to cut my throat once.* *If she had those powers, she wouldn't need a knife.* *She could just kill me with her special powers.* Tomosane: ... *I looked at the ceiling.* *The wood grain in the old house almost looked like a person's face.* *It reminded me of my mother. It made me sick.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Hm? Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki, what's wrong? Hasaki: Um, can I sleep with you? Tomosane: Oh, uh... I don't really care. Hasaki: I'm kind of... scared of sleeping alone. Tomosane: Huh? Weren't you sleeping with Grandma? Hasaki: Yeah, but I'd rather be with you. Tomosane: What for? Hasaki: B-Because you're... you're my hero... Tomosane: Oh, I guess a hero wouldn't mind. Tomosane: All right, I'll go get another futon. Hasaki: I want to sleep in yours. Tomosane: My futon? Hasaki: Can I? Tomosane: Well, I guess I don't mind. There'll be more room if we get another, though. Hasaki: I don't want more room. Tomosane: Huh? I don't get it... All right, come here. Hasaki: Sure. *Hasaki squeezed into my futon.* Tomosane: Hm? What's that? *I saw that she was holding something.* Hasaki: Oh, this? They're twin rabbit dolls. *Hasaki opened her hand, showing me the two small rabbit dolls in her hand.* Tomosane: They look like something you would put on your phone. Do you always carry those around? Hasaki: Yeah, I always have them in my pocket. *That's why they're dark black, I guess.* Hasaki: Dad bought them for me. Tomosane: Wow... Dad bought 'em, huh? Hasaki: He actually bought one for Takuji and one for me. Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san said he didn't want to have a toy like that, so he threw it away. I took it because he didn't want it. Tomosane: That sure sounds like him. He really gets on my nerves. *If I'd been there, I would've hit him right in the nose for that.* Hasaki: No, thanks to him, I got two. They're twins, so they're happier together. Tomosane: Well, I guess if you don't mind... *Two dolls.* *Twin dolls, given to the twins Takuji and Hasaki.* *That sounds like something Dad would think of.* *But Takuji didn't want his.* *Of course not. He resents the fact that he has a twin sister.* *Of course he'd throw away his doll.* Hasaki: What's wrong? Tomosane: Oh, uh... It's nothing. Hasaki: Today was fun. Tomosane: That's good to hear. Hasaki: Yeah, and Yuki-san was really nice. Tomosane: Yeah, she's a nice girl. She's a bit violent, though. Hasaki: Not really. You said that before, but she's not violent. She's super nice. Tomosane: That's just because you don't know her. She can be nice, but she's actually really mean. Hasaki: But she's so nice... *My life here in the country, with Hasaki...* *It's only supposed to last for the summer.* *Once summer break is over, Hasaki will return to Tokyo.* *Dad will get out of the hospital, and life will return to normal.* *That was the plan.* *Until we heard the news.*

*The end of summer.* *Hasaki and I had been called to visit our father in the hospital in Tokyo.* *All we were told beforehand was that he was going in for a routine checkup. But when we got there, we were greeted by the sight of him wasting away, hooked up to tubes and strange medical devices.* *Hasaki was reduced to simply clutching his hand, bawling her eyes out all the while.* *I couldn't do anything more than simply stand and watch.* *Takuji and his mother stood off to the side, their faces little more than expressionless masks.* *Outside, summer was drawing to a close, the sun quietly blazing away as it prepared for autumn.* *Inside, our father quietly drew his last breath.* *I couldn't help but wonder.* *Did he know things were going to end up like this?* *Maybe that was why he sent Hasaki to live with us in the first place.* *Not long thereafter, they read us his will.* *I was still young at the time―and, moreover, still numb from what had just happened. All of the technical stuff they told us about dividing up his estate or whatever just went in one ear and out the other.* *But one thing came through loud and clear.* *"Tomosane, I want you to take care of Hasaki."* *That was be the last message I received from my father.* *I found myself staring out of the window, gazing at the fading summer scenery.* *The blazing sun gave no indication that autumn would soon be upon us.* *A distant wall of rainclouds caught my eye as I idly scanned through the landscape.* *Those clouds were probably raining down on a fertile field.* *There were probably more important things to be worrying about as I sat there in that cold room, my father's motionless body lying in front of my eyes, but for the life of me, none of them came to mind.* *Hasaki never really stopped crying that day.* *I just stood there next to her, at a loss.* *I finally realized how much time had passed when the light filtering in through the windows faded to sunset's crimson.* *Roused from my reverie, I turned to find Takuji and his mother nowhere in sight.* *In their place stood our grandmother.* *She told me plainly that our father's ceremony would be carried out at the Mamiya house―in other words, in Sawaimura.* *Apparently, this was upon our mother's request.* *I couldn't help but wonder just how low she could sink.* *Her own husband had died, yet she was just passing the ceremony off to his relatives out in the country?* *Did she just feel absolutely no sense of responsibility for anything?* *At that moment, I could feel nothing but anger directed at her.* *The rest of my emotions laid uncannily silent; it was as if nothing else mattered.* *Hasaki and I were told to return to Sawaimura ahead of everyone else in a car waiting outside.* *Hasaki refused to budge at first, tears still welling up in her eyes.* *Hoping to assuage her in some way, our grandmother leaned down and spoke to her softly.* *"Your father's soul isn't in this hospital any longer, Hasaki."* *"He's going to travel back home to Sawaimura with you two."* *"I'm sure he can't wait to get back. Be a good girl and head on home so he can leave too, okay?"* *Hasaki seemed to accept it after that.* *As for me...* *Well, regardless of where our father's soul had gone, I didn't think it'd be returning to Sawaimura with us.* *I just... refused to believe that.* *This time, our grandmother leaned in toward me.* *She spoke to me in the same tone she'd used with Hasaki.* *"One day you'll understand, Tomosane."* Yuki: Hey, you two... Welcome back. Hasaki: Y-Yuki-san... Hasaki: Waah! Daddy... Daddy's... Yuki: ... *Hasaki buried herself in Yuki-nee's chest, tears streaming down her face.* *I just stood and watched.* *Yuki-nee cast me a gentle smile as she rubbed Hasaki on the head.* *As soon as I caught sight of that smile, I just...* *I just couldn't fight it back any longer.* Tomosane: ... *I couldn't make out anything but my own sobs.* *I must've been weeping pathetically, but all I could hear at the time was my own gasping.* *I buried myself in Yuki-nee's arms and gave myself over to the tidal wave of emotion rushing through me.* *Just a moment ago, I hadn't felt anything but anger toward my mother, but right then it felt like my heart was about to break from grief.* *I simply cried.* *Yuki-nee said nothing. She just held us tight.* *I gave up trying to think about what was happening.* *I simply cried.* *Yuki-nee kept holding us, a sad smile upon her lips.* *The tears just wouldn't stop coming.* *We stood there in her embrace, crying for what felt like years.* *Summer faded away around us.* *The piercing light of mid-day vanished like a candle in the wind.* *The fresh night air felt oddly soothing.* *We finally headed inside some time later.* *That night, Hasaki couldn't get to sleep.* *She kept coming to me, asking where our father had gone.* *"Grandma told us he was here, so why can't we see him?"* *I told her that he was up there in the sky now.* *That there was a place called heaven up there above the clouds, and that he had gone up there.* *Hasaki never did stop crying.* *She cried all through the night.*

*I finished the Tamagushi offering, a ritual offering performed during the overnight vigil in the Shinto tradition.* *Then I noticed for the first time that Hasaki wasn't there.* Tomosane: Hey, Yuki-nee? Yuki: Hm? What's up? Tomosane: Have you seen Hasaki? Yuki: Huh? Wasn't she with you? Tomosane: I'm pretty sure she was here, but after I offered the Tamagushi, she was gone. Yuki: Maybe she's in the bathroom? Tomosane: I already checked the bathroom in the house, but she wasn't there. Yuki: Where the heck is she? *Yuki-nee quickly ran off to search around the house.* *I searched the area around the house too, looking in every place I could think of.* Yuki: Find her? Tomosane: No, I didn't. I asked some other people too. Minakami: Tomosane, did you say Hasaki-chan is gone? Tomosane: Master! Um, she's not in the house. I even checked the cupboards and drawers. Yuki: We searched around the house too, but she's not around here. Minakami: Why would she run off at this time? Tomosane: I don't know. I think she was here before I offered the Tamagushi, but then when I turned around she was gone. Yuki: Anyway, can you get some of the students to help us look for her? Minakami: Sure, of course. I'll go ask everyone that isn't busy. Yuki: Let's go, Tomosane. We should go look by the water. Tomosane: The water? Yuki: That's the most dangerous place. We wouldn't want her to hurt herself! Minakami: I'll go look over by the beach. Yuki: At her age, I don't think she could really get all the way out to the beach, so we don't have to worry about that. Yuki: All right, Tomosane and I will go look by the irrigation ditches. Minakami: I'll leave it up to you. Yuki: Haa, haa, she's not over by the ditch... I'm pretty sure. Yuki: There was a pond out there, right? Tomosane: ... Yuki: What's wrong, Tomosane? Tomosane: Oh, it's just... I think Hasaki said something weird earlier. Yuki: Something weird? Tomosane: Uh, there's a road behind the school, right? Yuki: Yeah, there is. Tomosane: She asked what was down that road. Yuki: On the other side of the hill? Tomosane: There's a field of sunflowers on the hill. It would be pretty hard for Hasaki to get out there on foot. Tomosane: But Hasaki was always asking what was out there on the other side of the sunflowers. Tomosane: She liked to imagine that there was something out there. Yuki: Out there? It's just the mountain wilderness, isn't it? Tomosane: Yeah, that's why she might be in trouble. It's getting late. Yuki: Tomosane, we need to hurry! Tomosane: Hasaki! Yuki: Hasaki-chan! *I searched the field of sunflowers with Yuki-nee.* Yuki: These sunflowers are as tall as us. I can hardly see a thing. Tomosane: Maybe she kept going down this road. Yuki: Gotcha, I'll search down the road, so you just wait here. Tomosane: Why? Yuki: You dummy, I can't let a child go wandering out in the mountains at night! Tomosane: I'm not a kid! Yuki: Hush! Just wait here! Tomosane: Hey, Yuki-nee! *Just like that, she ran off down the road.* Tomosane: Damn it... *To be honest, I can't run nearly as fast as her. Even if I ran after her, I couldn't catch her.* *I had nothing to do but look around the sunflower field.* Tomosane: Hasaki! *The sunflowers were even taller than I was, and my voice was drowned out in the thick vegetation.* *No matter how much I yelled, my words were simply swallowed up by the sunflowers.* Tomosane: Damn it. She probably wouldn't hear me if she was here. *I kept yelling out into the field of sunflowers, but I wasn't accomplishing anything. Eventually, I went to search the top of the hill instead.* *I figured my voice would carry further if I went up to the peak.* *I stood up on a high place where I could look over the entire field, and as I was about to call out Hasaki's name again...* Tomosane: Huh? *Once I could see out over the entire field of sunflowers, I noticed something for the first time.* Tomosane: Is that... a road? *Over on the far side of the field, there was some kind of trail.* *The trail led up to the main mountain road.* Tomosane: There's another path over there. The sunflowers were so tall that I didn't even notice. Tomosane: ... *Yuki-nee told me to wait, but I couldn't keep that promise.* *There was another road that Yuki-nee didn't go down.* *It was possible that Hasaki actually went down this road.* *So I...* *I cut through the field of sunflowers and ran up the steep road.* Tomosane: Haa, haa, haa, haa... *I had no idea where the road would lead.* *On the other side of the monstrous blooming sunflowers, that road led into the darkness itself, like something from beyond the pale of our own familiar world.* *If Hasaki took my words literally...* *Dad's soul is far away, in the sky. He made his journey to a place called Heaven.* *If she took those words literally, she would want to follow this path to its end.* *A path through the proud sunflowers into the heart of nature's darkness, like a path to connect the realms of life and death.* *If there was any place that Hasaki would imagine her father's soul taking up its final residence, it would be this place, beyond the hill of sunflowers.* *That's why I ran.* *I ran up the steep hill with all my might.* *I ran headlong into the night, and I saw a light before me.* *It was like we were coming out upon the world's exterior.* *A world of deep blue.* *Brilliant, shining stars were woven into the tapestry.* *I'd never seen such a night sky.* *It looked like the sky was falling.* Tomosane: What's this? *I was taken aback by the sheer number of stars.* *The starry night sky was always a beautiful sight in this village.* *But in the three years I'd lived here, I had never seen such a beautiful sky. It was like...* Hasaki: Like the souls of the dead flying away. Tomosane: Hasaki! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Ah! *I barely caught Hasaki before she fell.* *She was totally covered in mud.* *She probably stumbled and fell when she was climbing up here.* *She was obviously so tired she could hardly stand.* Hasaki: One of these... One of them is Dad's soul, right? Hasaki: But I'm not tall enough... I can't reach him... Tomosane: You dummy... It doesn't matter how tall you are, no one could reach Dad's soul just by reaching up. Hasaki: But they're all so close... Tomosane: It doesn't matter. You can't reach Dad anymore. Hasaki: But we came all the way to the edge of the world... *A sky full of stars that seemed about to rain down upon our heads.* *I wasn't really surprised that Hasaki would think it was the edge of the world.* *That this could've been the edge of the world.* *Hasaki started to cry.* Hasaki: This isn't the edge of the world... Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: Dad's soul isn't here... *Hasaki cried into my chest.* *I just held her and tried to comfort her.* Hasaki: There's no edge to the world, is there? Look... *Hasaki pointed with her finger.* *But she didn't point toward Sawaimura.* *It was another village, just like Sawaimura, lit up with the lights of human life.* *There was another village out there. And after that, a bigger town. No matter how far she walked, she would always find something else out there.* *No matter how far she tried to journey into the unknown, she could never reach the place where our father's soul had come to rest.* *That was the first time Hasaki was forced to face that truth.* *The truth of her father's death.* *The true meaning of the word.* *I held Hasaki close.* Tomosane: Let's go back. Everyone is worried about you. Hasaki: Everyone is worried? Tomosane: Yeah, they really are. Everyone in the village is probably looking for you by now. You just disappeared on us, you know? Hasaki: Looking for me? Tomosane: Yeah. If Dad knew you went out alone at night like this, he would have to scold you. Hasaki: I'm sorry... Tomosane: You dummy. Just don't do it again. Tomosane: Come on. *I squatted down and gave Hasaki my back.* Tomosane: I'll carry you. You can't walk, can you? Hasaki: I-I'm not sure... Tomosane: I just watched you fall a second ago. Hurry up and get on already. Hasaki: O-Okay... Hasaki: I'm sorry... Tomosane: What for? Hasaki: For making you worry. Tomosane: Yeah, no kidding. Hasaki: But how did you know where I was? Tomosane: How? Are you stupid? Hasaki: Huh? Why? Tomosane: I told you, I'm your hero. What kind of hero would I be if I didn't come rescue you when you were in trouble? Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Heroes have to know things like that. Hasaki: I guess so. Tomosane: So of course I knew where you were. Hasaki: Um, Tomo Nii-san... Here. Tomosane: What? Isn't this your rabbit doll? Hasaki: Yeah, I'll give you one. Tomosane: Really? Won't the other one get lonely? Hasaki: She has me, so she'll be okay. Tomosane: Ahaha... That's silly. Tomosane: Oh, right. In that case, there was that rabbit in the store window, right? I'll buy that for you. Hasaki: Huh? The store? Tomosane: You know, the one you saw when we went to Jasco. The great big rabbit in the window. Hasaki: The stuffed rabbit from that store called Wakatsuki? Tomosane: You still remember the store name too? Hasaki: Yeah, that rabbit was at the store called Wakatsuki. Tomosane: Oh, really? In that case, I'll buy the rabbit from that store for you. Hasaki: But it was expensive. Tomosane: Are you dumb? Don't underestimate me. My bank account is worth more than most countries' entire GDP. Hasaki: Really? Tomosane: Yeah, really. So don't worry about it. Hasaki: If that's true, then I'll give you this one too. Tomosane: Huh? Both of 'em? Hasaki: Yeah, that way neither of them will get lonely. Tomosane: You think? Hasaki: When you give me the big rabbit, I'll be her twin. Hasaki: Then you can take both of the little rabbit twins. Tomosane: Are you sure? Hasaki: ... *Then Hasaki went quiet.* *I realized she'd fallen asleep.* *She was obviously tired.* Tomosane: But still... *I told her I was her hero, but the truth is, it was just dumb luck that I found her.* *Or maybe it really was Dad leading me to her.* *They say a person's soul can stay on Earth for a while before leaving for Heaven.* Tomosane: In that case, Dad, I hope you're listening. Tomosane: I... I'm gonna hold a grudge against you, Dad. Tomosane: Because you were always too nice to people. That's why this happened. Tomosane: So now that you're dead, just look after Hasaki. Tomosane: You just need to protect Hasaki. Tomosane: I'm not asking anything else. Tomosane: Just watch over her, so she can be happy. Tomosane: Please, Dad. *A starry sky, so full of stars that they could rain down upon our heads at any moment, laid above us.* *I stood under just such a starry sky as I uttered the last words I would ever say to my father.*

*There was a problem with the doll I told Hasaki I would buy for her.* *Even with my savings that dwarf most countries' entire GDP, it was too expensive.* *I decided to make one myself, and I asked Yuki-nee for help.* *I went to the store over and over to take pictures, and the two of us analyzed how it was made.* *Yuki-nee and I tried several times to create a rabbit, but it always turned out looking more like a squid or octopus.* *Nevertheless, we kept trying to make a good rabbit.* *When the seasons started to change...* *The autumn paints the trees with beautiful shades of red and orange.* *Yuki-nee, Hasaki, and I walked through the falling leaves.* *Hasaki still didn't know much about the countryside, so she was stunned when she saw the leaves.* *To me and Yuki-nee, it was completely normal, but it was a brand-new experience for Hasaki.* *Hasaki gasped as she looked up at the fiery colors in the trees.* *Her face was kind of funny.* *When winter came, Sawaimura was closed off by snow.* *Winter isn't really that long, but compared to Tokyo an unbelievable amount of snow falls every year.* *I played with Hasaki in the snow more times than I could count.* *By then, Hasaki had some some friends too.* *I played with her and her friends in the snow.* *We had snowball fights.* *We built snowmen.* *We even built igloos in the snow.* *Hasaki thought that igloos only existed in storybooks, so she was happier than I'd ever seen her when we built a real one.* *Hasaki's blustery red face stood in contrast to the world of white that surrounded us as we played in the snow.* *I had never seen Hasaki smile so much before.* *That's when I knew that I was really glad that Hasaki had come to the village.* *There were no weird prophecies to worry about here.* *That weird woman we call our mother, and Takuji too... They couldn't bully her out here.* *Hasaki laughed in the snow.* *As she played in the snow...* *Her cheeks were bright red from the cold.* *The garish decorations that would mark Christmas in Tokyo were almost completely absent in this village.* *The shopping center in the next town over was pretty heavily decorated, but there was nothing special happening in Sawaimura.* *This year, Hasaki spent the New Year with the Mamiyas.* *Unlike Christmas, New Year's was a lavish event with the Mamiyas.* *It's a Shinto holiday as well, so that shouldn't be surprising.* *I got a New Year's gift from Yuki-nee.* *There was only 5 yen inside.* *I was going to get mad at her for that, but then I saw that Hasaki got 10,000 yen in hers.* *Yuki-nee laughed and said...* Yuki: Your brother can help you spend it. *Yuki-nee said she had plenty of money since she had been working part-time in the next town over.* *But I couldn't really believe that a student like Yuki-nee would have "plenty" of money.* *I was thankful regardless.* *Then Yuki-nee said something else.* Yuki: I do have to act like a big sister on occasion. *Yuki-nee smirked after saying that.* *What are you talking about?&* *You've always been like a big sister to me.* *Yuki-nee was always like a big sister watching out for us.* *Then the seasons changed again.* *Spring came.* *We kept making rabbits, and by this time we had quite a few failed creations.* *The white ears and paws we tried to put on each rabbit ended up looking more like tentacles on a squid.* *We came back to that store so many times that the old lady who owned the shop gave us the measurements for the rabbit doll, and she even gave us a stand for a doll to sit on.* *Then after so many prototypes, we finally finished a doll that looked like a real rabbit.* *Before I knew it, fall and winter had already turned into spring.* *By the time I could give her the rabbit doll, Hasaki had grown accustomed to life in Sawaimura.* *As it turned out, no one bullied her while she was here.* *Hasaki even had lots of good friends. Her life here was happy.* *A spring snowfall.* *The season of falling cherry blossoms.* *Hasaki and I both advanced a grade in school.* *Yuki-nee too, of course.* *And a new year was about to start... or so we thought.* *Just before summer...* *I remember the events of that day.* *The first day Hasaki came to this village.* *The last day I saw my father smile.* *That summer day.* *The sun was stronger than ever, blazing down on the land.* *Only a year had passed, but it felt like we'd been together for a very long time.* *I lived with Hasaki as the various seasons passed, and then summer came around again.* *Sawaimura was covered in greenery, and the sky was blue.* *And the sun shone upon it.* *Sunflowers raised their proud heads on that hill once again.*

*The end of summer.* *Even then, the sun still blazed high in the sky.* *Cumulonimbi still floated high in the blue sky.* *Those clouds no doubt rained down on a parched field out there.* *The end of the season.* *The same day that Dad died had come again.* *A year later, it was still a sad day.* *We had a lot of fun times, but Hasaki still cried on the night before the anniversary of his death.* *It'd been a long time since Hasaki had cried. Maybe it'd been a whole year.* *One year since that day.* *I kept thinking about that day.* *Then something happened to destroy it all.* *On the anniversary of his death, that woman appeared, even though she hadn't come to the funeral.* *Takuji and our mother had come to Sawai.* Tomosane: Why are you here? Kotomi: ... *She just looked at me.* *Takuji stood in front of her.* Takuji: You still don't know how to talk to your mother, do you, Nii-san? Tomosane: Hmph. I don't think of her as my mother. Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san. Takuji: Hasaki... Long time no see, hehehe. Hasaki: Eek! Tomosane: It's just creepy when you laugh. Look, you're scaring Hasaki. Takuji: Don't call me creepy. That's rude. I was smiling because I hadn't seen my little sister in so long. Tomosane: Smiling? That's a pretty nasty smile you got there. Takuji: Rude as ever, aren't we? Kotomi: Where is my mother? Tomosane: If you're looking for Grandma, she's in the house. Kotomi: All right. Takuji, let's go. Tomosane: Why are those bastards in Sawaimura? Hasaki: For Dad's first anniversary maybe? Tomosane: The first anniversary of a funeral they didn't even come to? Hasaki: Yeah. I don't really understand why they're here... Tomosane: Takuji hasn't changed a bit. Hasaki: Takuji Nii-san always listens to Mom. Tomosane: That motherfucker! *"I guess that makes you a sisterfucker, doesn't it?"* Tomosane: Wh-What'd you say?! Tomosane: Yuki-nee. Yuki: Was that your little brother just now? Tomosane: Yeah, Hasaki's twin brother. Yuki: Twins, huh? Wow. Tomosane: He's the kind of scum that'd hit his sister. Yuki: Hit her? Don't all siblings fight sometimes? Tomosane: Hasaki doesn't do anything to him. It's just him being mean to her. Yuki: Hmm, I see. Yuki: Oh, Hasaki-chan, you really like that doll, don't you? I always see you carrying it around. Hasaki: Yeah... *Hasaki hugged the rabbit doll to her chest.* *It took me and Yuki-nee three seasons to make that rabbit.* *It wasn't quite as good as the rabbit in the store window, but Hasaki was quite enamored with her doll nonetheless.* Yuki: Hmm, do you have the twin rabbits you got from Hasaki-chan, Tomosane? Tomosane: They're in my room. Yuki: You should attach them to your phone or something, dumbass! Don't let them out of your sight! Tomosane: I-I'm a guy! I can't walk around with something like that! Hasaki: Y-You don't like them? Yuki: You duummmmy! Tomosane: Ow! Hey, don't hit me, stupid! Yuki: You're the stupid one! Yuki: Jeez, don't talk about Hasaki-chan's precious gift like that. Tomosane: I guess, but still, I can't put a rabbit doll on my phone. Yuki: Shut up! Don't let it out of your sight, you hear me?! You're so stupid! Tomosane: Ugh... Okay, fine. Yuki: So how is your doll doing? Hasaki: It ripped a couple times, but Tomo Nii-san fixed it for me. Yuki: Oh, wow... Tomosane: It took us so many tries that I learned how to sew up little things like that. Yuki: You're good at all sorts of stuff, aren't you? Hasaki: Yeah, and he does well in school too. Tomo Nii-san gets good grades, and he's amazing at sports. Tomosane: No, my grades are... Well, let's just say the bar is set pretty low in this village. Yuki: But I heard your grades were good in Tokyo too. Tomosane: Well, I did study because I didn't want to lose to that jerk Takuji. Yuki: Ahaha... You really don't like your little brother. Tomosane: It's more than that. I can't let him beat me at anything. Hasaki: I heard Takuji Nii-san got really amazing grades at school after you left. Hasaki: I heard his test scores were some of the best in the country. Tomosane: Huh? Seriously? Hasaki: Yeah. Yuki: Whoa, now you're the one who's losing. Tomosane: Wh-Who cares about that?! Being a man is about more than just getting good grades! Yuki: Then what is it about? Tomosane: Men should be able to fight. Yuki: Are you an idiot? Tomosane: Anyway, if Takuji comes, make sure you yell for me right away. Hasaki: Oh, okay. Tomosane: Who knows what he's up to... Yuki: ... *Yuki-nee's expression was conflicted.* *She probably wanted to say that siblings should get along.* *But Yuki-nee also understood that our family situation wasn't quite that simple.* *So she looked troubled, but she couldn't say anything.* *"Oh, if it isn't you, Nii-san."* Tomosane: What are you two here for? Takuji: What are we here for? Naturally, we're here for the anniversary of my beloved father's death. Tomosane: What are you babbling about? You guys didn't even come to his funeral. Takuji: That's because Mother was much too bereaved to come. She loved Father very dearly, you know. Tomosane: Loved him? Are you stupid? If she loved him, why did she betray him?! Takuji: other betrayed Father? That's only the fact that Hasaki and I were born * Don't you understand that?"* Tomosane: Wh-What? Takuji: Because Hasaki and I aren't Mamiya children. Half is Mother's blood, and the other half is from the pastor of the White Lotus Association. Takuji: Even a child like me can understand what that means. The stork didn't bring us, and we weren't found in the vegetable patch. Takuji: Cause and effect... You would call the cause a betrayal, right? Takuji: But if you call that a betrayal, then what of me and Hasaki, the children that were born as the effect? Tomosane: You're just spouting nonsense! Takuji: It's not nonsense. It's merely reality. Takuji: If you want to call Mother a traitor, then you should call Hasaki the same thing. Tomosane: Why would I do that?! Hasaki didn't do anything wrong! Who would call her a traitor? Tomosane: No one would say that! I won't let you say that. I'll never let you. Takuji: As usual, you're not being logical. I just can't understand you. Takuji: If Mother is a traitor, then Hasaki and I are both the result of treachery, the symbol of an ethically problematic birth out of wedlock. Isn't that the logical conclusion here? Tomosane: Grr... *What a creepy guy. He was always like this, but he's gotten even worse with age.* *He keeps using words I've never heard before.* Tomosane: Hasaki isn't the symbol of treachery. You always distort the situation and force your own interpretation on things. Tomosane: That woman who betrayed Dad and slept with another man is a traitor. That alone is the truth. Tomosane: That's not Hasaki's fault. There's no way any of that is Hasaki's fault. No matter what you say, Hasaki isn't the one who sinned! Takuji: Haa... Why do you want to protect Hasaki so much? Tomosane: Because she's my little sister, obviously! Takuji: Even though she has the blood of a traitor and an adulterer. Tomosane: Her blood doesn't matter. Who cares about a traitor's blood! An adulterer's blood? Are you stupid? Hasaki is my little sister, and that's all there is to it! Takuji: Hehehe... I thought you were a bit smarter than that. That argument doesn't hold water. Tomosane: I don't feel like having any argument with someone like you to begin with. Takuji: Why's that? If Hasaki is your little sister, then I'm your little brother, aren't I? Tomosane: Yeah, that's right. There was a time when I thought I could believe that, but I refuse to recognize a brother that would hope for Hasaki's death. Takuji: That again? When did I hope for Hasaki's death? Tomosane: You always have! Tomosane: You both wanted Hasaki to disappear. You thought it would be perfect if Hasaki would just disappear from this world. Tomosane: I've heard you both say that more times than I can count. Takuji: Haa... That's a misunderstanding. Tomosane: That wasn't a misunderstanding at all. You guys still believe in that silly prophecy, don't you? Takuji: Silly, is it? You must be talking about the White Lotus Association pastor's prophecy, right? Tomosane: Yeah, you and that woman still believe in it. That's why you hate Hasaki. Takuji: Hahaha... That's not true. I don't hate Hasaki at all. Tomosane: Don't play dumb, Takuji. Takuji: All right, all right. I'll admit that in the past I occasionally had some thoughts like that. Takuji: That doesn't mean that I still hate Hasaki. To me, Hasaki is a precious little sister. Tomosane: Precious? The only precious thing to you is the savior's blood heritage, isn't it? Takuji: The White Lotus Association's prophecy... Do you really think we still believe in that? Tomosane: That's exactly what I think. Takuji: That's all in the past. Mother has already withdrawn from the White Lotus Association, you know. Tomosane: ... Takuji: Can't you just believe me and Mother after all this time? I'm sure that's what our father would've wanted too. Tomosane: D-Dad... *I guess that really is what Dad would've wanted.* *He wanted us to live together as a family, not keep on hating each other.* *But...* Tomosane: Anyway, if you do anything to Hasaki, I'll be coming after you. You'd better tell that woman, too. Takuji: You call her 'that woman'? You always say horrible things to Mother. Why don't you stop talking like that? Tomosane: No matter what you say to me, I won't forgive that woman. Tomosane: No matter what the reason was, the fact that she betrayed me and Dad won't change. Takuji: Hmm, I haven't seen you in a while, and now I'm just disappointed, Nii-san. Tomosane: What? Takuji: You're just a child. Everything you're saying is so immature. Tomosane: What did you call me, Takuji? Takuji: Hehehe... Oh, right, I guess you've gotten pretty strong. Tomosane: Yeah, I have. Takuji: You were always pretty strong, but this time it won't go the same way. Tomosane: Quit bluffing. If you want to fight, then I'll take you on. Come at me already. Takuji: Heh, no thanks... I don't know what you're thinking. I'm no good at fighting. Tomosane: What was that? Takuji: I'm not going to be a child forever. I'm not going to worry about things I can't beat you at, especially if they're worthless things. Tomosane: Worthless, huh? Takuji: Oh, sorry, sorry. Don't misunderstand me. I'm just saying that I don't want to fight you, that's all. Takuji: I just don't want to fight someone I can't beat is all. Tomosane: Tch. *Takuji made that creepy laugh again.* *Even though his face was laughing, his eyes looked completely different.* *The anniversary ceremony ended before the sun went down.* *I tried to help with the cleanup, but Yuki-nee stopped me.* Yuki: Don't worry about that. The students from the dojo will take care of it. More importantly... *Then Yuki-nee took my hand.* *Hasaki was still holding onto my other hand.* *The sun was already setting as the three of us hit the road.* *As the curtain of night fell, Hasaki, Yuki-nee, and I walked up that same hill.* Yuki: No matter how many times I see them, these sunflowers are really amazing. Tomosane: Yeah, it's pretty impressive seeing so many of them together. It's actually kind of creepy in a way. Hasaki: That's not true. The sunflowers are really pretty. Yuki: Do you like sunflowers, Hasaki-chan? Hasaki: Yeah. What about you? Yuki: Me, huh? Well, I guess I like them as much as most people. Hasaki: Well, I really like them a lot! Tomosane: H-Hey, don't run! You're gonna trip like last year! Yuki: Don't worry so much. It's not like she can see all the sunflowers whenever she wants. Let her have some fun. Tomosane: Well, that's true. Yuki: And Hasaki-chan has gotten a lot bigger since last year. She won't fall like she did before. Tomosane: Yeah. *Hasaki really had changed in the last year.* *Her feet looked clumsy and unsure before, but now they nimbly danced over the soft earth.* Yuki: What do you think about the sunflowers, Tomosane? Tomosane: The sunflowers, huh? I looked them up in a book, and it said they were related to Chrysanthemums. Yuki: I guess they are. Tomosane: I guess that's why they look like 'em. Yuki: Look like what? Tomosane: Like I said, like mums. Yuki: Really? Don't you think they're way too big? Tomosane: Yeah, their size and shape is different, but sunflowers and mums still look pretty similar. Yuki: What's similar about them? Tomosane: They're awfully gloomy. Yuki: I guess so. *Yuki-nee looked up at the sunflowers again, as if she was convinced by my answer.* Yuki: You know how they say that blooming sunflowers turn to face the sun, right? Yuki: If they turn to face the sun, doesn't that make them like a symbol of brightness? Tomosane: Blooming sunflowers don't turn to face the sun. Yuki: Huh? Really? Tomosane: Yeah. Sunflowers start to chase the sun before they bloom. Tomosane: Once they actually bloom, they stop chasing after the sun. Yuki: Wow. I didn't know that. Tomosane: That's another reason why they're just gloomy. Yuki: Why is that? Tomosane: Well, there probably aren't very many people who would say that sunflowers are gloomy. Tomosane: But to me, those flowers look like... *To me...* *They're like...* Tomosane: They look like flowers for funerals. Tomosane: I probably got a strong first impression of sunflowers on that day. I still remember the time when I followed Hasaki up this hill. Yuki: I see. So the sunflowers on the hill look like flowers for the deceased. Tomosane: Yeah. That's about right. *Once you wade through the sunflowers, you come upon a road shrouded in darkness.* *Just like last year, it looked like the road to the underworld.* *Last year, I didn't know this, but there are actually a lot of people who believe that road crosses over the border to the underworld.* *I later realized that there are a lot of mentions of that road in old books in the village.* *In reality, that road doesn't lead to the underworld at all.* *Neither Hades nor Heaven, nor even a new world lies beyond that peak.* *It's just another ordinary landscape on the other side.* Yuki: Hasaki-chan, are you okay? It's a pretty steep hill. Hasaki: Yeah, I-I'm okay. Tomosane: Don't worry about it so much, Yuki-nee. She's walked up here before. You're the one who said Hasaki has gotten a lot bigger, after all. Hasaki: Yeah, I'm okay. I'm bigger than I was back then. Yuki: Ahaha, that's true. You've really grown up in the last year, Hasaki-chan. Tomosane: You can't really grow up in just one year, though. Yuki: You don't know what you're talking about. Hasaki has definitely grown up a lot. Tomosane: How exactly has she grown up? Yuki: Let's see. She's taller, for example. Tomosane: Well, I guess so, but she's still a little squirt. Yuki: Also, she doesn't call herself 'Hasaki' when she's speaking. Tomosane: Oh, that's right. Sometimes she called herself Hasaki instead of just saying 'I.' Why did that change? Hasaki: Change? Did I really say that? Yuki: You still say it sometimes, but not very much anymore. Hasaki: Oh, really? I didn't even realize. Yuki: Well, you don't always say it. You've definitely changed from the way you were last year Tomosane: You sure are observant. Yuki: Of course I am. You've become awfully manly yourself. Tomosane: I was always a man. Yuki: No, I mean you've grown. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: You guys are still young, so maybe you don't know. Yuki: That's pretty common, actually. Even if you don't notice yourself changing, you're still changing. Yuki: Take this creepy mountain road you thought you'd never climb, for instance. All of a sudden, you find yourself using it every day, just like that. Yuki: Time passes, and sometimes it's hard to tell whether it's you that's changing or the world around you. Tomosane: Is it like that for you too? Yuki: Don't ask me. What do you think? Have I changed? Tomosane: You haven't changed much. Not at all, really. Yuki: I'll take your word for it. *We made our way through the darkness and came out on the same hilltop as before.* *The stars shone in the clear sky.* Hasaki: Wow... Yuki: The stars really are beautiful today. Yuki: It's a waning moon today. Tomosane: Waning? Yuki: Yeah, it's a waning moon, but you can't see it yet. Yuki: There's no moonlight, so the stars are really bright. Hasaki: That's why the sky is so pretty! Yuki: Yeah, that's right. Hasaki: Can I go play? Yuki: Yeah, but don't go any further than this. Hasaki: Why not? Yuki: There's a place where the hill turns into a steep cliff. Hasaki: A cliff? Yuki: Yeah, so don't walk over here. Hasaki: All right. Yuki: What about you, Tomosane? Tomosane: What about me? Yuki: Won't you play with us? Tomosane: Why? Yuki: You want to play, don't you? Tomosane: Not really. I'm not a kid. Yuki: You really are a kid... Tomosane: Hmph. That's what you always say. Yuki: I guess so. That's why... Tomosane: Why what? Yuki: You need to grow up already. Tomosane: Huh? Tomosane: Wh-What's that mean? Are you treating me like a kid again? Yuki: No, no, I'm just saying you ought to hurry up and become a real man. Tomosane: Come on, I am a real man. Yuki: Jeez, do I have to spell it out for you? Tomosane: Sure, spell it out for me. Yuki: Okay, fine. Yuki: Tomosane, you ought to grow up and propose to me. Tomosane: Huh? Wh-What's that supposed to mean? Yuki: Ahaha, you're blushing! Hahahaha. Tomosane: Wh-What? Are you're teasing me? Yuki: Ahaha, you're blushing so much. Tomosane: Wh-Why, you―! Yuki: S-Stop it! Whoa! Yuki: Ow, ow, ow... Tomosane: Huh?! Yuki: Come on, now. You're a lot bigger than you used to be, so be careful. Hurry up, you're heavy. Tomosane: S-Sorry! Yuki: Why are you blushing? Tomosane: Oh, uh... Yuki: Huh... Whoa, my skirt! Yuki: Did you look? Tomosane: Oh, uh... Just for a second... Yuki: Hmph! Tomosane: Ah, wait, I'm sorry. Yuki: Heh.. * Hahahahahaha!"* Tomosane: Wh-What? Yuki: Oh, nothing. It's just that we're both old enough now that I have to care if you see my underwear. Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: You don't understand? Well, that makes sense. It's just that before I never would've cared if you saw my underwear, because you were just some dumb kid. Yuki: Ahahaha, but I'm getting red too. Why am I blushing? Tomosane: Wh-Why wouldn't you be?! Yuki: I guess it's not that weird, yeah. Hahahaha... *Yuki-nee kept on laughing loudly.* *I didn't understand why she was laughing.* *I wasn't entirely sure, but I felt like she wasn't making fun of me this time.* Yuki: Still, though, the sky really is pretty. It's like the stars could coming raining down on top of us. Tomosane: But stars don't fall. Yuki: That's right. The stars don't fall. The only thing that falls on Earth is light from distant stars and distant worlds. Yuki: The world is really interesting. Tomosane: How so? Yuki: I mean, just look. We can see the light from worlds so far away. Tomosane: What's so strange about that? Yuki: How wide are our brains? Tomosane: What do you mean? Yuki: It's a poem. My favorite poem in the world. Yuki: The brain is wider than the sky. Yuki: For, put them side by side, the one the other will include... Yuki: With ease, and you beside. Yuki: The brain is deeper than the sea. Yuki: For, hold them, blue to blue... Yuki: The one the other will absorb... Yuki: As sponges, buckets do. Yuki: The brain is just the weight of God. Yuki: For, lift them, pound for pound... Yuki: And they will differ, if they do... Yuki: As syllable from sound. Tomosane: As syllable... from sound... Yuki: Yep. Tomosane: That's wrong. Yuki: Why? Tomosane: There is no God. Yuki: There's no God in the world. I see. Tomosane: Yeah, there's no way he could exist. *If he existed, then why would he make our family be like this?* *Why would he kill Dad?* Tomosane: The person called God... Yuki: He's not a person. Tomosane: Well, anyway, even if he existed, he'd be weak and powerless. A worthless jerk. Yuki: A worthless jerk? Yuki: Actually, speaking of that, I've thought about it too. Yuki: They say that God created the world in one week. Yuki: That's ridiculous. Yuki: If God really was the guy who created the world, he would say this. Yuki: 'I shouldn't have made this.' Yuki: Don't you think? Yuki: 'Wait, that part isn't done yet!' Tomosane: Yeah, that's what I think. No matter how many people are suffering on Earth, he just sits back and lives it up, like he doesn't give a shit. Yuki: Hehehe. If God was anything like a real person, that's what I would say to him. Yuki: Yeah, he's really just scum. Yuki: He can do anything, and yet he doesn't act. Yuki: That said, have you ever heard this? Tomosane: Heard what? Yuki: Have you heard the story about the footprints in the sand? Tomosane: What's that? Yuki: God walks beside us in our lives. So when you die and look back at the path your life took, you will find another set of footprints next to your own. Yuki: A human life is supported by another power. Yuki: But then, in the lowest and saddest times of your life, you will find only one set of footprints. Tomosane: There's no one walking beside you in your saddest moments. That's when you need God the most, isn't it? Yuki: That's not it. Yuki: In those moments, when you see only one set of footprints, that was when he carried you. Tomosane: Carried me? Yuki: That's right. Even when you think there's no way to keep going, you still move forward in life. Yuki: Just like when Hasaki-chan thought that there was no way she could ever climb that hill. Yuki: People always move forward. They can't stop in place. Yuki: There's one sentence inscribed in all our hearts. Tomosane: Inscribed in our hearts? Yuki: Yeah, a command that's inscribed in the heart of every person... No, a command inscribed in the heart of every living thing. Tomosane: In every living thing... Yuki: Yes, and that inscription says just this. Yuki: Live happily! Yuki: A cat. A dog. A zebra. A tiger. A cicada. And even a human. Yuki: Equally, they all must live happily! Tomosane: What are you talking about? Yuki: No animal lives without seeking happiness. They all live to seek their own happiness. Yuki: Because they are commanded to do so. Tomosane: Is that really a command? Yuki: Who knows? But don't you think it is? Yuki: And humans too... No, humans strive for happiness more than any other animal. Yuki: And then they despair. Tomosane: Why is that? Yuki: You can't despair until you've hoped for happiness. Yuki: It's the same reason why animals don't experience despair. Tomosane: But animals try to live happily too, don't they? Yuki: That's right. Tomosane: Then why don't animals experience despair? Yuki: That should be obvious. Animals are living in happiness. Tomosane: What? There are some animals that aren't happy, right? Yuki: There aren't. Animals are always happy. Yuki: All living beings are equally happy until the moment of their death. Tomosane: Why is that? Yuki: Who can say? Tomosane: You don't know? Yuki: Ahaha. I actually do. The answer is simple. Yuki: They don't know death. Yuki: Animals are living through an eternal phase. Yuki: So animals who try to live happily are always happy. Tomosane: Animals don't know death? Yuki: Isn't that obvious? Tomosane: Why not? Yuki: Because in reality, no one knows what death is. Tomosane: No one? Yuki: Yeah, no one knows death. No one has ever experienced death. Yuki: Death can only be imagined. It's not something you can ever actually reach. Yuki: People don't know death. And yet they imagine death, and they can only drown in the midst of happiness because of it. Yuki: Despair is a privilege reserved for those who can drown even in the midst of happiness. Tomosane: A privilege? That sounds like a bad thing. Yuki: That's right. Still, that's how people found their words. Yuki: Because they felt that the sky was beautiful. Yuki: Because they prayed that the world could be better. Yuki: Words, beauty, and prayers. Yuki: They found their wonderful days along with those three powers. Yuki: People, find happiness! Yuki: Do not drown in your happinesss. Do not despair of this world. Yuki: Just live happily. Something like that. Tomosane: Just live happily, huh? Yuki: Well, I'm kind of making it sound dramatic. Yuki: Ahahaha.. * But it's really amazing, you know."* Tomosane: What is? Yuki: I was just looking at the sky again. The stars really are amazing. Yuki: Ahahaha... *Yuki-nee stretched her arms out and laughed.* Yuki: This entire sky... this entire universe is all in our heads. It's so, so amazing. Tomosane: All in our heads... *When she told me that, I looked up at the sky once again.* *This beautiful sky is in the world inside my head.* *Of course, that makes perfect sense.* *But once I arrived at that thought, my feelings changed to fear.* *All of it is just my own world.* *Anyone would be overwhelmed if they were faced with the realization that such an expansive, starry sky was all within their own head.* Yuki: I thought of all that stuff just now. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: Yeah, that's what I thought when I looked up at the stars. Yuki: Of course, I always wondered about it. Just like you, Tomosane. Yuki: There is no God in the world. Yuki: Quite the opposite. Everything born into this world is under a sort of curse. Yuki: Because they all have to die. Yuki: All those happy times have to end. Yuki: All the joyful moments have to end. Yuki: No matter how much you might love someone. No matter how much you might love the world. Yuki: It will end. Yuki: It will all come to the end we call death. Yuki: That's why I think anyone born into this world is cursed. Yuki: Because happiness is just a warning of the end to come. Yuki: Maybe that's the reason why I saw the same dream over and over. Tomosane: The same dream? Yuki: Yeah. A dream about a baby. Tomosane: You're afraid of a baby in your dreams? Yuki: Yeah, it's really scary. It's such a scary dream that I wake up crying. Yuki: There's a newborn baby. I don't know who the mother is. Yuki: No, maybe I'm the one who gave birth to this baby. Yuki: So I was happy. Tomosane: Happy? Yuki: Yeah, I was really happy. Yuki: And then that baby cries. Wah, wah. Like that. Yuki: I'm happy, so I smile and laugh along with everyone else in the room. Yuki: That's a blessing on the baby. Yuki: A blessing on life. Yuki: I'm simply happy. I'm thankful that the baby made it safely into the world. Yuki: So the world is full of blessings on life. Yuki: But then... Then I realize. Yuki: 'Oh, that's not quite right.' Yuki: At that moment, I'm the only one who feels fear. I'm surrounded by smiling faces, and I'm the only one who feels fear. Yuki: Because I realize something. I realize that the child is cursing the world. Yuki: He's cursing the fact that he was born. Yuki: Everyone smiles, but I'm frozen in place. I'm alone in a world of blessings. Yuki: At that moment, I think to myself. I have to stop the baby's crying. I have to throttle that newborn infant. I have to end that life right here, right now. Yuki: Because being born is a curse. Yuki: At the very least, the newborn infant thinks that it's a curse. Yuki: So in order to end that cursed life, I have to... Yuki: But of course, I can't do it. Yuki: I can't put my hands around the crying infant's neck and strangle him. Yuki: Why can't I do it? The baby can only curse life, but I can't put an end to that life. Yuki: I have to do it, but I can't. Yuki: And then I cry and cry. Even though no one would actually cry in that situation. Yuki: And soon, the baby's crying. Yuki: I realize the baby's crying. Yuki: I realize that his crying has calmed down. Yuki: And as I listen to him, I'm just thankful for it. Yuki: And then I pray for this happiness in his life. Yuki: Today, I finally realized what that dream means. Tomosane: Really? Yuki: Well, maybe you still don't understand. Yuki: But when I looked up at the stars, I found the answer. Yuki: Why you mustn't end a crying baby's life. Yuki: Why a person would mourn the death of another. Yuki: And why the grief they feel is certainly not misplaced. Yuki: One is right to pray in the darkness. Yuki: And to love the world. Yuki: The love that fills the world. Yuki: That love is prayer. Yuki: The blessing upon the sky that hangs over our heads. Yuki: That is prayer. Yuki: The world is filled with blessings. Yuki: That's why man is able to live in the eternal phase. Yuki: We can do it. Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: It's so amazing! Confucius said that if he could learn the truth in the morning, he wouldn't mind dying in the evening of that same day. Yuki: Will I die now? Tomosane: Did you learn the truth that Confucius was looking for? Yuki: I'm not sure. *Yuki-nee laughed.* *As if she was convinced that she really would die soon.* *She blessed her final night.* *It was several more minutes before I noticed something was strange.* *I felt that there was someone behind me. Yuki and I both noticed it.* Yuki: K-Kotomi-san. Tomosane: Wh-Why are you here? Kotomi: Yuki-chan, you've grown so much. You were just a little girl before. Kotomi: You were about as big as Hasaki is now. You've really grown up. Tomosane: Hey, answer my question! Why are you here?! Yuki: She must've followed us. Kotomi: No, not at all. Yuki: Then why are you here? Kotomi: It was determined that it should be so. Yuki: Determined? Kotomi: Yes. Everything is determined by prophecy. Tomosane: The prophecy? So you do still believe in that prophecy! Kotomi: Prophecy? The law of pre-established harmony is far more than a simple prophecy. Though a bad boy like you wouldn't understand that, Tomosane. Yuki: Wh-What is this prophecy? Tomosane: This woman thinks that the entire history leading up to the world's ultimate destruction has already been determined. Yuki: The world's... destruction. Tomosane: Takuji said that you don't believe in that prophecy anymore! Kotomi: Of course he did. He's a smart child. Unlike you, he isn't picky about how he accomplishes his goals. Tomosane: G-Goals? Yuki: What goal are you talking about? Tomosane: You guys are still trying to kill Hasaki. Yuki: Kill Hasaki-chan? Kotomi: Kill her? What are you talking about? We only want to return her to the place where she belongs. Tomosane: And you're still deluded as ever. Hasaki: Nooo! Tomosane: H-Hasaki?! Yuki: Hey! W-Wait, Tomosane. *I ran toward Hasaki's screaming voice.* Yuki: T-Tomosane! There's a cliff there, so be careful! It's dark out! Tomosane: Hasaki! *I cursed my own decision.* *I cursed the fact that I believed him for even a second...* *They hadn't changed at all.* *Takuji wanted to kill Hasaki and get back the power he thinks she stole from him.* Tomosane: Takuji, you bastard! Takuji: You run as fast as ever, Nii-san. Tomosane: You bastard. You told me you didn't believe in that crap anymore. Was that all a lie? Takuji: I told you that? Tomosane: Yeah, you did! You said you weren't trying to get rid of Hasaki anymore! Takuji: Yeah, I said that. What about it? Tomosane: Then what's with that blade? Takuji: This? It's just a knife. Tomosane: Why are you pointing it at Hasaki? Takuji: Hasaki wouldn't listen to me, you know. I didn't want to do this either. Tomosane: Listen to you? What are you trying to make Hasaki do? Takuji: Why are you so angry, Nii-san? Takuji: This was inevitable. Tomosane: It wasn't inevitable! What're you trying to do?! Kotomi: To return her to the sky. Tomosane: Ah! Yuki: K-Kotomi-san... Tomosane: You're still trying to do that? Kotomi: Everything was determined in the moment that God created the world. Kotomi: It is pre-established harmony, determined in the moment of the world's genesis. Tomosane: What harmony?! If that prophecy was right, then your child with the pastor should've been a lone boy! Yuki: With the pastor... Tomosane: You've probably heard rumors about it before, Yuki-nee. Hasaki and Takuji don't have Mamiya blood in their veins. Tomosane: The blood in their veins came from the pastor of the White Lotus Association. Tomosane: You betrayed my dad, you bitch! You had a child with some religious fraud! Tomosane: And you told that child that he was going to become the savior and save the world from destruction! Takuji: That's right. I was supposed to be born as the savior. Takuji: I was supposed to be the savior, born from the union of the White Lotus Association founder's blood and the blood of the long line of shrine maidens in the Sanami family! Tomosane: But that's not what happened! The reality is that you aren't any kind of savior! Takuji: No! That's because the heritage was split between two children rather than just one! Yuki: Th-That's... Tomosane: That's right, Yuki-nee. They believe that Takuji couldn't become the savior because Hasaki was born. Takuji: It's not a belief, it's a clear and evident truth! Takuji: The prophesied birth of a savior when these two powerful bloodlines come together... She prevented the fulfillment of that prophecy. Takuji: The soul which should have been one was instead split in two. Tomosane: That's not true! You aren't the savior! The only reason you were abandoned by the pastor is because he got bored of you. Tomosane: He just made up all that crap about the savior! Tomosane: Our father investigated all of that before he died! The pastor told that crap to every woman he took advantage of! Takuji: Hmph. What would journalists know anyway? They're just peasants, people of low birth. They can only examine things from the outside. Tomosane: But Dad only became a journalist to investigate those lies! Tomosane: So that you would know the truth! Takuji: What truth is that? There is only one truth. Takuji: The world will end. And before that day comes, I must come into my power as the savior on Earth. Tomosane: That day will never come! You're just a commoner! You'd be normal whether Hasaki was born or not! Takuji: How dare you call me a commoner?! Maybe you were the best at all those things in the past, but now I've far surpassed you! Tomosane: Then put down that knife and face me. If you're a man, then put your fists up and fight me! Kotomi: You don't have to listen to him, Takuji. Tomosane: Shut up! Kotomi: Tomosane has Sanami and Mamiya blood in him. Of course, he's not an ordinary person either. Kotomi: But that only means that he is a hurdle for you to overcome as you follow your destiny and become the savior. Kotomi: It's okay if you can't beat him right now. Takuji, you will eventually be the person to save the entire world. Tomosane: That's bullshit! Tomosane: Don't bring Hasaki into your delusional fantasies! Keep that crap to yourself! Tomosane: Give Hasaki back! Takuji: Haa... You really aren't good at making reasoned arguments. Kotomi: You shouldn't listen to the words of the ignorant, Takuji. Takuji: Yes, I know. Hasaki is part of me to begin with. I need only to return her to the sky and regain the power that is rightfully mine. Kotomi: That's right. Everything will be saved once you do. Now, Takuji, return Hasaki's soul to the sky. Kotomi: Once you do, the lost part of your soul will return to you. Takuji: Once I do... "I will become the savior.": "Takuji will become the savior.": Takuji+Kotomi: I will become the savior. Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji will become the savior. Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: Takuji+Kotomi: *"That's ridiculous!"* *I wasn't certain what to do.* *Perhaps what I did in that moment was reckless.* *I instantly leaped forward.* *Right into Takuji.* *But Yuki-nee ran in a different direction than I did.* Takuji: Ah! Hasaki: Huh?! *An instant.* *Such a short amount of time that it would be called a mere instant.* *He threw Hasaki over the cliff.* *Hasaki's small body flew over the edge with surprising speed.* *I panicked and ran toward the cliff.* *But I couldn't pull her back from over the edge.* *I lost my balance and fell.* *My eyes could only follow her over the edge.* *I followed her falling body.* *It floated in midair.* *Then gravity took over, and she was sucked down into the abyss.* Tomosane: Ha...sa...ki... *It felt like my words were too late.* *My legs were too slow.* *I could only lament the fact that I was powerless.* *And then I saw something unbelievable happen right before my eyes.* *Yuki-nee caught Hasaki in midair as she fell off the cliff.* *She didn't reach out with her hand and grab her.* *Yuki-nee threw her entire body over the edge and caught Hasaki.* *I saw that happen in a flash. In a mere instant.* Tomosane: Hasakiii! Yuki-neee! *Both of them disappeared, sucked down into the darkness lying under the cliff's edge.* *Then came a sound I never wanted to hear.* *A sound that grates on the ears.* *An unimaginable, unpleasant sound.* *Simply a sound no one would want to hear.* Tomosane: Hasakiii! Yuki-neeee! Takuji: Heh, hehehe... Hahahahaha! Takuji: I did it. I did it... I finally did it. Takuji: That man pretending to be my father always got in my way before. Takuji: The power I deserved to have is finally coming back to me. The part of my power which was given to Hasaki has finally returned to the sky. Kotomi: You did a good job. Takuji: Yeah, I did it, Mother! I can finally be the savior. Tomosane: The hell are you saying... Takuji: Now I can save the world. Takuji: I can return the world to the sky. Tomosane: You fucking idiot... Kotomi: Now the pre-established harmony can unfold in the way God intended. Everything will proceed according to the prophecy. Tomosane: That's bullshit! Takuji: Nii-san. Takuji: Haa... Maybe you don't understand this because you're just a commoner, but this isn't something to grieve over. Takuji: It's not like I killed Hasaki. I merely returned her to the sky. Kotomi: Yes. I saw her when she ascended into the sky. Tomosane: How stupid are you?! *"Aaah... Uwah..."* Tomosane: Huh? That voice... Takuji: What? Kotomi: Wha-! Tomosane: Hasaki! Hasaki, is that you?! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Hasaki, are you okay?! Hasaki: Yeah, I'm okay, but... But... Tomosane: What's wrong?! Hasaki: Yuki-san... Yuki-san is... There's a bunch of blood, and she's not moving... Tomosane: Yuki-nee? Tomosane: What happened to Yuki-nee? Hasaki: She was protecting me... She was just protecting me... Hasaki: She held onto me the entire time, all the way until the end... Until we fell down here... Hasaki: She hit the cliff over and over, but she... Yuki-san, Yuki-san... Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Tomosane: Don't move! Tomosane: I'm coming! Takuji: Th-That girl... Kotomi: Takuji! You have to do it now! Return Hasaki to the sky before the waning moon rises! Before Tomosane gets to her! Takuji: Y-Yes! Tomosane: I won't let you! Takuji: Huh?! Takuji: Gah! Tomosane: I won't let you! I won't let you! I won't let you! Takuji: Ugh, ah, ugh... Tomosane: What did you do to Yuki-nee... I won't let you kill Hasaki too! Takuji: D-Damn it! Tomosane: Agh! Takuji: Haa, haa... Wow, I can't believe you dodged that. Tomosane: You bastard... Tomosane: I'm going to end it here, Takuji. Takuji: End it? Tomosane: Yeah, I won't hesitate any longer. Until I defeat you utterly and absolutely, you won't give up on those delusions. Tomosane: I will defeat you, right here, once and for all. Takuji: Hehehe... With your bare hands? I have a knife, in case you forgot. Tomosane: That's a perfect handicap to make this fair. That's no problem at all. Takuji: Hmph, I really wonder where that confidence comes from. Tomosane: Unlike you, I've been practicing every day. Takuji: What? You act like you're the only one who's been working hard. Takuji: In the past few years since you disappeared, I've worked myself to death. Takuji: In order to surpass you, in order to make it clear to you that you are nothing more than a hurdle for me to overcome. Tomosane: And this is the result of all your hard work? Takuji: Yes, exactly. But we aren't done yet. I'll return you to the sky, and then Hasaki will follow suit. Takuji: And then I will become the savior. Tomosane: No, you won't! Takuji: I will! I'm different from you! I am the chosen one! Tomosane: What's different?! You're just some bastard that was born when some other man played around with your mom! Takuji: Don't say that! Tomosane: Ugh! *My cheek burned.* *When I touched it, I could feel that it'd been split open.* *It wasn't near a fatal wound, though.* *I took my stance to defend myself against the next attack.* *But...* Takuji: Wh-What is this... Tomosane: ...Huh? Takuji: What is this?! Tomosane: T-Takuji... Takuji: Wh-Whoa. Stop screwing around. What's happening? *I didn't have a clue what was happening either.* *The simple reality was that the knife previously in Takuji's hand was now plunged deep into his chest.* Tomosane: T-Takuji, you... Takuji: What's happening? I was supposed to become the savior and save the world... Tomosane: Takuji! *I tried to pull the knife out of him.* Kotomi: S-Stop! *I heard someone behind me, telling me to stop, but that didn't make me hesitate for even a moment.* *I pulled the knife out of Takuji's chest.* *I knew right away that I had done the worst thing possible in that situation.* *No, either way, such a deep wound out in the mountains would inevitably be fatal.* *But if I hadn't pulled the knife out, he would've had more time to live.* *But I did it... I pulled it out.* Takuji: Wh-What? What's happening... Suddenly... everything's going white... Tomosane: Takuji! Hold yourself together! Takuji: What? Nii-san... You ran away into the white... That's a dirty trick... Tomosane: Takuji! Hey! Takuji: Huh? That's weird... Why won't my body move... all of a sudden? Tomosane: Hold on! Don't leave me now! Takuji: Huh? What are you doing, Nii-san? Takuji: Did I... lose... Have I lost? Tomosane: Who cares about losing?! Takuji! Hold on, please! Takuji: I see... I lost... That's why my body is getting cold... I can't move... Takuji: Hehehe... But I won't die... I'll never die... Takuji: Because my mother comes from a long line of shrine maidens capable of raising the dead... So I'll come back... Tomosane: Takuji! Takuji: Yes, I'll absolutely... never die... Takuji: I'll survive... no matter what it takes... Tomosane: Yeah, I understand. Anyway, just don't go to sleep! *I tore off my own shirt and tried to wrap it around Takuji's chest.* *But the flow of blood didn't slow down at all.* Tomosane: Takuji! Hold on, please! Takuji: I'm... going to be... fine... Don't worry... Takuji: Nothing... to worry... about... Takuji: I'll... never die... Tomosane: Yeah, you won't die! You're going to be fine! Takuji: That's... right... Takuji: Even if... my body... breaks... Tomosane: Takuji. Takuji: I can just use yours, Nii-san. Tomosane: Wha-! Tomosane: T-Takuji... Takuji: I won't die... I won't... *Takuji's fingers pressed into my temple like nails.* *It was beyond mere pain.* Tomosane: ...A-Ack! *H-How can he be... so strong...* Kotomi: Destroy him, just like that. Tomosane: D-Destroy? Kotomi: Yes. Takuji, you can do it. Destroy his brain. Do it. Tomosane: Guh, guhaaa. *His eyes narrowed to slits as he stared into mine.* Takuji: I will... take your brain... Tomosane: Guh... Ghaa... *I couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't.* Tomosane: Ah, ahghaa... *Takuji's fingertips broke through my skull.* *That's impossible. A human doesn't have nearly enough strength to break a person's skull like that.* *This must be an illusion. This can't be reality.* *As a trained fighter, I knew that better than anyone.* *The fact that it was impossible.* *And yet...* *My consciousness started to waver.* *I couldn't hold myself in this world.* Takuji: I'll take your body... Tomosane Nii-san... Takuji: So I guess this is... Takuji: FAREWELL.

*It was a familiar scene.* *More familiar than any I had seen before.* *A scene I knew all too well.* Yuki: Does this scene seem more fitting? Tomosane: Well, yeah. Until now, I'd forgotten what had happened in the village. Yuki: That's right. Tomosane: After that, did I become Mamiya Takuji? Yuki: Who knows? At the very least, you still looked like yourself. Tomosane: But I lived my life as Mamiya Takuji. Yuki: According to the doctors at the hospital, the diagnosis was PTSD: post-traumatic stress disorder. Tomosane: But the villagers believed it was Mamiya Takuji's curse. In other words, the result of Sanami Kotomi's powers. Yuki: Kotomi-san was rumored to have the power to bring back the dead, after all. Tomosane: So what actually happened, then? Yuki: What actually happened? How would I know that? It's not like you have any proof that you weren't possessed by Mamiya Takuji. Yuki: You also can't deny the hypothesis that he might've been another personality conjured up by your PTSD. Yuki: Both explanations seem to fit. Yuki: But the reality is that, after that moment, you ceased to consider yourself to be 'Mamiya Tomosane' and instead called yourself 'Mamiya Takuji.' Tomosane: I can't deny that. Tomosane: So where are we? Yuki: Where do you think? Tomosane: The roof... Building C, maybe? Yuki: Correct. Tomosane: I see. Then that dream I just had was all my memories of the past... Is that it? Yuki: Yeah, that's it. Tomosane: I didn't die? Yuki: If you were dead, you wouldn't be standing here. This isn't heaven, and it's definitely not hell either. Tomosane: But this isn't the real Building C either. Did you make this place? Yuki: Don't ask me. I'm not sure myself. Yuki: All I know for sure is that the most important thing is what's not here. Do you know what I mean? Tomosane: What's not here? Tomosane: Huh?! Tomosane: Just now... Yuki: That's right. There's something you need to do. Do you remember what it was? Tomosane: I... I was... Yuki: Go to her, Tomosane. Go protect Hasaki-chan, no matter what happens. Tomosane: That's right. I have to protect Hasaki, no matter what. Yuki: Yeah. That's a good answer. Tomosane: That's not correct, is it? That dream just now, and my memories of the past... Was that all your doing, Yuki-nee? Yuki: Yuki-nee... It makes me really happy to hear you call me that again. Really happy. Tomosane: What's wrong, Yuki-nee? *She smiled as tears flowed from her eyes.* Yuki: It's just... You've really grown up, Tomosane. Yuki: You're totally different from before. Look. *She grabbed my arm.* Yuki: Your arms were so skinny before, but now they're way bigger than mine. Tomosane: Yeah, of course. A lot of time has passed since then. Yuki: You're the same age I used to be back then, Tomosane. Tomosane: Am I really? Yuki: Yeah, you are. You didn't really pay attention to me, so maybe you don't remember. Tomosane: To a little boy, all adults just look like adults. Yuki: Ahahaha... Maybe you're right. Tomosane: Yeah, back then I never knew your hands were so small. Yuki: Ahaha... Are my hands that small? Tomosane: Yeah, I can't believe they're so small. Your entire hand fits here in my palm. Tomosane: Back when I was a kid, I always thought you were so big. Yuki: But my chest is still pretty big. Tomosane: But it's not nearly as wide as my chest. Your body is way smaller than mine, too. Yuki: You're still pretty small for a boy, you know. Tomosane: I'm still bigger than you. Yuki: I guess so. You're a lot bigger than I am, Tomosane. Tomosane: Did you always know this? Yuki: Know what? Tomosane: About our past. Yuki: No. Unfortunately, it was quite a long time before I figured everything out. Yuki: I didn't know until I learned how to look into this body's subconscious. Tomosane: With those lucid dreams, huh? Yuki: That's right. Tomosane: Which means this is just a lucid dream modeled after the Building C roof. Yuki: Yep. Tomosane: And what I just saw... Those were my memories of the past. Yuki: Yes. You sealed those memories away because they were too painful. Tomosane: I'm a really weak person, huh? Yuki: That's not true. It might've actually been the curse, too. Tomosane: Even then, that would mean I lost to that curse. Yuki: What are you talking about? When did you lose? Tomosane: I've done nothing but lose. Tomosane: Even on that day, you were the one who saved Hasaki. Tomosane: I promised to protect Hasaki, but I couldn't protect her at all. Tomosane: And then Takuji took control of me. Yuki: But you managed to stand up to Takuji, despite all of that. Tomosane: That's right. I stood up to him, and I lost. Tomosane: How disgraceful. Yuki: What are you talking about? Isn't that okay? Tomosane: What? Of course it's not okay. Yuki: This is all just a performance, right? Tomosane: A performance? Yuki: Yeah, of course. Isn't this the perfect time for our hero to make his dramatic entrance on stage? Tomosane: Hero? Yuki: Weren't you a hero? A shapeshifting hero, too. Yuki: Hasaki had to go through some tough times * but couldn't this all be a nice way of spicing up the happy days you two have ahead of you?"* Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: You made a promise to Hasaki. Yuki: On the beach that day. Yuki: If Takuji is the savior, then I'm the hero. Yuki: I'll stand up to protect you any time you're in trouble. Yuki: When you're in trouble, you can just think of it as a performance. Yuki: Hasaki believed you until the very end. Yuki: Believed that you were her hero. Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: And of course, so do I. Yuki: Tomosane, you haven't actually lost until it's all over. Yuki: No matter what happens, you won't lose. Yuki: Because that's what a hero is, right? Yuki: I believe in you too. Yuki: You're the hero, Tomosane. You're the one who has to save the day in the end. Tomosane: What are you talking about? I already failed to protect you, Yuki-nee. Yuki: You dummy. You're Hasaki-chan's hero, not mine. Tomosane: But you just said you believed in me, too. Yuki: I do believe in you. *Yuki-nee gave me a big grin.* *But it was as if she was still fighting back her tears.* Yuki: I'll take him with me so you can keep moving forward. Tomosane: Take who? Yuki: Takuji-kun. I'll take that crazy boy with me. Yuki: You just need to keep moving forward right now. Tomosane: Forward? Yuki: Yeah, that's right. Forward from here. Yuki: Beyond the hill where the sunflowers bloom. Yuki: Beyond that hill she could never climb. Yuki: You have to go forward and find Hasaki-chan again. Tomosane: That hill... Yuki: Come on, Tomosane. You can do it. Yuki: This is our farewell. Tomosane: Farewell? Yuki: That's right. Farewell. This is as far as I can go. Yuki: Under this sky, this is as far as I can walk beside you. Yuki: Under this great, great sky, we walked this far together, but now it's over. Yuki: From here on, I won't be the one walking by your side. Yuki: I'm not the one who will walk the same road as you. Yuki: Now go, hero. Yuki: You are my... hero. Yuki: And also... Yuki: Hasaki-chan's superhero! Yuki: This is our farewell. Tomosane: Farewell? Yuki: That's right. This is farewell for now. Yuki: I have to help him get there. Tomosane: Yuki-nee... Yuki: Don't make that face, Tomosane. Yuki: Look... You can feel my presence, right? *Yuki-nee held my hand tightly.* *Her hand was very small and soft.* Yuki: I will always be here, right next to you. Yuki: I have to go, but even then, I'll still be right here by your side, Tomosane. *Yuki-nee slowly let go of my hand.* *And then, she took a step back and shouted.* Yuki: Now, go forward! Yuki: You're the hero, so you have to protect the heroine in the finale! Yuki: Isn't that right, Tomosane? Tomosane: Huh?! Tomosane: Just now... Yuki: You're the Tomosane that Hasaki-chan always believed in. The one I always believed in. Yuki: You'll win. Yuki: It's your destiny. Hasaki: Nii-san! Tomosane: H-Hasaki?! *Hasaki had taken hold of my leg just as I jumped from the rooftop.* *But Hasaki's weak body was being slowly pulled over the edge.* Tomosane: Hasaki! Let go! Hasaki: Huh? Tomosane: Are you stupid?! Let go, right now! *Hasaki's face turned pale.* Hasaki: Ah, you sound like... Tomosane: Hurry up! At this rate, you're gonna fall too! Let go! Hasaki: T-Tomo Nii-san... Tomo Nii-san... You're alive. You didn't disappear. I... I! *Hasaki lost her footing for a split second. Her body slipped further over the edge of the roof."* *And yet...* Hasaki: I'm so glad... I'm so glad... I thought you had disappear forever, so I... I... Tomosane: I understand! Just let go! Let me go! Hasaki: ...No... *Big tears welled up in Hasaki's eyes.* *Hasaki tried to say something through her tears, but it wouldn't come out.* *She cried as her strength slowly began to fail her.* *Her body was slowly pulled over the edge.* *Nevertheless, she didn't loosen her grip on my leg at all.* *She did the complete opposite. Her tiny hands took a stronger hold on my body so that she wouldn't lose me.* Tomosane: What are you doing, Hasaki?! Hasaki: I won't... *She raised her head and looked me in the eyes.* *I thought she was despairing for me, but when she looked up I saw a smile on her tear-stained face.* Tomosane: Wh-What are you saying? Hasaki: I said I won't let you go. Tomosane: Are you dumb?! At this rate, you'll fall too! Hasaki: That doesn't matter! Tomosane: It does matter! I'm here to protect you! Hasaki: I don't care about that! I don't care! Tomosane: H-Hasaki... *I had never seen Hasaki raise her voice like that before.* *She never let her emotions show like this. She never expressed her own will like this before.* Hasaki: I'm... I'm not just someone to be protected. I... I love you, Tomo Nii-san! Hasaki: I was so sad because I thought you'd died. I thought there was no reason to keep living. Hasaki: So I never really cared about saving Takuji Nii-san, because I thought he had killed you. Hasaki: But... But... Takuji Nii-san... Takuji Nii-san... He looked just like you... Hasaki: So I wanted to save him! Hasaki: That's it... But why? Hasaki: Why can't I save you, Tomo Nii-san? Why am I just here to be protected? Hasaki: If you're still alive, Tomo Nii-san... If you're still there, then I'll never let go! Hasaki: Never! Never! I won't let you go, even when I'm dead! Tomosane: You dummy! Tomosane: It's obvious why you can't save me! Tomosane: I'm here to protect you! Tomosane: I'm the hero! I'm only here to protect you! Hasaki: Ah! *It felt like I was floating.* *It was as if the air had suddenly grown colder.* *Sand and dust floated in the blue sky, dancing in the moonlight.* *I felt myself transported from solid ground to a world of vertical descent.* *Hasaki and I were sucked down.* *I saw a silhouette of Hasaki's body backlit by the bright blue moon.* *We were utterly detached from the ground.* *It was like we were flying in midair.* *I heard sirens in the distance.* *Sirens echoing in the sparkling azure sky.* *I looked up at the infinite sky as I fell.* *So that I wouldn't lose sight of Hasaki above me.* *The moon laughed.* *God laughed.* *At the comical sight below.* *At this comedy and this tragedy.* *The stars went round.* *Like they were dancing.* *The night sky ridiculed us. God ridiculed us.* *As if an innocent child had knocked the plate of heaven to the ground.* *The world became empty.* *But I said this.* Tomosane: Eat shit! *God doesn't matter.* *Fate doesn't matter.* *I'm Tomosane.* *Mamiya Tomosane.* *I made a promise.* *A promise to protect Hasaki.* *A promise to be Hasaki's hero.* *So I won't falter.* *I won't back down, no matter who I'm facing.* *If I meet God in heaven, then I'll punch him right in the nose.* *If I meet Satan in hell, then I'll punch him right in the nose.* *I'll break fate's chains with my own two hands.* *The great comedy and tragedy of life can eat shit for all I care!* Tomosane: Hasaki! *I reached out with all my might.* Hasaki: ... *There was no answer.* *No, I don't know if she even heard me.* *It was such a short period of time before we hit the ground that I don't know if my words ever reached her.* *But I yelled out to her.* *Hasaki!* *The cool air of the night suddenly grew hot.* *The light of the moon dimmed.* *The dancing stars ceased to frolick and instead looked on in silence.* *I ran on thin air.* *I fought against God's will and ran.* *Then my hand reached Hasaki.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! *Freefall. The unavoidable fate which we call gravity finally sucked us down to Earth.* *For men, who cannot fly through the air...* *The only choice is to fall to Earth.* *But I refused.* *There was no despair in that moment.* *The only choice I had was to do what I had to do.* *What I had to do in that very moment.* *To live.* *And what I had to do to live tomorrow.* *Gravity tried to kill us both.* *It tried to slam us into the ground and end it all.* Tomosane: Aaaahhh! *I struggled in the air.* *It was futile. Man is powerless in the air.* *There's no fighting it.* *There's nothing man can do to fight gravity.* *And yet I struggled in the air.* *The powerless struggling before a colossal foe.* *I didn't care if I looked pathetic.* *I would do anything, pathetic or otherwise, if only to live.* Tomosane: Aaagh! *As I kicked out my leg, it broke through the glass on the building.* Tomosane: Gah! *The glass broke, and I crashed into the building's eaves.* *Agony raced through my breaking body.* *But I held onto Hasaki.* *Pain was irrelevant.* *I held Hasaki to my chest.* *I wasn't going to let anyone or anything hurt her.* *The eaves didn't catch us; they merely threw us into the air once again.* *Another impact, just like the last.* *But I could no longer see what I was even crashing into.* *I had lost all sense of balance or direction, falling and colliding with whatever was in my way as I fell from the school building.* *That's probably what happened.* *An untold number of impacts left my ears ringing.* *It was a disturbing sound.* *There was no pain.* *There was no light.* *The only thing I could feel was Hasaki's warmth in my arms.* *The moon laughed.* *The moon laughed at me.* *The moon laughed at me, as if it hadn't just seen me take that fall.* *As if it knew nothing of the impure things in this world. As if it was ignorant of the filthy, the spoiled, the rotten things on Earth.* *It simply bathed us with its beautiful light.* *And it laughed at the world, dyed with blue moonlight, underneath it.* *The moon laughed.* *Underneath that laughing moon, I could only fall and get beaten up by the unceasing blows of gravity.* *I fell, powerless to do anything else.* *At the end, the moon came into view again.* *But it wasn't laughing at me with scorn.* *It looked truly sad.* *As if it was crying.* Tomosane: You bastard... Tomosane: So you weren't laughing at me... Tomosane: You cried as you watched me fall... *My weak, broken voice barely escaped my throat.* *And I thought that I could still speak. I'm not sure if I was actually making any sound, though.* *Now that I think back on it, it was perfectly silent in that moment.* *The sound of the wind I'd heard before.* *The sound of the sirens.* *The sound of crashing into the building time and time again.* *All of those sounds had disappeared from the world.* *The silence was unbroken.* *And I thought to myself about how bad it was.* *In my life up until that moment, I'd never experienced such a profound silence.* *It was an impossible silence.* *I thought it was the end.* *I thought I was done for.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: ... Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san... Tomo Nii-san... Tomosane: Hahaha... You're safe... Hasaki: Yeah. You protected me, so I'm safe. Tomosane: I broke my promise so many times. I'm glad I was able to keep it this time. Hasaki: Yeah. Thank you, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: Then... can this be the end? Hasaki: You liar. Tomosane: Liar? Hasaki: Are you trying to break your promise again? Tomosane: Promise? Hasaki: That's right. You promised. Hasaki: This summer, you said we were going back to the village. Tomosane: The village... Hasaki: That's right, Sawaimura. We were going to go together. Hasaki: And we were going to climb that hill one more time together. Hasaki: We were going to see the blooming sunflowers again together. Tomosane: That hill, huh... Hasaki: Yeah, that hill I could never climb when I was younger. Hasaki: The hill where you found me on the day Dad died. Tomosane: That hill... Hasaki: Yeah. Tomosane: That's... not a promise a hero should make... Hasaki: But a promise is a promise! *A promise is a promise...* *Hasaki usually never asks for anything from me.* *But still, I was so tired.* *I walked so far to get here.* *So now...* *Yuki-nee...*

*To pray is to think about the meaning of life.* *Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein June 11, 1916* Kimura: Do we really have to hike up this mountain? Aren't there buses that go to the village? Master: Jeez, what are you complaining for now? It's not that far. No one asked you to come, anyway. Kimura: Will Hasaki be okay walking so far? Hasaki: I'm just fine. *A summer day.* *We walked along the side of the road.* *The rays of a summer sun pierced us.* *A blue sky stretched overhead.* *Great white clouds dotted the sky.* *The trees were full of green.* *We walked through just such a scene.* *Every time the wind blew, I smelled the wild grass.* *The babbling of a brook.* *The smell of earth under our feet.* *My father was born in this town.* *It was called Sawaimura.* *I know a lot about this village.* *For instance, I know the autumn breeze.* *The season when the valleys of Sawaimura are dyed with a beautiful scarlet sunset.* *When I first saw the trees bathed in scarlet, I was at a loss for words.* *When they saw that, Tomo Nii-san and Yuki-san laughed at me.* *For instance, I know the chill of winter.* *The winters here are colder than in Tokyo.* *The clouds floating in from the ocean sprinkle endless snowflakes upon the village.* *During the winter, all the children romp through a snowy wonderland.* *Throwing snowballs, building snowmen, and even constructing little igloos.* *For a child, it was heaven on Earth.* *That's one of the best memories I have of my childhood.* *For instance, I know the greening spring.* *The spring in Sawaimura brings change to every pastoral landscape.* *The white land is suddenly alive with green. The cherry blossoms fall upon yesterday's snows.* *The one season when the cherry blossoms are free to dance.* *The season where we see life in all its vigor.* *And the budding of new, green leaves on all the trees.* *I like the cherry blossoms, but I love to watch the green buds upon the zelkova's branches.* *The sun filtering through an early spring canopy is perhaps more precious than any of the world's treasures.* *Then, when the verdant green of the zelkova gradually deepens into a lusher shade...* *Summer comes.* *The summer in Sawaimura is hot and muggy.* *The beams of the sun seem to illuminate the entire world.* *But the shade under a tree's boughs can be far cooler than any shelter from the sun in Tokyo.* *Sawaimura is just such a village.* Kimura: So... why did we come all the way out here again? Kimura: I understand that he finally got out on bail and all, but this whole trip is just a pain in the butt if you ask me. *I was finally starting to enjoy the atmosphere out here in the mountains when Kimura-san spoiled the mood with his complaints.* Hasaki: You're ruining the atmosphere. Kimura: Huh? How am I doing that? Master: We're finally out here in the country, and all you do is complain. It's not like we asked you to come, either. You just decided to tag along. Kimura: Yeah, I guess so... But this is my job, you know? Master: Oh, come on. We already know that he's not going to be convicted. There's no way you're going to find any dirt to base a good article on. Kimura: Sure, but there are still a lot of people out there that are interested in what happened. Master: You don't get it, do you? If you write about what happened in this village, I'll kill you. Kimura: Eek! Master: This is a peaceful village. Don't disturb the peace. Kimura: Yes, sir. As you say. *The end of summer.* *It was a month after that happened.* *For some reason, it was decided that a ceremony would be held in honor of my father.* *That's why we were walking along this same familiar road.* *The same road where we walked next to our father.* *I walked this same road the first time I came to Sawaimura with my father.* Hasaki: Ah! *The promised place.* *That's how I thought of it back then.* *Even now, this place makes my heart race.* *Last time, I was here with my father.* *Even then, my heart was racing.* *It was the first time I met my Nii-san. I heard that we lived together three years before that, but I was too young to remember.* *I didn't know what kind of person he was.* *My heart raced with anticipation.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san! Tomosane: Hasaki. *The person who turned to look at me was... my brother.* *It was just like the first time we met.* *He looked scary, but he was actually an incredibly kind brother.* Hasaki: Tomo Nii-san, did we make you wait? Tomosane: Yeah, I've been standing here for ages. Jeez, look at the time. Master: Wow. Why do you have an alarm clock with you? Tomosane: The people in this village don't pay much attention to the time, and it's not like I own a wristwatch. Kimura: Huh? What about your cellphone? Tomosane: Are you stupid? There's no way I'd get a signal out here. Kimura: What did you say?! Kimura: Th-That's scary. Wh-What if there was an emergency and someone got hurt? Master: I told you, no one asked you to come. Go home if you want. Tomosane: Yeah, why did you come, Kimura-san? Kimura: I'm investigating. Tomosane: Oh, are you now? You're such a good little reporter. Just so you know, I'll kill you if you write an article about what happened in this village. Kimura: Eek! Kimura: No! Don't make fun of my D3 like that! Master: Jeez, this guy really gets on my nerves. Kimura: So you really did get out on bail. Tomosane: They did say that they wanted to help me blend into society again some day. Kimura: And there was a lot of evidence that you really did have multiple personalities. Kimura: And you even got stabbed while you were trying to stop that accident from happening. Tomosane: I'm surprised they didn't want to put me in an institution or something, though. Kimura: But... Mamiya Takuji-kun is gone now. Tomosane: That's right. *Mamiya Takuji's personality never surfaced again after that day.* *Or rather, no one else's personality ever took control of my body again.* *From the time I wake up in the morning until the time I sleep at night, I live my life normally, without a hint of discontinuity.* *All the symptoms of dissociative identity disorder were completely cured.* Kimura: Well, Mamiya Takuji-kun accomplished his objective. He'll never appear again. Master: Let's get going. We have to walk to the Mamiya house. Kimura: Huh? We have to walk more? Hasaki: Of course we do. You should really go home, Kimura-san. Kimura: Don't say that. You're being too cold. Tomosane: I'm back. Yuki: Oh, Tomosane. You're early. Hasaki: Ah... Yuki-san, right? Yuki: Yeah. It's me, Yuki-nee. It's been a while, Hasaki-chan. Master: ... Kimura: Huh? Wh-What's wrong? Let's go inside already. Master: Yeah... *When I was released, I was entrusted to this village.* *I'm sure that part of it was just because they didn't want the mass media to harass me, but I'm also certain that's not the only reason why the doctors decided this village would be the best place for me.* *So now I have to travel to the nearest city once a week to see a psychologist.* Yuki: So how did the mountain road here treat you after all this time? Hasaki: How was it for you, Yuki-san? Yuki: I was born in this village, so I don't really care one way or another. Tomosane: What are you talking about? Earlier you were making a fuss because there's no Internet out here. Yuki: But how am I supposed to look stuff up in Uncy***pedia without the Internet? There's so much stuff I don't know! Tomosane: Who the hell uses Uncy***pedia to do research in the first place? At least use W***pedia to do it. Yuki: Don't underestimate the power of Uncy***pedia! Tomosane: I don't know about that. Hasaki: We all got here pretty early, though. Yuki: Yeah, I didn't expect you guys till evening. Tomosane: What? You guys were still fifteen minutes late, and I was the one waiting up on you guys. *The end of summer.* *Even at the end of summer, the sun shone high in the sky.* *Cumulonimbi gathered strength far off in the distance.* *Those clouds would probably rain torrents of water later.* *The season was coming to an end.* *The day of Dad's death had finally come.* *It had been eight years since that day.* *And so we all returned to that same village.* *Sawaimura. It's the place where Hasaki and I met, and the place where I met Yuki and Master as well.* *Well, I was living with Hasaki for a while before, but she was just a baby, so she didn't remember me.* *Tomorrow they would hold a ceremony for my father.* *Though this year wasn't actually a notable anniversary of his death.* *The closest would be the tenth anniversary, but it still hadn't been quite ten years.* *But our grandmother who still lives here said that it was normal to hold a ceremony for the 7th anniversary of a death in the Buddhist tradition.* *I told her that it'd actually been eight years since he died, of course.* *I think that this ceremony was really being held for my sake.* *It had been a long time since I came back to this village.* *I don't care about those stuffy Buddhist anniversary traditions, but I'm sure a lot of my old acquaintances would come back to the village if we held an event.* *That's probably why they were doing it.* *A monk came to see us at the temple.* *He recited some kind of sutra.* *I listened to the boring sutra.* *"Will he just get on with it already..."* *That's all I was thinking.* *I appreciated all the stuff that my grandmother was doing for me, but it was honestly just a pain.* *I looked out the window.* *The bright rays of the sun still rained down on the land outside.* Yuki: The sky is blue today. Tomosane: Don't talk while the monk is reciting the sutras. Yuki: Don't you like the blue sky? Tomosane: You were the one who said you hated it. Yuki: What do you mean? I told you that I really like blue skies after that. Tomosane: Yeah, but that's only because it's easier to light a cigarette when the weather is good. Yuki: What, is that not a good enough reason for you? Hasaki: Didn't you hate blue skies, Yuki-san? Yuki: Well, I mean, yeah. Don't you think the sky is really scary? Hasaki: The sky is scary... Yuki: Because I fell from the sky once. Hasaki: Oh, now that you mention it, I fell twice. Yuki: But you're still alive, right? Yuki: The first time it was me, and the second time, it was Tomosane who protected you. Tomosane: Yeah, but I actually survived doing it. Yuki: Ahahaha. That's because you're a hero. Heroes don't die. Tomosane: Heroes don't die, huh? Yuki: When the ceremony is over, let's go see the sunflowers again. Hasaki: Oh, that sounds good. Yuki: Let's go! Tomosane: Hasaki, will you be okay? It's a long walk. Hasaki: Of course I'll be okay. I climbed that hill when I was really little. Tomosane: But you were used to living out in the sticks. Now you're used to the city. Yuki: If she can't walk anymore, then you can just carry her. There's no problem. Tomosane: Don't decide that for me! Yuki: What's wrong? Aren't you the hero here? Tomosane: Why does a hero have to act like a servant now?! Hasaki: Whoa, it's amazing. Tomosane: There are so many sunflowers. Yuki: This is the first time I've seen them this year too. Hasaki: Really? Yuki: Yeah. Yuki: I knew you were coming, so the two of us decided we wanted to see them together with you. *Decided...* *We didn't really make a decision like that, but we had a sort of unspoken agreement.* *But if we were going to go see them, there's no reason why we wouldn't wait for Hasaki to be with us.* *This hill is one of those places.* Hasaki: I didn't know the sunflowers were so big. Yuki: Yeah, they're huge. Hasaki: Ahaha. I've grown a lot since last time, so I thought they would look way smaller. Yuki: Either way, sunflowers are still taller than a person. You're closer to the flower now, so they probably look even bigger than before. Hasaki: Oh, that's right. I was so small that I could barely see the tops of them. Yuki: That's probably it. And besides that, there are things in the world that are always going to be bigger than you, no matter how much you grow. Hasaki: Yeah, the sunflowers will always, always be big. Yuki: What's wrong? You haven't said anything in a while. Tomosane: Y-Yeah... Yuki: What? You think the sunflowers are still just depressing? You always said they look like they're reaching out to the dead. Tomosane: No, I don't really think that anymore. Yuki: Oh, well that's good. Tomosane: You think? Yuki: Well, yeah. They don't need to face toward the dead anymore. Tomosane: So there are no flowers that reach out to the dead now... Yuki: That's right. Hasaki: Come on, let's keep going! Yuki: Yeah! *We climbed up that same hilly road.* *Hasaki laughed and played as we walked.* *When she was young, it was really hard for her to climb this hill.* *Even that foggy hilltop in the distance, which she thought she could never reach,* * was now a pleasant walk to the top.* *That was a scene which changed with the passing of time.* Hasaki: Wow! Hasaki: It's so pretty! Hasaki: Wow, wow, I can't believe how big the sky is! Yuki: So this is what it looks like from the top of the hill. Tomosane: Yeah. *Even in my memory, the view from the hill was always beautiful.* *But at that moment, it was even more beautiful than I remembered.* *It was a perfectly ordinary landscape.* *It was a perfectly ordinary world.* *This scene will probably never, ever change.* *And it was very beautiful.* Tomosane: Yuki. Yuki: Hm? Tomosane: How long do you have? Yuki: What do you mean? Tomosane: If only you could be here forever. But we both know that you can't. Yuki: ... Yuki: The sky is so pretty. Tomosane: Yeah. Yuki: If this was some eroge, then you'd find out that I was just a vengeful spirit, and the real Yuki-san was actually living her life without a clue about what was happening. Tomosane: But you have a grave and everything. Yuki: Yeah, it's been quite a while since my body was cremated and turned into ash. *The night that I came to Sawaimura...* *Yuki came back to me.* *But unlike before, her personality didn't take the place of mine.* *She just hung around in my vicinity, like some kind of ghost.* Tomosane: Are you a ghost? Yuki: Who knows? Maybe I'm just proof that your brain still isn't working like it should. Tomosane: Then you're a hallucination? Yuki: Don't you think so? Yuki: Because if I'm not, then... Tomosane: If not, then what? Hasaki: Yuki-san, there are clovers over here! Yuki: Seriously?! Then there might be a four-leaf clover! *A giggling Yuki ran over to Hasaki.* *A hallucination...* *If she was a hallucination, then the fact that Hasaki could see her too means that...* *I looked up at the blue sky.* *The sky is the most distant world that a human can ever lay eyes upon.* *You could even say the distance separating us from that world is infinite.* *And that's what we have hanging above us at all times, spread over our heads.* *If you think about it, that's really bizarre.* *We live on the ground, surrounded by finite things. Small things. Things which change as time passes. Those are the things we're surrounded by as we live out our lives.* *We live out our normal lives surrounded by those things.* *But directly above us, there's something that none of us can ever reach. None of us can ever know where that limit even lies. The infinite is always spread over our heads.* *Hanging above this common scene, there is an infinite vastness which is always present.* *That's just the world we live in.* Tomosane: It is not how things are in the world that is mystical, but that it exists. Yuki: Feeling the world as a limited whole―it is this that is mystical... Right? Tomosane: Yeah, that's it. Tomosane: How's your search for a four-leaf clover going? Hasaki: I can't find any at all. Tomosane: Is that so? *The two of them were trying with all their might to find a four-leaf clover.* *Why do they need to find something like that?* *I remember searching for four-leaf clovers when I was a child.* *But I never managed to find one.* *A four-leaf clover...* *For some reason, that word made me recall the image of a golden angel in my memory.* *One golden angel is worth a prize toy.* *By the way, you can get a prize for five silver angels too.* *It's just that in my mind, the four-leaf clover that I could never find is like one of those rare golden angels, since you could trade just one golden angel for a prize.* *When I told Hasaki about it, she said...* Hasaki: I've never seen a gold angel, but the silver ones aren't that hard to get. I've seen a bunch of those. *Then you've gotten the prize before?* Hasaki: Ahahaha. I collected four, but I could never get the last one. Pretty soon, I forgot about it. Hasaki: Then I remembered when I finally found another one. 'Oh, I had four of these before.' *She had four at one point, but she lost them somewhere.* *Even though she carefully collected them for so long, eventually she lost interest and forgot about them.* *When she finally found the last one, she remembered that she'd been collecting them.* Hasaki: Hmm... I can't find any four-leaf clovers. *If you can't find it, then you need to keep looking.* *You can just keep looking until you find it.* *But once you do find it...* *If Yuki or Hasaki really did find that lucky four-leaf clover here on the hill, then...* *Well... That's why it's probably better that she didn't find that last angel.* *It's better to have one last something to look for.* *.........* *......* *...* Yuki: Ah! Found one! *Yuki yelled out.* Yuki: I found you, my lucky four-leaf clover! Hasaki: Oh, you really did. *Yuki plucked the four-leaf clover.* *The symbol of good luck.* *The golden angel that is worth a prize all on its own.* *Yuki laughed as she held the clover up to the sky.* Yuki: Ahaha, I didn't think I would actually find one. Yuki: These aren't as rare as I thought they were. Tomosane: That's because you guys were looking for it. Yuki: But seeing clovers makes me want to find one. Tomosane: Really? It makes you want to find one? Yuki: Yeah. If there's a plant that'll bring people happiness, then they'll go look for it. Yuki: That's just what people do. Tomosane: But once you find that plant... Yuki: That's right. Once you find it, the game is over. Tomosane: Why is that? Yuki: Because... a game can only be called a game if it has an end. Tomosane: There doesn't have to be. Yuki: There does. Once the sun goes down and the bell rings, telling you to go home, then you have to leave. Yuki: It's telling you that playtime is over. Tomosane: Then why don't you just destroy the bell? Yuki: That's crazy. That's terrorism you're talking about. Yuki: Without the bell, evening would turn into night, and pretty soon you wouldn't be able to play, either way. Yuki: In the darkness, you can't step on each other's shadows, you can't play in the sand, and you can't kick the can. Yuki: When the sun goes down, it has to end. Yuki: It has to end. Tomosane: Yuki! Hasaki: Yuki-san... Yuki: You two can be happy in the future, together. Tomosane: Stop messing around. Don't say something so selfish. Yuki: Is it selfish? Tomosane: Of course it is. You're just going to disappear. Someone who selfishly disappears doesn't have the right to say that. Yuki: Someone who selfishly disappears? You disappeared on us for a long time too, didn't you? Tomosane: But I came back after it all. I came back to you guys. Yuki: I told you, that's because you're the hero. That's the hero's special privilege. Yuki: I'm not the hero, so now... Yuki: Here, look. Yuki: The sun is already setting. Yuki: Playtime is over. Tomosane: Yuki, you're... Yuki: Playtime is over. Yuki: Oh, it's almost time. *Yuki closed her eyes.* *I could do nothing as I watched her.* *Yuki had walked alongside me every day till now.* *Yuki had walked alongside me as we climbed this hill.* *Once I left...&* *Once I left this hill, it would be over...* Yuki: Aren't you getting hungry yet? Tomosane: Huh? Hasaki: Yeah, I'm really hungry. Yuki: Let's put an end to playtime so we can go home and eat. Hasaki: Yeah! Tomosane: Huh? Um... Yuki? Yuki: What is it, Tomosane? Tomosane: Um, are you coming home with us? Yuki: What do you mean? Of course I am. Tomosane: Besides, do you even get hungry? Yuki: There's a reason that people leave food on a dead person's grave, you know. Tomosane: Oh, uh, that's not what I'm talking about. Yuki: Come on, let's get home. Hasaki: Yeah, let's go! *Yuki started running.* *Hasaki chased after her.* *I was a little shocked, but I walked after them anyway.* *The three of us started to walk down the hill.* *We walked down this hill which is closer to the sky than anywhere else.* *The three of us walked down the hill together.* Yuki: Jeez, you're so slow, Tomosane! Come on, hurry up! Hasaki: Ah, you can't do that! Yuki-san, don't hug him so much! He's mine! Yuki: Oh? You can tell? Hasaki: I can tell. Did you think I couldn't see you? Yuki: Oh, really? You can see me? Hasaki: Of course I can. I do have Sanami blood in my veins too. Yuki: You sound like you're into the occult. Hasaki: I don't care about that occult stuff! And Yuki-san, stop touching him with your chest! Tomosane: Hasaki, you're doing the same thing! Hasaki: I'm your sister, so it doesn't matter! Yuki: Oh, come on, Hasaki-chan. You shouldn't monopolize him. Hasaki: I'm not monopolizing him or anything! Hasaki: You're just some kind of curse on him or something, Yuki-san. If you get too close to him, he might get sick or worse! Yuki: Whoa, that's too cruel! Don't discriminate against me just because I'm a ghost! Hasaki: That's not my problem. Besides, I know... Tomosane: Owww! Hasaki: Tomo Nii-saaaan, you did naughty things with Yuki-san, didn't you? Yuki: Huh? Tomosane: Wh-Wh-What?! Hasaki: Don't underestimate the power of the Sanami family. Jeez, you should just go rest in peace, Yuki-san. Yuki: The Sanami family has nothing to do with that. In the end, they didn't have any real powers, right? Hasaki: But I really do have those powers! And you're a ghost, so don't haunt my Tomo Nii-san! Yuki: That's no fun. Hasaki: I really am grateful for everything, but I don't like ghosts that try to steal my Tomo Nii-san in the night. Yuki: I'm not going to steal him. He doesn't belong to anyone to begin with. Hasaki: No, he belongs to me! Yuki: Does he really? That's really immoral, you know. Hasaki: It's better than doing dirty things with a ghost! Tomosane: U-Um, this is... Hasaki: What? Tomosane: Uh, how are you having a conversation with Yuki? Hasaki: Because I can see her. Tomosane: How can you see her? Hasaki: I don't know. All I know is that I can see her. Yuki: What? Now Hasaki-chan is hallucinating too? Hasaki: I'm not! Anyway, if you do dirty things with Tomo Nii-san again, I'll kill you. Yuki: But I'm already dead. Hasaki: I'll kill you a second time! Yuki: But I'm 007. Tomosane: Ow, ow, ow, ow. Stop it, Hasaki! Yuki: Come on, Hasaki! I was the one who saved you! Don't be so mean! Tomosane: Hey, Yuki, don't pull on me! *Hasaki and Yuki were both giggling by now... and pulling me in opposite directions.* *On one side was my sister.* *On the other side was a ghost. Or maybe a hallucination?* *I don't get it.* *Then Yuki said something.* Yuki: Wouldn't it be amazing having a girlfriend that's just in your head? I don't age, so I'll always be the cute Yuki-chan that you fell in love with. Hasaki: Shut up! You're just a ghost! Yuki: Ghosts still have basic human rights. Hasaki: No, they don't! It's like you're saying that two-dimensional girls have human rights too! Yuki: Why, you little... *The sun fell in the sky, and a waning moon rose far off in the distance.* *A perfectly ordinary world.* *A perfectly ordinary life.* *Could you call this ridiculous life we're living ordinary?* Yuki: Hasaki-chan, you should really go find yourself a boyfriend. It's not healthy to be in love with your brother. Hasaki: I don't want to hear that from a ghost. Yuki: Being a ghost isn't as bad as being his sister. Hasaki: That doesn't make sense! Hasaki: Haven't you ever heard of the story of the Peony Lantern? A romantic relationship with a dead person is never going to work out well! Yuki: That's a story from a long time ago. Things are different now. Hasaki: I don't think something like that will ever change! You'll suck the life out of Tomo Nii-san if you get too close to him! Yuki: What do you mean? Haven't you ever heard of a guardian angel? Hasaki: That's just superstition! *I'm pretty sure talking about ghosts is already solidly in the realm of superstition...* Hasaki: Besides, it said online that long distance relationships never last for very long. Yuki: Haa... You kids are so spoiled nowadays. Yuki: In the Analects of Confucius, it says that distance is no obstacle if two people really love each other. Hasaki: There's way too much distance between a living person and a dead person! Yuki: Love can conquer even that distance. Hasaki: That doesn't make sense! *Neither do you.* *Even after Dad's memorial ceremony ended, Yuki never disappeared.* *Hasaki and I were the only ones who were ever able to see her.* *Hasaki doesn't have to go to the hospital like I do, but the doctors would probably diagnose her with PTSD resulting from brain damage she suffered at the time of her fall.* *We don't actually know why Hasaki and I can see Yuki.* *We don't know if she's a ghost or just a hallucination.* *Regardless, the two of us can talk with her, play with her, and even laugh along with her.* *We don't know how long it'll last.* *These happy times could even end tomorrow.* *But that same statement applies to everything in our lives.* *The Yuki in front of me could disappear at any moment. In truth, that same anxiety extends to every existence in this world.* *So I won't think about it anymore.* *The road that leads endlessly up the hill.* *The peak that lies foggy in the distance.* *It's just like our own journey through the world.* *There's no use worrying about what lies at the peak.* *We have only to enjoy the journey up the slope.*

*Live happily!* *Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein July 8, 1916* *The end of summer.* *Even at the end of summer, the sun shone high in the sky.* *Cumulonimbi gathered strength far off in the distance.* *It'd been a while since I came out to Hasaki's apartment.* *The Sanami woman.* *That's what they always called my mother in the village.* *Her expression only barely changed when she saw me.* Kotomi: T-Takuji? Tomosane: ... *I shook my head.* Tomosane: I'm Tomosane. Mamiya Tomosane. Kotomi: Tomo...sane... Tomosane: That's right. Tomosane, the child you had with Hiroo. Takuji is dead. Kotomi: Takuji is... dead... Tomosane: That's right. Don't you remember? Kotomi: Takuji is... dead... *She mumbled those words with an empty heart. Then she just turned back to the wall and stared, unmoving.* Tomosane: Nothing has changed... Hasaki: That's not true at all. Tomosane: Really? Hasaki: Yeah, she started getting better after July 20th last year. It's a miracle that she can even hold a basic conversation like that. Tomosane: I see. Hasaki: But this is the most dangerous time for her. I have to keep a close eye on her. Tomosane: The most dangerous time? Hasaki: When she's just talking to the wall, I don't have to worry about her committing suicide, but when she has enough willpower to talk to people, then she might also have enough willpower to do something. Tomosane: She has willpower... In other words, you think there's the possibility of her committing suicide? Hasaki: That's right. I have to take her to the Mamiya house and watch over her. Tomosane: Hasaki. Hasaki: Hm? What? Tomosane: You know, I... I hate this woman so much I could kill her. The blame for this entire tragedy lies on her shoulders. Hasaki: Yeah. You might be right. Tomosane: You should hate her even more than I do, so why are you taking care of her? Hasaki: Because she's my mother. Tomosane: Even if that's what you believe, she threw you away. Hasaki: You just didn't know her, Tomo Nii-san. Tomosane: I didn't know her? Hasaki: She... didn't love Dad, and that's why she committed that taboo and gave birth to us, right? Tomosane: ... *Those words silenced me.* *I didn't understand what train of thought could lead her to that conclusion.* Tomosane: You know, Hasaki, you don't need to make excuses for her. Hasaki: No, it's the truth. It's not a question of perspective. It's the truth. Tomosane: The truth? Hasaki: She loved Dad, and she loved Takuji Nii-san, you, and even me. She really loved us. Tomosane: That's ridiculous. That's not true! Hasaki: Dad died very young, didn't he? He knew that he didn't have very much time left. Tomosane: He knew? Hasaki: Yeah. He had a really bad, chronic condition. Especially after you went back to the village, he constantly needed dialysis or else he was at risk of dying. Tomosane: But he had cancer. Hasaki: Yeah, he did. He knew that either way, he wouldn't live for much longer. Hasaki: You probably didn't know, but I heard from the doctor at the hospital after he died. Hasaki: If not for his chronic condition, they could've healed his cancer without a problem. Tomosane: They could've? Hasaki: Mom wanted to save him because he was the only person who protected her when she was persecuted by everyone else in the village. Hasaki: She just wanted to save Dad... Hasaki: That's why she started experimenting with new religions. She was tricked by that new cult's pastor. Tomosane: The White Lotus Association... Hasaki: Yeah, and Mom was a beautiful woman. More importantly, she was the successor to the bloodline of the Sanagi shrine maidens. Hasaki: In the religious industry, the traditional shrine maiden bloodline simply has market value. Tomosane: Market value? Hasaki: Yeah, the pastor and the isolated woman... He wanted to have a child with the shrine maiden who had inherited her powers from ancient times. Hasaki: He didn't even know for sure if the Sanami family had real powers, but he wanted people to believe that they did. Hasaki: And as for the rest of the organization, don't you think they would support this child as the next pastor too? Tomosane: Just because of her family name? Hasaki: Yes. She only did it because she thought that Dad would be saved if she gave birth to the savior. Hasaki: That's not all. She thought that the pastor could help her make peace with the village people who persecuted her as well. Tomosane: Th-That's ridiculous... Hasaki: It's true. She was desperate because she wanted to save Dad, and she regretted that he couldn't go back to the village because he eloped with her. She was trying to make peace with them. Tomosane: That's... That's too stupid... Hasaki: She was a fool. In truth, she was naive. So naive that she slept with a man she didn't like and bore his child. Hasaki: All to birth a savior who would save the world. Tomosane: But for better or worse, she gave birth to twins. Hasaki: What I think is the pastor had grown tired of her, since he was only using her for her body. Hasaki: He had plenty of other women anyway. So when Mom gave birth to twins, he made up an excuse to get rid of her by saying that Takuji Nii-san had lost his qualification to be the savior. Hasaki: She was thrown away just because he got tired of using her. Hasaki: But she still tried to raise Takuji Nii-san as the savior. She believed that it was still possible. Hasaki: It's true that Mom and Takuji Nii-san were cold to me, but it was even harder on Mom. She was trying to accomplish something that no human could ever accomplish. Hasaki: That's why... the day that Dad died, Mom was completely broken by the shock. Hasaki: She gave birth to a child that would be the savior just so she could save Dad... but her plan was fruitless, and he died anyway. Tomosane: Then why did she try to hurt you? Hasaki: She seriously believed that Takuji Nii-san could cross the border between life and death if he awakened to his powers as the savior. Hasaki: She believed that if she could just kill me and restore the powers that Takuji Nii-san originally had, then he would be able to bring me back to life afterward, and his father as well. Tomosane: What do you mean? Hasaki: If I died and Takuji Nii-san's powers came back, Dad and I would both be able to come back to life. Tomosane: That's totally absurd. Hasaki: Yeah... It's absurd. Hasaki: But, you know, I can understand it. Hasaki: You heard she was bullied in that village, right? Hasaki: I wasn't bullied like that, but it really felt like I didn't even exist, both at home and at school. It's not like I can't understand how she must've felt. Hasaki: I always thought I was just an unnecessary person. I was just someone who didn't matter much either way. I wonder if that's what she thought to herself too. Hasaki: And then for the first time in your life, someone in this world discovers that you exist. Hasaki: You would do absolutely anything for that person. Hasaki: If you've always felt like you weren't needed, then if there was anything in the world you could do for the one person who finally loved you, you would do it. Hasaki: Because that's how I feel, too. Tomosane: Hasaki... Hasaki: I would do anything to save you, Tomo Nii-san. Hasaki: I would die if it meant that you could live. If I had to sacrifice my body in order to protect you, then I would do it without hesitation. Hasaki: Maybe that's because I got that from her. We really are mother and daughter. Hasaki: But my heart is weak, so if there wasn't anyone who needed my sullied body anymore, then I would just die, right then and there. Hasaki: But Mom wanted to save him with all her heart. That was the only reason why she betrayed him. Hasaki: Hahahaha... Mom really was a fool. Tomosane: Hasaki... *I was at a loss for words.* *Until this very moment, I'd lived my entire life hating my mother.* *Now I didn't have it in me to truly hate this woman.* *She was just a fool, and her foolish attempts to find happiness caused all this.* *Even then, I just think she was...* Tomosane: She was so stupid. She really was a fool. Hasaki: Yeah, and so was her daughter, me... Tomosane: Yeah... *Even the person I had pinned as the first cause in this entire tragedy... It's not that easy to just say that she was the root of all evil.* *Of course, she wasn't without sin either.* *Her sin was that she was ignorant, incompetent, and overly confident.* *She was a fool, but she tried as hard as she could despite being a fool, and this was the result.* *But I wonder if I can blame her alone.* *I wonder if my father's choice was right.* *I wonder if he made the wrong choice.* *What about Hasaki's choice?* *What about mine?* *Or Takuji's decision, which led to his death.* *And then Yuki-nee's decision...* *I wonder if their decisions were right. How much faith did they have in their own decisions?* *Each one believed their decision was the right one, and this was the result.* *People like to attach a single cause to the problems they face.* *But the cause of a tragedy like this can't be traced back to one decision.* *The combination of several correct individual choices can even cause terrible tragedy.* *In that sense...* *It must be true that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.* *Man is blissfully unaware as he walks along that road to hell.* Hasaki: What's wrong, Tomo Nii-san? Tomosane: Oh, nothing. It's nothing. *My mother just looked at the wall, same as ever.* *What did she see there?* *For a moment, I lost sight of the fundamental difference between her actions and the actions carried out by all the rest of humanity over the course of their lives.* *I quoted the words of a philosopher.* *The words of the world's most difficult philosopher.* Tomosane: The subject does not belong to the world but it is a limit of the world. Tomosane: The sense of the world must lie outside the world. In the world everything is as it is and happens as it does happen. Tomosane: Therefore, no value exists in the world. *No value exists in the world.* *Not money,* *or fame,* *or women,* *or dreams.* * Not human rights,* *or democracy,* *or missiles,* *or government.* *Or religion,* *or god,* *or faith,* *or thought.* *Not philosophy,* *or science,* *or family,* *or love.* *And of course, every story ever told is just another part of the world.* *All of them are neither outside the world nor the world's limits.* *The world...&* *To put it in words, it's a container.* *The world can't be anything other than a container.* *A container can't be filled with other containers.* *All the different materials which make up the world are incapable of filling us.* *That's why I say this.* *No one can tell you what you should fill that container with.* Hasaki: What was that? Tomosane: Huh? I was just talking to myself. Forget it. Hasaki: Grr. Tomosane: Wh-What? Hasaki: You and Yuki-san are always saying things that are hard to understand, like you figured something out. It's not fair. Tomosane: What do you mean, it's not fair? Besides, it's not a big deal. Hasaki: But it sounded like it was really hard to understand. Tomosane: Hard to understand? It wasn't anything important. Tomosane: It's something that everyone knows. The old man down the street, the cashier at the dollar store, and even the bearded taxi driver. Hasaki: They all understand what you just said? Tomosane: Yeah. Hasaki: Wh-Why is that? Tomosane: Live happily! Tomosane: That's all. Hasaki: Jeez, I don't get it. Tomosane: Don't overthink it. The most important thing to remember is that it's a command. Hasaki: A command? Tomosane: Yes. Those who consider themselves unfortunate spend most of their time complaining. No matter how unfortunate you believe your life to be, you must live happily! Tomosane: That's all. Tomosane: And... Hasaki: Whoa! *I grabbed Hasaki's head in a vice grip.* Tomosane: That's how you're already living, so don't worry about it. *I ruminated on the words of a genius, the world's most difficult philosopher.* *Even though it's such an easy answer, which everyone already knows, arriving at that answer was difficult beyond measure.* *The reason why is because God lives in these words.* *"To believe in a God means to understand the question about the meaning of life."* *"To believe in a God means to see that the facts of the world are not the end of the matter."* *"To believe in a God means to see that life has a meaning."* *That God doesn't need to work miracles.* *He didn't create the world in one week.* *He fundamentally does nothing.* *Even then, he irresponsibly tells us...* *He whispers in our ears that we must "live happily."* *All he did was establish the workings of the universe, and he didn't do it for anyone's sake in particular.* *That's the truth of the person we call God.* *All the world's lies, injustices, fakes, lechers, and filth... All of those are permitted by God.* *No matter what injustices befall us in life, God still says to us.* *"Live happily!"* *On a whim, I decided to say something to my mother.* Tomosane: Live happily. That's what God has told us. Kotomi: ... *She looked at me with dead eyes.* *So I said to her...* Tomosane: Everything has been saved. Hasaki and me were saved, and so were you, Takuji, and Dad, too. Tomosane: Don't drown in your sorrow. That sorrow is nothing more than a liquor to get you drunk on happiness. Tomosane: You shouldn't use alcohol to fill the void inside you, though. Tomosane: What container is worth filling? *I posed that question to my mother.* *I was just talking to myself.* *I left the apartment.* Hasaki: I'm going to the store. Tomosane: Yeah, sure. I'm gonna go home and take a nap. Hasaki: What are you talking about? You have a shift to work tonight. Tomosane: Do I? Hasaki: You do * And you can't skip out on work today."* Tomosane: Yeah, I gotcha. *Hasaki and I parted ways after that.* *Hasaki went straight to the train station, but I decided to walk.* *I walked through the unfamiliar city and came to the river.* *If you follow this road, you'll come to a place near Suginomiya.* *I walked alone down the river terrace.* *"Hey, Unidentified Minor #1! It's been a while!"* Tomosane: ... *I met another person I didn't really want to see.* *Or in his case, the probability is higher that I was tailed by a person I didn't really want to see.* *"So the trial is over... Congratulations."* Kimura: Even if you were found not guilty, is it really safe for you to be out walking alone? Kimura: Your face and name got posted all over the Internet. There were a lot of people who weren't happy with that ruling. Tomosane: Seems like it, huh? Kimura: Yeah, for sure. Is it okay for you to be taking a leisurely walk outside? Tomosane: It's been more than a year since that incident. Nothing has happened so far, so it should be fine, right? Kimura: No, no, don't you think you could get in trouble? Tomosane: How? I haven't had any trouble. I'm just living my life like normal. Kimura: Really? Isn't it scary that a bunch of people you don't know are talking about you? Tomosane: I'm not afraid of what other people think. They're not people I know. Kimura: Oh, look at you. You really are strong. Tomosane: I don't care if they're not happy about the ruling. If they want to do something, then they should confront me directly. Kimura: Directly? You know that there's no one who can fight you and hope to win Tomosane: A few people tried, though. Kimura: They did? Tomosane: They were gangsters or thugs, I think. I'm not sure, but they thought they were tough. They came after me a few times. Kimura: Ahaha... I see. How did that go? Tomosane: Nothing really happened. They weren't any different from the guys I ran into around here. None of them were on the same level as Yuki or Master. Kimura: It seems like a lot of lowlifes do that nowadays. Some of them even post on social media that they're looking for someone to fight. Kimura: Your picture and address might've been posted on those sites, you know? Tomosane: I don't really care. Kimura: Jeez, you're always so cool-headed. You could at least humor me and look a little upset. Tomosane: Are you still investigating? Kimura: If I called it an investigation... it would be a lie. Kimura: You're not valuable enough for a weekly magazine to keep chasing now. Tomosane: Then why are you here? Kimura: Just personal interest. Is that good enough? Tomosane: Hmph. Do you think I'm going to play along? Kimura: Who knows? *Kimura slowly followed after me when I walked away.* *I had no reason to run away either, so we kept walking, looking as if we were going somewhere together.* Kimura: What was the deal with that whole incident, anyway? Tomosane: ... Kimura: Why did it turn into such a ridiculous situation? Tomosane: It's your job to figure that out. Kimura: Yeah, it's my job. Tomosane: But didn't you already finish that job? Kimura: Yeah, but my hobby is just an extension of my job, so I don't really mind. Tomosane: How convenient. *I wanted to point out all the flaws in his logic, but...* Kimura: I was thinking... I wonder why so many people played along with his absurd tragedy. Kimura: Normally, no one would play along with that kind of absurd farce. Kimura: How did he even know the world was ending? And why would someone want to kill themselves before it ends? I don't understand it. Tomosane: He didn't want anyone to kill themselves. From his perspective, they were all just returning to the sky. Kimura: Now that you mention it, there were a lot of people who took part in that group suicide even though they weren't students at Kita High. Tomosane: ... Kimura: Even those who weren't alumni at the school―people who were completely unrelated―were involved. Kimura: Group hysteria... That's what they called it in the newspapers and magazines. Kimura: But then why did so many unrelated people end up dying? Kimura: That kind of hysteria only occurs in group settings. People from all over, even completely unrelated people, gathered in that place. Tomosane: I don't know much about this, but aren't they saying that all that crazy stuff happened because the whole group was suffering from hysteria? Kimura: I guess that's what they've been saying, but that doesn't really explain anything, does it? Kimura: None of those unrelated people were registered on the underground message board either. Kimura: I don't know how they all heard about it, but it seems like they all came for different reasons. Tomosane: Apparently some people just heard rumors that they could have sex there. Kimura: Yeah, of course, but isn't it ridiculous that they would die just to have sex? Tomosane: I guess so. Kimura: But after I spent so much time reading the forums, I'm not really surprised that people would do that. Tomosane: They would die just to have sex? Kimura: I guess they would. It seems ridiculous to me. Kimura: It actually seems like a pretty common scene in this world... That's what I think. Tomosane: A pretty common scene? Kimura: Yeah, it can even seem perfectly natural for this kind of incident to happen. Sometimes I fall prey to that illusion. Tomosane: No, I don't think it can be natural. Kimura: Of course, it doesn't actually happen that easily, but sometimes it really does happen. Tomosane: Sometimes? Kimura: Every time we hear rumors about missile attacks from neighboring countries, a new strain of a virus that could wipe out humanity, or a prophecy about some great disaster that is going to strike us. Kimura: It happens every time. Tomosane: What does? Kimura: They say, 'Here it is at last.' Tomosane: Here it is at last? Kimura: A young man once said that war is the only solution, and he became famous overnight. Kimura: If a war starts, then it will at least change the situation we're stuck in. So sometimes we need to wage war. Kimura: In a sense, that's a logical way of thinking. Kimura: But that's not all it is. Kimura: Every time someone predicts a great disaster, you hear these words. *Now I can finally die.* *Now it's finally over.* Tomosane: Hmm... If you want to die, then you should just go and die already. Kimura: No, I totally agree. They should. Kimura: If they want to die, then they should. Why do they have to wait for some disaster to kill them? Kimura: That's right... Kimura: But you know, every time one of these disasters is predicted, you see people online saying that they can finally die. Kimura: Even if it's not quite the end of the world, all they need is a large-scale disaster. Kimura: With that, they can say that it's finally over. Kimura: Why do they look for a reason to end it? Tomosane: A reason... Kimura: Yes... A reason to die. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: I see. So then what are you trying to say, as a journalist? Tomosane: Are you trying to say that our repressive society caused this incident? Kimura: Oh, that's a good one. Our repressive society... The feeling of repression spreading among our youth is the real cause of this incident! That would be a good headline. Kimura: Hahahaha, you have talent, Tomosane-kun. Why don't you become a writer? You wouldn't make it as a journalist, but we still have plenty of room for extra writers. Tomosane: Haa... What did you really come here for? Kimura: Hahahaha... Our repressive society, huh * This country has definitely been dominated by that kind of atmosphere for a while now."* Kimura: This city, you know... Kimura: Once upon a time, people called this place a new town. Kimura: That was before I was born. It was a long time ago that this city was new. Kimura: It was new before we ever knew it. Kimura: All sorts of things were new before we were ever born. Kimura: A world of only new things... Kimura: Everything was new, and everything in the world was complete. Tomosane: Haa... Can I say something? Tomosane: Don't you think there were a lot of people who felt like they were being repressed, even in the distant past? Tomosane: It's not just the modern generation. There have always been those people. Kimura: Oh, then how about this? Kimura: How vast is the earth? How far is the past? I face a great foe, and hope I will last. Kimura: Learnt of Horatio, but truly all for naught. Kimura: The world's lies, all told... Kimura: The truth which I sought. Kimura: Fire burns in my chest. I seek my final rest. Kimura: No hell for fearing, nor lord for saving. Now I see with hope, hopelessness melding. Tomosane: Is that Fujimura Misao? Kimura: Oh, I thought you would recognize it. That was a poem called 'To Stand Upon a Great Precipice.' Tomosane: I don't really understand, but that was the suicide note left by a high school student who committed suicide at the Kegon waterfall in the Meiji era, am I right? Kimura: Yeah, yeah. Tomosane: I heard there were a lot of copycat suicides afterward, too. Kimura: That's true, there were. People always feel like they're being repressed by society, no matter what era it is. Kimura: As if their human life has no value in this universe, in this world... Kimura: Not only in this era. Tomosane: Then... Kimura: Then... what do you think? Tomosane: ... Kimura: It's not something that only happens in the modern era. This wasn't the only time... Kimura: But the only era we can live in is this one. Kimura: We aren't living in the same era as Fujimura Misao, Natsume Souseki, or Ozaki Housai. Kimura: The suffering we experience is our own, present suffering. Kimura: Not the suffering of someone from a distant past. Kimura: The pain we feel right now will never belong to anyone else. That's why it's precious. Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: Are you okay, Kimura-san? Did Mamiya Takuji decide to possess you next? Kimura: No, no, hahahaha... No, I just got a bit worked up. Tomosane: ... Tomosane: I see. The pain we feel right now will never belong to anyone else, huh? Tomosane: Well... Honestly, I think that's a pretty boring argument. Kimura: Really? Tomosane: For instance, you say 'our' pain, when really it's just one person's pain. Your pronoun usage is all over the place. Kimura: Oh wow, I guess you're right. Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: But I understand that feeling. Tomosane: The feeling when you want to say, 'This is my pain, not anyone else's.' *Kimura and I kept walking on and on along the river embankment.* *On and on...* Kimura: What I'm trying to get at is... what is our raison d'etre? Tomosane: Raison d'etre? Kimura: I mean to ask what our life is worth. Tomosane: Ah... Kimura: The meaning of life... Kimura: Well, everyone gets a bit existential when they're teenagers. It's an unsolvable problem that everyone thinks about, and everyone believes a certain way about, but no one can answer for sure. Kimura: Maybe that's why the question has such an allure. Tomosane: Do you think so? Kimura: Don't you? Kimura: Well, it certainly depends on the person, too. Some people worry about it more than others. Kimura: But everyone who's ever felt powerless has worried about the meaning of their life, right? Kimura: Is there ultimately a meaning to my life, or yours, or anyone else's? To any human life? Is there some meaning behind our existence? Everyone wonders that sometimes. Tomosane: I see. Kimura: That's the question you have to wrestle with all your life, no matter how rich or poor you are. Well, it's still better to have money, though. Kimura: People always feel a certain anxiety toward their own raison d'etre. That question of why we exist. Kimura: D'ou venons-nous? Que Sommes-nous? Ou allons-nous? Tomosane: Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? Kimura: That's right. That was the final painting by the French artist Paul Gauguin. He gave it that name right before he committed suicide. Tomosane: It was technically just a suicide attempt, though. Kimura: Hahahaha, that's right. Kimura: The moon which is a dream, and the sixpence which is reality... Where did we come from, and where we going? Tomosane: Isn't it all just from the cradle to the grave? Kimura: Hahahaha, what's that? You mean to say that the object of human effort should always be on improving our lives in this world? Tomosane: That's what a human life is, isn't it? Kimura: ... Kimura: It might be... Kimura: That might be all there is in our lives. Kimura: Especially for us, who were born into a world where everything has already been set up and manufactured for us. Isn't it kind of cruel? Tomosane: Hehehe... Now we're criticizing modern society? Kimura: Ahahaha, I guess so. I suppose that's what it sounds like, ahaha. Tomosane: ... *How long had we been walking?* *The water flowing in the river now reflected a sheen of golden light.* *Our two shadows, standing side by side, had also grown longer and darker.* Tomosane: Is there any meaning to the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle? Kimura: Huh? What do you mean? Tomosane: Every individual piece of a jigsaw puzzle has no meaning whatsoever. Tomosane: Each one is completely meaningless in its existence. Tomosane: From the way you're talking, a human being is an existence no better than a single piece of a jigsaw puzzle. Kimura: No better than a single piece of a jigsaw puzzle... Tomosane: Yes. Without a place to fit. For instance, if a person has no place they belong, then that one piece has no meaning. Kimura: ... Tomosane: One piece of a jigsaw puzzle. One misshapen fragment. Tomosane: Without a place where it fits, it's just an ugly, meaningless existence. Kimura: That's... Tomosane: But is a human life really equal to a single puzzle piece? Tomosane: Are we really puzzle pieces? Kimura: ... Tomosane: A piece of a puzzle has a place where it fits because of its outside edge. Kimura: Because of its outside edge? Tomosane: Yeah. It fits right into a place in the puzzle because of its exterior. Kimura: Its exterior... Tomosane: Yes, its exterior. Tomosane: Take that argument to its logical end. Where is the outside edge on my world, or the outside edge on your world? Kimura: The outside edge of my world... Tomosane: That's right. Where is the world which your world is supposed to fit into? Tomosane: The place where my world fits perfectly like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle... Does such a larger world even exist? Tomosane: What I think is... Tomosane: We have no exterior. Tomosane: Our world has no exterior. Tomosane: This world, including you, this river, the sun, and even the bloodshot sky overhead. Tomosane: There is no exterior or anything. Tomosane: It's all just the world. Tomosane: It's all just my world. Kimura: Is that solipsism? Kimura: The world is only in your head. Your own existence is the world. Tomosane: Who knows? I'm not sure, myself. Tomosane: I don't really feel like I'm alone in the world. Tomosane: You're right in front of my eyes, so you definitely exist. I would even go so far as to say that Minakami Yuki and the Wakatsuki sisters existed as well, even if they didn't exist to you. Tomosane: But still, even then, my world ends at the limit of my world. Tomosane: I don't know anything beyond the limit of my own world. I have no way of knowing anything else. Tomosane: That's why I'm only me. Tomosane: It's a bit strange for me to say this after sharing my body with multiple people. No, especially because of that, I can say that I'm no one except myself. Tomosane: I'm not this arm, this leg, this heart, this body, or even this brain. Tomosane: Of course, I'm not the road, the river, or the sky either. Tomosane: I'm me. Tomosane: And my world is the world. There is no exterior to that world. Tomosane: So I don't need a meaning. Tomosane: My world needs no addendum. Tomosane: The world is not a piece of a jigsaw puzzle. Tomosane: Just look at how wide our world is. It extends out into the infinite vastness of space and time. Kimura: Space and time? Tomosane: How wide is our brain? Tomosane: The brain is wider than the sky. Tomosane: For, put them side by side, the one the other will include... Tomosane: With ease, and you beside. Tomosane: The brain is deeper than the sea. Tomosane: For, hold them, blue to blue... Tomosane: The one the other will absorb... Tomosane: As sponges, buckets do. Tomosane: The brain is just the weight of God. Tomosane: For, lift them, pound for pound... Tomosane: And they will differ, if they do... Tomosane: As syllable from sound. Tomosane: You know? Kimura: What was that? Tomosane: That was Emily Dickinson. Kimura: Oh, Dickinson, the American poet. It's impressive that you know her at your age. Tomosane: There's no need to look for a meaning in life. Tomosane: There's no need to hesitate in the face of an incomprehensible existence. Tomosane: There's no need to hesitate in the face of the incomprehensibility of this world, this universe, this sky, this river, or this road. Tomosane: It's all so vast that it can absorb everything which is a human life. Tomosane: It's just the size of God. Tomosane: It's just the weight of God. Tomosane: It's a beautiful syllable and a beautiful sound. Kimura: ... *Kimura laughed.* *His face kind of got on my nerves.* Kimura: Ooh, you're pretty good too. You really know how to talk. Tomosane: Wha― Kimura: Hehehehe... What's wrong? You always act so tough, like no one could ever get under your skin. Tomosane: I-I'm not trying to act tough or anything... Kimura: Come on, it's nothing to get embarrassed about. Tomosane: Sh-Shut up! Kimura: All right, but that was really funny. Kimura: We have no exterior... Kimura: I see... Kimura: It's true. Even if we had an exterior, it would just be another part of the world we know. Kimura: Maybe, at some point, we started looking for some kind of exterior. We started trying to see some kind of scene which we can never see. Tomosane: A scene that doesn't exist... Kimura: That's right. Kimura: The far shore. A better place. An exterior world. The world of the gods. That's what it is, no matter what you call it. Kimura: So people fall into despair. Kimura: They despair of the meaning in their lives, the meaning in their worlds, the meaning in their selves. Kimura: Despair might be a word which describes people who are trying to see a scene which can never be seen. Tomosane: Trying to see a scene which can never be seen... Kimura: Of course! When we try to speak of a scene which can never be seen, our words trip on themselves, standing meaningless in space and explaining nothing. Kimura: If you think of it that way, looking at the scene which can never be seen and feeling the emotion of despair, it's like unrequited love. Tomosane: Huh? Despair is unrequited love? What are you talking about? Kimura: Why do people try to see the exterior which can never exist? Kimura: Because they wish that it could exist! Kimura: People look to the outside because they hope for it to exist. There might be no one out there, no one and nothing. They look to the outside because they're not even sure if that outside exists. Kimura: Why is that? Tomosane: Haa... Because of that longing? Kimura: That's right. Despair is longing. Kimura: And that longing is actually very similar to unrequited love. Tomosane: Haa... Tomosane: I don't agree at all. Kimura: Really? I think you agree, more than you know. Tomosane: Despair is longing, and that longing is like an unrequited love... Tomosane: It's like hearing some desperate virgin who lashes out at people because of his insecurities. Kimura: Hm? Tomosane: Huh? Kimura: Hmmm? Tomosane: Wh-What? Kimura: Huuuh? Tomosane: Wh-What are you laughing at? Kimura: Yuuki-kun, weren't you a virgin? Tomosane: Wha―Th-That's not... Kimura: Hehehehe... You know, I might look dim, but I've investigated your past very thoroughly. Kimura: There were an awful lot of bad rumors about you, but in reality you don't have any experience with women. Tomosane: Wh-What have you been investigating?! Kimura: Huh? That's my job, you know! Tomosane: Th-Then maybe I am a virgin... Kimura: Hehehehe... You guys can't legally get married, either. Tomosane: Wha―! Kimura: There are ethical problems there, too. Tomosane: K-Kimura! Have you been going behind my back?! Kimura: Hahahaha, but the law has nothing to do with real love. People will fall in love no matter what the punishment. Kimura: Romeo and Juliet! Tomosane: No, that's not actually a story about incest... Kimura: Oh? So it really is your sister? Tomosane: Huh?! Kimura: Ooh, I better get going! Tomosane: Kimura, you asshole! Get back here! Kimura: No thanks. I'd like to keep all my bones intact, if you don't mind. Kimura: Make sure you wear a rubber, kid. Not like I really care, though. Tomosane: Kimura! *Kimura ran and jumped down off the embankment.* *Then he disappeared into the city.* *Dusk enveloped the city.* *The sky slowly turned a darker shade of red, and the buildings' shadows grew longer by the moment.* *When the world sank into darkness, the lights came on in the city.* *The lights of human activity buzzed into life.* Tomosane: Better get going. I have work tonight. *I had a shift to work tonight.* *I play the piano at that same bar.* *I play the piano however I feel like, and occasionally I even take requests from the customers. But mostly, I just play.*

*3.0321* *We could present spatially an atomic fact which contradicted the laws of physics,* *but not one which contradicted the laws of geometry.* *Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein - "Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus"* *"..."* *"......"* *"A transparent..."* *"A transparent white?"* *"..."* *"No, that's not it."* *"There's no such thing as a transparent white."* *"If it's white, then it's not transparent. So I guess it's only half-transparent."* *"But still, this isn't really half-transparent."* *"If I had to describe this..."* *"It's..."* *"A transparent white."* *"This is... that."* *'Light.'* *"Light."* *"Light?"* *"This is."* *"Just light."* *"That's right... That's it."* *"This is..."* *"Light."* Yuki: The sound of cicadas. Yuki: Is this the rooftop? *I looked around and found myself in a familiar place. It was the Building A rooftop.* Yuki: Why? Why am I here? *Mamiya Tomosane jumped off the roof to protect Hasaki, and then...* *And then...* *What happened?* Yuki: What day is today? Right now, it should be... *I looked at the clock.* *The date was July 20th, 2012.* Yuki: It's been a whole day. *Mamiya Tomosane definitely fell from the rooftop, and before that, he received a serious knife wound in his chest.* *I didn't know what condition his body was in, but he couldn't possibly have gotten released from the hospital already.* *The fact that I was standing there was most definitely unnatural.* Yuki: What's going on? *Did Mamiya Tomosane survive?* * No, the fact that I'm standing here, in such a strange place, means that I have to assume he's dead.* *Either that, or this is the world of dreams again.* *Or maybe this is a lucid dream?* *I tried pinching my cheek.* Yuki: Ow, that hurts. *If it was a dream, even a lucid dream, I would have felt less pain than normal.* *Since I felt pain when I pinched my cheek, that meant that the scene unfolding before me was real.* Yuki: Otonashi Ayana... san. Ayana: It has been a while. Yuki: Has it? Ayana: Hasn't it? Yuki: But it's only been one day since the last time we saw each other, hasn't it? Ayana: Yes. Yuki: Hey, uh... Ayana: What? Yuki: What happened to Mamiya Tomosane, anyway? Ayana: Why are you asking that? Yuki: W-Well, I'm curious. I'm just another personality that he created, after all. Ayana: Then he's alive, right? Yuki: What do you mean by that? Ayana: Hypothesis #1: If you are a personality that was created by Mamiya Tomosane, then the fact that you still exist is enough reason to believe that Mamiya Tomosane's body is still alive. Yuki: B-But that doesn't make sense. Ayana: Why not? Yuki: Because he suffered serious wounds. He couldn't have come back here after just one day. Ayana: I agree. Yuki: Even if my personality did come to the surface, it'd be in a hospital bed or something. Ayana: Then, hypothesis #2: You didn't come into existence as a result of dissociative identity disorder. Ayana: Your existence is a continuation of the same person who existed in the past. You have the same soul as the real Minakami Yuki. If your soul merely came to reside in Mamiya Tomosane's body, then the reason must be... Ayana: That must mean Mamiya Tomosane has died. Yuki: N-No way... Ayana: Or how about this, hypothesis #3: If this is a dream that you're having, then... Ayana: The Otonashi Ayana standing in front of you would be just another character in your dream. That hypothesis is also fairly convincing. Ayana: Now then, which explanation for the current situation do you prefer? Yuki: Which do I prefer? That's not the problem at hand. Ayana: Hypothesis #4: You are just a figment of my imagination. A hallucination being produced by my brain. In other words, you don't exist. Yuki: Ahahaha. Then what about me, the person having all of these thoughts right now? Yuki: I think, therefore I am, right? Ayana: Those thoughts could result from my brain activity as well. One part of my brain could simply perceive itself as a separate personality. Ayana: In other words, the fact that you think is not sufficient proof of your existence. Ayana: You can't deny the possibility that the presently existing Minakami Yuki is actually just another personality which I created. Ayana: After seeing that three personalities can simultaneously exist in one body, you should understand that possibility better than anyone. Ayana: The fact that you can think is not sufficient proof of your existence. Yuki: Um, there's something I'd like to know. Ayana: What's that? Yuki: Like I was saying, what happened after everything that happened here? Ayana: If you wish to know that, then you should go find out yourself. You can open the door and go out into the outside world at any time. That's all you need to do. Yuki: ... *It was just as she said.* *If I felt like it, I could leave at any time.* *I could leave the rooftop and go see the outside world.* *If I did that, then I could get my wish. I could see the aftermath of everything that happened.* *But...* Yuki: If I go outside, huh? Ayana: Yes. Yuki: That's definitely one option, but can I ask you something? Ayana: What? Yuki: What day is today? Ayana: July 20th, 2012. Yuki: Which means that tomorrow is the first day of summer vacation? Ayana: Yes. Tomorrow is the first day of summer vacation. *Yesterday, a group suicide happened here.* *Summer vacation or no, that would make this a crime scene.* *And yet, looking out from the rooftop...* *Everything looked perfectly normal.* *Students walking through the halls.* *Students chatting in the classrooms.* *Teachers lecturing their students.* *Everything was completely normal.* *This couldn't be the aftermath of such a tragedy.* Ayana: What's wrong? Yuki: Is that the last hypothesis you have? Ayana: Do you want to hear another hypothesis? Ayana: We can come up with as many explanations as you would like. It's possible to create as many different annotations for this world as you want. Ayana: If that is what you wish, then we can make as many as you like. Yuki: What is the 'End Sky' that Takuji-kun was talking about? Yuki: That is a word which wasn't in either Kotomi-san's prophecy or the White Lotus Association's prophecy. Ayana: End Sky... It is just that, 'the sky of the end.' Yuki: Who gave it that name, and when? Ayana: Memory... Yuki: Memory? Ayana: Spirit room. End Sky. Yuki: Wha-! Ayana: Hehehehe. So you do remember it. Yuki: I remember it? Those memories can't be right... Ayana: Really? Yuki: B-But that's really strange, isn't it? Ayana: How so? Yuki: But, I mean, that was a dream I saw when I got dragged into Takashima-san's suicide, right? Yuki: Isn't that really strange? Ayana: What's strange about it? Yuki: I mean, after that, when I got involved in Takashima-san's suicide... It's like the whole sequence of events got messed up. I remember experiencing her suicide a second time after that. Ayana: Hypothesis #5: You still haven't woken from that dream. Yuki: That dream? Ayana: The Minakami Yuki that got dragged into Takashima Zakuro's suicide is still having that same dream at this very moment. Yuki: A-A dream? This is a dream? No, there's no way this could be a dream... Ayana: Okay. Then, hypothesis #6: Your memories of the spirit room and the End Sky are all false memories. Ayana: The constant changes of personality caused your memories to get confused, and as a result you just dreamed about the spirit room. Ayana: Takashima Zakuro didn't actually fall on you when she jumped off the building. That was just a result of your confused memory. Yuki: Then why did Takuji-kun use that same word, 'End Sky,' that appeared in my dream?! Ayana: You both share the same brain. It shouldn't be surprising that he knows about that. Yuki: B-But then... Ayana: The last scene you saw... Are you interested in that sky? Yuki: Ah! *The last thing I saw... That sky...* *The scene which Mamiya Takuji-kun saw at that very moment when he jumped.* *I felt like I knew that scene, somehow.* Ayana: A world which repeats from a certain point... Yuki: Huh? Ayana: Would you confirm it? Yuki: C-Confirm what? Ayana: Are you really Minakami Yuki-san? Yuki: Wh-What are you asking me now? Isn't that what you called me, yourself? Ayana: Yuki-san... Who is Minakami Yuki-san? Yuki: Huh? Ayana: Yuki-san was a person who existed in the past. That person died in the act of saving Mamiya Hasaki. After that, she also existed as another personality that manifested in Mamiya Tomosane's body. Ayana: In that case, who is the Yuki-san standing here right now? The Yuki-san that died? Or the Yuki-san who was created as another one of Mamiya Tomosane's personalities? Yuki: I-I can't answer that question... I don't know. Ayana: You don't know. That's why you asked me. Ayana: A final annotation. Ayana: A question for you, Yuki-san. Ayana: How many Yuki-sans exist in this world? Yuki: Huh? Ayana: One Yuki-san was born in Sawaimura, and she died in Sawaimura. Another one was created as one of Mamiya Tomosane's personalities. And then, one more Yuki-san exists who is standing here, talking to me. Ayana: That is the problem. How many Minakami Yuki-sans came before you? Yuki: I-I don't know. Wait, I'm me. There aren't any others! Ayana: The Yuki-san that died in Sawaimura, the Yuki-san inside Tomosane-kun, and the Yuki-san here now are all the same. Ayana: Then what about the other Yuki-sans that might exist? Yuki: The other copies of me that might exist? Ayana: Yes. The Yuki-sans that existed as other personalities. Would they be you as well, Yuki-san? Yuki: I don't know. Were there really that many of me?! Ayana: But the reality is that you weren't just one person. Ayana: The Yuki-san that was caught up in Takashima Zakuro's suicide, the Yuki-san that died in Sawaimura, the Yuki-san that was created by Tomosane-kun, and the Yuki-san that is right here. Yuki: I don't know. I'm just me. Ayana: The scene you saw in the spirit room... The End Sky. When did that scene happen? Yuki: Scene? Yuki: Ah! *At that moment, strangely enough, I remembered the expiration date on a bag of potato chips I found in that attraction.* *I remembered the date on the calendar on the wall.* *I didn't at all understand what it meant, but...* *Somehow, I remembered that date.* *I didn't know whether those words had any meaning.* *The only thing that particularly stood out in my mind was the date.* Ayana: The final annotation that I could give you... Ayana: Hypothesis #7: Every existence was created by one soul. Yuki: Wh-What do you mean? Ayana: Hehehehe. If all of the different Yuki-sans that existed really were Yuki-san, then the world doesn't require very many souls to exist. Ayana: If a single soul viewed every perspective, that would be enough. Yuki: I don't understand what you're saying. That's... Ayana: Takashima Zakuro, Mamiya Tomosane, and Mamiya Takuji. Even Mamiya Hasaki, Wakatsuki Kagami, and Wakatsuki Tsukasa. A single soul saw each and every one of those scenes. Yuki: That would be too strange. The time overlaps. Ayana: If you're going to say that, then you have to consider that the Yuki-san who was caught up in Takashima Zakuro-san's suicide existed at the same time as the Yuki-san who was not caught up in her suicide. Ayana: Ubiquitous transmigration. Yuki: Ubiquitous transmigration? Ayana: The endless reincarnation of a single soul. Ayana: Beyond the pale of time and space, the soul reincarnates endlessly. If that was possible, then the entire world wouldn't need more than one soul. Ayana: The world is created through the endless transmigration of just one soul. Ayana: It would be more unnatural for every living organism to have its own soul. The number of organisms is different in every moment. There would always be too many or too few souls for all the living organisms in the world. Ayana: So if the number of souls is just one, reincarnation would be the most suitable answer. Ayana: If one soul lives in all of life, then there is no problem. Yuki: That's... ridiculous. Ayana: Is it? Ayana: This explanation could solve a great number of the world's mysteries. Yuki: Like what? Ayana: Why are people able to understand each other? Ayana: If every person is a different existence, with a different perspective... If every person has a different world, then how do people understand each other? Ayana: You can't explain it. Ayana: If they both see the color red, how do they know that they're both seeing the same red color? Ayana: Tomosane-kun talked about a thought experiment, where one person might see the world through glasses that mirrored the world left to right and top to bottom. Ayana: I can understand that I am seeing the same world as other people because there is a consistency with the world that other people see. Ayana: But where does that understanding come from? Ayana: How can you say that the sensations of sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste which I feel are the same as those which others feel? Ayana: For instance... Pain. Ayana: How do I understand another person's pain? Yuki: From their expression or behavior. You can listen to the words they're saying, too. Ayana: That doesn't make for a sufficient explanation. In that case, the 'pain' which I understand could be different than the 'pain' which he or she is feeling. Yuki: Then you have to use your imagination. Ayana: Imagination. In other words, you can feel another person's pain by imagining that they feel the same pain that you do. Ayana: Then let's suppose that I feel 'pain' in this arm. Then I move that 'pain' to my fingertips. Ayana: Then I move the 'pain' from my fingertips to the ground when I touch it with my fingertips. Then at that moment, I should feel 'pain' in the ground. Then I move that 'pain' from the ground into your leg. Ayana: That's how I would move the 'pain' I feel from my body to another person so that I could feel their pain. Ayana: That's the only way you could 'imagine another person's pain.' Ayana: That 'pain' could be attributed to the ground, the clothes you wear, or even a book or desk. If you simply attribute pain to another thing through your imagination, then it holds no more meaning than 'pain' attributed to a book or a desk. Yuki: I can base my understanding in the pain which I can feel, but I have to use my imagination to feel pain which I cannot feel. Yuki: That argument comes from the philosopher Wittgenstein, doesn't it? Yuki: To feel another person's pain is not the same thing as using your imagination to move the pain from your body to another person's body. Ayana: Hehehehe. You know the answer, but you're playing dumb. Ayana: Why does 'pain' hold the same meaning for both you and another person? Yuki: I see. So you're trying to say that every person is just another 'me,' right? Ayana: Yes. That is hypothesis #7. Ayana: Every single person is 'me,' including the miserable wretch and the beautiful girl. Ayana: Both the young man who becomes a bully and the young man who is bullied. Ayana: The pathetic, the filthy, the beautiful, and the proud. All of them are 'me.' Ayana: The entire world is made up of 'me.' That's why I can understand you. Ayana: I understand your pain. I understand your sadness. I understand your happiness. Ayana: The world has an infinite number of 'me.' Yuki: That's a really grotesque theory, isn't it? Ayana: But hypothesis #7 would explain everything. It would explain everything which you felt was incomprehensible in this world. Yuki: That's not the only explanation. There are plenty of explanations that would explain it. Yuki: God created the world as it is five minutes ago. Martians came to Earth and messed with the memory of everyone on Earth. You could come up with as many ridiculous explanations as you want. Yuki: But those are all... Ayana: Places whereof we cannot speak. Yuki: Haa... So what then? What does it mean if hypothesis #7 is correct? Did the first soul come into existence when the world's first lifeform was born? Yuki: Or did it all come from some kind of special place in time or space? Did everything originate from a certain point like that? Ayana: Hehehehe. It could be said to start from any point you wish. Ayana: For instance, maybe it started at the moment of Takashima Zakuro-san's suicide. The ubiquitous transmigration of souls. Yuki: Living through the same world over and over as different versions of 'me'... So you mean she might've lived through a different future? Ayana: Or perhaps it was on that summer day when Yuki-san died in Sawaimura when the soul began its ubiquitous transmigration. Ayana: Or perhaps it was a mysterious point in the past which you don't remember. Perhaps everything began at one point, when the End Sky appeared. The ubiquitous transmigration of souls... Yuki: When the End Sky appeared? Yuki: What do you mean? Is there such a point? Ayana: It's just a hypothesis. That is one more possibility which you could imagine. Ayana: A certain point, a day which was called the end of the world... Even though the world ended at that point, the soul continues to make the world loop time and time again, as if it still existed. Yuki: What kind of hypothesis is that? Ayana: It's just an annotation. It's just one more kind of explanation which we could come up with. Ayana: I don't know whether you prefer that explanation over the last. Yuki: If I... prefer it? Yuki: Haa... *I closed my eyes.* *...* *Maybe the world ended a long time ago, in the distant past.* *The soul which I call 'me'... I feel like it must have taken these same actions millions or billions of times already.* *Maybe I acted the role of every single one of the world's souls.* *At times I'm Minakami Yuki.* *At times I'm Mamiya Takuji.* *At times I'm Yuuki Tomosane.* *At times I'm Takashima Zakuro.* *At times I'm Mamiya Hasaki.* *At times I'm Wakatsuki Kagami.* *At times I'm Wakatsuki Tsukasa.* *At times I'm Minakami Yuki.* *At times I'm Mamiya Takuji.* *At times I'm Yuuki Tomosane.* *At times I'm Takashima Zakuro.* *At times I'm Mamiya Hasaki.* *At times I'm Wakatsuki Kagami.* *At times I'm Wakatsuki Tsukasa.* *And...* *Once again...* *I feel as if I'm doing it all for the first time.* *Well...* *It doesn't really matter either way.* *Now...* *That's it.* *The sky.* *It's the sky.* *I can see the sky.* *Why is the sky...* *Why is the sky blue?* *And why...* *Why do we sense that it is blue?* *The endless sky.* *The blue of the sky.* *It must be...* *...probably.* *Where does the sky lead to?* *It must...* *It must lead to the skies of all the rest of the world.* *Which means that this sky leads to...* *The End Sky.* *No, they're not connected.* *...* *Because, after all...* *That is...* *Something which must not be true.* *But...* *Is that true?* *"――――"* *A voice called out to me from somewhere.* *The voice of a classmate was calling out to me.* *I turned around.* Miu: Otonashi Ayana-saaan. Ayana: Hello. Miu: Haa, haa... Jeez, I was looking for you! Miu: Gosh, why are you alone here? The graduation ceremony is starting. Ayana: It's starting... Miu: That's right. It's starting right now. Ayana: Hehehehe... Miu: Wh-What is it? Ayana: It all just ended, and now we're starting again? Miu: Huh? Ayana: No, never mind. Let's go. Ayana: Let's go to that point where it all begins.

*The wind was just a little bit chilly.* *As the chilly wind blew in our faces, we held hands and walked forward.* *The first step into everyday life.* *We took one completely normal step into the future.* *We are grateful for every moment...* *As we move forward in life...* *As we go... let's laugh together.* *I promised myself in my heart that we would.* *Just like so many other lifeforms.* *I too took that first step.* * What lies before me... * *Is probably...* *A Wonderful Life.*

*Hehehehe. I am the one called Otonashi Ayana.* *This place is just one boundary.* *It is a place where a soul can repeat its journey as many times as it wishes.* *The world will change depending on the choice you make here.* *This is a question from me.* *Minakami Yuki-san.* *Mamiya Hasaki-san.* *And the End Sky.* *Or perhaps you have yet to awaken from the dream?* *Where is the place you call 'now'?* *Hehe, hehe.* *The world which you will soon see is your world too.* *Let's go to another beginning.*