Chapter 22: Captured! A Wild Animal!

And then—the next day, the second day of the school festival arrived. I’d safely received the black stone before heading home yesterday, so today I planned to just enjoy myself. Spread out before us as we gathered was a packed schoolyard, lined with colorful stalls as far as the eye could see. The savory, slightly charred scent of soy sauce—probably from grilled corn—drifted through the air.

"Hey, look at all those stalls. Now then, where should we start…? Heh heh heh… slurp."

Unable to contain my excitement, I found myself bouncing up on my tiptoes. Then, from beside me, Kaimori-chan tugged at my sleeve. Somehow, she seemed just as hyped as I was.

"Senpai, senpai! Let’s start with cotton candy!"

"Ayumi-chan’s been pushing cotton candy since yesterday. …Maybe it’s because it feels familiar—since it’s so light and fluffy? Hehe, how funny."

"Ugh, you’re so annoying, Yuno."

"I want cream puffs."

"Idiot, we’re talking about food stalls!"

I see… One vote for cotton candy, one undecided, one for cream puffs, and one firmly against cream puffs…

After combining everyone’s opinions, we decided to start with cotton candy and lined up at the stall. As we got closer, the faint smell of caramelizing sugar tickled my nose, and Yuno-chan leaned forward curiously to peek ahead.

"Huh… so that’s how they make it."

Inside a transparent casing, a cloud-like mass of white cotton candy gradually grew, as if by magic. …Yeah, watching it being made is part of the fun, isn’t it?

"Shione, um… could I have a bite too?"

"Then you can just have the whole thing."

Takahiro—who was the only one who hadn’t bought anything—immediately resorted to mooching, so being the kind person I am, I handed over my cotton candy. Besides, considering Shione-chan’s stomach capacity, it might be better to conserve for later. Ah, is this consideration? Thanks, Takahiro. That kind of subtle thoughtfulness is important.

As I smiled and nodded warmly at him, he turned red and averted his gaze.

What a shy guy. You should just accept compliments honestly, you know.

"Hey, let’s go to that next! The shooting gallery! Shooting gallery! If you knock down the targets, you get prizes! …Takamiyagi! I challenge you!"

"Do they have cream puffs as prizes…?"

"Don’t ask that with a straight face! Of course they don’t! They’d get completely smashed, wouldn’t they!?"

"Alright, alright. Next up is the shooting gallery. Let’s go!"

"Okaaay!"

After that, we made our way around the various stalls and events. We stuffed our cheeks with freshly made, piping-hot takoyaki together, and sat on the edge of our seats watching an original film made by the film club. When Kaimori-chan entered the eating contest, Kitatsuji-san and I cheered loudly from the front row, and when she placed second, Yuno-chan—though looking away—gave a small round of applause.

As for Takamiyagi-senpai, her expression never changed, so it was hard to tell if she was enjoying herself—but before I knew it, she had a festival mask tilted on her head.

…Yeah, she’s definitely having fun.

Around the time the afternoon rolled in, I finally remembered my important mission. Right, right—having fun is great and all, but I need to find Linette. Well, just because she was here yesterday doesn’t guarantee she came today, but still…

After finishing off the fried chicken skewer in my hand with a few bites, I steeled myself.

"…Everyone, gather up!"

At my call, raising the skewer like a conductor’s baton, the four heroines promptly lined up without a word. Huh? Where’s Takahiro? Looking around, I found him standing right beside me, arms crossed with his eyes closed, acting like some sort of right-hand man.

What are you trying to pull? That spot belongs to Kaimori-chan.

…Ah well. The right-hand man usually goes down in a self-sacrificial explosion near the final chapter anyway. Takahiro, you’d better start preparing your final poem now.

…Anyway.

"Out of nowhere, but—we’re going to search for someone!"

"Another game of tag…?"

"Yesterday, we were the ones running away, though."

The two first-years didn’t seem very enthusiastic, while Kitatsuji-san looked at me with a weary expression before giving a wry smile.

"So, who are we looking for today?"

"A girl with silver hair and green eyes, around fifteen years old! Her name is Linette. Um, as for what she looks like…"

I borrowed a sketchbook from someone passing by and quickly drew a portrait. It turned out slightly more girlish than I’d imagined, but the illustration came together smoothly. As expected of Shione-chan’s body—very dexterous.

Pointing at the drawing, I went over some precautions for interacting with Linette. The main thing to keep in mind was her extremely timid personality.

"Oh, so this is her. You’re as good at drawing as ever, Shione."

"She sounds like some kind of wild animal…"

"So why are we looking for her?"

"There are various reasons, but ideally, I’d like to make her Takahiro’s bride."

"…Huh?"

…Oops. My true feelings slipped out a bit. Well, that is the end goal.

For now, there are two things I want to ask her: why I’m here, and what happened to the original Shione. If it’s her, she’ll definitely know. After all, she’s a full-fledged, active witch. She’s the only one operating on a completely different fantasy level. Takamiyagi-senpai is physical strength; Linette is fantasy. Sure, she’s a bit mentally fragile, but in terms of combat ability, she’s top-tier.

Also, she’s cute. Super endearing. Congrats, Takahiro—she’s my number one favorite.

…Oops. Correction.

"Hehe… just kidding. …Actually, I think she’s the one who can solve my problem."

"Did you really correct yourself just now?"

"You basically said the same thing."

"Hey, you two first-years! Pipe down!"

"I’ve never heard someone say ‘pipe down’ in real life before."

"How old-fashioned."

"Alright, you upperclassmen are being noisy too—Shione-sensei can hear everything!"

"Good. I’m in the same year as Shione, so I’m safe."

Takahiro nodded in relief.

…So, got your farewell poem ready yet? You’d better write it neatly and keep it in your pocket.

"Alright, search operation begins! …Also, as a separate matter—if you happen to find an expressionless version of me, please report that too. She’s another key person."

"An expressionless senpai…? That’s hard to imagine…"

"That sounds a little scary."

"…She’ll probably run away too, so if you find her, just quietly let me know."

"Why are there so many wild animals at our school?"

"Isn’t that just Yozakura-senpai with a blank face…? Please don’t run away…"

Up to that point, things were progressing smoothly enough—but once I made a certain suggestion, the atmosphere started to shift.

"Just in case it’s dangerous if you run into her alone, let’s split into pairs."

"…Huh…? Dangerous…? Why…?"

"In terms of combat ability, Linette is probably on par with Takamiyagi-senpai. She could probably blow up an entire classroom with some mysterious power."

"Um… is she some kind of wild gorilla or something…?"

"Hey, Yuno! That’s rude! …Ah, sorry…"

"So anyway, we need to form pairs…"

"Is that really something two people can handle…?"

I looked around at everyone again.

…But this is a chance, isn’t it? Takahiro doesn’t necessarily have to be paired with Linette. A crisis is an opportunity, as they say.

If that’s the case, I’d like to pair him with the person I most want to set him up with… Should I go for someone he has little interaction with, or push someone with higher chances…? Wait, who even has high chances? Even if I stretch it, I can’t think of anyone…

As I compared each of them with Takahiro over and over in my head, everyone except him gradually averted their gaze and started exchanging looks. Meanwhile, Takahiro kept giving everyone this oddly desperate expression.

What’s with him? Practicing for his future heroic sacrifice or something?

After some deliberation, I finally came to a decision.

Alright, let’s expand the possibilities.

"Okay then, Takahiro-kun and Yuno-chan—"

"Takamiyagi-senpai! Will you pair up with me!?"

At some point, Yuno-chan had already moved next to Takamiyagi-senpai and was enthusiastically grabbing her hand, forcing me to abandon that pairing.

Hmm… it seems yesterday’s chase created an unexpected bond. In that case, should I play it safe?

"Then how about Kaimori-chan and Takahiro—"

"Huh, me!?"

"Hey, Kaimori-san? Want to go around with me?"

Once again, my timing was off—Kitatsuji-san stepped in, spreading her arms to block my line of sight as she invited Kaimori-chan.

…Hmm. I see. A ramen lover and the daughter of a Chinese restaurant owner… both sensible types, too. That’s a well-balanced pair. They didn’t have much interaction in the game, but… this might not be bad.

So then, the question was who to pair Takahiro with… I looked around at everyone once more. Yuno-chan with Takamiyagi-senpai, Kaimori-chan with Kitatsuji-san—and that left me and Takahiro. From here, who should I match him with…? Huh?

"Then let’s meet back here in two hours, shall we?"

"Alright! We’ll contact you if anything comes up! Stay safe!"

"Hey, wait a second, everyone—"

"Best of luck to youuu!"

"I said wait!"

Despite my desperate calls, no one turned back—they all ran off at full speed. That left just me and Takahiro standing there awkwardly. Then I sensed movement behind me, so I turned around—and for some reason, Takahiro was making a triumphant fist pump with a grin.

"W-what are you so happy about?"

"Well… things went better than I expected."

"Nothing went well at all."

"Alright, let’s go, Shione!"

With a lively tone, Takahiro took my hand and started walking. Feeling a slight sense of growth in the gentle way he led me along, I reluctantly followed.

…Fine. Just for today.

However, even after wandering all around the school building, we couldn’t find either Linette or Shione anywhere. We checked the hallways, the classrooms—even went up and down the emergency stairs. All for nothing. I was exhausted.

So, deciding to take a break somewhere out of sight, we headed up to the rooftop. Sitting down in a shaded corner, I leaned my back against the wall. The distant noise from the schoolyard drifted up on the breeze. Every now and then, a cool gust of wind passed through, faintly refreshing.

Takahiro sat down beside me.

"Still can’t find either of them…"

"Shione, are you okay? …Are you sure they were even there? Maybe you just imagined it."

"Hmm… but there’s no way I’d mistake Linette. And there’s a witness for the expressionless me, too."

"…A witness?"

"My mother saw her."

"Wait—seriously!? Where!?"

"Apparently, she was peeking into a classroom through the door yesterday."

"…I see."

Hearing that third-party testimony, Takahiro’s expression grew serious. He looked up, deep in thought, then suddenly shook his head and let out a small breath. Then, unexpectedly, he smiled—a mature, composed smile I had never seen from him before.

"What’s up, Takahiro-kun?"

"Just thinking… maybe she really is here. Honestly, I wasn’t completely sure about that part."

"Hey now, those are my words you’re doubting. That’s not allowed."

"I’m not doubting you."

His expression was serious—so firm that I instinctively recalled what he’d said just moments ago.

…Wait a second. That was, like, five seconds ago.

"You literally just said you weren’t sure…"

"I don’t doubt your words, Shione. That part is true."

"Really?"

"Really."

"…Wait, why?"

…Crap. I shouldn’t have asked that.

Just saying it out loud made me realize how bad this was. Rooftop. Just the two of us. “Why don’t you doubt me?” That’s basically setting up a confession scene. Like, “Because I like you!” or something. I walked right into that one.

Panicking, I jumped to my feet and waved my hands frantically, trying to cancel what I’d just said. I firmly believe the three-second rule should apply to conversations too. Please, let it apply.

"Never mind! Forget what I just said! That was a joke!"

"Why, you ask? Well…"

Hey, listen to me! This is bad, bad, bad. He’s already on that route. At this point, my only option is to pretend I didn’t hear anything.

I tensed my arms, ready to cover my ears at any moment.

…But what I heard next, in a calm voice, was something different from what I expected.

"…It’s probably because I’ve been with you all this time, Shione. That’s why I can mostly understand. Your feelings, what you’re struggling with… even what you want from me. And because of that, I wanted to do whatever I could for you. …Even if…"

He trailed off there, mumbling something under his breath. Then he looked up at the sky and slowly closed his eyes.

After waiting a bit and deciding he wasn’t going to continue, I also tilted my gaze upward. As I stared blankly at the blue sky and the slowly drifting clouds, I suddenly felt like I heard the rest of his words.

It wasn’t directed at me—it sounded more like he was telling himself.

"…Even if what you feel isn’t love."

…Huh.

Maybe everyone’s carrying around more than I thought.

Sneaking a glance at Takahiro’s profile as he fell into silence after suddenly turning serious, I quietly revised my understanding. Yeah… I shouldn’t let my guard down. Even if I have the advantage of game knowledge, the other side is obviously thinking things through too.

To reset myself, I stood up and spun around in place. Even though it was completely out of the blue, Takahiro didn’t question it. In fact, he looked oddly convinced.

"Come to think of it, you suddenly start dancing sometimes, don’t you, Shione?"

"D-do I…?"

"Yeah, like around here, before summer… when we were talking about the festival, you suddenly started dancing by yourself. That one—what was it—Mayim Mayim. And you did the whole thing."

"The whole thing!? …D-did I really…?"

Before summer—that must’ve been the original version of her. Does that mean this is just part of Shione’s default settings? I don’t think I’d suddenly start dancing in the middle of a conversation about the school festival…

What is it? If what I saw in that dream was the original, then Shione must be intelligent. So maybe there’s some reason for it…?

"By the way, what were we talking about back then?"

"Nothing special. Just normal stuff. Like how we were looking forward to it."

"Hmm…"

That tells me nothing…

I leaned over the rooftop fence, scanning the area below. From here, I could clearly see the schoolyard. In the center, they were already starting to assemble the wood structure for the bonfire. Even from a distance, it was obvious it would become a massive blaze.

…But wow, it’s already insanely crowded. Everywhere I look, it’s just people, people, people. It’s packed. If we went down there, Yuno-chan and I would get flattened. Even having Kitatsuji-san charge through to clear a path has its limits…

"…I’ve got it! We can all just dance up here."

"Shione?"

"Think about it—music reaches here just fine, and you can see the fire perfectly. And there won’t be many people. Normally this place is off-limits and locked, after all."

For the record, the only reason we could get in was because a certain sky-loving senpai—who shall remain unnamed—had put a bit too much force into turning the doorknob shortly after enrolling and broke the lock. Even if it’s “locked,” you can just shake it and it opens. Anyone who’s cleared Takamiyagi-senpai’s route would know that.

"That might actually work."

"Right? …Hm?"

Bzzz. My phone suddenly vibrated. A LINE message from Kaimori-chan.

The moment I saw it, I took off running. Behind me, I heard Takahiro call out in confusion.

"H-hey, what’s wrong!?"

"Just follow me!"

To put it simply, Kaimori-chan’s message was only one line:

"—We’ve captured the wild animal."