Chapter 30: Task

After Bocchi recovered from her near-death state, she took a drink still shaken.

Nijika propped her hands on her cheeks, looked at her gently, and asked her.

“Bocchi-chan, what is your school life like?”

Bocchi stopped. She couldn’t continue talking about her life after Kita had spoken.

She felt that if she spoke, she would fall into an irreparable, miserable situation.

After hesitating, she didn’t know what to say, and carefully turned to Nijika, asking.

“Ah, speaking… speaking of which, Nijika and Ryo-san go to the same school, right?”

“Yes, Shimokitazawa. Kita-chan, Hayato-kun, and Bocchi-chan all go to Shuka High School, right?” Nijika said, nodding slightly.

Ryo also added.

“We all chose it because it’s close to home.”

Kita nodded, indicating the same.

Bocchi said, realizing, “Ah, everyone lives in Shimokitazawa.”

Nijika noticed the strangeness in Bocchi’s words and asked in surprise.

“Bocchi’s house isn’t around here?”

Bocchi lowered her head, her voice wistful, “Ah, no, my house is out of the prefecture. It takes two hours to commute to school.”

Nijika was startled, unable to understand why she would come such a long distance for school.

Kita asked, dumbfounded, “Why?”

“I wanted to go to a high school where no one knew me…”

Bocchi’s heavy, regretful voice, like a descending curtain, made the atmosphere in the room despairing.

“Stop! School talk ends here!”

...

“I… I’m sorry, I mostly spent my time alone at school…”

“It’s hard to find a topic that makes people happy when chatting.”

Bocchi lowered her head, shrinking her body, apologizing for her mood-killing words.

Nijika quickly comforted her.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. Ryo doesn’t have many friends either.”

Ryo nodded.

“Indeed, only Nijika.”

After the cruel incident just now, Bocchi no longer dared to look at others with the expectation of finding a kindred spirit.

But she still looked at Ryo with a small glimmer of hope.

At the same time, she heard Nijika explain.

“On her days off, Ryo goes exploring ruins alone or browse second-hand shops.”

Definitely not a kindred spirit!!

Ryo just liked being alone. She definitely didn’t have social anxiety. Someone with social anxiety wouldn’t dare go to a second-hand shop!

She almost fell into a trap again.

Bocchi lowered her head even more gloomily.

And Kita Ikuyo, who had almost become a murderer, still dared not speak.

Seeing the atmosphere gradually grow heavy, Ishikawa Hayato stood up.

“Nijika, can I roll for the next topic?”

“Eh, sure.”

Nijika looked at Ishikawa Hayato, puzzled, then handed him the die.

Ishikawa Hayato walked to the seat opposite Nijika with a serious expression, and as the four girls gradually showed expressions of unease, he calmly said.

“Does anyone here know about the ‘Chekhov’s Gun’ theory in theater?”

He held the die, spun it with one hand, and it rotated rapidly on his fingertip. He then flicked and pushed it a few times, and the die spun like a rapidly rotating sphere.

The six low-saturation colors of the die spun into a light, soothing shade of orange.

“It goes like this: a gun appears in Act One.”

'Not good, not good, not good!'

Bocchi’s sense of danger was constantly emitting piercing warnings.

But no one could stop him. They all stared blankly at the stern and serious Ishikawa Hayato.

“Then in Act Three…”

Ishikawa Hayato turned around, presenting his back to the four of them. Though the young man’s back wasn’t broad, it felt inexplicably reliable.

He then tapped the die with his finger.

The die flew up, landed steadily on the table, and continued to spin.

“It must be fired.”

The four people’s gazes shifted from the show-off Ishikawa Hayato to the die.

As if everything had been calculated, when his words stopped, the die also slowed down.

Like the most obedient little baby.

The die spun, slowed, and stopped, all at that one point.

After the cardboard collided with the tabletop, and a soft *thud* echoed from within the die.

The four looked at the upward face of the die and collectively swallowed.

The words written there were.

Bungee jumping.

Ryo glanced at Ishikawa Hayato, who hadn’t turned around, and cautiously reached out to change the result.

Ishikawa Hayato, still with his back to everyone, said.

“Ryo, you moved, didn’t you?”

“No.”

Ryo’s tone was flat, and as she stared at Ishikawa Hayato, who hadn’t turned, she sped up her hand and quickly flicked the die.

But Ishikawa Hayato, like a phantom, flashed over instantly, grabbed Ryo’s outstretched hand, and then smiled at the four, saying.

“How about we all go bungee jumping?”

In the eyes of the four, that smile was like the sinister grin of an Asura. They quickly spoke up.

Kita, “Absolutely not!”

Bocchi, “No, no… no way.”

Ryo, “Not going.”

Nijika, “Let’s just forget it.”

Seeing the four people sitting at the same table, each speaking their own mind in such a situation, Ishikawa Hayato paused, then laughed.

Nijika also reacted a moment later, and she laughed awkwardly.

“There’s absolutely no teamwork.”

“Indeed…”

Kita also smiled awkwardly.

Ryo looked at them and quietly said.

“After all, it’s Kessoku Band.”

Ishikawa Hayato walked back to Bocchi’s side, sat down on the chair again, and said with a happy and somewhat triumphant smile.

“Ryo means we should aim for that goal, right?”

“No.”

Whether it was her being a tsundere or simply because it wasn’t true, Ryo’s answer came very quick.

Seeing the atmosphere ease, Nijika had just let out a sigh of relief and was about to continue the conversation, but Ishikawa Hayato spoke first.

“Let’s talk about our common goals. It’ll help us get to know each other faster,” he said to Nijika, who had been interrupted.

“Nijika, what’s the band’s next task? Tell us.”

“Eh…” Nijika sighed, hesitating.

Ishikawa Hayato knew why she was like this. After all, Kita’s previous escape was partly because of her impatience.

At least, that’s what she thought.

So now she planned to slow down, starting with getting to know each other, and moving forward steadily.

Being urged like this, Nijika looked at the others, thought for a moment, then nodded.