"K - LOST SMALL WORLD" (Novel)
PERIOD 1: 12 YEARS OLD (MISSION 2)
Translation: Naru-kun Chapter guide: HERE
"Ahh... I'm sleepy."
Yawning loudly, Yata tried to pull his indoor shoes out of the shoe closet and glanced inside twice.
There was something tucked into one of his slippers. It looked like a piece of paper folded in four.
"What? A challenge? Well, I'll strike back."
He raised his voice, though he wasn't addressing anyone in particular. A decorative border resembling a pink ribbon peeked out from the edge of the folded paper.
(Wow, isn't that something you only see in a shoe closet in manga...?), Yata thought.
He glanced quickly to the left and right. Students were strolling by, sleepily greeting each other, but no one was looking at him.
He pinched the edge with two fingers, and the paper unfolded. On the letter paper, with an elegant design that didn't look like a challenge at all, was a short sentence written in rounded letters.
[Yata Misaki-sama. Would you like to go for a night view with me today? Aya.]
"Did they really leave me something like this?!"
His pulse quickened, and he jumped back, bumping into the shoe rack in front of him. Someone turned around, startled by the noise, so he hurriedly stuffed the note into his pocket. He ran down the hall, glancing left and right as if he'd just withdrawn a large sum of money from the bank, and burst into the classroom, slamming the door shut and stopping abruptly. As soon as he entered, he threw his backpack onto the desk in the first row facing the hall, straddled a chair, and looked behind him.
That wasn't Yata's seat, but Fushimi's, right behind him in the first row facing the hall, the second seat from the front.
Fushimi, who was resting his chin on his hand and scrolling through his PDA screen with a bored expression, glanced up slightly. Yata cleared his throat and said,
"Ah, Fushimi. There's something I'd like you to see."
After that pompous introduction, he shoved the letter under the desk, pressing it against Fushimi's stomach. At that moment, he noticed the letter was crumpled and felt a pang of regret.
"Don't give me junk."
"It's not junk. It was in my shoe rack."
"Ah, a letter of misfortune."
"It's so small it looks like a love letter..."
Suddenly, he swallowed the words he'd started to say aloud. He rested his elbows on the desk and leaned closer to Fushimi, who frowned and stepped back.
"It's a love letter, no matter how you look at it..." When he said that, he felt a knot in his stomach and squirmed: "Nooo."
Fushimi looked at him coldly, unfolded the letter in front of his stomach, and examined it from left to right.
"Who is Aya?"
"Lower your voice. She's definitely not in our class, so maybe she's in another one."
"Hmm."
Fushimi casually tossed the letter onto the desk, so Yata quickly caught it, saying, "Don't leave it there."
Hanayama, the original occupant of the seat Yata was sitting in, and the one ahead of Fushimi in the attendance order, was standing some distance away, looking as if he wanted to say something. Yata glared at him as if he had a complaint, but Hanayama looked away and walked over to the seat where the former members of the "Yata Team" were gathered.
"So, what are you going to do? Are we leaving?"
Getting back on topic, he asked, a little uneasy, and Fushimi, who had already started fiddling with his PDA again as if he didn't care, looked up and said, "Huh?" in an uncharacteristically nonchalant reaction.
"You were the guest, right? Why are you asking me?"
"I've never dated a girl, so I don't know what to do."
"I don't know."
"So, Fushimi, you're not coming?"
"No way."
Fushimi turned his gaze back to his PDA after announcing his decision. The lenses of his glasses reflected the bright light, accentuating his cold expression. Yata stared at Fushimi's pale forehead with a dissatisfied expression for a while, then crumpled the letter and put it in his pocket.
"Well, I'm not coming then."
"Why not? You were so excited."
"Well, I'm not that excited. The truth is, I don't want a love letter. Besides, dating guys is more fun than dating girls."
"You don't have anyone to date."
"Oh.", he glared at him, dissatisfied with being with him, but Fushimi didn't look up from his desk, as if he had erased Yata's presence from his mind after that line.
++++++++++
That said, Yata couldn't help but wonder who the letter's sender was, and he was restless all day, wondering if anyone was going to contact him.
But in the end, after class, there was no sign of the sender getting in touch.
To be honest, he was disappointed. Maybe they were just messing with him.
That week, he had to clean the entrance. As he swept the cement with a bamboo broom, playing ice hockey, he saw Fushimi coming out with his backpack slung over his shoulder.
"Oh, Fushimi, wait a minute. Let's go home together. I'll be done in a minute. No, in 30 seconds. Hey, let's take a detour. I'll show you Shizume, my former territory."
Swinging the broom back and forth as if he had no purpose in cleaning, he approached Fushimi, who was changing his shoes in front of the shoe closet. He swore it wasn't on purpose, but he accidentally swept the loafers Fushimi had just placed at his feet, and an aura of irritation rose from his shoulders as he bent down. Yata's face twitched as he realized he'd angered him again, and he said, "Ugh, sorry..."
"Michaki-byun!"
Just as he thought he heard a girl's energetic voice, his heart skipped a beat, and something soft caught him.
"Ugyaaaaah!"
With a shout, Yata pushed the girl away and instinctively hugged Fushimi.
The girl fell onto her bottom, letting out a cute squeal like "Ukyu!", and Yata shouted again, "Wah, aah... Ugyaaaah!", after seeing what she was wearing under her skirt after barely apologizing.
"Oh, it's okay to look. I'm wearing shorts. See?"
As the girl sat down, she grabbed her skirt and showed him what she was wearing underneath. Her shorts were sticking out like a pumpkin, revealing her slender thighs. Yata didn't care if it was underwear or shorts; as long as it was under her skirt, it was all the same to him. He yelled for the third time and circled Fushimi from behind.
"Shut up..."
He pushed him away in an annoyed air, but Yata kept yelling "Aaaah!" while grabbing Fushimi's elbow and using it as a shield.
"Michaki-byun, you're so innocent, aren't you?"
The girl jumped to her feet, her long rabbit ears twitching with her. Wondering what it could be, he noticed that the backpack she was carrying had decorations that looked like rabbit ears.
At the moment, it was no longer possible to see what was under her skirt, so Yata shyly revealed himself behind Fushimi.
"Sorry I'm late. I was in the infirmary all day, so I couldn't come see you."
Despite having been in the infirmary, she seemed full of energy. Even counting the girls, Yata is one of the smallest in the class, something that frustrates him every day (he's sure he'll have a growth spurt soon!). But the girl was even smaller than Yata.
Her hair tied in two pigtails on either side of her head and the way she held onto the straps of her pink plaid backpack with each hand made her look very childlike, and although she was wearing the Hinata High School uniform, she could easily pass for an elementary school student.
The girl waved energetically, her hand to her forehead, and introduced herself.
"I'm, like, Oogai Aya."
Yata thought her way of speaking was a little strange, but he didn't know her well enough to say anything about it.
"Oogai..."
He didn't know if it was meant to match her name, but the butterfly knot adorning her hair was shaped like two oysters. (Oogai means "large shell")
"...Aya."
It matched the letter's sender.
"Did you see the letter?"
"A-a-a letter? What was it about, Fushimi? Don't go home!"
Fushimi was coldly putting on his loafers and about to leave, so Yata grabbed his arm.
"What? You didn't see it?"
The girl who called herself Aya had an expression of astonishment. Her large eyes trembled and filled with tears, so Yata panicked and said,
"Huh? Ah, ah, ah, you mean that letter? Ah, ah, I saw it?"
"So, you're coming with me today, right?"
"Oh, no, no, no, I was supposed to go out with Fushimi today. I already promised, I'm so sorry."
"I didn't."
"You did, didn't you? We did, didn't we?"
He leaned over and pinched Fushimi's elbow.
Aya's gaze fell on Fushimi's face. She narrowed her eyes and her expression turned cold.
"Saruhiko, why have you dropped in the J-Cube rankings lately?"
Yata looked back and forth between Fushimi and Aya, his eyes wide.
"You two know each other? What the hell! You should have told me this morning."
"I didn't even remember her; I don't know her name."
Aya retorted sharply to Fushimi's abrupt response.
"Did you quit because you were afraid of losing, like, to Aya?"
"I just quit because I got bored."
"You're free to quit, but why didn't you fight Aya one last time, and take everything from her? It's cowardly of you to run away with the victory."
"What a drag.", Fushimi muttered. His eagerness to leave was clearly visible on his face.
"Hmm. Well, fine. Aya, like, has something else on her mind besides the J-Cube right now."
Aya turned and pulled her PDA out of the side pocket of her backpack. The coiled cord holding it extended. A rabbit pet leash hung from the PDA, or rather, it was now a "plush" three times the size of the PDA itself.
An avatar that looked very similar to a rabbit was walking on the screen Aya showed him. It must be Aya's avatar. Unlike Fushimi's faceless avatar, which had barely changed since its initial state, this one seemed highly customized with unique items.
The background was an interior that reminded him of an "adventurer's bar", something common in fantasy role-playing games. Besides Aya's rabbit, there were other adventurer-looking avatars wandering around. Tangled tree roots climbed the walls, perhaps suggesting the bar was underground, carved directly beneath a large tree.
A speech bubble appeared over the avatar of what seemed to be the bartender behind the counter.
[These are the missions Shell-san can participate in now:
> Capture the kappa hiding in the abandoned factory.
> Create a Mystery Circle (Part 2)
> Contact the mysterious person aboard the airship.
> See more...]
It looked interesting. Intrigued, Yata approached the screen.
"Capture the kappa?"
"Leave the kappa alone. Look at the third line."
"The third line... an airship...?"
"Yes. We're going to travel on the airship. According to Aya's calculations, the airship should pass by Shizume tonight. Aya and the others will wait for it."
"Aya and the others... you mean us? Well, you could go with a friend, couldn't you?"
His face was close to Aya's, so he blushed and stepped back, speaking abruptly on purpose.
*Plop!*
A new speech bubble appeared in the center of the screen, accompanied by a sound effect like bubbles rising. It wasn't the same one from the conversation with the Master. Yata immediately recognized it as a notification from the "Jungle" message group, and unpleasant memories flooded back.
[I wish Aya would just die already.]
He hadn't intended to read it, but his eyes were drawn to the screen, and the text startled him.
After the first speech bubble, another appeared. Plop. Plop. Plop. They multiplied like popping bubbles.
[She's making her debut in middle school. Her elementary school graduation photo was super plain (haha).]
[But isn't she debuting with the wrong character?]
[Her way of speaking is weird. If she thinks she looks cute doing it, it's so embarrassing.]
[Oh, oh, oh!]
[I'm so embarrassed to walk with her.]
[I wish she would just die.]
"Michakibyun? Is something wrong?"
While Yata remained motionless, staring at the screen, Aya suspiciously turned the PDA toward her, her face suddenly hardening.
Plop. Plop. Plop, plop plop plop... The small sound effects continued. The speech bubbles grew rapidly.
"You... that..."
Yata felt a chill run down his spine as he saw his own experiences reflected back at him.
The insults and taunts he received on his PDA, without his knowledge, came one after another, even though he didn't want them.
"Hmph."
Then, as if defying Yata, Aya leaned back and showed him the bulletin board again. The screen was now filled with so many negative words that it made her nauseous.
"It's not the first time. They started coming in about two weeks ago."
Two weeks ago... that must be around when the correspondence between Yata's former gang members began appearing on his bulletin board.
"They're the girls who formed a group right after we started school. You're the ones who are embarrassing. You dress the same, wear the same things, talk the same... Ugh, stupid! I'm the one who can't stand being around you."
Despite her youthful appearance, she uttered surprisingly biting and venomous words. But the corners of her lips trembled slightly.
"These women are also planning the airship mission. However, Aya wasn't invited. So I'm going to outsmart them. Right? Then you'll come with me to capture the airship, won't you?"
After hearing that, Yata found no reason to refuse.
++++++++++
It was 8 p.m., the agreed-upon meeting time. Yata parked his bicycle near the "Torimochi City 5th Street" bus stop and waited. He watched the bus arrive. A pair of rabbit ears swung as it moved horizontally through the window, and Oogai Aya appeared on the steps.
She was still carrying the same backpack with rabbit ears, but she wasn't wearing her school uniform; she was dressed casually. A denim dress with a large, mismatched fabric pocket at the waist, striped socks, and high-top sneakers. Her outfit made her look even less like a high school student.
As she got off the bus, Aya clutched the straps of her backpack, looking around anxiously, before a smile lit up her face when she saw Yata's bicycle.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Michakibyun!"
He could have simply promised and left, but seeing her rushing toward him like that, he couldn't help but think he'd done the right thing by coming.
"Stop calling me that weird name. Otherwise, I'm not going to show you around. And that outfit is awful."
"Huh? Is this, like, weird?"
"No, it's not weird, not really. It's just that it draws attention when you go out at night."
The rabbit ears on her back drooped forlornly, so Yata hurriedly tried to straighten them, anxiously scanning his surroundings, hoping Fushimi would hurry up. Even talking to a normal girl was difficult enough, but an intimate conversation with this girl with rather peculiar tastes was going to be complicated.
"Michaki-chan, you know this area well, right?"
"Yata-kun."
"Misaki-kun, you know this area well, right?"
"......"
Compared to a name like "Michakibyun," which made his stomach churn, this was much better, so he figured it was okay... but then he realized his standards had dropped, which wasn't good.
"Well, you know. Shizume is my old stomping ground.", Yata said, puffing out his chest and thumping the seat of his bicycle.
Another bus was coming from the opposite direction, and they saw it pull up across the street. As the bus drove off, a slender figure stood by the bus stop.
"Fushimi!"
Relieved to see him, Yata waved enthusiastically. Fushimi, unfazed, waited for the light to change and crossed the street. His smart outfit —tight-fitting trousers, a polo shirt, and a cardigan— made him look like a model student returning from exam prep school on vacation.
Yata, on the other hand, was wearing a camouflage jacket and work pants, an outfit that somehow made him look like an adventurer. He wanted to wear a helmet and headlamp, but dismissed the idea, thinking it would be too conspicuous.
When they met, everyone was dressed in completely different outfits.
"Are you sure there won't be any problems if you go out at night? Your parents seem a bit strict."
He emphasized that he would come looking for him if he didn't show up, and he reluctantly promised, "I'll come, sort of.". But Yata thought there was less than a 50% chance he would actually come. He was surprisingly accommodating... It might have been a whim, but it still excited him.
"Strict? My parents?"
Yata was slightly annoyed by the short, mocking laugh Fushimi let out without looking him in the eye.
Shizume is located west of this bus route. According to Aya, an airship will be flying over Shizume tonight.
"It's getting cloudy. I wonder if we'll be able to see the airship."
Gray clouds hung in the night sky, dimly reflecting the city's neon lights. There were thin patches of cloud, like the worn knees of uniform trousers, pale white. The moon was hidden behind these patches.
"It's going to descend, so there's no problem. It'll come down below the clouds."
"What do you mean, "come down"?"
"Well, I'll announce today's plan here."
Aya took the initiative and pulled the large, rabbit-shaped flashlight from the side of her backpack. She turned on the screen, and a blue, saucer-shaped light appeared in the twilight.
"Huh? The same one as Fushimi's?" Yata asked, looking at Fushimi, who clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"The airship should be flying over Shizume City tonight, following this route. It will be only 300 meters at its highest point and less than 60 meters at its lowest. If we wait right below its path and light the "candle", the airship will definitely pick us up."
A map filled the entire holographic screen. It appeared to be a map of the entire Kanto region, including Shizume City. Lines, presumably indicating the airship's route, were drawn in fluorescent yellow.
It was rush hour. The noise of cars passing beyond the railing was deafening, so they huddled together, staring at the screen. The screen's light, illuminated by the twilight, cast a faint blue glow on their faces.
"How do you know the airship's route and altitude?"
"Well, sort of, the mission gives you clues."
When Aya activated the device, the screen changed. Instead of the map, a screen filled with tiny characters appeared. Yata, somewhat hesitantly, squinted to see that it was all numbers: a seemingly endless string, perhaps tens or hundreds of thousands. For Yata, who preferred to stay away from math, the sight was enough to make him nauseous.
"This sequence of characters was given as a clue in "Jungle". But it doesn't tell us what it means. However, Aya had a revelation. This is data projected for the airship's patrol route. By analyzing this, we can figure out when and where the airship will pass. Once you notice that the date and time are mixed up, it's easy to find the pattern. Okay, like this: divide this sequence into groups of 32 digits. The first four digits are the date, the next four are the time, the next nine are the X-axis, the next nine are the Y-axis, and the last six are the altitude. If you sort this and plot it on the map, the points will converge and form a line like this."
The screen displayed the map again. Seeing it like this, Yata felt he understood the meaning of the numbers. ...Or maybe not.
"Wow! Oogai, you're amazing."
"It's easy."
As she said that, Aya wiggled her nostrils proudly and glanced sideways at Fushimi. However, Fushimi didn't seem impressed at all, so she frowned in annoyance.
"If you overlay the satellite image of Shizume on the map, you'll see there are several buildings with rooftops along the route. The plan is to keep an eye on one of those places. That's where Misaki-kun comes in."
"I see! If it's Shizume, leave it to me. I lived here until first grade. Back then, I organized a scouting team, guided my classmates on their city tours, and even built a base. I can identify any building that looks accessible."
Yata used to invite his gang members to explore Shizume City, and it seemed Aya had found out. For one reason or another, they could never find a time that worked for everyone, so the plan was always postponed... Now that she thought about it, he wondered if they were avoiding it on purpose. Something like, "It's annoying to force people to come who aren't interested, isn't it?"
Disheartened, Yata composed himself and looked at the map again.
The "airship", like the "masked debt collector," is one of those urban legends whispered among high school students. Apparently, a global billionaire lives a life of luxury on a airship in the sky.
Aya briefly mentioned "Candle", an app that emits a special signal to summon this airship. The story goes that lonely or troubled people can raise the "candle" to the sky and wait, and the airship will come to pick them up.
Those picked up by the airship are taken to paradise above the clouds, or their brains are modified and brought back to Earth to become agents of world domination... There are many conflicting theories, and it seems there are factions and heated debates online.
When Yata lived in Shizume, the children used to see UFOs, and when he learned they were actually airships, he understood immediately. Incidentally, it goes without saying that Yata's exploration team had also tried to capture a UFO. Back then, they didn't know the frequency of the sightings or how to summon them, so they searched aimlessly and got nowhere.
The "mission" Aya mentioned involved boarding a UFO, or rather, an airship, and photographing the mysterious wealthy man who lived there.
In other words, it's like an interactive real-world game. Besides the bar under the tree that Aya showed him, there are apparently several other "shops" within "J-Cube" that offer missions. There are rewards like points and items depending on the missions you complete.
"J-Cube" is a game that takes place entirely within the PDA's virtual world, but many missions require some action in the real world to be completed.
"This building..." Yata inserted his hand into the hologram and pointed to a spot on the satellite map. The holographic light overlaid his finger, turning it blue.
"It's still here. We can get to the roof using the emergency ladder outside."
"How many floors does it have?"
"I think... it's a ten-story building."
"Then the roof is about thirty or forty meters high."
Seeing the airship's projected altitude at the location Yata was indicating, Aya nodded.
"Yes. This is good. We can position ourselves right under the airship. As expected of Misaki-kun, you're so reliable!"
"Okay, I understand, but don't come near me! Don't touch me!"
Aya jumped up and tried to hug him, which startled Yata and sent him running. The two were shouting and running around Fushimi when,
"If you've already decided where we're going, let's go!" Fushimi said curtly, breaking away from the group and walking away. Losing their balance, the two stumbled forward.
"You're not in charge!"
Grumbling, Aya followed Fushimi at a slow pace. Yata put a foot on the bicycle pedal, kicking the ground, and pulled ahead of Aya and Fushimi, taking the lead and saying, "This way!"
It annoyed him that those two, who didn't know anything about the area, were taking the lead.
Six years ago, Yata explored Shizume on a child's bicycle, leading a group of explorers. Six years later, he's returned, now riding an adult's bicycle, about to embark on an adventure with different friends than before.
He felt a tingling in his fingers on the handlebars. Perhaps it was because of that urban legend about brain modification and being sent back to Earth, but it felt as if the parts of his body that touched the blue holographic light were being rewritten with some substance from space: a tingling, itchy sensation.
A new and exciting adventure filled him with joy.
Fushimi Saruhiko and Oogai Aya. They were two types of people Yata had never encountered before; a little... no, quite eccentric, and seemingly very intelligent.
It was an exciting experience to see how the knowledge he had acquired through trial and error connected with these two. He felt as if the world he had always known was being pulled in an unexpected direction.
It had been six years since he had last climbed to that building. The tenant signs sticking out from the walls and the posters plastered on the windows looked old, but the building itself remained unchanged. Six years is half a lifetime for Yata, but perhaps not so long in the town's history.
Shizume is far from a safe city. While the area around the station has been recently renovated and is filled with gleaming commercial buildings, venturing down a side street reveals that it remains a hotbed of criminal organizations and gangs. Apparently, conflicts between these organizations have been ongoing for a long time.
Since the area didn't have much natural space for playgrounds, the children of Shizume were experts at creating their own play areas within the city. The rooftop of this building was one of those playgrounds.
"Apparently, this building used to be a yakuza office. There were even shootouts with the police. Doesn't this dent in the railing look like a bullet hole?"
Yata strode ahead, climbing the exterior stairs with an air of superiority. He wanted to intimidate them, but the pace of the two following him didn't change.
"Weren't your parents mad at you for sneaking into a place like this?"
"Of course they scolded me. When I was a kid, my mom was always pulling up my pants and spanking me. But since I was born a boy, I wasn't going to stop exploring just because my parents got mad, right?"
"Hmm. Is that how boys are?"
"Yeah, that's how we are. Right, Fushimi?"
Turning around to seek approval, Yata saw Fushimi at the back of the group, standing and staring toward the stairs. He was listening intently with a puzzled expression, so Yata mirrored this and asked, "Do you hear anything?" But all they could hear was the faint sound of cars passing by on the street.
"There was a story circulating online."
Fushimi began to speak, looking down. Although taken aback by the sudden turn of events, both Yata and Aya were drawn to Fushimi's calm tone and listened carefully.
"There was a woman who committed suicide by jumping from the roof of a building, but even as a ghost, she couldn't accept her death, so she went back up the stairs and jumped again. But the woman's ghost still believed she wasn't dead, and while cursing, "I can't die, I can't die.", she continued climbing the stairs and jumping. After a while, they closed the building, and the reason was that when you went up the fire escape, you could hear extra footsteps following you..."
Fushimi's voice took on an unpleasant, damp tone. The wind was blowing, and the railing creaked.
"That's the story."
Fushimi finished the conversation with a completely serious expression, as if he had just been talking about the weather.
(Seriously, what was he talking about?!)
Yata deeply regretted listening to the end.
"W-w-what's this all of a sudden? I thought you were going to start talking about something, but that... that's in bad taste, Fushimi, hahahahahaha!"
"Footsteps."
That's what Fushimi murmured, tilting his head again as if listening intently.
"I thought I heard four a moment ago."
"F-Four...? Huh? What are you talking about? There are three of us, it's impossible for us to hear four..."
"Perhaps we'll hear it again when we start going up?"
Fushimi spoke in a serious tone. Yata turned his head toward Aya as if pleading. Aya's smile was also forced as she said, "F-fu." While Yata and Aya stood there, their legs trembling, Fushimi calmly ascended the stairs, his light footsteps echoing: "Clang, clang, clang."
Neither Yata nor Aya could lift their feet from the stairs. As they began to walk, incredibly, the sound of the footsteps intensified.
*Clang!*
A sharp, dry clang resonated on the metal plate.
"Ah, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Aya's scream harmonized perfectly with Yata's. They tried to flee, but were crushed.
While Yata and Aya lay paralyzed with fear, Fushimi calmly ascended the stairs, his footsteps echoing: Clang, clang, clang.
With light, echoing steps, Fushimi calmly ascended the stairs.
As he passed him, he muttered, "Just kidding." The footsteps... were, of course, those of a single person.
Huh...?
("Just kidding"?! What?)
"What?!"
Yata's eyes widened as he watched the slender figure disappear upstairs.
"Was that a joke? Is he capable of making jokes like that?"
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Falling into a trap like this is the biggest mistake of my life. It's a disgrace to the Oogai family for generations."
Between curses and swear words, Aya spread out a picnic blanket near the rooftop entrance and began arranging snacks and water bottles. The blanket had the same pink plaid pattern as her backpack. Yata placed the battery-powered flashlight he'd brought in the center of the blanket to use as a light, but Aya put a screen over it that filtered the light, creating a rabbit pattern.
(What is this...?), Yata thought.
Everything was pink and bunnies, and the secret rooftop base had become a play shop for girls, something Yata found quite unpleasant. Even when he was little, the younger sisters of the team members or some female relatives would sometimes accompany them, but it was basically an elite exploration team without girls.
"Here you go, Misaki-kun."
Aya poured the drink from her thermos into a plastic cup and offered it to him. It was probably milk tea, a sweet-looking liquid, and that made him uneasy too.
When it came to drinks for exploring, it had to be river water! (That was the ideal image he'd seen on TV, but the rivers in Shizume were little more than sewers, so the best drink for "adventurers" was tap water.)
"Ah. Yes, thank you."
However, unable to refuse outright, Yata sat cross-legged on the blanket and accepted the cup.
"Where's Fushimi?"
Yata looked around, hoping Fushimi would say something too, and spotted him on the edge of the rooftop, where the rabbit-patterned lantern's light didn't reach. He leaned over the railing to look down at the street below, then sat down on the cement floor and conjured a keyboard and holographic screen out of thin air.
"Hey, Fushimi, come with us."
"Leave him alone. It's always been like this. Aya and Misaki should, like, go up on the airship by themselves."
Aya spoke loud enough for him to hear, which made Fushimi look up.
"Don't say things like that. The three of us came, didn't we?"
Yata interjected, but Aya turned and said, "Aya didn't invite him." Fushimi, looking indifferent, looked back at his hands.
"He's related. A cousin, you know, not very close, but not distant either. I've known him since we were kids." Aya said this with annoyance, snapping three Pocky sticks in half with her teeth.
Yata wondered why Fushimi didn't seem like the type of person who had close friends, given his attitude, but now he finally understood.
(I see, they're related.), Yata thought.
Yata felt relieved, or something like that. If Fushimi had a girlfriend, he would feel completely left out.
"Which family does Fushimi come from? I've heard they're quite wealthy."
"They have money. His mother runs a company."
"His mother is the president? Not his father? How incredible!"
As soon as Yata gave his honest opinion, Aya burst out laughing and spat out her Pocky.
"Hehehe. Oh, Misaki-kun, please don't make me laugh. His father the president? It's impossible to imagine! Hehehe..."
"Did I say something funny?"
It looked as if candy crumbs had gotten down her throat, because Aya was pounding her chest with her fist and shouting, "Oof, cough, cough, cough, cough, uh-huh-huh!", laughing in a way that made him wonder if she was alright. Confused, Yata stepped back and frowned.
"Oh, sorry. Looks like I have a call."
With that, Aya quickly changed the subject and pulled out her PDA. A large rabbit was dangling from the screen, and a ringtone was playing. It was something Yata didn't know much about, but he thought it was the theme song from a magical girl anime.
At that moment, Yata stood up, grabbed the cup Aya had given him and the convenience store bag he'd brought, and put down the picnic blanket.
"Mom? What's wrong?"
Aya's voice, as she answered the phone, reached behind him. It was a couple of tones lower than her usual high-pitched voice.
"Fushimi, isn't it cold up here? The airship won't be here for a while, so you should eat something. Here."
Yata approached Fushimi and held the shopping bag up to his eye level. The edge of the rooftop overlooking the main street was windier than near the entrance. Fushimi, who had been looking at the shop window, glanced up once and silently took the bag. He had bought rice balls and other random items, but after a moment of hesitation, he chose a chocolate bar.
"Is that all you're going to eat? You're going to get hungry. Eat an onigiri."
"It doesn't have any edible ingredients."
Fushimi peeled off the foil, took a bite of the chocolate bar, and held the rest in one hand while typing in his lap with the other. Yata sat down next to Fushimi, leaning back against the railing.
As soon as she brought the cup to his lips, he stuck out his tongue and exclaimed, "So sweet!" Yata liked sweets, but... how much sugar did they put in that?
"I just found out you're related to Oogai, right?"
As soon as he mentioned it, Fushimi clicked his tongue at the sight of the screen. Yata suspected as much, but it seemed they didn't get along well as a family.
"Ah... this building... I have some memories associated with it. When I was little and still smelled of pee, I had a fight with my mother... or rather, she scolded me. I sulked, ran away from home, and stayed here alone for a night. Maybe nothing would have happened if it had been this time of year, but it was the middle of winter, freezing cold at night, and, as you might expect, I came down with a fever the next day... Then my mother, who had been so angry, took care of me as usual, and I was the only one who felt uncomfortable..."
It was so long ago that it no longer embarrassed him, but as he spoke, he instinctively ran his fingers along the back of his neck. He knew the reason he'd been scolded was entirely his own fault, but the fact that he hadn't apologized bothered him for a long time.
"I told you I lived here until first grade. My father was away for a long time, but my mother found a good man and remarried, and then we moved to where my new father lived. This year, thanks to my new father's job, we were able to move back here."
Yata took a sip of the cloying milk tea, so sweet it burned his tongue, and continued talking while staring into space. The dazzling neon lights of the station were barely visible beyond the fence.
Aya had mentioned that there seemed to be some trouble at Fushimi's house, so he felt it wouldn't be fair not to tell him about his situation. He didn't think Fushimi cared about Yata's house, but he felt uneasy about not telling him.
"My mom and my new dad had a baby... I mean, my little brother was born, and last year my sister was born too. So now I'm only half a blood relative. My new dad, mom, brother, and sister are all very close. I love my brother and sister very much, and my new dad is a very kind man. I'm glad my mom is with him. But when I realized that now it's my new family that will make my mom happy... and that I don't have to protect her anymore... I felt like there was no place for me there anymore..."
As he swirled the cup in his hands, the soft-colored liquid swirled inside it. His new family was like that sweetly blended milk tea. He felt like he was the only one who didn't fit in.
After venting for a while, he seemed to feel better, and his voice brightened.
"Oh, I just wanted to talk, so I did. I'm not asking you to tell me anything about your family in return, so don't worry..."
"You got in trouble."
Fushimi spoke suddenly, prompting Yata to ask, "Huh?" Fushimi's gaze followed the rapidly scrolling numbers on the hologram.
After a brief pause, long enough for Yata to wonder if he'd heard everything, Fushimi spoke again in a low voice.
"Why?"
"Huh?"
For a moment, Yata didn't understand what he was talking about, but then he thought, "Ah, right, that part." It was something he'd talked about a lot earlier. In fact, after that, he'd told him quite a long story about his life... (Surely he didn't stop at the beginning without hearing the rest, did he?), Yata thought.
"Um, what was the reason for my scolding? I think it was something like I slipped on the escalator handrail at a department store. She was furious and said, "What if there was someone below and you hit them? Both you and the person below would get hurt."."
"And she took care of you when you were sick?"
Despite having asked the question himself, he didn't comment and continued asking questions.
"Huh?"
"What did she do?"
"Well, it wasn't anything special, really. She took my temperature, asked if I wanted something to eat, and was kind enough to check if I was too hot or too cold, normal things. And you know, when you're sick and in bed, you feel lonely, right? So hearing Mom doing something in the kitchen and knowing she'd come right away when I called her was the best feeling... Oh, really? No, I don't mind that kind of thing now. That was when I was the age my brother is now, you know?"
As he hurriedly added unnecessary details, a question suddenly popped into his head.
He tilted his head and stared at Fushimi, asking,
"I'm sure your mother took care of you when you were sick, right?"
"No."
"Ah, she's the president, isn't she? She must be incredibly busy, right? Maybe your father kept you company?"
A small crunch.
It was the sound of a chocolate bar breaking in Fushimi's hand.
"...Ah. He kept me company."
He sensed the same reaction in Fushimi's voice as at the bus stop. The same shrill laughter he'd let out when Yata said his parents seemed strict.
"Ugh, that's just your complaining, Mom! Aya's sick of hearing it."
They could hear Aya's voice, which had become higher-pitched.
"Aya doesn't have that much free time to spend hours on the phone talking about something like this. Huh? But I said I was going to do homework at a friend's house. What?! I did! Mom didn't hear me. It's not Erika-chan's house, don't call her. It's another friend. Say hi? No need."
Intimidated by Aya's defiant tone, Yata turned his gaze back to the picnic blanket.
(Doesn't Oogai's voice sound different when she talks to her mother?), Yata thought.
Was that her real voice? It sounded normal, like the girls he'd heard talking in class.
"Misaki-kun!"
Then Aya came running up, clutching the PDA and visibly flustered.
"Hey, like, talk to her for a second!"
Covering the PDA's microphone with her hand, she pressed it against Yata's bewildered hand and said, "I told her I was doing homework at the home of a girl in my class named Yata Misaki. Then my mom said she'd say hi to your mom. I told her your mom wasn't home, but then she said, "Then let me talk to Misaki."."
"Ugh... why did you tell such a troublesome lie? Oh, well, never mind, it's just to say hi..."
He was terrified of having to talk to a friend's parents, but he reluctantly accepted the PDA and was about to put it to his ear when...
"Ah, like, you're supposed to be a girl, so keep that in mind."
She made a crazy request.
"What?! Huh?! Who said that?!"
"Shhh."
Aya lowered her voice, holding the PDA transmitter that Yata had been holding again. Turning his face away, Yata was also swayed, lowering his voice.
"No way! You're kidding! It's impossible for me to imitate a woman's voice!"
"Misaki-kun's voice hasn't changed yet, so there's no problem. As long as you don't use masculine language, no one will notice. Okay, we can do it. Let's try."
"Are you kidding?!"
"Please! Please! I don't want to go back after coming all this way, I have to get on the airship no matter what!"
"Uh... ugh..."
Unlike Yata, who was simply excited about the new adventure of capturing an airship, Aya seemed more desperate. With her pleading so insistent, refusing outright would be unmanly...
"...Fine, I'll do it."
He grimaced, pulled his hand away from Aya, and put the PDA to his ear.
"Misaki-kun!"
Aya's face lit up.
(Damn it... I'm going to show you what a man I am. No, I'm going to show you what a woman I am. I don't even know what I'm talking about.), Yata thought.
Half desperate, he cleared his throat and pretended to speak. He was annoyed when she said his voice hadn't changed yet, so he deliberately used a falsetto for his first words.
"H-hello, ma'am, nice to meet you, I'm Yata Misaki."
He was surprised by how high-pitched his voice was.
"Yes, yes, that's right, I'm doing homework with Aya. Mom will be here soon, so it's no problem. It's no trouble at all. Yes, I'll come play next time."
(Maybe I didn't have to go this far? I started with a strange burst of energy and now I can't control myself.), Yata thought.
Sweat trickled down his face and his cheeks trembled. He gritted his teeth and glared at Aya, who was covering her mouth with both hands to stifle a laugh.
(It's because of you, isn't it...?), Yata thought.
"Yes. Yes. Good night."
When he finally managed to hang up the phone after somehow getting out of the situation unscathed, he felt like he'd completely exhausted his falsetto voice and his feminine charm. Not that he had any feminine charm to begin with, and anyway, there was no need to conserve his falsetto.
After a call that lasted less than a minute, he lowered his head and handed the PDA back to Aya, completely spent.
"So there's no reason to complain anymore... I've solved your problem, right...?"
His throat hurt from using the falsetto so much.
"It was perfect. Mom won't have any doubts about that."
"You're laughing, aren't you?"
"I'm not laughing, hehehe."
"Ugh... Don't ever ask me for anything again..."
"Don't say that. I'm sorry, hehehe."
(If that had been recorded, my life would have been over...), Yata thought.
Yata stared into the distance, his gaze lost.
"Hehe."
A muffled voice was heard.
Aya's laughter faded, and her eyes widened. Following her gaze, he saw Fushimi with his face buried between his knees, his shoulders trembling slightly.
"F-Fushimi?! You too...?!"
"Impossible! Saruhiko's laughing..."
Aya muttered, forgetting her usual tone.
Fushimi covered his mouth with the back of his hand and looked up. His cheek trembled slightly, but his expression was blank, and Yata was a little disappointed not to see his smile. But he felt a little happy. For some reason, he felt proud of having managed to make Fushimi laugh, even though the method wasn't ideal.
It was then that he felt a slight tremor beneath his feet.
"An earthquake?"
Yata wondered, looking around, when Fushimi suddenly stood up and squinted on the other side of the fence.
"Fushimi? What's wrong?"
Yata approached, studied Fushimi's profile, and followed his gaze.
Beyond the fence, a strong wind was blowing, strong enough to almost sweep someone away.
"Oh, no!", Aya exclaimed, running back to the picnic blanket. Looking back, she saw light objects, like bags of food, being lifted by the wind and nearly carried away.
"Over there."
Then Fushimi's voice echoed, and Yata turned toward the fence. Clutching the frames of his glasses, which were flapping in the wind, Fushimi's gaze was fixed on a point in the sky. Yata leaned over the fence, resting his stomach against it.
The wind was quickly scattering the gray clouds that covered the sky. A small patch of sky peeked through the gaps in the torn clouds.
"I see it!"
A small, dark shadow flying in the moonlight. From here it looks like a tiny dot, but it's probably quite large because it's so far away.
"An airship!", Yata exclaimed excitedly.
"Really?"
Aya ran back and leaned against the fence.
"Where is it? Where is it?"
"Look, that bright dot. Do you see it? It's an airship, isn't it? Isn't it?"
As their excitement grew, Fushimi's voice turned stern.
"It's farther away than we thought. And the altitude is... high."
"Are you saying Aya was wrong? Impossible! I calculated the coordinates and altitude precisely."
With Yata standing between them, Aya snapped at Fushimi. Ignoring her, Fushimi turned and sat back against the fence, just like before. He quickly manipulated the holographic keyboard, and a map appeared on the screen.
"When did you do that?"
Aya raised her eyebrows. The same airship route she had initially displayed on her PDA was now softly drawn in fluorescent yellow.
Judging by the route, it's supposed to pass directly over the building they're in at 10:15 PM. Looking at the time, it's not yet 9:00 PM. If the prediction is correct, they have approximately an hour and a half before the airship approaches.
"Look at the map again carefully.", Fushimi tugged at Yata's clothes from below.
"Don't you notice anything?"
"Huh? Well, even if you say that..."
Yata crouched down, leaning closer to the map, and scanned the route, highlighted in fluorescent colors.
"Hmm...?"
Something didn't add up. The first time he saw it, everything seemed fine, but this...
"No way, Misaki-kun!"
Aya buried her face in the hologram. The map rippled above her face. "You don't have to listen to anything Saruhiko says. Aya can't be wrong. You just have to listen to what Aya says, Misaki-kun."
"Yata!"
Fushimi exclaimed irritably. Perhaps it was a dig at Aya, but it was the first time he'd called him anything other than "you".
Yata focused on the map, avoiding Aya's gaze.
"Ah... I see!"
Turning his face away from Aya, he pointed to a spot on the route. He should have noticed it himself; perhaps he was too excited and missed it.
"See the transmission tower here? It aligns with the line, right here. If that were to fly at the indicated altitude, that would inevitably crash into the tower."
Maps and satellite images are two-dimensional, so you can't judge the height of a building just by looking at them. However, Yata's sense of direction wasn't based on an aerial map, but on his own perspective. He could even estimate the height of a transmission tower by comparing it to other buildings.
"A transmission tower...?"
Fushimi leaned back against the railing, squinting behind his glasses. Yata pointed to the sky next to Fushimi's face and said, "That's it."
It was difficult to make out the imposing structure against the night sky with the naked eye, but the aircraft's warning lights dimly illuminated its long, slender silhouette.
It's unclear if he was able to confirm it, but Fushimi crouched down again, in front of the screen and keyboard. The incredibly detailed sequence of numbers that Aya had called a "clue" appeared on the screen. His eyes moved quickly, scanning the numbers as if he were analyzing something.
"Are you going to recalculate? How rude!"
"It clearly doesn't add up, no matter how you look at it."
Fushimi dismissed Aya's protest.
"Yata, where is the airship now?"
"Um... I think it's around here."
He located the area on the map where the aircraft was still barely visible and pointed. That location wasn't on the fluorescent yellow route. It was far from where Aya had predicted the airship would be at that moment. Aya frowned and remained silent.
"Dividing the string into 32-digit segments isn't bad. For example, if we extract the 32 digits from here, we get 05301525035689520139691703035015... 0530 is the date, 1525 is the time, 035689520 is the X-axis, 139691703 is the Y-axis, and 035015 is the altitude."
As Fushimi stared at the screen filled with numbers reflected in his glasses, he muttered to himself. Aya puffed out her chest and said, "See? I told you so.", but gritted her teeth in frustration because Fushimi was only muttering to himself.
Yata could only watch, powerless to intervene.
"This sequence of characters isn't just a useful clue... it's deliberately hiding something, trying to get us to figure it out."
Fushimi slid his fingers across the keyboard, manipulating the numbers on the screen.
"Is there some code in there...? Prime factorization? Do they expect an amateur to solve it...? It's probably something simpler, like a puzzle... Adding or subtracting numbers... No, that won't work. Rearranging them digit by digit... Ah, this should work...? Good, that's it. If I convert everything using this rule and graph it again..."
His monologue began to take on an eerie intensity. An incredible number of digits were rapidly transforming in Fushimi's mind. All Yata could see in Fushimi's mind was the Big Bang, with asteroids colliding with each other.
"This guy is incredible..."
A fluorescent blue dot suddenly appeared on the map.
Plop, plop, plop plop plop… Like a sudden downpour that quickly intensifies, the dots multiplied rapidly. Finally, the cluster of dots formed a gently winding line.
The fluorescent yellow line drawn by Aya and the fluorescent blue line drawn by Fushimi traced completely different curves.
"That doesn't prove that's the correct answer!"
Aya insisted, but the newly calculated predicted position of the airship perfectly matched its actual location, providing evidence at least closer to the correct answer than Aya's. Furthermore, the troublesome transmission tower was avoided on the new route.
"Wow! You did it, Fushimi."
"No."
Fushimi calmly interrupted Yata, who was about to exclaim excitedly.
"There must be more to it... Since he set up this trick, there must be a reason for it... Ah, I see, if I use that rule from before, another set of coordinates will appear... I'll plot this again..."
Another window opened on the screen, overlapping the map. Fushimi's fingers moved with incredible speed across the keyboard, typing what looked like commands composed of alphanumeric characters and symbols. A series of numbers suddenly appeared. Now, fluorescent green dots were projected onto the map.
This time, it didn't seem to represent a single continuous line. An almost perfect circle was drawn, and inside it... something resembling a face...?
"W-what is this...?"
Yata's eyes widened, astonished by the amazing truth that had suddenly been revealed to him.
Like an emoji drawn by the light from a window, what appeared on the city map was... a smiley face.
"What nonsense."
Fushimi muttered, clicking his tongue, and let his fingers fall from the keyboard. He looked like a model student who had finished an exam early, thrown his pencil on the desk, lost all interest, and even removed the hologram.
"Why did you erase the map? Wasn't it some kind of code? There must be some amazing secret hidden there..."
"Impossible. Whoever created the puzzle is crazy. It's a sign that there are no more mysteries to solve."
"So, we've found the right route, right? What do we do now?"
"Now what...? It's clear the airship won't come this way if we just wait around. Even if we light the "candle", it's too far away; there's almost no chance the airship will see us. It's cold, so let's go home."
"What are you talking about? Let's go after the airship!"
When he said it so enthusiastically, Fushimi looked confused. Pointing at the small shadow floating in the moonlight, Yata raised his voice.
"But now we can see it, right? There's no way I'm giving up now that I see it. We can still reach it."
Shizume is his territory. Yata knows the area like the back of his hand, not just through a holographic map he can't touch.
He asked the reluctant Fushimi to show him the map again, and they examined the buildings along the route. The tallest buildings they could possibly enter… Unusually, he racked his brain, digging up memories of childhood adventures.
A building with the words "Hirasaka-Bldg" written in lowercase suddenly caught their attention, as if imposing itself as the only place they could be. The Hirasaka Building, located roughly halfway between where the airship was hovering and the building they were in.
"Okay, this should work…"
"We won't make it."
Fushimi glanced at the building Yata was pointing at for a moment and said,
"That's the midpoint, right? The airship would be much faster."
"No. We'll make it."
"What makes you say that?"
"Just a hunch!"
Yata declared confidently.
"Alright, let's go, you two!"
He dragged Fushimi and Aya with difficulty up the fire escape and retrieved the bicycle he'd left at the bottom. He straddled the seat, nodding his chin at the rear rack.
"Get on! We won't make it if we run!"
"Are three of us going to be on this thing?!"
Aya reacted with a look of disgust.
"Don't worry about me. You two don't weigh much, do you? I used to run with a fat guy who weighed about three times as much as you two."
"I'm not worried, Misaki-kun."
As Aya glanced at Fushimi and hesitated, Fushimi approached and climbed onto the rear rack.
"Come on. She should be walking, like an infantryman."
"Why is Aya an "infantryman"? Aya's riding! You're such a pain!"
After stamping her feet and leaping, Aya caught up with them, yelling, "Get out of the way!" and shoving Fushimi to one side of the rear rack, then sitting sideways on the other. They both had small bottoms, so they felt like they were barely holding on. Aya clung to the back of Yata's jacket in an awkward position.
"I'd rather die than cling to your back!"
"I'd rather die than touch you!"
"It's understandable that you two don't get along, but don't fall off!"
It was just like a week ago, when he'd hoisted Fushimi onto the back of the bicycle and escaped from the third-years. He was carrying twice the weight he had then, but the more he had to carry, the more excited he got.
He put all his strength into pedaling. As expected, his balance was off, and he couldn't pick up speed as he wanted right away, so he swerved, and Aya screamed, "Aaaah!" behind him. He felt his jacket being pulled so hard it felt like it was going to rip, and it was rising up to his stomach.
"Nuooooooooh!"
Gritting his teeth and pedaling with all his might, he finally began to pick up speed. The bicycle creaked and groaned, protesting the overload, threatening to fall apart at any moment.
"Misaki-kun, are you okay?"
"Yes! I'm fine! Don't worry!"
Leaning forward, he alternated pedaling, throwing his chin back and looking up at the sky. The blimp's shadow was hidden by the towering buildings in front of him. But if he trusted the route Fushimi had calculated, he should be gradually descending and getting closer. He definitely felt the sensation of approaching something enormous. He heard a faint buzzing in his ears. He kept pedaling, trying to crash into the mass pressing in front of him.
"Let's take a shortcut! Hold on tight!"
He gripped the handlebars tighter and shoved the bicycle forcefully through the narrow gap between the building walls. The bicycle tilted sharply, about to crash into the wall, so he briefly took one foot off the pedal and kicked it.
"Fushimi, keep your balance at the back!"
He raised his voice, pleading for help.
"Don't you think this is silly?"
A cold voice, like a splash on his sweaty back, called after him.
"You're the only one pedaling this hard, drenched in sweat."
"Why? I don't think so.", Yata replied without hesitation.
"Because I'm giving you guys a ride. I might look ridiculous if I were alone...", he said, his voice steady with each pedal stroke, his breathing in time with the rhythm.
"I like doing things with other people. Getting into trouble for misbehaving, laughing my head off at silly things... it's all fun because I have friends to hang out with, right? I might be a bit of a pain, I might be absentminded, I might have been laughed at behind my back, but..."
His voice lost some of its strength. His gaze, which had been fixed straight ahead, now shifted diagonally downward.
Until now, he had perhaps ignored other people's feelings, assuming that if he was having fun, everyone else must be too, and imposing his own idea of "fun". He never imagined that someone would reject him behind his back.
Now that he had realized this, he could no longer enter people's lives as easily as before. He was a little hesitant, trying to gauge Fushimi's reaction. Well, to others, he might still seem completely insensitive, but he was trying to interact with Fushimi carefully, in his own way.
Why? Is it because he doesn't want people to dislike him anymore? It's not that.
Because he was amazed at how intelligent Fushimi is. Because he was so excited he was trembling from head to toe. Because he wanted to see his smiling face. Because he wanted to do more fun things together and laugh together.
They squeezed through a hole in the wall.
"We're here!"
Right in front of the Hirasaka Building, Yata stopped his bicycle. Waiting for the two of them to get off, he flipped the bicycle over and pushed them from behind, shouting, "The stairs are back! Hurry!"
But Fushimi stopped, and Yata crashed into him.
"It's impossible. We won't make it.", Fushimi said, looking up at the sky.
"What are you talking about? It's right in front of us..."
Wham...!
At that moment, the sky opened.
From the clouds, the airship revealed its enormous underside.
Wham, wham, wham... A loud, booming engine noise vibrated the air, hitting their faces. The air became denser and more compressed, causing a ringing in their ears. A gust of wind instantly dried Yata's sweat.
It was so immense that it was impossible to take it all in at once.
"Wow... it's enormous...!"
And then,
"It's so low...!"
The airship passed so close it seemed as if it would graze the tops of the buildings. Although it must have been tens of meters above sea level, its immense size, filling their entire field of vision, distorted their perception of distance. If they reached out now, perhaps they could touch it... Surely someone on the airship would notice, take their hand, and help them up.
But they couldn't move a muscle, much less reach out. Overwhelmed by its immense mass, as if by the pressure of water, they could only remain motionless.
It was a fleeting instant, like a giant tongue licking the sky. The airship passed relentlessly above the three of them and plunged back into the dense clouds. The rear propeller tore them to shreds, scattering them over the buildings.
There was no time to light the "candle", it didn't even cross their minds.
When the once-flattened sky regained its normal height and the oppressive pressure lessened, Earth's gravity seemed unstable, making Yata's feet feel light and trembling.
"Well, we didn't make it after all."
Aya muttered uncomfortably, visibly dejected by her miscalculation.
"Misaki-kun's intuition was wrong, wasn't it?"
"I'm sorry... I thought we'd make it. My gut feeling is failing me."
Yata, trying to hide her discomfort, made a jokey comment and started picking up his bicycle.
"Sorry, Fushimi. You were right. I got carried away... Let's go home."
As he turned around and said that, he stopped pushing his bicycle, looking bewildered. Aya, who had been grumbling and walking in the direction they were going, also stopped, looking perplexed.
Only Fushimi remained motionless, staring at the spot where the airship had taken off.
"If only we had been there..."
A voice murmured to himself.
"If we had been able to get on, would anything have changed...?"
Although his voice and expression were calm, the small voice he uttered sounded like a cry for help. Why?
"Yes. Perhaps it could have taken us somewhere. Not to this ridiculous, boring world, but to a different world, very far away."
Aya said this in a somber voice, softening her defiant attitude toward Fushimi.
The airship flashed past, leaving an overwhelming impression on Yata and the others. They still felt a faint pull from its departing body.
They thought that there must be a world other than the small world they now belonged to, at the airship's destination. If there really was a vast world somewhere, filled with incredible power, a world they couldn't even imagine right now...
Then, perhaps, they could go there someday.
It was a shame to have missed the airship that night, but they could always try to reach it again, so Yata wasn't too discouraged.
