Kaito sat alone on a bench in the school courtyard, absentmindedly staring up at the sky.
White clouds drifted lazily overhead, carried by the gentle afternoon breeze.
Clouds really are beautiful… he thought. Floating around without a single worry in the world.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
They kind of look like soft white rice balls…
A brief pause.
…Man, now I'm even hungrier.
Grrr…
His stomach growled in protest.
Kaito lowered his gaze and sighed deeply.
He still hadn't eaten lunch.
Seriously… I'm starving.
"Kazama-kun."
The voice beside him snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Ah—sorry," Kaito replied quickly, turning toward the girl sitting beside him. "I spaced out for a moment, Sairenji-san."
Haruna Sairenji smiled awkwardly.
"No, I should be the one apologizing. I suddenly called you over like this during lunch break…"
You have no idea how much you're interrupting it, Kaito complained internally.
{ If you didn't want to come, you could've just said you were busy. Complaining now won't solve anything. }
There's something you apparently still don't understand about me, Kaoru.
{ And what would that be? }
I can't say no to women.
A brief silence followed.
Then—
{ So you're just lonely and desperate. }
Shut up.
While Kaito mentally argued with Kaoru, Haruna nervously fidgeted beside him.
She looked unusually tense.
Her lips opened slightly, then closed again.
Over and over.
It almost seemed like she was trying to gather courage for something important.
Then, suddenly—
"Kazama-kun!"
The sudden increase in volume startled him.
"Yes!?" he answered instinctively.
Haruna leaned slightly closer, her cheeks turning bright red.
"There's… something I want to tell you."
Kaito froze.
Hold on.
This atmosphere…
This tone…
No way.
His thoughts immediately spiraled out of control.
Haruna placed both hands on the bench beside her, visibly nervous.
"To be honest… ever since I saw you this morning, I've been wanting to ask you something…"
Her face became even redder.
Wait, wait, wait.
This is way too fast!
We literally just met today!
And if I remember correctly, she's supposed to like Rito!
Kaito began panicking internally.
I mean, Rito's my friend. Even if we only met today, I can't betray him like that…
…At least not yet.
{ Hypocrite. }
Shut up.
Haruna finally gathered all her courage and spoke.
"I want you to help me become friends with your friend Yuuki-kun!"
Kaito blinked.
"…Ah."
Another blink.
"…Ahhh."
Then—
"AH?!"
His soul nearly left his body.
{ Pfft— }
The atmosphere around them remained strangely peaceful.
A refreshing breeze drifted through the courtyard.
Warm sunlight gently illuminated the benches.
And there they sat together—
A girl with a completely red face…
And a boy who looked spiritually destroyed.
…
After lunch break ended, the students gradually returned to their classrooms.
Kaito was among them.
Now seated at his desk, he rested his head against the surface while staring blankly out the window.
The afternoon sky stretched endlessly above the school grounds.
Sigh…
A long, exhausted sigh escaped his lips.
{ What's wrong? } Kaoru asked.
You're seriously asking that even though you already know the answer?
Just then, Kirisu Mafuyu entered the classroom.
The moment Kaito noticed her, he immediately straightened his posture and pretended to pay attention.
{ Sometimes talking about what's bothering you—even if it's only to yourself—helps relieve stress. }
…Maybe you're right.
Kaito rested his chin against his hand.
Where do I even begin?
I'm just a guy who wanted to live a peaceful life, but after only a few hours in this world, all kinds of insane things have already happened.
And do you know the worst part?
{ What? }
I never even got to eat lunch.
{ I'm pretty sure that's the only part you actually care about. }
Kaoru wasn't entirely wrong.
…
The final bell eventually rang, signaling the end of classes for the day.
Kirisu closed her book, gave a brief farewell to the class, and calmly left the room.
As soon as she disappeared, the atmosphere instantly relaxed.
Students began chatting while packing their belongings.
Kaito grabbed his bag and walked over to Rito.
"Hey, Rito. You done packing up?"
"Yeah," Rito replied as he stood from his seat. "But before heading home, I need to stop by the market. Mikan asked me to buy ingredients for dinner."
"I see."
Kaito adjusted the strap of his bag.
"Then I'll head home first. I still need to deal with a few things today."
"Alright. See you tonight, then," Rito said with a smile. "Come have dinner with us."
Kaito immediately smiled back.
"How could I possibly refuse Mikan's cooking?"
"Fair point."
The two exchanged grins, as though they shared a mutual understanding beyond words.
After saying goodbye, Kaito turned toward the classroom door.
But just before stepping outside—
Bzzz.
His phone vibrated inside his pocket.
Kaito pulled it out and glanced at the screen.
Sender: Sairenji Haruna.
Right.
He had exchanged contact information with her earlier.
SAIRENJI:[ Thank you for agreeing to help me, Kazama-kun. ]
Kaito read the message, then instinctively glanced back into the classroom.
Haruna was already looking in his direction.
The moment their eyes met, however, she immediately turned away in embarrassment.
…Maybe I'm imagining things, but I don't remember her being this shy in the original story.
Still, Kaito chose not to think too deeply about it and typed a reply.
KAITO:[ You don't need to thank me for something that simple. ]
KAITO:[ Besides, Rito's heading to the market after school. You could "coincidentally" run into him there and try talking to him. ]
She only said she wants to become friends with him.
That shouldn't be difficult, right?
{ Probably not. }
Kaito reached the shoe lockers just as his phone vibrated again.
After changing into his outdoor shoes, he checked the new message.
SAIRENJI:[ Okay. ]
Kaito stared at the screen for a few seconds.
…Okay?
What kind of answer is that?
Is she actually planning to do something or not?
Slightly confused, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and left the school building.
As he stepped outside, he noticed Kirisu standing nearby, talking with two female students.
One had short orange hair.
The other had long blue hair.
The moment Kaito recognized them, he immediately quickened his pace.
Nope.
Absolutely not.
I've already had enough excitement for one day.
And tonight, I still have an even bigger problem waiting for me.
As he walked away from the school gates, Kaoru suddenly spoke again.
{ You should probably start getting used to this kind of lifestyle, Kaito. }
"…Yeah."
Kaito let out another tired sigh.
At this point—
He really didn't have much of a choice anymore.