He left the library.
Ishigami Yū felt as though his entire being had been elevated. By comparing his own situation to something worse, he had gained confidence—or perhaps, to be precise, he had simply become a little conceited. Either way, Ishigami decided to reward himself once he got home. Just a short break. Just two games. As soon as he won one, he would start studying.
Winning one game shouldn't take much time, right?
It was already late, and the school grounds had grown quiet. The curfew was approaching, and most of the sports club members were packing up to head home. As he passed them, Ishigami could still see drops of sweat clinging to their foreheads, not yet cooled by the evening breeze.
"Sports." The word echoed in his mind.
Unbelievable as it might seem, even Ishigami Yū—the gloomy shut-in of today—had once been part of a sports club back in junior high. The soccer club, of all things. But he had quit on his own, deciding he wasn't suited for it.
The day he left the club, he lost both his goals and his friends. From then on, he drifted like a listless salted fish, without direction.
He regretted it, of course. But regret changed nothing.
There's no such thing as a "regret pill." Even couples who reconcile after a breakup can never erase the cracks left behind. A broken mirror doesn't become whole again. With glue? Please. Glue doesn't work.
This was Ishigami Yū's outlook on life: hopeless, negative. People like Shirogane Miyuki—who always pushed themselves forward, who studied ten hours a day and worked part-time jobs on top of it—seemed almost alien to him. Admirable, yes, but utterly unreachable. Ishigami couldn't imagine becoming someone like Shirogane, not in this lifetime, not even in death.
So he chose the easier path. If opening his eyes meant facing the dark, then better to keep them closed. Better to give up. Because nothing is easier than giving up.
"Sakurai-kun, are you going to the bike shed?"
The words snapped him out of his thoughts. Peering through the curtain of his bangs, Ishigami's gaze landed on Sakurai Saki. Her face was blurred by the strands of hair falling over his eyes, but her voice cut through clearly.
"Yes," she replied when she noticed him looking. "Want to grab a bite to eat together?"
The reason he had been spacing out earlier was simple—memories had returned to him. Memories that weren't there before, but now felt as real as anything.
Nakano Nino…
That was the name of the girl he had saved. He remembered everything now, even that incident.
The sunset outside the window burned in shades of orange and gold. From the balcony on the thirtieth floor, Nakano Nino leaned against the railing, gazing at the horizon. In the distance, she could just make out Shuchiin Academy.
Her sisters were probably out eating somewhere right now.
Turning a childhood photo of the five of them over in her hand, Nino sighed. The bond between them wasn't as deep as she had once believed. Blood connected them, yes—but these past two days, when her sisters looked at her, they had seemed like strangers.
And so she had been living like a ghost in her own home. Only daring to return when they were away. An invisible existence.
Seven days as a shadow had taught Nakano Nino one bitter truth: she wasn't that important.
The world kept moving, even when one person was missing.
She looked down from the balcony.
"The thirtieth floor… is it really that high?" she murmured.
High enough that if she jumped, her body would shatter. High enough to die.
The thought lingered, persistent. What if she did it? What if she jumped now? After all, she could touch things again. People could see her again.
And the pull of gravity whispered to her.
When people face danger, their instincts scream at them to run. When standing at a great height, where is safety? Down below. And the shortest path? A straight line.
Elementary school logic. Simple. Just jump.
Her body tilted forward under the strange allure. Her toes left the ground.
Just jump…
Then—
"Beep-boop~!"
Her ringtone blared, jerking her back to reality.
She stumbled backward, terrified, her forehead breaking out in a cold sweat.
It wasn't the first time. She had thrown herself off buildings before. She had lain across train tracks. And just now—she had wanted to do it again.
Her phone screen lit up. For a moment, she froze. Then, slowly, fear gave way to joy.
Nino dashed into the living room, throwing herself onto the sofa and rolling across it in giddy relief.
"It's over!" she shouted.
This life—this cursed, invisible existence—was finally over. She could return to her normal days.
With trembling hands, she pressed "accept" on the call.
"Yotsuba, what's wrong?" Nino asked, forcing her voice into calmness, suppressing the thrill bubbling in her chest.
But there was one thing she needed to confirm.
What would happen to the past, now that she had returned to being "normal"?
If her argument with Sakurai Saki could simply vanish, that would be best. Please, let it disappear, Nakano Nino prayed in silence.
If all of that really disappeared, then she would definitely treat him well from now on.
Sakurai-kun would surely remain her tutor.
No more cold shoulders. No more pointless arguments. Even if he scolded her, she wouldn't mind. Even if he raised his hand against her—well, even that would be acceptable!
After all, he had helped her. And he was very much to her liking in appearance, too.
Nakano Nino let her mind drift into fantasy, a faint smile tugging at her lips.
"Nino, are you feeling better?" Yotsuba's worried voice broke through.
"Better?" Nino echoed.
Physically, aside from a lingering weakness, she was fine. Compared to when she'd collapsed, half-starved, at the entrance of the convenience store, she felt stronger than ever. Mentally, too.
"If you take any more days off, they'll call our parents," Itsuki's voice chimed in, closer now.
Nino quickly pieced things together.
Heaven was on her side!
Her disappearance these past few days had been rewritten into something harmless—just a sick leave due to poor health.
"I'm feeling much better," Nino said quickly. "I'll go to school tomorrow." She hesitated, then cautiously added, "Did Sakurai-kun… meet with you today?"
She only knew that Sakurai Saki had shown up once yesterday. Beyond that, she had no details.
"Mm-hmm! Sakurai-kun praised me today," Yotsuba's lively voice answered. "He said I still have a lot of room for improvement~!"
Exactly the answer Nino had feared.
Her throat tightened. After pausing to collect herself, she forced out another question. "Did he… say anything about me?"
Her voice trembled despite her effort to keep it steady.
She didn't want the answer. But Yotsuba gave it anyway.
"Nope. He didn't mention you. Nino, why are you asking? Didn't you say you didn't like Sakurai-kun as a tutor? …Or have you changed your mind?"
At that, Nino slumped onto the sofa. The sparkle left her eyes.
Sure enough, he still hates me.
"I did something like that last week… it's only normal to be disliked," she murmured bitterly.
"But didn't you just say a few mean things before storming off? If you apologize, Sakurai-kun will forgive you! He has a really good temper. He was praising people all day today!" Yotsuba reassured her cheerfully.
Nakano Nino: "!!!"
Really?
Really?!
Was today her lucky day?
If Sakurai-kun hadn't had his bag thrown away, then—maybe—there was still room for reconciliation. As long as she apologized properly, he would surely treat her kindly again.
Teacher and student… such a close relationship. If she played her cards right, perhaps it could even go further.
It wasn't impossible to win Sakurai-kun's affection. Things weren't that bad yet!
"Hey! Nino, can you hear me? Are you coming for tutoring tomorrow? At the library, after school." Itsuki seemed to have taken the phone.
Nino sprang upright from the sofa, excitement coursing through her. "I'm coming!"
She bounced in place twice, like an eager rabbit.
"You hated him so much last week, and now you've changed your mind. Nino, you're so strange," Itsuki teased.
"Hmph. I suddenly think he's quite good. Is that a crime?" Nino shot back.
"Never mind, never mind. We're about to eat ramen. Want to come? It's the place on the commercial street."
"Mm! Wait for me."
"Hurry up~"
"Mm."
Nino hung up and dropped back into the sofa, hugging her phone to her chest. For the first time in days, she let her body relax completely.
At this moment, she felt as if everything had returned to her.
Even those tangled things with Sakurai-kun could be resolved tomorrow.
Her recent misfortunes were finally over. Her luck had turned.
So maybe—just maybe—a "regret pill" did exist after all.
8:00 PM.
Sakurai Saki was cooking at home.
In one hand, he held a love letter. Beside him, a white-haired, gray-eyed ghost girl hovered, staring hungrily at the frying pan.
"Hamburg steak!" she whined. "Isn't it ready yet, Sakura-kun? I'm starving I'm starving!"
"I don't recommend eating raw food," Sakurai replied flatly, flipping the patty in the air. "You might get parasites."
Yakumo Bai pouted, her expression still eerily beautiful. "But I'm a ghost, Sakura-kun~ Ghosts don't get sick."
Sakurai ignored her. The patty landed neatly back in the pan, sizzling. Once it was cooked through, he plated it carefully and carried it, along with cutlery, to the dining room.
He hadn't intended to eat. But when he went to fetch the love letter from his room, he had planned to ask Bai about Nakano Nino—only for her to demand hamburg steak. Since he had already stood her up once, he couldn't exactly refuse.
Placing the plate down, he cut a neat piece and speared it with a fork.
Before he could even lift it toward her, Yakumo Bai lunged like a whale breaching from the sea, swallowing the piece whole.
"Delicious!" she declared.
As she spoke, faint white smoke curled from her mouth—the essence of food consumed by a ghost.
He fed her a few more bites, then set the knife down. His tone grew serious.
"The person I told you about last time," Sakurai began, "did you spend time observing her today?"
Ghosts were, in fact, excellent informants. Formless, colorless, invisible to almost everyone—truly ideal assistants. According to Yakumo Bai, their movement speed was astonishing as well, more like a gust of wind than a human step.
The only drawback? A ghost couldn't enter a residence without the owner's permission. Aside from that minor limitation, they were flawless for gathering information.
"No," Bai said between bites, her tone unusually earnest. "I was with you all day. But that person has probably reconnected with the world. After all, Sakura-kun, you said you've remembered."
Sakurai Saki nodded.
When he first used his Superpower on Nakano Nino, there had been… unexpected factors.
The trigger for [Existence Erasure] wasn't only his eyes, as he had first believed. Even fleeting thoughts in his mind could activate it. That was something Sakurai hadn't known—unsurprising, since it was his very first power. Its boundaries were untested.
That day, in the hallway, after a bitter argument, the thought had simply crossed his mind: What if she just disappeared?
And then—she did.
The aftermath had been messy, the side effects severe. But regret? No.
He didn't regret using his ability on her. Nor did he regret saving her afterward.
If anyone else had acted the way she had, he would have crushed them long ago—telekinesis, or some other neat trick of his arsenal. It was only because this incident was connected to Shirogane Miyuki that Sakurai had tolerated it for as long as he did.
After all, no one could force a Superpower user—someone who could transcend laws and rules at any time—to bow their head. No one, except Sakurai Saki himself.
When a person makes a decision, the true persuader is never "circumstance" or "fate." It is always the person himself.
Sakurai Saki's so-called "anchors" were merely bottom lines he set for himself. And bottom lines, by nature, were not immutable.
Take the second one, for example: [Do not easily fall in love until you have fully mastered your Superpower].
The word "easily" already betrayed the loophole. If he truly fell in love, he would not hesitate to abandon the rule. Because rules, in the end, exist only to be broken.
As for saving Nakano Nino afterward, he was indifferent.
He had told her once that it was nothing more than goodwill. No hidden motive, no ulterior reason. He simply wanted to save someone. That was all.
"Bai," he asked suddenly, watching the pale girl elegantly cut another piece of meat, "would you easily forgive someone who's very annoying?"
"Mmm~ of course not! I hold grudges!" she declared through a full mouth, her words muffled.
Sakurai studied her quietly. She could touch objects. She could eat. She was different from other ghosts. But the details of why… she hadn't yet revealed.
Bai tilted her head, her eyes glinting playfully. "Sakura-kun, you hold grudges too, don't you?"
He nodded once.
"Mm-hmm~ We're soulmates, then." Her smile bloomed like a flower. "I know all your thoughts!"
"And as for how to deal with such people, of course it's—"
They exchanged a knowing look.
And then, in perfect unison:
"An eye for an eye! A tooth for a tooth!"
Bai clapped her hands in satisfaction. "That's exactly right!"
This was Sakurai Saki's nature. Kindness met kindness. Hostility met hostility.
If someone treated him warmly, he would return it in kind.
But if someone crossed him—made him uncomfortable, insulted him—then reconciliation would not come easily. In fact, it might require hundreds of times the effort to regain even a fraction of goodwill.
Even Kaguya Shinomiya herself had rarely received a pleasant expression from him.
The number of times they had genuinely smiled at each other? Essentially zero.
If not for Shirogane Miyuki and Fujiwara Chika keeping the balance, the Student Council Room might have erupted into a battlefield long ago.
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