The Takabayashi that Kubodera mentioned was Takabayashi Ikuo, a boy from Class 3-3.
Rinji still vaguely remembered he had such a classmate, with slightly curly hair, someone who got along well with the other boys. He never thought that just yesterday, this boy would die suddenly of a heart attack.
His condition was congenital heart disease. In theory, heart attacks don't discriminate by age or gender, and sudden death at home wasn't something impossible to understand.
However, this was Class 3-3, the class shrouded in the calamity that had persisted for twenty-six years.
The sudden death cast a shadow over every student's heart. They were terrified that the calamity might strike them next.
Without a doubt, because of Takabayashi's incident, even though the students didn't show it, the fear buried in their hearts could erupt at any time.
Classes went on as usual, but who knew whether the students could still focus on the lessons.
Even the teachers, caught in the calamity's reach, taught listlessly. The moment the dismissal bell rang, they left the classroom.
After class, the students weren't laughing and chatting like before.
Under the shadow of death, some hid in the corners and wept quietly, some sat silently in their seats, while others whispered in hushed tones.
"Takabayashi died…"
"Yeah… I thought this year would be safe, but I never expected this…"
"What should we do next?"
"I don't want to die yet…"
Rinji sat listening to the students' whispers without interest, then got up and headed for the door.
He climbed the stairs and looked up at the sky.
It was a drizzly day, the raindrops pattering down, perfectly matching the gloomy, despair-filled atmosphere of Class 3-3.
"You came out here to stand in the rain alone?"
"Getting rained on clears my head a little."
Rinji turned, his hair wet with rain, and saw Mei standing by the rooftop door.
"Is that so?"
After speaking, Mei stepped onto the rooftop and stood under the rain.
She closed her eyes and spread her arms, letting the falling raindrops hit her body.
"It doesn't really clear my head that much."
"Did you come looking for me, or could you just not stand the atmosphere in class?"
"Something like that, I just came out for some air."
Mei smiled.
In the rain, her school uniform clung to her, crystal drops tracing her pale, delicate face. At that moment, Mei looked particularly beautiful.
Unfortunately, no matter how beautiful she was, Rinji couldn't appreciate it.
"Even if it's just light rain, you'll catch a cold if you stay out too long."
Rinji turned his head back to the scenery beyond the school.
As its name suggested, Yomiyama City was surrounded by mountains. From the rooftop, one could see only scattered buildings, the rest a sea of ridges upon ridges.
"I keep thinking, what's the purpose of this curse? Just to make people die accidentally? If the starting point is accidental death, then what's the end? How does the calamity stop? None of this is clear right now."
Everything was suspicious, as if someone had carefully designed a trap waiting for them to step in, but without ever stating the rules.
"I don't know either," Mei said softly. "But according to past records, once the calamity starts, it doesn't stop until its time ends. Whether you die or not depends entirely on luck."
"Luck, huh…"
Rinji looked at her after a moment of silence.
"I remember yesterday you said your doll's eye can see the color of death. Did you see it on Takabayashi?"
"I did."
Mei answered without hesitation.
"Yesterday, I did see the color of death on Takabayashi, but that's all I could see. I couldn't have predicted he'd suddenly collapse from a heart attack at home."
"…"
Rinji's mouth fell open slightly.
He didn't expect Mei really could see it.
But even if she saw it, there was no way to warn anyone. People wouldn't believe her, and since the entire class already treated her as someone who didn't exist, she wouldn't even have the chance to say it before others ran from her.
Still, her words gave Rinji an idea.
The curse was just a conceptual thing. To truly understand it, he'd need it to act on him directly. But clearly, Class 3-3's curse wasn't paying any attention to an outsider like him.
Then what if he broke its rules himself?
"Mei, besides Takabayashi, have you seen the color of death on anyone else?"
"I saw it on the class rep too."
"The class rep… who's that?"
Of course, Rinji didn't know who the class rep was. Like he said when he enrolled, he never intended to get along with his classmates. Out of the whole class, he could probably name fewer than ten people.
"It's Sakuragi," Misaki said. "Sakuragi Yukari."
"Oh, her…"
Rinji remembered now. Before he became the one who didn't exist, there was a girl who had been very kind to him, the new transfer student.
A girl with glasses, gentle and approachable.
"So you mean… she's next?"
"Yes, but I can't be sure when…"
"Doesn't matter when." Rinji smiled. "As long as I know the curse's next target is her, that's enough."
"What are you going to do?"
"Break the rules of the game."
---
"Sakuragi!"
The quiet classroom was suddenly broken when the assistant homeroom teacher, Mikami, rushed in.
The students all looked up, and Yukari, seated in the third row, stared at Mikami in confusion.
Mikami hesitated, pressing her lips together as if to steel her resolve. Then she whispered, "Sakuragi, could you step outside for a moment?"
"…Alright."
Yukari had a bad feeling, but she nodded and followed Mikami out of the classroom.
The door closed. Inside, the students couldn't hear what was said.
Soon, the door opened again. Yukari looked pale and frantic. She grabbed her umbrella from her seat and rushed out.
She didn't say a word, but the students all lowered their heads.
They understood. The calamity had started again. This time, it was a student's family.
Rinji watched as Yukari left the room, then silently stood from his seat.