"Who is it that's with Meteor every single day, yet still didn't get any cake? Huh? Who? Whooo?"
千明代表 wiggled her cake right in front of 鲁道夫's face while Rudolf was working, wearing the smuggest expression imaginable. She sniffed it theatrically, then accidentally-on-purpose pushed it so close it was practically touching Rudolf's nose.
And since 气槽—the other cake-less victim—wasn't in the student council room today, Chihaya's harassment escalated into a full-blown assault.
"I'm guessing it's because certain someone had a fight with little Meteor," 丸善斯基 said calmly as she ate her own cake, giving Rudolf a sideways glance.
"Hah?! Rudolf and Meteor argued? For real?! That's possible?!"
Chihaya's eyes went wide as she yelped.
Rudolf didn't respond.
She didn't even lift her head.
But the pen in her hand carved a deep groove into the paper—an ugly, heavy line that betrayed how little of her "calm" was real.
Because right now, the person who looked fine on the surface was also the person whose mind felt like it had a missing page torn out.
"What the hell is going on with my memory?"
永恒流星 sat on her bed, jaw tight.
It felt like someone had taken a video of her life and deleted the middle segment.
She could recall the beginning. She could recall the end. The timeline stitched together smoothly—until it didn't.
Then there was a blank space so clean, so absolute, it was like that time had never existed.
If Teio hadn't mentioned it, she might not have noticed at all.
But now that the "gap" had been pointed out, the emptiness pressed down on her nerves like a weight.
It was infuriating.
"You might want to think harder about what your Domain actually affects," X said, sounding unusually dry. "Because this is… new."
Meteor's fingers spun her phone unconsciously. Her other hand clenched the bed sheet until the fabric wrinkled into sharp creases.
"Souls, right? So does that mean those memories are just… gone?"
Her voice came out small, more honest than she liked.
To Meteor, memory wasn't an accessory.
It was the backbone of identity.
If those memories vanished completely—was she still "her"?
"Not exactly," X answered. "Right now, you're like a hard drive with bad sectors. The data's there—you just can't read it properly because your soul's missing chunks."
Meteor's mouth tightened.
"And how is that different from being gone?"
"There is a difference," X insisted. "Souls self-repair over time. They'll gradually fill in. It's just that compared to how fast you're burning yourself, the regeneration looks pathetic."
Meteor opened her mouth—then closed it.
Because she couldn't accept the obvious solution.
She wasn't going to stop using the Domain. Not ever. That was her trump card. Her weapon. Her proof that she could still force the world to obey her will.
But she also refused to lose her memories.
Two absolutes.
One body.
One soul.
"Relax," X said, shifting into a softer tone as if it hated how worried she sounded. "At your current pace, you'll mostly lose things that weren't important to begin with. The important stuff? You won't forget that."
Meteor's brows snapped upward.
"Huh? But every time I activate it, there are tons of lights. Like… all over me."
She remembered it clearly: the glow, the scattering points—like her whole body was dissolving into stars.
She'd assumed that meant her soul was literally fragmenting.
"Because before your soul fully shatters," X said bluntly, "your body has already rejected it and pushed it out."
It delivered the line with theatrical contempt—like it was reading a tragic monologue—then sighed.
Still trying.
"Why not just… enjoy your five years?"
X paused.
"…Actually, three years, at this point."
Meteor didn't answer.
She stared down at her hands.
The room went quiet except for breathing and the faint hum of distant campus life.
Sunlight retreated across the desk, inch by inch, like the day was leaving without her.
Then her alarm rang.
A clean, bright chime.
Meteor's head lifted slowly.
And when she looked up, she was smiling—wide and cheerful, the kind of smile that made it hard to tell whether she'd found peace or simply chosen to run.
She planted both palms on the mattress and hopped down with a practiced motion, ignoring the slight drag in her right leg. She slid into her wheelchair, sent a quick message to Rudolf, and rolled toward the door at speed.
X's voice sharpened.
"What are you doing?"
Meteor replied like someone who'd just gotten home from an amusement park.
"Going to buy a notebook."
"…You're not listening to a word I say, are you?"
Meteor didn't dignify that with a response.
She just kept rolling.
The moment she entered the little shop near the shopping street, her gaze locked onto an entire floor section stacked with fireworks.
Big ones. Small ones. Long stick types. Full crates. Boxes with flashy labels. The whole corner was a bright, noisy promise.
A clerk noticed her staring and approached with a polite sales smile.
"Are you here to buy fireworks?"
Meteor blinked.
Then she pointed at her right leg, deadpan.
"Uh… even if I wanted to set them off, how exactly would I do that?"
The clerk's smile collapsed into horror.
"O-oh—my apologies! I'm so sorry—so, so sorry!"
They bowed repeatedly, almost frantic, until Meteor started feeling awkward.
"It's fine," she said quickly. "Can you just grab me a normal notebook?"
Before she finished speaking, the clerk practically teleported into the shelves and came back with a plain black notebook.
"How much is it?"
"This is on the house," the clerk said earnestly. "Please consider it an apology for earlier."
The notebook was placed carefully into Meteor's lap.
Meteor didn't refuse.
She hugged it like it was treasure and lifted it up with both hands.
"Nice!"
Her ears swayed with the motion, bright and animated.
Then the clerk seemed to remember something and leaned forward with renewed enthusiasm.
"Oh! By the way—during New Year, you can go to the back mountain behind Tracen to watch fireworks. Most of these are meant for that. It'll be really beautiful."
"…I see."
Meteor's tone was neutral. Her expression didn't shift much.
Sensing the lack of interest, the clerk pushed harder, talking faster, brighter.
"It's really incredible! This year's scale is the biggest we've ever had. And there's a special firework designed specifically for this—its name is 'Meteor'. The scene will be a super precious memory."
"…A precious memory."
Meteor repeated the phrase softly, as if tasting it.
She fell quiet for a moment.
Then she nodded once.
"Okay. I'll go."
The clerk beamed.
"Please come again!"
Meteor waved, rolled out of the shop, and headed back toward campus.
Because now she had to retrieve Rudolf's cake.
7:00 PM.
Rudolf returned to the dorm with dinner in hand.
The sun was long gone.
But the crack under the door—normally a faint leak of light—was completely dark.
Rudolf's heart tightened.
She pressed her finger to the lock, shoved the door open, and stepped inside—
A sudden flare of light blinded her.
She squinted hard.
Then her vision cleared.
A giant cake sat proudly on the table.
And Meteor was there too, laughing like she'd been waiting for this exact moment all day.
"Ta-daaa! Big surprise! Were you sad at lunch because you didn't get any cake?"
Meteor wiggled slightly in place, clearly imagining Rudolf turning into some tragic, gloomy cartoon character and trying not to burst into louder laughter.
Rudolf walked over, set the dinner down, and gently patted Meteor's head.
Looking at the cake—big, beautiful, and obviously made with intent—she felt the day's accumulated exhaustion loosen in her chest.
"I really was hurt," Rudolf admitted quietly. "I kept thinking… maybe I did something wrong."
Meteor's grin softened.
She'd wanted Rudolf to be happy.
She'd gotten her wish.
And apparently—
That wasn't the only surprise she'd brought home.
"President," Meteor said, voice light but eyes steady, "on New Year… do you want to go watch fireworks together?"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter116)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter82)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter144)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 118
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 111
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 80
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 112
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 95
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 89
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player 53
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 61
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 65
Uma Musume: From Beginner 61
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 37
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