Late at night—no idea what time exactly—Kanade Higashino couldn't sleep.
Hot. Way too hot.
Under the blanket, he felt like he was roasting alive on Flaming Mountain. His whole body went numb from the heat until finally, he couldn't take it anymore and kicked the blanket off.
Cold. Freezing cold.
A second ago he was in hell's furnace, and now it felt like the South Pole. So cold he thought he was hearing voices.
"Top up your Q-coins? Wanna top up your Q-coins? Are you topping up your Q-coins?"
Groaning, he pulled the blanket back on but let both feet stick out to cool down.
Okay, his body wasn't boiling anymore, but now his feet were icy. And of course, the thought hit him: what if a ghost hand reaches out from under the bed and grabs my foot? His stomach dropped.
The mosquito was dead. His mom had gone back to her room. The door was shut. And yet—the real challenge had only just begun.
Fully covered? Too hot. Half-covered? Too cold. Feet out? Ghost bait.
Being psychic didn't mean he wasn't scared of ghosts. If anything, it was worse. Because Kanade really could see them.
If he focused his spiritual power into his eyes, he could glimpse things normal people never saw. As a kid, before he learned how to control it, he couldn't withdraw that energy properly. Back then, he never knew whether the "people" he was looking at were real… or not.
Pleasant Goat, Pretty Goat, Lazy Goat, Fit Goat…
Who even said counting sheep helps you fall asleep? He'd never once succeeded. But he figured if he let his mind wander, maybe he'd eventually doze off.
Arigato, Pretty Goat-san.Push harder, Fit Goat—Pleasant Goat's out of strength!Screw you, Pretty Goat. I'm the King of Lazy!
Crap. That made things worse.
Why was he remembering that of all things? That was like… over ten years ago. Was his overpowered memory dredging up all these weird, long-buried scraps?
Damn it. Now the rest of his cringe history was bubbling up too! No, no, no. Forget it. Forget it, dammit. Wipe it from existence!!
Everyone has a past they'd rather not remember. Kanade was no exception.
Embarrassing memories—everybody's got them. And when they resurface late at night, you feel like curling up and dying. But really, think about it: you remember your own humiliating moments in vivid detail. But can you recall anyone else's from back in school?
Names? Events? Not really. Most of it's already blurred out. Honestly, you probably can't even remember the classmates' names anymore.
The logic is sound. Everyone knows it. But emotions don't care. When the cringe rises up, the only thing you can mutter is, "Sorry for being born human."
Kanade had no idea how he eventually managed to drift off.
Morning. No idea what time.
He woke to the sound of his mom chatting on the phone while cleaning the hallway.
Groggy, he cracked one eye open, checked the clock. Seven a.m. An hour before school.
Plenty of time. Back to sleep.
"Almost eight! Why are you still in bed? Get up already!"
The door slammed open, and his mom's voice hit him like a demon's curse.
"This room's stuffy as hell. I'll open the window for you."
Whsssh! Curtains yanked open. The evil sunlight poured in, followed by the creak of a window sliding wide. Autumn's cold wind blasted him.
"Look at this room—it's a pigsty! Pick up your stuff. And your pens are all over again. Every day it's just sketching, sketching, sketching. Don't let your grades drop!"
So much for sleep.
Kanade had gone to bed late last night, tossing and turning forever. He'd finally started dozing off—only to be ambushed at dawn by his mother's assault. Sleepiness gone, but the "I just woke up" rage? Definitely here.
But what could he do? This was Mom. Showing attitude would just be suicide.
Without a word, Kanade got up and started getting dressed. His only option now was to escape this house before her nagging dragged on forever.
When he'd first crossed into this world, he'd been thrilled to see his mom again. But ten years later, the novelty was gone. And being a little kid again? That made it worse.
Change clothes. Wash up. Wake up his little sister. Breakfast. Pack lunch.
"Morning, big brother…"
Yawning, Suzu Higashino stumbled downstairs, tugging at her ahoge.
Silver-haired, amber-eyed Suzu looked at first glance like a deadpan little doll. In reality, she was anything but—more like a bundle of chaotic energy, almost Aqua-like. Around strangers, she was shy and timid. Around family, she went completely unhinged.
Honestly, her hair should've been blonde or maybe blue like Konata's. Blonde screams "sunny and cheerful." Blue gives off "wise and clever."
"Mornin'," Kanade mumbled through a mouth full of food.
"What's for breakfast?" Suzu sat down, saw the table, and her cute little face collapsed. "Eggs, sausage, bread… again? I wanna eat instant noodles!"
"This breakfast is amazing. Noodles are gross." Kanade smiled like he was in paradise, savoring the fried eggs.
Ah, home-cooked meals. Years ago, when it was just him, he'd eaten instant noodles until he wanted to puke. Same with takeout. Even after he learned to cook, it never tasted as good as Mom's food.
"Noodles are delicious!" Suzu puffed out her cheeks.
How could her brother insult instant noodles, the god-tier food with a thousand flavors?
"Yeah, sure. Wait until you're grown and working, and you're stuck eating them every day."
Kanade cursed her with a smug grin.
"Really? Yay!"
She didn't even notice. Instead of hearing a curse, Suzu thought it was a blessing.
Eating noodles every day? Three meals a day? No, wait—four meals! That sounded like heaven.
"Heh." Kanade couldn't hold back a chuckle, watching her glittering eyes sink into an impossible fantasy.
No matter how good something is, eat it every day and it'll lose its charm.
Like those candy houses in fairy tales. As a kid, they looked like paradise. But thinking about it as an adult? Candy is sickly sweet. Eating it nonstop, even for a day, would make you want to puke.
Kids. So simple. So innocent.
Kanade completely forgot he was technically still a kid too.
Time was running out. He needed to wake Konata. If he didn't, she might actually be late. She relied on him every morning and never set an alarm.
As her childhood friend, Kanade had a key to the Izumi house.
Konata's dad, Sojiro Izumi, had given it to him—partly so Kanade could get her out of bed, partly so he wouldn't have to get up and answer the door himself.
After all, Konata lived with her dad alone. Her mom had passed away when she was little, so she'd been raised by a single father.
And Sojiro? He was a hardcore otaku. Anime, games, late-night marathons—of course he was up all night.
Which meant… who in their right mind wanted to crawl out of bed in the morning just to open the door?
So yeah. That's why Kanade had a key.
Like father, like daughter. Konata stayed up all night. Sojiro stayed up all night.
Mornings? They were both dead to the world.