Arashi entered his classroom and immediately began helping his classmates. He moved around without stopping—sometimes inflating balloons, sometimes going outside with others to bring in supplies. The classroom was filled with quiet movement and preparation, everyone busy in their own way.
After a short while, a voice suddenly came through the classroom speaker.
"Hello."
Arashi paused and looked up toward the speaker. A female teacher's voice followed.
"I hope all of you are preparing well. The festival will begin in just a short while. Before that, I have a few important things to announce, so I request all students to listen carefully."
Arashi listened, but in his mind, he couldn't help thinking that these announcements should have been made in the assembly hall instead. Right now, no one was truly paying full attention—everyone was busy with decorations and arrangements, moving from one place to another.
The teacher continued speaking through the speaker.
"These are the timings for the games that will be played today."
She paused briefly before listing them.
"The basketball match will begin at 11 a.m."
She continued right after that.
"The volleyball match will also start at 11 a.m."
Arashi nodded to himself.
"Okay, that works," he thought. "I'll just watch my friends' match. Other than that, I'll stay in the classroom."
With that decided, he returned to work. He was carrying a table along with one of his classmates when he suddenly heard the sound of chess pieces clacking nearby. Without thinking much, Arashi let go of the table.
His classmate looked at him in surprise."What are you doing, Arashi?" he asked.
"Wait a second," Arashi replied, his attention still drawn elsewhere.
At that moment, the teacher's voice came through the speaker again.
"All chess participants are informed that their matches will be held at the end of the day. All chess players must reach the main hall at 6 p.m. in the evening."
She added firmly,
"All other students must also be present there, as the principal will be there to make an important announcement."
The classroom slowly grew quieter as the weight of the announcement settled in, and the festival preparations continued under a sense of anticipation.
After the announcement, Arashi thought to himself, Oh great. I thought there wouldn't be many people there—maybe fifteen to thirty at most. But now… the entire school is going to be watching.
Before his thoughts could go any further, one of his classmates called out to him.
"Arashi! Come back here. You're getting lost in your imagination and we're getting late."
Arashi blinked and snapped back to reality."Oh—sorry," he said.
He lifted the table again with his classmate, and the two of them carried it forward. As soon as they entered the classroom, Mizuki noticed them.
"Yes, bring that table here, to the front," she said, pointing to the spot.
They carried the table to the place Mizuki had indicated and carefully set it down.
Mizuki then looked at Arashi more closely."Arashi, you look worried. Did something happen?"
Arashi shook his head quickly."No—no, nothing happened."
She narrowed her eyes slightly."Are you sure? Nothing at all?"
"Yes," Arashi replied, a little too fast. "Nothing happened."
Mizuki let out a soft sigh."I know you're worried because of the announcement," she said gently. "But don't take tension. Nothing bad will happen."
Arashi hesitated, then finally admitted what was on his mind."Yeah… you're right. But still—everyone's eyes will be on me. Teachers, students… even the principal."
Mizuki smiled calmly."Just take a deep breath and face reality," she said. "Nothing will happen. Just believe in yourself."
Arashi nodded slowly."Alright. I'll try," he said. Then, looking around the classroom, he asked, "Everything else is going well, right?"
"Yes," Mizuki replied. "Almost all the work is done. Now we just have to sell things. We've also set up a few strategies."
Arashi looked at her with curiosity."Strategies? What kind of strategies?"
Mizuki explained calmly, "Any student who brings customers with them will receive free lemonade from us. Each person has to bring at least five customers."
She continued, counting on her fingers. "Along with that, we've set up some games too—darts, arm wrestling, and a lot of other things."
Most of it made sense to Arashi. But one thing caught his attention.
"Arm wrestling?" he repeated. "How does that work?"
Mizuki smiled slightly. "We'll charge thirty yen per person. And anyone who manages to defeat Haruto will receive free lemonade, a sandwich, and a cupcake."
Arashi slowly turned his head toward Haruto. At that exact moment, he accidentally made eye contact with him. Arashi immediately felt a chill run down his spine. He quickly looked away and turned back to Mizuki.
"How did you even convince him to do arm wrestling?" Arashi whispered. "Just looking at him scares me. What if he ends up killing me or something? He gives off such creepy vibes."
Mizuki let out a small laugh."Well, we had to make a deal," she said. "Out of the thirty yen, ten yen will go to him. And on top of that, we'll have to give him something to eat every hour."
Arashi's eyes widened."Wow," he said. "That's some strategy."
Then he looked around the classroom."By the way, where are the others? Ayane, Hina, and Miyu?"
"They went out to get something," Mizuki replied. "I'm not sure what exactly."
Just then, there was a knock on the classroom door.
Everyone turned to look. A student was standing outside, holding a clipboard with a sheet of paper clipped to it.
"Is Arashi here?" the student asked.
One of the classmates pointed toward him."That's him."
The student looked directly at Arashi."Come with me," he said simply.
Arashi waved at Mizuki and said, "Alright, I'll get going."
She waved back with a small smile."Best of luck," she said.
Arashi left with the boy who had called him. As they walked, the boy spoke again.
"Go to the main hall," he said. "All the participants are there. I'll bring the others as well."
"Okay," Arashi replied.
As Arashi made his way down the corridor, he ran into Satoru.
"Satoru," Arashi said, "how are the preparations going?"
"Pretty good," Satoru answered.
Then Satoru looked at him curiously."Where are you headed?"
"I'm going to the main hall," Arashi said. "That's where they called us."
"Oh, okay," Satoru replied. "I am going now. My match is about to start."
Soon after, Arashi entered the main hall.
The moment he stepped inside, he realized something unsettling—he didn't recognize anyone. Not a single familiar face stood out to him.
He glanced around again, but it was the same. Everyone there seemed to know each other, talking in small groups, laughing, and exchanging words. Arashi felt completely out of place.
Quietly, he searched for an empty corner. Finding one, he went over and stood there silently, away from the others. On the opposite side of the hall, students who clearly knew each other were gathered, chatting comfortably.
Arashi stood alone.
One by one, more students began to arrive, filling the hall little by little.
And then, finally, a girl entered.
The moment she did, every student in the hall turned toward her. One after another, they gathered around her, forming a circle as all attention shifted to her presence.
When Arashi finally noticed the sudden change in the atmosphere, he frowned slightly.
Who could that be? he wondered. Everyone seems to know her.
After a moment, he shook his head.Whatever. Whoever she is, it doesn't matter, he told himself.
On the other side of the hall, students had gathered around the girl. Some were complimenting her, others were asking about her day, trying to start conversations. Despite all of that, she didn't respond to anyone. She remained quiet, her expression calm and unreadable.
Then her gaze shifted.
It landed on Arashi.
She studied him for a brief moment before speaking softly to herself, "I don't think I've seen this boy before."
With that, she began walking toward him.
Arashi noticed the movement from the corner of his eye. He could tell that people were starting to move in his direction, but he pretended not to notice. He lowered his gaze, acting as if he was completely unaware of what was happening.
When the girl finally reached him, she stopped in front of him.
"Excuse me," she said.
Arashi looked up.
"I'm seeing you for the first time today," she continued.
"Yes," Arashi replied calmly. "This is my first festival where I'll be playing chess."
"Oh, I see," she said. "Which class are you from?"
"I'm Arashi," he answered. "A second-year student."
She nodded once."I see. I'm Ichinose," she said. "Third-year student."
Then, looking straight at him, she added,"I'm looking forward to playing a match with you."
Arashi met her gaze."Yeah," he replied quietly. "Me too."