October 31st, 2018 - Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing Highschool
16:53
Beep
The tone of the self-checkout rang out throughout the somewhat unusually quiet convenience store. The sound was uncontested, save for the rustling of a plastic bag as my sole purchase jostled inside it.
I was going to make eggs tonight.
That was my resolution, my grand ambition for the day. The grandest of them, as a matter of fact, amidst the ever increasing pile of other resolutions.
Nothing could possibly stop me from doing it.
No impromptu special exam, no inter-class debacle, no altercation, no machination—and definitely no unsolicited, put-upon, agent of derailment.
For once, I was truly free of all worries.
Jingle, Jingle
At last, the convenience store's doors closed shut behind me, and I set out towards the dorms.
Beyond the path's end ahead of me, the last streaks of daylight were peeking in from below the horizon, bleeding across the skyline in hues of bloodied amber and mottled purple as the last dregs of dusk made way for an auspicious night.
Halloween decorations were blinking lazily along the edges of the open field, consisting of paper bats, inauspicious black cat figurines, and plastic jack-o'-lanterns that glowed orange in loops.
It wouldn't be long before nightfall, with students lining the path to Keyaki mall, swinging full force into the throes of festivities.
Everyone would be busy.
Nothing can stop me from fulfilling my resolution.
20:15
I hadn't realized just how quiet the dorm had gotten until the egg hissed sharply in the pan.
One yolk, a pinch of salt and some green onions. I wasn't in the mood to get fancy.
The rice incorporated was two days old; just the correct time it needed for the flavours to do their magic. I stirred it around with a pair of used chopsticks I should've thrown out last week, yet I hadn't.
As my time at ANHS approached towards a sterile ending, a distinct sense of attachment to each experience here had formed inside me, however emotionally off-kiltering that sensation had become.
The garlic was browning at the edges, and for whatever reason, something about it felt excessively comforting for the supposed mundanity of that moment.
Being busy in my work, I had almost forgotten what day it was until I heard someone running down the hall earlier, giggling excitedly and somewhat mischievously.
It came as a surprise to me at least, getting the permission from the student council for all...this.
But the latest council has proved to be much more indulgent in the wishes of the student body when it came to extracurriculars than in previous years.
I focused inward, keeping to the world of my own dorm room.
There was light instrumental music in the background.
I had no company, thankfully, but still, perhaps, somewhere deep down, I somewhat craved the constant nagging that the others did by knocking on my door all the time.
At this time, I only had the fan above, squeaking every other rotation like it was trying to breathe through a pillow.
Plating the rice, I grabbed a bottle of barley tea from the fridge and was just about to sit down when I heard a knock.
'Hmm…'
It was quite strange, given how throughout my third year in ANHS, not many people had come to see me, especially on special occasions like today.
Other than a few friends belonging to my class, nobody had cared to invite me out to any of the festivities.
Though, I suppose I can't complain, given I chose to decline the one invitation I did receive from Hashimoto.
Beyond my class, it's not like my presence had faded into oblivion, rather, either the disdain or merely our relationships as rivals had often prevented those I had once freely called my friends from contacting me again.
Which is fair enough...I suppose.
I had just moved to check who was at the door, only to be interrupted as I heard the first of 3 knocks, soon followed by another 2.
Three knocks… They were sharp, spaced out just enough to indicate the arrival of one person in particular.
The alleged agent had cometh to hold my peace hostage.
I wiped my hands on my hoodie, walked towards the dorm entrance, and opened the door.
Reluctantly, of course.
20:25
Amasawa.
She stood there with a drink in hand.
She had an odd coat hanging from her arms around her waist, wearing… I actually did not know what it was supposed to be. Leather? Vinyl?
Whatever it was, her outfit tightly hugged, uh, everything, leaving almost nothing to the imagination.
Devil horns were clipped into her silky hair that peeked out from under a detailed and triangular pirate hat and a tail curled around her thigh, flicking once.
Flicking?
Hmm… it is probably wired.
She grinned like she caught me red-handed at the scene of a crime.
"Well," she said. "Aren't you just a picture of seasonal depression, senpai~"
"I was about to eat."
"I can see that." She glanced past me into the dorm. "Garlic rice on Halloween, huh? Realllll festive~"
I let out a tired breath. "What do you want, Amasawa?"
She tried to push past me, but I tightened my stance, and her shoulder bumped into me. "Come on senpai, why are you being such a loner? Let me in, I can give you some comfort~!"
"I am not agreeing with your idea, no matter what you say. I refuse to show up in a polyester Zombie-Pikachu onesie."
"Aw, that's lame," she said, spinning once and letting her tail whip out and hit me on my leg.
I looked at her from head to toe again and tilted my head. "What are you supposed to be?"
"Sexy demon? Or some trash gacha thing? I don't know. The boys seemed to be getting a lot of joy out of it." She posed like she was having her photo taken. "Anyway, you're not spending tonight in this cave, are you?"
"Actually, I am."
Suddenly, she threw herself over me. Her body hit me like a sack of warm bakery dough.
She was soft…in all the wrong ways.
"I don't care that you lied to your class friends about being sick and wanting to be left alone for the rest of the day, bu~t—" She inched closer to my ear, "—I know about how you made little senpais with Ichinose, teehee~."
I figured she'd know that. But tonight hadn't been intended for any plots or plans.
It was supposed to be a day of rest for me.
Letting out a deep sigh, I gave her a long look.
"Please, just tell me what you want."
She latched herself on my arm. "I~~t is Halloween today~, let's go on a date!"
"I just made dinner, so I am sorry to say, but I cannot come—"
The look in her mischievous eyes turned nasty as she coyly inserted the straw inside the cup she had in her hand and sipped. Her lipstick didn't smudge the straw. "Are you sure? Because a lot of people saw me coming towards your dorm in this costume."
I could already tell where this was going.
"If we don't go out in the public eye soon, people will know what kind of a freaky~ senpai~ the respected leader of Class B is."
I could almost hear the school group chat buzzing already.
Mine and her name popping up, probably with those "grinning imp" emojis.
Things took no time to spiral out of control these days.
I stared down at her and sighed.
Walking back, I covered the plate with a plastic cover and placed the tea back into the fridge, before pulling a jacket out of the closet and wearing it over my hoodie.
Amasawa looked at me and grinned.
"What?"
"You look so cool."
"Thanks."
Her behaviour was odd. I mean, she was free-spirited, but not to this extent. "That just won't do, so we'll need to fix that won't we?" She continued and got closer. "For tonight, before anything else, you need to get dressed for the occasion. Can't have my date looking so boring on his last Halloween~!".
…
Strange.
Very strange indeed.
20:31
Keyaki Mall was busier than usual, totally different from day time.
Multi-coloured lights were strung up between the upper balconies that illuminated the whole complex like a weird amalgamation of a haunted arena and beach side bar… if that makes sense.
Put simply: it was bizarre.
Of course, while students were allowed to do a lot of things this year around, there were still limits, and protocols in place.
So a full remodel to make the mall look like a nightmarish hell was far from possible, but the effort and attention to detail, despite being restricted, was commendable.
Orange and purple lights bathed every inch of the mall where it wasn't dark.
Swarms of students walked here and there, some donning costumes that were actually impressive while some looked like last-minute disasters.
Amasawa was walking by my side.
She was wearing a large tricorn pirate hat with golden trims, pins, and a skull-and-crossbones emblem in the centre. The hat was tilted to one side.
Beneath the hat was a pair of short, stubby devil horns that protruded from the side of her hat.
These headband-attachments had been made available in Keyaki Mall 3 days before Halloween started.
Underneath the cheap horns, her long, dual-toned pink hair was styled in the usual twin ponytails, held in place with a white headband.
Her right eye was covered via a black eyepatch with a pierced heart design.
And while that was nothing of significance, what stood out the most or, what made most people—specifically the boys—turn their necks was what she was wearing from her neck down.
Amasawa was wearing a deep red, cropped vest-like top fitted so snugly around her chest, revealing both her midriff and cleavage, while also making them appear much bigger than they normally were.
She was wearing a partially see-through tight-fitting shirt underneath which made her navel appear through it.
The crop-top was accented with gold trim and a dark maroon bow at the collar, fastened with a jewel-like brooch.
The short, pleated skirt that was dark red with a contrasting white panel, paired well with a wide white belt and an additional brown leather belt slung diagonally across her hips.
The skirt as well was much shorter than the school issued ones.
The zip that extended far above the belt was half open.
Even a single big step could make her undergarments visible.
Black thigh-high stockings with a lace pattern at the top completed her outfit.
A surprising choice of clothes; the dress felt more appropriate for cosplay events, rather than a halloween dress-up.
"Senpai~ You are looking at me with dirty eyes again~"
"I am just…admiring your dress." I replied, picking my words carefully. "Don't you feel cold in that?"
She grabbed my arm and pushed it between her tightly pressed breasts. "I have you for that~!"
Letting out another weary sigh, I tried to not give much heed to the rumbling of my stomach and looked up as Amasawa dragged me to a corner costume shop.
The shop was an absolute mess.
Rows upon rows of pre-packaged monstrosities lined every aisle, ranging from the so-called "anime waifus" dress ups to a section present in the corner labelled as "Goth Mommies."
Feeling the envious and hatred-filled gazes on my back, I freed my arm from her iron clutch and slipped both my hands into my pant pockets while scanning the shelves like a hostage.
Amasawa stayed close by, but most of her attention was directed towards flipping hangers and muttering some incoherent nonsense under her breath.
Peeling my eyes away from her, I looked around.
There were a few recognisable faces, but the majority of them were Year 1 students.
Perhaps it was due to it being my final year here, but I was sentimentally reminiscing about the past.
I could remember walking through the mall with the "friends" I had made along the way in Class D, eating with Horikita and getting coerced into collaborating with her, spending time with the Ayanokoji Group, and so much more.
It was an inconvenient feeling but nonetheless there.
"Senpai~!" Amasawa called out. Before I fully turned my head towards her, something soft fell on my face. "Try it on~!"
Removing it from my face, I looked at it.
It was…unique, but I did not understand why she selected this one for me.
"How about this? Classic vampire with nobility aura! It has a coat, a cape, a vest."
"It's a decent option." I admitted, honestly.
"You'll wear it?"
"No."
She pointed her finger at me. "Try it on. If you whine, I'm picking the next one."
"Didn't you pick this one as well?"
"That's besides the point; just put it on!"
Holding the costume in my hand, I met her eyes. "Why are you doing this?"
Amasawa's smile faded for a moment.
"Because…"
Her breath got a little shaky, but she smiled again.
"...it's Halloween. I'm not going to let someone I hold in such high regard be looked down on, so, you're doing this!"
"Fine."
Ten minutes later, I was wearing a discount Dracula getup.
The cape felt like a plastic tablecloth and smelled like old glue.
"You look hot," she blurted. "In a divorced, tragic baron kind of way."
"..."
"Do you like it?"
"No."
"You hate it?"
"I feel indifferent to it."
"Good." She grinned.
To my surprise, she proceeded to pay for it.
21:01
We left the store shortly after buying the cheap costume, only to then spend what felt like an eternity applying makeup onto my face.
She drew giant dark-circles under my eyes, turning my lips blood red, and making my skin pale.
Despite the shoddy-looking outfit, it came out looking vastly better and more cohesive than it otherwise had before.
In short, I looked like how one would imagine a Dracula, or a vampire.
Amasawa was holding two drinks.
She had talked the cashier into a buy-one-get-one that wasn't actually a thing.
Her cup said "Witch's Brew" on it and mine was called "Maiden's Blood"
The taste was strange, but Amasawa seemed to like it, so I didn't really complain.
I suppose the strange taste was because our drinks were dyed black and red respectively.
After a while of walking, and people staring at us, we ended up at the theater across the mall.
The theme, as expected for all movies, was horror, nothing else.
The movie "Ju-on" was the least overplayed option.
I tried to pay for the tickets, but once again, contrary to her usual demeanor, Amasawa paid for it.
Strange.
The air inside the theatre was frigid to an uncomfortable degree.
Fake cobwebs had been taped to the corners of the walls and the chairs were sticky in places.
The movie went on without a hitch.
There wasn't anything "scary" about it, but I suppose this statement of mine is subjective.
Given how I could hear groans and screams every now and then, I kept my focus on Amasawa, more than the movie.
It was…intriguing to watch her like this.
While she looked unfazed for the most part, the sudden jump of horror made her recoil in her seat every now and then.
It was endearing, seeing her brace herself as the "horror sounds" reached a crescendo.
Once we were out, I turned to her. "Amasawa."
"Yes?" She smiled and looked at me, giving her hair a twirl and her lips a pout.
"I–" Before I could say anything…
22:22
The mall plaza had turned into something else entirely.
Lanterns shaped like jack-o'-lanterns flickered around the fountain. There was a low and hauntingly jolly music now.
On one of the far corners of the mall, I spotted Ibuki and some other class C, soon to be class D, students setting up makeshift stalls with Halloween snacks and knick-knacks, presumably forced to by Ryuen to recoup points seeing as they had lost the most recent exam.
"You were saying?" Amasawa reminded me.
I stared at her for a good minute.
There was no malicious intent behind her single uncovered eye…just an innocent glee and…
Hmm.
Maybe I am just imagining it.
22:55
We wandered a bit after that, visiting some of the small shops that some of the other non-third-year students had decided to open.
Thankfully, Amasawa, without having to say anything, had understood that I didn't want to be seen by the others in my year.
A rather small blessing, but a much needed one.
The crowd though, as it grew closer and closer to midnight, gradually began to filter back to the dorms, increasing my chances at being recognized.
I was about to suggest heading back, but Amasawa pointed at the sky.
"Hey," she said.
I looked where Amasawa was pointing.
Over the distant buildings, somewhere near Shibuya, there was a light.
Not city lights.
It was like a nimbus of different colours with long beams of orange and red light pulsing in every direction.
A giant crowd started to congregate in front of us.
"Do you see that?"
I looked back at the light.
It was getting brighter.
22:59
Drawn like moths to a flame, Amasawa and I looked on.
Shibuya was glowing.
The light, or whatever it was, swelled and pulsed underneath the clouds like a heartbeat.
Everyone had gone silent by now, entranced by the mysterious lights streaking above the city buildings.
"Dude, that was sick."
"Did they always set off fireworks for Halloween?"
Clamouring noises started to fill the air.
However, there was a nagging feeling in the back of my head.
Something felt…off… unnatural.
"Senpai…" Amasawa's tone, typically loud and expressive, felt uneasy and muted. Her expression was stern, and her body was rigid. "...those aren't fireworks, are they?"
She was probably right, but panicking wasn't going to solve anything.
I nodded, returning my gaze back toward the city.
What was happening on the mainland?
23:00
A dot.
A bright spark in the heart of darkness.
A descending ember.
A red and wrathful ember.
The ember kept growing in size in its descent, as it suddenly fell upon Shibuya.
Violent tremors shook through the earth as the ground beneath our feet trembled ever so slightly.
It wasn't violent at first as it merely sent a shiver through the concrete on which we stood.
The surface of the blood-red drink in my hand rippled once, then twice, then the entire drink started to crash into the corners like a tidal wave as we tried our best to not fall over.
A moment later, the distant echo of a deafening crash rolled through the air.
In its wake, none of the cheering from before remained as it was instead replaced by a pervading silence.
First came the murmurs, until uneasy whispers made way for panicked yells.
"What the hell was that?!"
"What's going on?!"
"Could it be a terrorist attack?!"
"Somebody, check the news and figure out what's happening over there!"
"Is it safe for us to stay outside?"
A storm of questions erupted as screens flared to life in almost everyone's hands, students and teachers alike who were desperate to make sense of the situation and find some direction as we both stood there, silently watching everything.
One thing was clear to all of us: something was very, very wrong.
Amasawa and I wasted no time and rushed toward the dorms, hoping to quickly grab anything we could need for…whatever laid ahead.
ANHS almost immediately sent warnings for a possible earthquake or tsunami, but on the message boards, students who had seen what actually happened urged people to get to ground level, blatantly ignoring the typical safety protocols during events like this.
"What the FUCK was that!" Amasawa screamed.
"Apparently, an earthquake."
"...really? Your humor truly knows no bounds, senpai," she said dryly. "Sigh, anyways, assuming that was somewhere in Shibuya, it's anywhere from 10 to 15 kilometres away; what are we gonna do?"
"For now, go to your room and get anything you need. Meet me back here in 5 minutes."
"Gotcha, just make sure you don't accidentally scare anyone with that costume of yours. If I didn't know any better, I might actually think you were Dracula."
"..."
I stared blankly.
"What? Seriously, you might give some poor girl a heart attack! You pull off the look really well. Wait! Don't just—"
I proceeded to leave mid-sentence to get everything I could possibly need.
As I approached the entrance, I could hear the clattering of people rushing down the stairs.
Ryuen and Horikita were already in the lobby huddled together while discussing something.
They had both texted me, but I didn't reply.
Luckily, they hadn't seen me enter.
As I stealthily made my way toward the stairwell, I turned around and briefly glanced at the scene before me.
Class A were slightly anxious but nonetheless composed with the help of Hirata, Sudou, Karuizawa, and surprisingly Kushida as well.
Class C who were used to stress under the leadership of Ryuen were perhaps handling the situation the best.
Class D was aimless without Ichinose currently there.
Then there was my class, trying to appear calm and collected, but were frantically texting me behind the scenes.
I sighed as I realized that Hashimoto, Yamamura, and Morishita were absent from the group as well.
'Just great.'
While some students were still heading downstairs, there was enough room to walk up the stairwell to my room.
As expected, I was greeted with the sight of 3 of the 4 people who just so happened to be missing downstairs.
"Holy shit! It's a vampire, RU—wait. Ayanokoji, is that you?"
"Yes, it's me Hashimoto."
"Greetings, monster pretending to be Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had confirmed he wasn't going to partake in tonight's festivities due to feeling sick, so what are you?" Morishita directed a finger at me with her usual accusative tone.
"It's me, Morishita. I wasn't planning on going out but certain…factors influenced me to leave for a little bit"
"What 'factors' influenced you then, monster pretending to be Ayanokoji Kiyotaka?"
I sighed "It'll take too long to explain; in any case, can I get into my room please?"
"H-Hey, we should probably just get out of his—"
"Yamamura Miku, please don't interfere with my negotiations with the monster pretending to be Ayanokoji Kiyotaka." She persisted.
"Cut it out, Morishita. Here, we'll get out of your way man."
"Thank you Hashimoto. I'll be downstairs in a few minutes; please head down there and let the class know."
"Alright, just don't go disappearing on us ok?"
"I won't."
Despite Morishita's protests, they started walking towards the lobby. I silently prayed that nothing unexpected would be awaiting me in my room, but—
"Good evening, Kiyotaka. Welcome home." I sensed an ominous pressure coming from Ichinose.
"Hello, Hoenami. I wasn't expecting you to use the key I gave—"
"Yes you did. Where were you? Please, don't lie to me."
Scary.
"Amasawa forced me to hang out with her; she blackmailed me with…certain information I'd rather not discuss. On our way back, we got the alert on our phones, so I rushed back to my dorm. I apologize if you messaged me; I hadn't read any of my texts yet."
That was all true.
"...Fine, I'll wait outside for you, and we'll walk downstairs together, right?"
"Yes, just give me a couple minutes."
"Alright! Please hurry up though!"
Well, she seems like she's back to her "normal" self.
Quickly, I grabbed my bag and put everything I could need into it. Then, before I left, I washed off all of the makeup on my face and changed out of my outfit to something less "eye-catching."
"Well, looks like I'll need more than 5 minutes; sorry Amasawa." I thought to myself
"You look great, Kiyotaka! Ready to walk down?" Ichinose asked as soon as I took my first step outside.
"Yes, all ready."
As we were walking down, we began to make small talk, mainly revolving around what I had been doing with Amasawa.
"Before I forget, there was something I wanted to ask you: who did your makeup? It really brought the whole costume to life! I would love to learn from them if that's possible."
"Oh, Amasawa did my makeup. For what I was expecting it to come out looking like, she did remarkably well."
"Did she now?"
There was a rather twisted look on her face.
Wrong answer, it seems like.
Or perhaps, too detailed.
I suppose a simple "yes" would have sufficed.
"Well, I guess I'll have to ask her about that when I see her," Ichinose said through gritted yet smiling teeth. "But I really don't like how often you two hang out with each other…alone. Please be more considerate of your girlfriend next time."
"Will do."
Eventually, we reached the bottom floor. Being the only people who were absent (and two class leaders at that), we commanded the mass's attention as we entered the lobby.
Horikita and Ryuen, who were still talking, gestured for us to come over.
"So, what were you two lovebirds doing that you came out so late? Kukuku."
"R–Ryuen, that hardly matters at a time like this, wouldn't you say? There are more…pressing matters to discuss." Horikita stammered.
"What are you getting so flustered over, Suzune? You imagining them going at it? Oooh, maybe I can snag some evidence of you two doing the deed, get you expelled that way. How ironic would that be?"
"Ryuen, please leave all of your wild conjecture about myself and my boyfriend in your head please" Honami chided with a bit of annoyance in her ever-green tone. "Anyways, is everyone safe?"
"We did a head count a minute ago. Other than you two, there were three people missing from Class B I believe…and Koenji." Horikita reported.
"I found the 3 loitering outside my room, so every third year student is accounted for, aside from him."
"Alright, so what do we know so far?"
Ryuen, being serious for once, gave an actual answer "According to Ibuki and some others, some big ass fucking meteor crashed into the city. The forums online are saying the same thing."
"That seems…unlikely; besides, if there really was some asteroid heading toward Earth, the news would've picked that up immediately." Horikita, who had been composed earlier, was desperately clawing at any explanation that absolved her fears. "It has to be something else, maybe a satellite?."
"Look Suzu, you can go talk to your BFF Ibuki; she can tell you more about it than me, but no satellite is causing the tremors we all felt shake the earth."
"...it's just…my brother's studying at Todai. If something really is going on in Shibuya, he'd be close by…it's like 10 km away."
We all immediately understood the implication.
Nagumo, following in Horikita-senpai's path, was attending UTokyo as well. As—
"SENPAI~ WHERE ARE YOU? HOW RUDE OF YOU TO LEAVE YOUR CUTE KOHAI WAITING OUTSIDE!"
'Wow, this wall is extremely interesting. I'm going to stare at it. Look, there's even a fly caught in some spider's web. The structural integrity of it is—'
Amasawa, still in her cosplay, brazenly got in between myself and Ichinose, shoved her out of the way, and clung onto my arm, pushing it into her cleavage.
"There you are! Shame on you, senpai, for leaving your poor, innocent, defenseless date waiting in the cold all alone while you flirted with other women behind my back! It's 23:11; you promised you'd be back 3 minutes ago! Let's go!"
Before I could say anything to defend myself, she began dragging me like a ragdoll toward the exit.
Ichinose immediately began hunting us, leaving Ryuen and Horikita by themselves, stunned and now substantially more confused than before.
"Can you wait a second? I'm trying to help out—."
Amasawa, deathly serious, spoke.
"It was more than that meteor just now. Something else is happening too. I saw buildings collapse that were separate from whatever crashed into the earth. Whatever's going on, we need to get ahead of it, for both of our sakes. Other people's lives don't matter right now; I know you understand that."
To some extent, it was true.
Perhaps my sentimentality regarding this school and the experiences I had here clouded my judgement.
As we got outside and ran toward the pier, Ichinose, followed by Horikita and Ryuen a little further back, were right behind us.
"Why'd you—"
23:13
Suddenly, the entirety of the sky above Shibuya started bleeding.
Starting as a quick crimson spark on the horizon, far beyond the Tokyo skyline, it morphed into a blazing flash of wild flames.
A thick column of vermillion flames tore through the canopy of darkening clouds, erupting hellfire.
Smoke churned upward in multiple, twisted layers, too structured for anything natural, and too calculatedly violent for anything belonging to the hands of humanity.
The explosion continued like a rolling wave of destruction and then suddenly stopped at a specific distance.
Hmm… strange.
We said nothing. We did nothing. All we did—all we could do—was watch on in silence.
I eventually spoke.
"Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate."
"...the fuck's that s'posed to mean?" Ryuen whispered.
"'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here'. A quote from Inferno right before Dante enters the dominion of hell," Amasawa replied blankly.
"That…that wasn't real…right? There's just no way, logically speaking, I mean how could-…" Horikita trailed off.
Smack
"-ah?! You-!"
An alchemy of confusion and anger washed over Horikita's face as she did what Ryuen should've seen coming, but evidently, didn't.
Slap!
"-ah, fuck..! D'that hurt?"
"Yes- of course it did, why the hell did you slap me, Ryuen!"
"Well, you and me both then, so get your head out of your ass Horikita; this is real life, and shit just happened!"
Ichinose, Amasawa, and I all collectively looked at each other, as if to say "That was definitely just an excuse to hit Horikita."
"...anyways, I think we can all agree that what's happening now is abnormal at best and supernatural at worst. No natural phenomenon can explain what we've witnessed" I added.
"Yeah…oh my God, what are we going to do?" Ichinose expressed her worry.
"The fuck you think we can do!? I know we all saw the same damn thing, so tell me: what are we gonna do besides get the fuck out of here? I'll be damned if I let some bureaucratic school tell me to 'keep calm and carry on' just for me to end up getting burned alive by Satan or whatever the fuck that was!"
Ryuen rambled, lashing out at her question, which, in all honesty, felt well deserved.
"And go where? And what about our classmates—our friends? Are you just gonna leave them to die?"
"I'm gonna go to my room, get my shit, tell everyone I give a fuck about the same thing, loot some shit, and then go anywhere else! We're on a peninsula; if that comes here, we're trapped and as good as dead." Ryuen then, after taking a second to compose himself, in a noticeably calmer and more caring tone began again.
"Look, I get it. Shit sucks, but I gotta look out for #1: me. Everything and everyone else comes second. I didn't live my whole life just to be a statistic in some news article that comes out in a few days."
…
"Ryuen-senpai is right, you know? Why do you think senpai and I have our bags on us? We saw what happened, got everything we needed, and we were gonna…oh yeah, what were we gonna do?"
"Well, that certainly changed things, but getting some rations and then leaving is probably the plan now."
"...so you were just gonna leave me—us? I get that we aren't in the same class anymore, but…"
"Really, now; so that was the plan, huh? I was gonna suggest we stay here, bide our time, and wait for us to get more information, but I guess I can leave…with you, Kiyotaka." She quickly turned towards me. "Speaking of, why exactly were you going to leave with Amasawa of all people, my dear boyfriend?"
"I wasn't planning on leaving with her; she was just around and—"
"Because I'm cuter, obviously~."
Really, at a time like this?
I mentally sighed, groaning at what had to be the millionth breast-measuring staring-contest between the two.
Though, I suppose in that case, Ichinose would win by a handful, or cupful rather.
…if I said that out loud, I'd probably get lynched.
As they continued to bicker, I interrupted.
"I wasn't 'planning' on leaving with anyone, I told Amasawa my general idea since I was with her at the time; I figured I'd be gone before she would be done, but I'm not leaving with anyone, including you, Ichinose."
In this situation, less people is better.
Less food eaten, less water consumed, easier to travel, etc.; there aren't many benefits of leaving with more than one or two people that aren't offset by the costs.
It's the law of diminishing marginal utility in practice: having 1 person with me would help greatly, having 10 would hamper me.
I know that by herself, Amasawa is the most likely person, besides Koenji Rousuke of course, to be able to survive whatever awaits us.
The gap between her and everyone else is apparent.
Amasawa, therefore, is the optimal choice, even disregarding her rather…intimate knowledge of my circumstances.
But, there's no way that Ichinose leaves my side with her believing Amasawa is coming with me, probably even still without her as well.
Sigh, what can I do?
Suddenly, Ichinose grabbed my hand. "There is no universe where you leave without me, Ayanokoji-"
She summed up my thoughts perfectly; perhaps I would have to, seeing how gung-ho she is about it.
"-after all, we—"
THWACK
Hmm?
I looked down at the strawberry blonde hair sprawled over the debris filled ground.
"...did you just knock out Honami?"
"Yep! No need to thank me for my service, senpai; a kiss will suffice! Lips are optional~!"
Well, I guess that takes care of that.
"...let's just get going." I turned to Horikita and Ryuen. "She should wake up in a few minutes; please take care of her until then. This will likely be the last time we see each other, but I wish the best for you both moving forward. Please be careful."
"Bye, senpais! Oh, and when Ichinose-senpai wakes up, tell her 'You snooze, you lose' for me please!"
23:19
After saying goodbye, we went to grab supplies at the Keyaki Mall.
Due to the panic, everyone, including most of the shop owners, had left, making the process simple and easy.
We each took half of the stores and looted them, and met back at the agreed spot, in the center of the mall half an hour before midnight.
As I was making my way back there, I heard someone running toward me.
"Haah—haahh…H-...hello, senpai," Nanase panted, weak and exhausted from running here.
"Hey, Nanase. Are you ok; what's going on?"
"Did…you see…those flames?" Eventually, she got her breath back and continued.
"I was planning on leaving the island, since it probably won't be safe for long. I just came here for supplies, and I saw you. I guess we had the same plan, senpai. What were you planning on doing?"
Another ploy, it seems.
I had my suspicions regarding ANHS from the beginning. My father, a man consumed by fear over nearly losing everything built, entrusted me to Matsou.
To that man, I am his most prized possession, his magnum opus, his…masterpiece; to leave my wellbeing to anyone but his most trusted employees would be, with his level of paranoia, tantamount to suicide.
It has to be assumed then that, whomever I was entrusted to, was at the very least trustworthy enough for him, yet, after some time, Matsou began asking me about applying to ANHS, which contradicts this.
The meeting with my father during my first year was an opportunity for him to gauge me.
He had asked if I was wondering what fate befell Matsou and his son, revealing that Matsou was dead, with his son not far behind him.
He had even offered me proof, trying too hard to convince me of the fact that he was dead and that everything that transpired was out of his control, a common tactic in manipulation where you undersell yourself to seem less dangerous.
When I had shown no remorse, he chastised me for showing no grief over his family's demise.
He was testing me, albeit indirectly, to see if I had grown at all as well as planting the seeds for later interactions; I can recognize this now.
Furthermore, Nanase, Tsukishiro, and their whole plan from the very beginning was suspect as well.
If he had really wanted to, Tsukishiro could've easily expelled me numerous ways; instead, he barely exerted any of his near dictatorial power over the school and used mere children to do his "job".
Nanase's demeanor after our confrontation on the island was also…curious to say the least.
She was driven by anger that I was at fault for the death of her friend Matsou Eichero, the son of my supposedly deceased butler, yet almost immediately surrendered and changed her mind after a relatively short amount of time, now convinced to fight with me against my father.
Everything up until this point could be explained away as coincidence, as merely being fortunate perhaps, but if one were to look at everything under the assumption that his goal involved me getting into ANHS to some degree, the pieces fit into place rather snuggly.
Matsou's treason against him was a ruse the entire time, and his son is either perfectly fine or doesn't exist at all; after all, I had never met him and had only heard about him through word of mouth.
It explains Tsukishiro's general apathy toward getting me expelled; it explains Nanase's sudden change of character; it rationalizes all of the inconsistencies.
There's more.
Nanase, Amasawa, and I had all spoken together briefly before I departed for Hokkaido last year.
Once Amasawa had left, Nanase continuously expressed her mistrust regarding Amasawa, yet when I mentioned the trip afterward, despite knowing enough about my situation, the thought hadn't occurred to her that my safety could be at risk at all on the trip, likewise during the Culture Festival.
Under the assumption she was working with them, though, she would know their plan and thus know I wouldn't be in danger. I had bluntly told her this, but naturally, she denied it.
However, it was all but confirmed when Hashimoto, after the Comprehensive Academic Ability exam, told me that he, Morishita, and Shiraishi all overheard Nanase on the phone supposedly talking with the previous interim chairman Tsukishiro.
My name had apparently come up in their conversation, so he was curious.
By this point, any possible reason for not doubting their intentions were swept away.
To what end, though? Why make me fret over my school life here if his goal wasn't to get me back to the White Room?
He had given me an ally in Nanase for what? To create emotions in me? To grow perhaps?
I had stagnated while in the White Room. I had learned so much; I had little else to learn. Was this the next step in my education? But for what?
Then, it clicked—
"…Ayanokoji-senpai? You there?"
"Yeah, sorry; I just spaced out for a second. What were you saying?"
As innocently as she had before, she replied "Oh, well, since we were both going to escape, I wanted to ask if we could leave together? If I wouldn't be a burden, that is."
Well, this is clearly a trap.
The smart thing would be to say no and move on, but I was rather curious to see where this could go.
"I'm not opposed to it; what did you need to get from the mall?"
"I guess I could grab some more supplies. You know, this kinda reminds me of when we paired up together on the Island Exam. O-of course, I wouldn't try to—"
"TWICE NOW, SENPAI! YOU PERVERTED, HORNY DOG YOU! FLIRTING WITH THAT INNOCENT PUPPY-CHAN, CORRUPTING HER!"
I have to hand it to her; she really knows when and how to make an entrance.
Thankfully, by this point, Amasawa had changed out of her "costume" and donned some more practical clothes.
"Aww, senpai. Are you disappointed I changed? You did like it a lot…don't worry though; I brought it with me!"
She opened her bag, showing the neatly-folded outfit at the top of it.
"A-amasawa!" Nanase stuttered, face beet red. "Where'd you come from?"
"Hello to you too, competition~. I felt a disturbance in senpai's pants, so I came rushing over here ASAP!" Amasawa then turned to me. "So, what's happening over here, senpai~? You replacing me with the cuter, newer thing? Is it because she's blond, because I can change—"
"N-no! Nothing l-like that was going on, not to say that Ayanokoji-senpai isn't a-attr-attractive! I was—"
"Please stop teasing her, Amasawa. We coincidentally ran into each other. She was planning on leaving as well, and she asked to join."
Though I never mentioned who was with me as well.
Whoops, I guess.
"Well, sorry puppy-chan," Amasawa said, as she, again, slid my arm into her bust, "but he's taken! Gorilla-kun is still probably available though, if you want your children to have good genetics!"
Nanase was practically short circuiting.
"I'm not opposed to her joining us," I stated.
Amasawa gasped dramatically. "One isn't enough for senpai anymore; he wants a harem! It's all that harlot's fault—what a tragedy! First we had Ecchinose Whorenami; now we have Ayanohorny Kiyobaka. IT'S NOT FAIR! IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ME, NOT—"
I put my hand over Amasawa's mouth. "Please ignore her; it's the only real way to stay sane. In any case, if you want to join us, you're more than…welcome to."
I eyed Amasawa as she had begun licking the hand covering her face, loudly moaning at the same time. I retracted my now moist hand, taking my handkerchief and wiping it down.
"Aww, it was tasty," Amasawa cried, looking dejected.
"I-if you would have me, Ayanokoji-senpai, I would be more than grateful to accompany you both!"
"I DON'T—" I quickly put my hand over Amasawa's mouth again, pulling it back every time she would go to lick it.
"Welcome then. What did you still need from the mall?"
"Nothing much, just…" The conversation, in spite of Amasawa's repeated attempts to interrupt us, continued on. It was about a quarter until midnight when we properly set off on our expedition off the island.
23:44
The crack in the distant skyline had started to heal. We lightly jogged towards the front of the school, where most vehicles entered and left the perimeter of ANHS. Amasawa was practically attached to me while Nanase maintained some personal space.
Ahead of us, clusters of students were running around frantically. However, as we passed them, my eyes glanced over at the back of one of the students.
What is that thing?
Looking again, something inexplicable became rather apparent.
A not so insignificant number of the students hurrying about had the same…thing stuck to their backs and heads, hovering over them and wrapped along their torsos. Picking up the pace, I walked up to one of them and held the boy by his arm; he was a 1st year student. As he turned, he looked up at me, confused.
"What's with you?"
I looked at him, faced with a weird abomination staring right back at me. It was a toad-bodied...thing, creature—whatever it was—with a corkscrewed snout and wings like a house fly. The wrinkly skin was a mottled, hairless mauve, stretched loosely over bulbous muscle and lumpy bone structure, as if they'd been stitched together.
Does he not see it?
Frowning, the boy swatted my arm away and swung at me.
Taking just a small step back, I avoided it as he grunted and turned back.
"What a weirdo." He mumbled before running away and joining his pack of friends who were also nervously huddled together—those insect things sitting on their shoulders and heads—chattering, casting doubtful gazes at me.
Did I weird them out? That's besides the point.
Why can't they see them?
Can they not feel those things literally sitting over them?
Seeing them walk off and run towards the gates, I felt Amasawa and Nanase catch up to me.
"What happened, senpai?" Nanase asked with a worried face.
I looked back at both of them. While Nanase looked…perplexed, Amasawa had a thousand-yard stare in her eyes. Gone was the usual mischievous twinkle in her eye, replaced by a haunted gaze. "Hey, puppy-chan, tell me you see it too, right?"
"See what?" Nanase tilted her head, looking in the direction Amasawa was.
Her eyes shifted towards me as I slightly shook my head.
Shaking her head, she cleared her throat. "My handsome senpai, who else~?!"
Despite giving her best to avert it, it seems like seeing something so out of ordinary like those things had made even someone like Amasawa lose her cool.
Her eyes were continuously darting towards the creatures, and her whole body was stiff, bristling like a feline in a fight-or-flight response.
"Amasawa-san?"
Putting a hand on her shoulder, I felt the shivering alertness in her body die out, even if by a little. "Nothing. I think the severity of our situation is just catching up with her."
Her dark red eyes looked up at me, unblinking and then, her shoulders slouched. "Thanks." It was surprising how tame it felt. I was half-expecting a sexual joke, but that was not the case. Inhaling and exhaling a few times, she looked at Nanase and then at me. "Let's go!"
We ran behind a line of students who were finding a way off the island. Nanase was at the forefront, while Amasawa and I followed close behind. Amasawa was slightly less clingy, being an arm's length away now.
The threat of those creatures loomed on the horizon. Those things looked tame, but with our modern understanding of science, realistically, they should not exist. I kept my own senses sharp and my body ready to respond at a moment's notice.
Amasawa suddenly came to a halt and grabbed my wrist. "Where are you taking us, Nanase." she spoke.
Nanase was leading into a dimly lit, narrow passageway. It wasn't outside my expectations for her to do something that could be considered antagonistic toward me, but there was more to it.
Something approached from behind Nanase, its face covered by the shadow extending from the walls surrounding us. Amasawa got light on her feet, gently warming herself up for whatever was to come.
In a confrontation with Nanase, we'd easily win, but there was an unknown factor.
Nanase stepped back, a man replacing her. His face was finally visible, illuminated by the sole source of light present.
His aura, which once held a true, effortless calm and sense of control to it, was now strained, attempting to emulate that same faux authority, yet he showed more weakness than strength.
His hands were joined together behind his back, but I could read him easily—his deeply-etched dread, his restless panic, his shivering bones—as he approached me.
23:51
"Hello, Kiyotaka."