I drank up my tea and placed the cup on the table.
"Let's gather the party members."
"What's wrong? All of a sudden," Moridori-san stopped eating.
"Oh, no. I'll be starting my first day of school tomorrow, but gathering the party members is important," I said.
"I see," Moridori-san nodded, skewering the chicken with his fork.
While we were trying to continue our meal, I asked, "Moridori-san, didn't you form a party during your student days for parties?"
"Huh?"
What? Asking about that now during a meal? The fork he had just used to eat began to tremble.
"Nothing, forget it. This is delicious," it seemed like a question that shouldn't have been asked.
I had to change the topic quickly. "Right, it is."
Moridori-san became nervous, and his eating speed slowed down.
I understood. I understood everything.
"It's nerve-wracking for you tomorrow since it's your first day of school," I said, trying to return to small talk.
"Yeah. It's there...very...Ugh! And tomorrow is Monday!?"
Suddenly, Moridori-san held his head in his hands.
What the heck? You didn't want to remember that much, did you? And why are you working in a place like this?
Once he regained his composure, he said, "Be careful, Amachi-kun. I think you'll be okay, though."
"What's with that smirk?" I said.
"Why, hehehehe," Moridori-san directed a suspicious smile at me.
Ignoring Moridori-san, who was now collapsed and sleeping on the table, I was seriously considering the party.
Sadly, time waits for no one. Every moment was passing by.
If I did nothing, I would be screwed.
But more than that...
"What's this feeling?" My heart started beating faster.
Tomorrow is Monday.
"I hate Mondays," my head throbbed.
Why is Sunday night so uncomfortable? Whether it was when I was a student or a working adult, I always felt uneasy on Sunday nights.
Why is that? Can any psychologist tell me?
"It's no good. I don't think I can sleep tonight..."
Monday, a formidable enemy in the game called life.
"For Moridori-san and the others who lost to Monday, I will absolutely defeat this concept," I declared, full of determination.
・
・
・
Now, what should I do?
Did I go to high school for the second time?
No, it's a four-year college?
Or is it a university?
Anyway, I enrolled in school.
The classroom was different from my previous junior and senior high schools. The seats were arranged on a gentle slope, like in a university lecture hall.
There were supposed to be 50 classmates, but there were definitely more than 100 seats.
I sat in the back seat by the window.
The so-called "main character seat".
Actually, it's the least noticeable one.
"Who is that person?"
"I don't know."
"Did they get in the wrong class?"
"Well, the uniform color is the same, so probably not."
"They might be kind of cool."
"You always say that."
"Let's go talk to them later."
"Aw, unfair!"
Everyone in the class looked at me strangely.
Whispers could be heard from all around.
I was completely treated like a sore thumb.
"Um, you're in the wrong class, you know?"
A soft-voiced girl approached me and said.
"Hey! Claire's talking to them!"
"Shut up!"
A male student in the class intervened.
I can hear you.
Hey, you.
The whole class fell silent as if they were synchronized.
"Uh? Yeah. I'm a transfer student."
I pointed to my face and awkwardly smiled.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Can I sit next to you?"
"Sure."
I tried to keep my excitement in check and replied in a nonchalant manner.
She's kind.
It's easy for anyone to talk to her.
She's the kind of person who creates misunderstandings wherever she goes.
"Ah, I see. The teacher did mention that two transfer students would be coming to this class. So you're the other one, huh?"
"I see. Wait, two transfer students?"
What does that mean?
The protagonist Kazane was supposed to transfer to another class.
Did they transfer to this class instead?
What? Really?
No, wait, let me think.
I'm Amachi and I'm supposed to be in a different class.
We were supposed to have a class match-up in Megashuva story.
Is the worldline diverging?
I looked around the classroom nervously.
-- They're not here --
Kazane isn't here.
Her childhood friend, Tenma Minami, isn't here either.
And even the "Princess of the Ruined Country," Systerissa, isn't here.
They were supposed to be classmates in the same class.
What class was Kazane in again?
A? B?
I think it was F.
On the other hand, my class is supposed to be with Maria, in Class D.
And right now, I'm in Class D.
I think I'm not mistaken.
When I transferred to this academy, the documents I received stated that I was assigned to Class D, and it was also mentioned in my resume.
So it should be correct.
But come to think of it, I only know about this class from Kazane's point of view.
I don't know much about this class other than Nikubu and Galino, who are Amachi's friends, and Maria, who is supposed to be our classmate.
"Look, over there."
Claire, a female student, pointed to the front of the classroom.
"Oh, I see."
A female student with strong-looking glasses and unobtrusive pigtails was sitting in the front row with a rotating mark on her forehead.
I can't see her expression at all.
Do I know her from somewhere?
Who is she?
Well, it doesn't matter.
Maybe it's just my imagination.
"I'm Claire. Claire Novice... um, what's your name?"
"Oh, right. I'm Amachi Suguru. Nice to meet you."
"Um... so is it 'excellent in heaven and earth' or 'knowing heaven and selecting the best'? I'm not sure. Maybe the characters are different."
I took out my loose leaf and wrote my name to explain. "Oops," I said as the eraser flew out of my pencil case. Quickly, I activated my wind magic, making the eraser levitate towards me.
"You're a wind magician, huh?"
"Yeah... something like that," I replied. I can use magic from almost all elements, but let's just go with that for now.
Once again, I wrote my name in kanji and showed it to her. "It's a nice name," she said.
"Just the name," I thought. I felt like I was being too much of a chuunibyou. Besides, my name means the opposite of 'excellent in heaven and earth.' I'm losing to my own name. Give me a break.
We stared at each other in silence, not knowing what else to talk about. It was awkward. What should I do? Oh, I know!
"By the way... that girl who transferred here like me, what's her name?"
I managed to get through that. As expected of someone with an IQ of 100.
"Her name is Ayaka Chiaki," she replied.
"Huh?" I couldn't believe my ears. What did she just say? Aren't we supposed to have some sort of foreshadowing or something? Like 'who is she?'
"Sorry, could you say that again? I didn't quite catch it," I asked.
"Sure. Her name is Ayaka Chiaki."
chiaki... does that mean what I think it means?
"Ayaka-san"
Claire beckoned Ayaka and called her over.
"Yes, what is it?" replied the unremarkable girl with her hair in a simple ponytail as she stood up from her seat.
"He's also a transfer student! He looks like he wants to talk to you, Ayaka-san!" Claire exclaimed.
"Oh, really? Well then, I should go greet him," Ayaka replied calmly.
As Ayaka walked towards them, step by step, Suguru's heart raced faster and faster with each approaching step. Of course, not in a good way.
She didn't have silver hair or any "boyish" qualities, and her overall atmosphere was completely different, but there was no mistaking it: she was Ayaka Chiaki.
Was she really cosplaying that time? Seriously?
"Nice to meet you, I'm Ayaka Chiaki," Ayaka introduced herself with a graceful 45-degree bow.
"Got it. I see. This world is amazing," Suguru thought to himself. He might not be able to conquer this world after all.
With a forced smile, Suguru extended his hand and said, "N-nice to meet you. I'd appreciate it if we could be friends."
Ayaka smiled and shook his hand in return, saying, "Likewise. I'm also a newcomer without any friends. I'd be grateful if we could be friends."
She sat down in front of him and turned around to face him. "What's your name?" she asked.
"I'm Amachi Suguru," he replied.
"I see," Ayaka said, peering into his face over her glasses.
"What's wrong? You don't look well..." she remarked.
"I'm just having a hard time adjusting to the environment, and to the atmosphere of this class. And to you, who's right in front of me," Suguru admitted, unable to hide his unease.
"I completely understand. ...Excuse me for changing the subject so suddenly, but," Ayaka paused for a moment.
"What?" Suguru asked.
"Have we met somewhere before?" Ayaka inquired.
"N-no, I don't think so," Suguru replied nervously.
"...," they both fell silent.
This is bad. If she finds out, I'm dead.
"Oh! You two seem like you could be good friends!" Claire interjected.
Suddenly, the bell rang, signalling the end of their conversation.
"It's almost time for homeroom. See you later!"
"Okay then."
"Uh, yeah."
Claire seemed to have a favorite designated seat, as she got up from the adjacent seat and ran over to it.
I gazed at her back.
"Eek!"
Maria was here.
When did she...?
She's staring at me with intense eyes.
It's scary.
I slowly averted my gaze and asked, "Ayaka-san, don't you need to go back to your previous seat? Your eyesight isn't good, right?"
"Don't worry about me."
"But..."
"Thank you for your concern. It's fine. These glasses are just for show."
"Oh, okay."
In this class, there are two people who I want to send a stack of invoices to as the Phantom Suspect: the person who nearly killed me and Maria, who has been staring at me for so long.
And in the previous seat, there's a psycho pretty girl.
"Ugh..."
I held my head.
My head really hurts.
It feels like I'm having a nightmare.
Suddenly, the school bell rang, and the teacher walked in.