It was just past six in the morning when Kagura Hikaru, sporting dark circles, emerged from his tent to wash up.
At the wash basin, he ran into Ayakoji Chiyoko, who had woken up even earlier than he had.
She was brushing her teeth, a towel draped around her neck, her mouth full of foam.
Maybe because she had just gotten up, her school uniform looked a bit disheveled, loose and giving off a lived-in feel.
Hearing the footsteps, she turned around, glanced at Kagura Hikaru askance, and lowered her head to spit out the toothpaste foam and rinse her mouth.
"Didn't you sleep well last night?" she asked.
"How did you know?"
"The dark circles, pretty obvious."
Kagura Hikaru, holding a plastic cup, turned on the tap, squeezed toothpaste onto his toothbrush, and said, "Something happened last night...never mind, I'd rather not talk about it."
"What, you think I'm unreliable, can't keep a secret?" Ayakoji Chiyoko frowned, visibly displeased.
"It's not for that reason."
