4 – The same day, ~11 AM

It was just past 11 AM, and Murase Youka found herself quickly winding down Sakurada’s streets. She did a quick check to make sure nobody was watching, then pressed her hand against a wall.

“Right hand, anything separating me from Oka Eri.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the section of wall she was touching vanished, leaving a hole in the shape of her hand. Her bearings confirmed, she continued walking in that direction. Her footsteps took a quick tempo as she walked in a straight, determined line.

Sweat gathered around her forehead and inside the cap placed over her brows. It made her feel gross, though her pace remained unchanged. She glanced up at the dazzlingly blue sky. She was somewhat suspicious that the sky was a beautiful blue color to disguise how hot and uncomfortable it always made everyone. If there was a God, then it had pulled quite the prank when it chose the sky’s color.

Of course, you could’ve just skipped the whole summer bit right from the get-go. Murase Youka walked on, silently cursing a God she didn’t even believe in.

She hated summer. Originally, she just hated all the noise and bother that came with it. Then, in early July of last year, her hatred was given a lethal form.

The thought couldn’t leave her mind. She had been walking with the same determination on that day, too. She would put her hand on a wall, say her brother’s name, and get irritated every time it didn’t work. But back then, she had no idea that he was already dead. She was instead overtaken by a vague, formless anxiety.

Her older brother had always been incredibly diligent. He held a position at the Administration Bureau, despite his indignation towards their management of abilities. He worked hard as an upstanding member of society, frequently invited his sister out on dinner dates, and always set out to be authentic in his everyday life.

But that day, he broke his promise. He was late, and hadn’t made any contact with her. That had never happened before.

Thinking back, it hadn’t been his tardiness that annoyed her, but his diligence up until then. She had thought something along the lines of, Why do I have to get so worried just ‘cause he’s a little late? Maybe if he had always been a little less put together, she wouldn’t have been so bothered. She could’ve shrugged it off with a laugh.

But instead, she found herself slapping her hands on walls, calling out his name. She walked and walked, sweating all the way, until she found some kind of car accident. The area was surrounded by police, and an ambulance siren wailed in the distance.

Evidently, her brother breathed his last shortly after getting to the hospital.

She remembered how unexpectedly beautiful his body was, but she couldn’t recall exactly what he looked like under that clean, white sheet. Why was that? Maybe she hadn’t been paying good enough attention. She couldn’t remember enough to be sure. She conjured a picture of a smile on his face, before realizing that smile was from while he was still alive.

Murase Youka looked up to the sky, her legs refusing to move.

It was only a year ago that it all happened, but her memories were already getting hazy. It was sad. She was so, so sad. But even now, as she thought of her brother, the tears wouldn’t come. That broke her heart more than anything.

There was a part of her that recognized the grace within that loss. Perhaps if there was a God that created humans, he showed no greater mercy than in giving humans the ability to forget. That, at least, had to carry more meaning than the color of the sky.

Suddenly, she found herself thinking of Asai Kei, and the 16th of last month. The day she killed him. Recently she found that whenever her mind began to wander, her thoughts would always invariably return to either him or her brother. This particular stream of thought forced her to appreciate the extraordinary nature of Asai Kei’s ability.

Sakurada’s powers were said to be an extension of the user, that the user’s desires and wants manifested in their ability. Certainly, it applied for her. She knew that the limits and capabilities of her ability to erase things drew from her mental state. Much like her half-hearted and timid nature, her ability would only last for five minutes before fading away. Such a self-centered ability was perfectly suited for her.

Almost every ability could be described that way. Even Haruki Misora’s reset, when viewed through a humanistic lens, would be revealed as self-centered. But Asai Kei was an outlier. What kind of person would have the desire to never forget anything? What person could handle everything that had happened in the past, and be comfortable with not letting it go?

July 16th was the day that Asai Kei died. A huge hole was opened up in his head, and he bled profusely. Murase Youka was the one who killed him.

The world was reset to erase that incident, but there were two people who remembered. Murase Youka and Asai Kei. And due to the nature of his ability, Asai Kei would be cursed with the vivid memory of his death for all time.

Did anybody really have what it took to constantly recall their own death? Sometimes, she wanted to think that it was all just a bad dream, or some kind of trick. But the unchanging reality would forever remain in Asai Kei’s head.

The thought filled her with an intense fear, yet also a strange sense of security. Perhaps her emotions had already been completely unraveled, and it could be that she was being unreasonable. But she wanted to believe that maybe it was okay. Maybe as long as he remembered, she wouldn’t end up making the same mistakes again.

Murase Youka pressed her palm against the wall, muttering, “Right hand, anything separating me from Oka Eri.”

Tsushima had contacted her earlier in the morning to call off their supplementary lessons. Evidently, he was doing some investigative work for the Bureau. Since she had some spontaneous free time, she decided to use it to get a leg up on the search for Oka Eri. Perhaps she could find something that would be useful to Asai Kei.

She wasn’t foolish enough to think of her actions as atonement. She knew that they wouldn’t make up for what she had done. In her eyes, a sin was something that by its own nature could not be forgiven. He may have come back to life, but that didn’t erase the fact that she killed him. Still, there was a small part of her that wanted to take comfort in what he said afterwards.

“All I wanna do, no matter who it’s with, is bring happiness to others.”

If there was ever an ideal that she wanted to work towards in her life, it would be that.

So, she would use her ability to erase things to help find Oka Eri. She would help out some guy she never met by removing Oka Eri’s seal on his ability. Hopefully, that would be the right thing to do.

Gosh, that’s way too embarrassing to ever say out loud. Murase shook her head.

Somehow, she could never manage to say what she really felt to his face. That he had done the right thing.

And so, Murase Youka walked alone down an asphalt road. “Right hand, anything separating me from Oka Eri,” she mumbled, moving ever forward.

✽

The nameless woman sat alone in her room that never received visitors. Her only compatriots were books, which meant that as usual, she didn’t have to force any facial expressions. A dull lethargy spread over her entire body, as had become commonplace recently. It was always accompanied by a muted pain within her head and breathing problems. Her body was struggling along towards its end.

She sat back in her chair, holding open the pages of a hardcover book. This particular book was an anthology of overseas fairy tales. As it happened, the vast majority of books in her room were fairy tales. She had spent 28 years looking for a particular story that was told to her long, long ago. She couldn’t remember the title, and hardly recalled most of the narrative. Neither could she remember where, when, or how she had even heard it.

There was only one detail that she could unfailingly bring to mind. The image of a witch flying on a broomstick, knocking on the window to the room of the one she loved. It was probably a scene from closer to the end of the story. The witch had vowed to meet her love again, and so was knocking on his window.

All that would be left following such a scene was a happy ending. At least, that was what she hoped, but she couldn’t remember if that were truly the case. She couldn’t help but wonder what happened to the witch. After knocking on the window of her beloved, did she smile happily? That ending had become the sole curiosity of her life.

To that end, she collected books. Books upon books, filling up an entire room over the span of 28 years. Her collection of fairy tales were her only belongings in this small, cramped room. She had destroyed all pictures, letters, and anything else that connected to her past.

But no matter how many books she collected, she never could find the story she was looking for. Maybe that story doesn’t even exist in this world, she thought to herself. Maybe it was all a convenient delusion. A misremembered story from the past, or even an entirely made-up tale. All memories were bound to fade over time, after all. Things you were once certain of would become invariably uncertain.

There was also the matter of who told her the story of the witch and her beloved. She had always remained convinced that they were more important than anyone else to her. Even now, she thought of them as particularly important. But over time, it had become harder and harder to remain convinced of that reality.

28 years was simply far too long. 28 years of no conversation, of looking into the future, of being a nameless part of a larger system. 28 years was a long time to let things slip away. She couldn’t even remember what he looked like. She couldn’t remember his voice, his speaking patterns, his body language… his personality. It had all slipped away.

There were no excuses, no ways of explaining it away. Bit by bit, she was forgetting him, plain and simple. Did she even have the right to say she loved him anymore?

If there was no foundation to it, no specific recollections to anchor her love, did it even need to be him? If she couldn’t remember the sound of his voice or the warmth of his hands, how was it any different from loving a little pebble? Was there nothing to give her love meaning or form?

That… would be entirely too sad, the nameless woman thought. I want to love him with all that I am. I have to love him, because if I can’t…

Above all else, one thing mattered. I want to be confident in my love. That was all that she wanted to accomplish before she died.

The woman put a hand on her chest, closing her eyes. Her future lined up in front of her. At the very edge of that future lay her end.

She was going to die in front of him. She was transfixed by the face she saw, one that looked trapped between smiling and crying. But that face wasn’t enough. It was just information, just sounds and sights. She didn’t know what she would be thinking or feeling as she looked at that face. And in a way, those thoughts and feelings were all that would really matter.

How would she feel when she met him again? Would she be moved with joy, her heart palpitating with emotion coming from the deepest parts of herself? Would she finally be confident in her love towards him?

That was the only problem she faced. That was the only future left, in a time yet unknown. Everything was proceeding as expected. The time where she would meet him again was inevitably drawing nearer.

The woman continued watching her future, her eyes still closed. Before long, the door to her room would open, making way for a red-eyed girl.

“Heya. I’ve come to plunder you.”

The red-eyed girl would finally take her away from this room.

✽

11:45 AM. Asai Kei was sitting across from Haruki Misora at a café. In just about five minutes, they would pass the 24-hour mark since their reset, which meant they could save again. Kei had ordered spaghetti with meat sauce to serve as a late breakfast rolled into lunch. He twirled the pasta onto his fork, enjoying the slightly sweet taste.

Haruki was drinking lemon squash as she glanced towards the paper napkins provided on the table. She picked one up and held it out to Kei. “You have sauce around your mouth.”

“Mm. Thanks.” Kei took the napkin, wiping his mouth.

“Do you have something on your mind?”

“Yeah, sorta.”

“Are you thinking about Oka Eri?”

“Yup.” Lots of things were going on, but Oka Eri was taking top priority in Kei’s mind at the moment. “I was thinking we could try to meet her in person today.”

Unfortunately, Kei wasn’t sure where she lived. He was aware of where the Fujikawa house was located, but she only lived there while her parents were together. Now that she had taken on the name Oka Eri, she was living with her mother, and Kei had no idea where she had moved to. He could easily rely on Murase to find her, but since she would be in supplementary lessons until later in the afternoon, they would have to wait until then to get started.

“What do you plan on doing once you meet with her?” Haruki asked.

“Dunno. The only thing I’m sure of is that we need to have a talk.”

“Will that improve the situation with her?”

“That’s what we’ll have to find out.”

I really hate you, Senpai. That was more or less her closing remark the last time they had spoken.

“I really hope that the issue is something I can apologize for and move past.” Even as Kei said that, he doubted things would work out that way. Oka Eri’s plan was to be a villain, and to act just as he had two years prior. She was probably going to require a more delicate approach to start making any progress.

Real genius plan you had there, buddy, Kei thought to his younger self. It was too late for regrets, but this whole situation had given him a lot to chew on regarding his previous actions.

“Even if the conversation turns out to be trivial, I wanna talk as much as possible to learn more about her, bit by bit.” No doubt the Kei of two years ago lacked such tact. He had been fairly fond of defining someone else’s life circumstances for them, and making choices in their stead. He had tried to be the hero, completely upending her life in his one-sided attempt at “saving” her.

As a final precaution, Kei told Haruki, “I think it would be best if you sat out the conversation.”

“Is that due to the possibility that I might lose my power?”

“Mhm. Until we have a better grasp on the scope of Oka Eri’s ability, I wanna keep contact between the two of you at a minimum.”

“Understood.”

Despite Haruki’s nod, Kei caught a glimpse of discontent. She truly had made leaps and bounds of progress over the last two years. He welcomed the change in her sensitivities.

“We’re gonna really try taking our time on her for this,” Kei said, twirling more spaghetti on his fork.

Two years ago, Kei had rushed to conclusions, and that resulted in several mistakes. The issue he was looking at both then and now may not have a quick and easy solution, and that wasn’t inherently a problem. Maybe if he had spent another month chatting with her and getting to know her, he could have designed a much more thoughtful approach.

Haruki nodded quietly, like a child going along with their parents. There was another flash of discontent in the action that he couldn’t quite understand.

Kei glanced at the wall clock and turned back to Haruki, saying, “It’s time.” 24 hours had finally passed since the reset.

Haruki pulled out her cell phone and called the time-by-phone service. She put her phone up to her ear, awaiting Kei’s order.

“Save.”

✽

11:49:32 AM. As Kei told Haruki to save in a café, Murase Youka stood outside of a convenience store. She tossed her empty water bottle into a nearby garbage can. Her ability had led her right to this location, so Oka Eri was most likely inside the store.

The only question was what to do now. She hadn’t called Asai Kei about it, so she didn’t know if she should confront Oka Eri. There was no reason not to just call him, but she felt conflicted. She preferred preserving her image as the reluctant helper.

Suddenly, she started feeling prickles of irritation towards him. C’mooon, just call me already. Just as suddenly, she recognized how irrational she was being. There was no way he would call her, because she didn’t tell him that her lessons had been canceled. She had to remind herself once again that Asai Kei was in fact younger than her, as well as not omniscient.

At any rate, the entire reason she had been walking around sweating buckets all morning was to find this Oka Eri, so there was no point in hesitating now. Just as she finally made up her mind to go take a look inside, the automatic doors slid open.

A flashy-looking girl in gaudy clothes came out, holding an ice cream bar package. Choker with a cross, check. Ripped jeans, check. Red eyes, check. This girl was definitely Oka Eri. Suddenly, their eyes met. The other girl stopped in place, staring. It wasn’t like some kind of challenge, their eyes just met by chance and they stood in place, dumbstruck.

After a few seconds of staring at each other, Oka Eri took a few steps closer. “Wait, Murase Youka?”

How does she know my name? Murase had every intent of asking out loud, but the words refused to form.

Oka Eri took her ice cream out of its package and threw away the wrapper. It was a rectangular bar of soda-flavored sherbet with two popsicle sticks. She pulled the bar into its two halves, and offered one to Murase. “Want some?”

Murase was at a loss. “I don’t want any.”

“Really? Don’t worry, I don’t mind sharing.”

“No, I really don’t want any.”

“Aww, but I already broke it in half. Nothing for it now,” she mumbled, licking each half alternately.

What is this girl doing? She makes no sense. Finally, Murase could form her question. “How do you know my name?”

Oka Eri shrugged. “Well, I gotta do proper research to go after Senpai. Oh, when I say Senpai, I’m talking about Asai Kei. I know just about everything that went down last month now.”

“How did you get any of that information?”

“You shouldn’t ask a girl to reveal all her secrets. Kekeke,” she laughed. Her laugh came off like she was trying to be mischievous. It was pretty gross. She pointed with the ice cream bar in her right hand. “Why are you here, Murase Youka?”

“I came here looking for you.”

“‘Cause Senpai asked you to?”

“Could there be any other reason?”

“Nah. Our only connection is through him.” Oka Eri muttered to herself, nodding as she licked the ice cream in her left hand. “Looks like Senpai reset, then.”

“How did–” She knows?

“Well, now I know I was right. Man, you’re too easy. Kekeke,” She laughed again. “It’s super simple. There’s no reason why Senpai would have any of his contacts coming after me yet, so it must be down to future knowledge. Evidently, I did something that made him wanna reset.”

She sounded pretty confident about it, but from what Murase knew, she was wrong. Asai Kei had already been searching for Oka Eri because of his encounter with Sasano. Although Murase really wanted to one-up this girl, there was no point in just giving away information.

Oka Eri took a bite from the ice cream in her right hand before saying, “Why do you just do what Senpai says like you’re some kind of underling?”

“Who’s the underling here? I’m certainly not.”

“Why, then? You think he sees you as some kind of friend or something?”

“So what? There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Oh, yes there is. You don’t know him like I do. He’s supposed to be selfish and villainous. There should always be something in it for him.”

Murase frowned. This girl was making less and less sense. “What are you trying to say?”

Oka Eri spread her hands out, at least as much as she could while holding her ice cream. “Senpai is just super lame nowadays. He pisses me off, acting like such a weakling.”

Something about that rubbed Murase the wrong way. She glared at the girl. “I can guarantee that at the very least, he’s stronger than you.”

“Ha!” she laughed. “As if. I’m definitely stronger.”

“What makes you think so?”

“I don’t need to explain myself. It’s only a matter of fact that I would be stronger.”

Now they had left the realm of all logic. Murase was getting a headache.

Oka Eri, on the other hand, relished the moment with a laugh. “Kekeke. You are just adorable. It’s so great how you glare at people when you get mad.”

“Where do you get off saying that?”

Oka Eri shrugged once more. “Ah, don’t worry. Actually, this is perfect. Time to prove just how pathetically weak that senpai of mine is.”

✽

It was just shortly after noon as Sasano Hiroyuki stood in his garden. Around eight paces from him stood an old sakura tree. Even in the spring, it would no longer flower any more petals.

Sasano glanced down at the photo he held in his left hand. It had been taken some 30 years prior, while the tree was still in full bloom. A solitary woman stood underneath the blossoming petals.

For the last 30 years, Sasano had primarily lived in his memories. His ability facilitated such a lifestyle by allowing him to step into his own photographs. He enjoyed living in his memories. The past was unchanging and secure, a paradise where nothing would ever change. But it was also a paradise that was long gone.

Sasano looked up at the withered leaves of the sakura tree as cicada cries echoed under the blue sky. Facing the tree made him consider his own age. It had already been 50 years since he saw her tears and fell in love on the spot. It was hard to believe that the time could have passed so quickly.

A strained smile showed up on his face as he grabbed the photo with both hands. Polaroid photographs were thick, and though he had chosen a model that printed the easiest to tear photos, it still took quite a bit of force. He applied more pressure to his fingertips, and with a sudden noise, the photo was torn.

Immediately, white light flooded his senses, like the flash of a camera. The sound of cicadas faded away, and the harsh light of summer gave way to the gentle shine of spring. The blue sky returned, but the sakura tree before him was no longer old and withered. Instead, countless white and pink flowers bloomed along every branch, covering up the sky above. Sasano once again found himself in the world of a photograph.

The wind blew, causing the many petals to dance through the air. Below them stood a solitary woman with jet-black hair. She should have been 34 years old in this photo. The woman’s face carried a natural smile.

Sasano approached her, taking seven steps in total. They faced each other underneath the sakura tree.

“Hello,” the woman said.

“Hello,” came Sasano’s reply.

“How long has it been?”

“Just over 28 years. Today is August 8th. We’ve been having quite the hot spell lately.”

“I see. So, not much longer, then.”

“Not at all. We’ll finally be able to fulfill our promise.”

28 years ago, the two of them had made a promise that they would see each other again. It was a simple promise, yet it had bound them tightly together for all this time.

“May I see into your future?”

“Please do.”

The woman closed her eyes and gently touched Sasano’s chest. Quite some time passed as the wind blew and the petals fell. Sasano stared at the woman’s face as she closed her eyes. He knew that his ability would only last about 10 minutes or so. As soon as that time was up, he would be ejected back into the real world, and all that was before him would disappear without a trace.

Even the woman before his very eyes was destined to disappear soon. It upset him to think about this woman who looked so much like her disappearing. It was incredibly sad. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, Sasano immediately put on a self-deprecating grin. His own ability had created this woman. He had brought this woman into the world, only to erase her just as flippantly.

If only she didn’t look so much like her. Of course, Sasano knew the comparison was unfair. He could never manage to convince himself that the women in his photos were actually the real thing. What was in front of him was nothing more than a replica, a counterfeit that was lovingly crafted to mimic the real. Sasano had lived for so long immersed in that mimicry of the past. But that time was soon to end.

Eventually, the woman slowly opened her eyes, as though returning from a long sleep.

“Are there any problems?” He had made sure to always follow her instructions to the letter. He lived inconspicuously, keeping out of contact with people, and never used his ability in front of others. But it was always possible that he made an error somewhere along the way.

The woman gave a gentle shake of her head. “No. Nothing too serious. But…”

“But what?”

“The Administration Bureau has noticed an inconsistency with your ability. They know that you can still enter photos.”

“How?” I’ve gone unnoticed for over 40 years, so what could have changed?

“I don’t know. Something has made the Bureau particularly cautious of you. Actually, not the Bureau as a whole. There is a particular individual within the Bureau who is looking into you.” She sighed, then continued, “At around 2 PM today, a girl will come to collect all of your photographs.”

“No, that can’t be…” Should I take all the photos and make a run for it?

But the woman shook her head. “No, it’s fine. Even if you lose your photographs, everything will still go according to plan. It would be better to just go along with them. Just go with the flow, and everything will work out as we wanted it to.”

If she said so, then he would trust it. She could never be wrong.

But if that was the case, why did she look so sad?

In a small voice, she whispered, “Everything is going according to plan.”

“What?” Was that in itself the problem?

The woman looked deep into Sasano’s eyes, her expression full of conviction. “Are you sure that you really want to meet me, the real me, again?”

Sasano nodded, “Of course I do.” For so long, that had been his only desire.

“Even if it came at the cost of someone else’s sorrow? Even if it meant going against the wishes of so many others?”

It took Sasano a moment to form a reply. But when he did, he delivered it while meeting her gaze. “If you’re not here with me, then the ideals of right and wrong feel entirely pointless.” All this time, he had been consumed with the thought of meeting her once more. Fulfilling their promise had become his only purpose. Without it, his life would have no meaning.

“I understand.” The woman closed her eyes, touching Sasano’s chest with her right hand. Eyes still closed, she spoke once more. “You will need to send a few photographs out before the rest get collected.”

“Who should I send them to?”

“Asai Kei.” He had heard that name quite a few times now. Evidently, that boy would play a major role in the two of them reuniting. Sasano already had his phone number and address.

“Is this crucial so that we can meet again?”

“Yes. No matter what, you must send the photographs.” Sasano had no way of verifying anything she said about the future. True or false, all he could do was choose to believe.

The woman specified three photos, before adding, “You must also write a message alongside them.”

“What should it say?”

“Come and see me as soon as you can. Consider the other two a present.”

Sasano wanted to know the reasoning behind all of it, if possible. But time was almost up. It had already been around 10 minutes since he entered the photo.

The woman opened her eyes, keeping her hand on Sasano’s chest. “With that, I must bid you goodbye.”

The woman, or at least a being that looked very much like the woman, would now disappear.

“I’m sorry. Thank you.” Once again, Sasano’s vision was flooded with a white flash. The duration of his ability ended, and he returned to the present world. The warmth of her hand on his chest vanished, and the sounds of the crying cicadas and the harsh summer sun returned. By the time he could see again, she was gone, replaced by an old, withered sakura tree.

The world was entirely the same, unchanged by his trip into the photo. Only his seven steps towards the tree hinted at anything having happened within the past few moments. Everything else remained as it was. The anxiety, the loneliness, the longing for a reunion, and everything alongside it.

Sasano extended a hand towards the old, withered sakura tree in front of him to gently stroke the dry, petrified bark.

✽

12:15 PM. Asai Kei looked over his empty plate of spaghetti and finally said, “Let’s get going.” Just as he finished speaking, his cell phone rang. The display showed that Murase Youka was calling him. He answered, putting the phone to his ear. Before he could get a word out, her voice came from the receiver.

“Please help me.”

Her sentences were choppy. Her voice was weakly trembling.

“Please… come save me. I need you here.”

What on Earth was going on? Kei’s stomach turned at her voice. He knew of Murase Youka’s hidden fragility, the part of herself that she tried so desperately to hide. The fact that she would so openly cry out for help spelled danger.

“It’s okay, I’ve got you. Where are you right now?”

Kei made a mental map as he listened to Murase describe where she was. She was in front of a nearby convenience store that was only about a five minute walk away.

“Where are you right now?” Murase asked.

“In the café where we first met.” It was indeed the same small café where Kei had received her request to rescue a stray cat.

“Then I’ll start coming towards you.”

That would be for the best, so that she could get away from whatever danger was around. “Alright, listen closely…” Kei explained the shortest route to the café, so that they could meet in the middle.

“Got it,” she replied.

“I’ll be headed your way soon.”

“Right.” She hung up before Kei could ask what was going on, but prioritizing Murase’s safety by getting a move on was more important anyway.

Kei got up from his seat, tossing Haruki his wallet. He wasn’t even sure if he had enough money to pay the bill, but there was no time to wait around and find out. “I gotta get going.”

“I am coming with you.”

Kei froze, stuck between two decisions.

He shouldn’t leave Haruki alone, that much was clear. But dragging Haruki along into uncertain territory could be even more dangerous. Was Murase’s issue riskier than staying here? There was no way to know for certain. What if Oka Eri was on the move? That shouldn’t have been possible, but the odds weren’t zero. She could have dug a little and found out they went to the middle school, or the Bureau staff that was backing her could have discovered their reset.

It was impossible to run the odds with that information at his disposal, and there was no time to lose. Kei made a gut decision.

“No, I’ll go by myself.” He ran off before he even finished the sentence.

Murase’s abilities were particularly strong. Anyone who could put her in a pinch would have to be a threatening opponent. It would be best to keep Haruki far away from whatever was coming after Murase.

Kei dashed out of the café and onto the heat-soaked asphalt.

✽

After watching Kei run off, Haruki Misora stood from her own seat. There was no point in staying if he wasn’t around.

She pulled out her own wallet to pay the bill, leaving Kei’s unopened. After stepping out of the café, she looked in both directions but saw no sign of him. With nothing else to do, she started reluctantly walking home.

What in the world had happened back there? Haruki didn’t even know who he had been talking to on the phone. No matter how much Haruki tried to simulate possible problems, she just had no clue what he had run off for. The only thing she could be certain of was that Kei had left her behind. He chose to put the reset ability in a safe zone rather than keeping it close at hand. He was probably making a call to Nakano Tomoki right now.

Nakano Tomoki’s ability let him transmit voices to anyone at any time. No doubt Kei was arranging things with him to guarantee that a reset command would eventually come to her as a last resort. He had committed to the same strategy many times in the past.

I guess when it comes down to it, the only thing I’m good for is resetting. Yesterday was the first time that she had ever considered that reality. It had upset her at the time, but over the last day it had settled into a full-fledged anxiety.

Oka Eri had the power to seal her reset ability. It was, in a word, terrifying. More terrifying than anything they had faced so far.

Suppose I could no longer reset. Would that change anything about our relationship?

It was such a stupid question. Change would be all but inevitable.

Sure, Kei might not act any different. Perhaps Haruki could even fool herself into thinking things didn’t feel any different. But they would never be solving problems together like they had been before. Instead, Kei would always try to keep her far away from any problems he faced, just like he was right now.

Haruki didn’t care one way or the other if she had the power to reset. But without it, her relationship with Kei could no longer be clearly defined. And so, she was scared. She knew quite well that she was scared. So she would do everything in her power to hold on to the reset ability.

Haruki’s walking pace kept a consistent rhythm. She was only about 10 minutes away from her house. Sweat beaded on her forehead even though she wasn’t pushing herself very hard. As she turned around one final corner, a voice cropped up from behind her.

“Found you.”

Haruki kept walking. A bicycle rushed past her and stopped, blocking her path. A red-eyed girl sat atop it, breathing heavily.

“Nice to… finally meet you, Haruki-senpai.”

Oka Eri. How could she possibly be here right now? No, that doesn’t matter. This is no time to freeze up.

Without saying a word, Haruki turned around and sprinted away. She was headed away from her house now, but there was no other choice.

The girl’s voice called out from behind her, “Hey, no need to be so rude!”

This was no question of rudeness. She could never let her ability be sealed away. All there was to do was run. She heard the sound of the bicycle pedaling from behind her. She knew she was no match for a bike. Turning a corner, she hid behind a nearby telephone pole. Throwing her off for even a moment could provide time to escape. The roads were narrow, and she wouldn’t be able to turn around her bicycle too fast.

But as soon as the bike came around the corner, it screeched to a halt in front of the telephone pole. “C’mon, your footsteps stopped, it’s so obvious th–”

Before Oka Eri could finish her proud declaration, Haruki burst from behind the pole and kicked the bike as hard as she could, coming into contact with some of the frame. Oka Eri’s voice cut off into a scream as she fell backwards. Now that the bike was angled, Haruki tried stomping at the chain connecting the pedals to the gearshift. She had expected to be able to derail it, but it didn’t seem to have any effect.

“Shoulda known. You were never one to hesitate,” Oka Eri mumbled as Haruki dashed off once more. This time, she was headed directly for her house. She was going to lock her door and call Kei right away.

She was already getting winded. She had never been skilled at running. She knew that she needed to come up with something, or she’d never get–

Suddenly, her toe caught on something. A slight depression in the ground, perhaps. It threatened to topple her over, but she managed to stay on her feet. As she corrected her posture, however, something heavy slipped out of her pocket. Kei’s wallet.

C’mon, stop that. It’s just a wallet. He’s not gonna get mad at me if I explain that I lost it here. I know that he wouldn’t. I know that…

For some unknown reason, Haruki stopped and turned around. It didn’t make any logical sense. By the time she had bent down and picked up the wallet, Oka Eri was right on top of her.

Before she could come up with her next move, Oka Eri shouted with a grin, “The thing is, I’m not one to hesitate, either!”

Oka Eri started pedaling harder. Haruki stood up, but knew there wouldn’t be enough time to react. She clutched the wallet to her chest and closed her eyes.

Immediately, a shock ran through her body, followed by a second one. First, the basket of the bicycle slammed into her chest, then she fell backwards and thudded onto the asphalt. As her back hit the ground, the wind was knocked out of her. Pain slowly seeped through her chest, back, and elbows. She could only vaguely acknowledge her skinned elbow.

She opened her eyes to see the blue sky. Tears welled up, blurring and sparkling. It made for a somewhat dazzling sight.

Footsteps echoed beside her ears. Oka Eri stood above her as she lay on her back.

“Man, now my bike basket is all dented.” She looked directly down at Haruki’s face. Her own visage was shadowed, and only her red eyes showed through with strange clarity.

“This is a real nice bike, you know. I got it for cheap, and it rides great. But I’m way more proud of these contacts.” Keeping eye contact with Haruki, she continued, “I had them custom-made, you know. Look, they have some writing on them, right here.” She pointed at her right eye.

Haruki couldn’t see anything, and she quite frankly didn’t care. All she could see were the pupils behind the contact lenses on the delighted girl’s face.

“Look, right here. Take a good look.” Oka Eri pointed to her red lenses, laughing gleefully in a strange voice. “Kekeke. Kekekekeke.”

✽

Three minutes after leaving the café, Kei spotted Murase in front of him. She had a cap on, which was a fresh look for her.

She grabbed onto Kei’s arms and looked down, gasping for breath. She looked as though she had been really gunning for the last few minutes. Taking a moment to catch his own breath, Kei asked, “What happened?” At the very least, there didn’t appear to be any imminent danger.

Murase looked up, her eyes shining with tears. “Asai…. There’s nothing following me… right?”

Kei quickly scanned the area behind Murase. It was just past noon, so there were a few pedestrians around, but nobody looked to be specifically focused on Murase. “Not at first glance. I think it’s okay.”

“Please make sure. There’s nothing scary over there, right?”

“Scary? Like what?”

After a moment of hesitation, Murase answered, “Like a monkey.”

A monkey? She lost me there. “You were being chased by a monkey?” Granted, that could be pretty scary with how unexpected that would be.

“Yes, it was chasing me. It was watching my every move.”

Kei was entirely out of the loop. “Well, I’m pretty sure there aren’t any monkeys.” There was nothing in eyesight, and from what Kei knew monkeys sounded like, he wasn’t hearing any.

“Really?”

“Really. Take a look for yourself.”

Murase’s grip on Kei’s arms tightened. With a terrified gaze, Murase slowly peeked behind herself. “There’s… nothing.”

“Yup. There are no monkeys around here.” Kei had never even heard of a single monkey being around Sakurada. Murase took deep breaths as her grip on Kei’s arms finally loosened a bit.

“How about we go somewhere else for now?” Kei had a lot of things to put in order, but it would be better to take it somewhere else. Also, he wanted control of his arms back as soon as possible.

“Right. Where are we going?”

Kei would’ve preferred somewhere nice and cool, like a store, but he had gone and left his wallet with Haruki. “There’s a park not too far away from here.”

“Right, I know that place. That’ll work. I’ll tell you what happened along the way.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes. I’m fine now.”

Color was finally returning to her face. She looked down at her hands, still gripping Kei’s arms. After staring for a moment, she yanked them off, then quickly took a few steps away, turning her back towards Kei. Once Kei caught up with her, she began talking as they walked side-by-side.

“I met Oka Eri, just now.”

Of course, it was her. But… how? Murase should’ve been at her supplementary lessons, right? “And then?”

“And then…” Murase shook her head. “I don’t really know.”

She doesn’t know?

“All I remember is feeling terrified, and thinking that I had to call you. It’s kinda hard to connect the dots.”

“And what about this monkey?”

Murase glared at him. “Don’t worry about that.”

“Well, it does worry me. Quite a bit.” How did meeting Oka Eri devolve into being worried about a monkey?

Sounding a tad more peeved, Murase explained, “The monkey was staring at me. Its head was cut off just above its eyebrows. It was bleeding all over the place, and you could see its brain. Its face was entirely emotionless, and it was really scary. Got it?”

Kei nodded. “Okay. I understand.”

“Oh really, you understand?”

“Well, for the most part, I think so.”

“And just what makes you think you understand?”

Hopefully, this won’t tick her off even more. “Well, basically you saw something impossible, right? That should mean that an ability is involved. At least, that’s what usually follows.”

With visible reluctance, Murase nodded. “Well, I guess you’re right. So, what was the ability, then?”

“Well, if it was caused by Oka Eri, then there must be some sort of limitation.”

“Why?”

“We already know that she used her ability to seal away Sasano-san’s ability. It’s hard to imagine that one ability could do both of those things uninhibited.” It could at least be inferred that she didn’t just create that monkey out of nowhere.

“How could a single ability even do both of those things? The two effects are way different.”

If one ability can achieve both effects, then there must be some form of limitation. “What makes the most sense to me is that Oka Eri’s ability can interfere with people’s consciousness.” Basically, a form of brainwashing. Kei could generate some other possibilities, but that one made the most sense.

The problem was that what Murase faced was incredibly surreal and unrealistic. It made more sense to believe that rather than actually having experienced seeing a monkey, she was instead forcibly convinced that she had.

Following that logic, it would also be possible to convince someone that they didn’t know how to use their ability, rather than strictly blocking it. Forgetting how to use an ability is essentially the same as not having one.

“Well, I guess that could make sense. But why did I see a monkey?”

“Why? Well, I guess–” only Oka Eri would know that, was what he was going to say. But something else came to mind. If the only purpose was to scare Murase, then why go to such fantastical lengths? It felt like too much of a reach. “Can you think of any reasons?”

“Huh?”

“Well, have you always been scared of monkeys, or something like that?”

“Me?”

“Yeah.”

Murase was silent for a while. Suddenly, she blurted out, “Well, there was this one movie…”

“A movie about monkeys?”

“Uh-huh. These sailors were shipwrecked overseas, and they ran out of food. They started capturing and eating local monkeys, but there was a virus in their brains that infected everyone. It was a horror movie.”

I get it now. No wonder she could see the monkey’s brain. “I bet that Oka Eri’s ability is left up to suggestions. So like, she gave a vague implication that something horrific was nearby, and left it up to you to generate a fitting image.”

Murase glared at Kei. “It’s not like I’m scared by movies or anything.”

There was no good way out of that one.

Kei and Murase made it to the park, sitting down at a bench. The bench was right under a nice, shady tree, so it helped take the heat off.

“Now, then,” Kei mumbled to himself. There was one thing in particular he wanted to confirm regarding Murase’s meeting with Oka Eri. “If you don’t mind, Murase-san, could you use your ability to erase just a bit off your cap? Just the tip of the brim would be fine.”

Murase stared at Kei in confusion. “Do you hate hats or something?”

As if that’s the problem. “No. Please, just humor me.”

“Fine.”

The most important thing to make sure of was that she still had her ability after running into her.

Murase took off her cap and mumbled, “Left hand, hats.” She flicked the brim of her cap with her left index finger. A finger-sized chunk was removed from the cap’s brim. “There you go.”

Somehow, her ability hadn’t been sealed away. “How can you still use it…”

“Oh? Would you prefer that I couldn’t?”

“No, I’m just surprised ‘cause of how powerful your abilities are.” Anyone who knew how strong she was would want to keep tabs on her.

“So, is there some special reason why I kept my ability?”

“Hard to say. There are a lot of possibilities.” Are her abilities limited? Did she intentionally choose not to seal her? Did she even know about Murase’s ability?

Without more information, it would be impossible to narrow down. Kei could make guesses all day, but that wouldn’t help anyone. It was better to wait on Tsushima to bring him more reliable data.

“There’s just one more thing that I don’t get,” Kei remarked.

“What’s that?”

“Why did you call me?” Murase wasn’t the type of person to immediately seek help when something scary happened. She was usually more headstrong and brazen.

“I don’t really know. I just suddenly got this feeling that I had to call you, no matter what.”

“Maybe Oka Eri’s abilities can even go so far as to–” Suddenly, it all fell into place. Kei stood up from the bench in a daze.

“What’s wrong?” Murase asked. Her words barely registered.

What if Oka Eri’s goal wasn’t to scare Murase? What if instead, the goal was to have Murase ask Asai Kei for help? That would change everything. And what was the last thing he did just before rushing off to save Murase?

I should’ve realized sooner. Kei clicked his tongue. It was so annoying whenever he was too slow to catch on. It should’ve been obvious the moment he caught up to Murase and saw there was no danger around.

Kei left Haruki alone to go after Murase. If Oka Eri’s goal was to get Haruki by herself, then there was only one thing she would do next. She had made that clear in the previous timeline, just before their reset.

I’m going to plunder Haruki Misora’s reset.

Kei whipped out his cell phone and dialed Haruki. Hopefully it was all a misunderstanding. Hopefully she would answer the phone. The ringing stopped, and the call connected. But Haruki wasn’t the person he was speaking to.

“Heya, Senpai.”

Oka Eri.

“You’ve got great timing. I was just about to give you a call myself.” She continued in a sickeningly sweet tone. “I’ve plundered Haruki Misora’s reset. You should’ve seen it all go down, it was quite the show.”

Kei bit his lip. “Oka Eri, please. I beg of you. Don’t get Haruki involved in this.”

But she just laughed. “No way! I don’t think you understand what this is all about.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m here to prove just how weak you are, Senpai.”

What good would that do?

Oka Eri continued, “If you want the reset back, then you’ll have to trade it for the MacGuffin.”

Why the MacGuffin again? “Fine,” Kei answered.

“Then we have a deal. We’ll go with night time. Tonight, at 9 o’clock.”

“Where?”

“I dunno yet. I’ll get back to you,” was all she said before the phone call cut off.