Hello there, Aria here.
Lately, something has been bothering me, constantly lurking in the back of my mind no matter how much I try to ignore it. It's about Syena. Ever since that day, she has been on my mind almost nonstop, like an unsolved puzzle that refuses to leave me alone.
There's something about her that makes me curious. But I can't quite put my finger on what it is. It's not just because she's a celebrity—I don't care about that kind of thing. It's something… deeper. A strange familiarity, like I've known her longer than I actually have. But how is that possible?
I thought maybe if I got to know her better, became her friend first, I'd eventually figure out what this feeling was. But here's the thing—I know for sure it's not love. I mean, I'm not dense enough to confuse love with something else. Besides, I'm a girl now. I can't possibly fall in love with another girl… right?
Even though I was once a man.
…Or maybe I can?
No, no, that's not the important part right now! The point is, this strange feeling has been bothering me for days.
It's been more than three days since my encounter with Syena. In all that time, I haven't seen her again despite us being in the same class. She's been absent. Three whole days.
I guess that's to be expected. She's an actress, after all. Maybe she really is too busy with her career to attend school regularly. Maybe expecting her to just show up like a normal student was foolish of me.
Still… I can't help but feel frustrated."Aneki!!"
Hmm? What was that sound?
"Aneki!! I'm here!!"
I glanced around, but there was no one in sight calling me. Probably just my imagination.
"Ane-ki… here!! Behind you…"
Yep, definitely imagining things. It's been a long day, after all. Ignoring whatever phantom voice that was, I decided to keep walking. If I just pretended I didn't hear anything, surely, it would go away.
But before I could take another step—
"ANEKI!!"
A sudden force yanked at my shoulder.
Sigh… so much for feigning ignorance.
Resigning myself to reality, I turned around—only to be met with the sight of a small figure struggling on his tiptoes, barely managing to reach my shoulder.
Oh. Of course. Arthur.
The little gremlin looked up at me with an intense expression, huffing slightly as if all that effort just to grab me had drained him. His short stature didn't do him any favors, and I could tell he was trying his hardest to seem taller than he actually was.
"You could have just tapped my arm, you know," I said, raising an eyebrow.
Arthur pouted. "That's not the point, Aneki! I have been calling you for so long! Why were you ignoring me?!"
I sighed, crossing my arms. "I thought I was just imagining it."
"Aneki, you're such a bully…." he took a deep breath, shaking his head. "Never mind that! I have something important to tell you!"
Oh boy. Here we go again."Make it quick…"
Arthur's eyes gleamed mischievously. "Let's sneak out of school."
"No."
I didn't even bother to humor him further and turned on my heel, walking away without a second glance. Sneaking out was pointless. This was a boarding school, and leaving the grounds was only permitted on weekends. Besides, the campus itself was practically a small city, complete with shops, restaurants, and entertainment facilities. There was absolutely no reason to sneak out unless you were deliberately looking for trouble.
Not that it ever stopped Arthur before.
"Aneki… It's about the arcade machine I told you about the other day."
Arcade machine? I paused mid-step.
Why should I care about some random arcade machine? It wasn't like I was obsessed with gaming or anything…
But…
I was kind of curious.
With a sigh, I turned back to him. "Alright… tell me about it."
Arthur grinned triumphantly. "Iris told me to invite you to the basecamp and show you the arcade."
Iris? Who was that again?
I dug through my memories, trying to recall the name. Then, it hit me.
Oh. That little girl from a few years ago.
We had met about two—no, maybe three—years back. A strange little thing, now that I thought about it. Most of what I remembered about her was how obsessed she was with her older sister. She wouldn't stop talking about her, going on and on about how amazing she was, how much she loved her, how she wanted to be just like her. Normally, I wouldn't have cared. I mean, who doesn't love their big sister? That's nothing unusual.
But what made me take an interest in Iris was the fact that, physically, she could match me in a fight.
And that was rare.
It wasn't like I went around challenging little girls to brawls or anything, but she had attacked me first. Completely unprovoked. And to my shock, she actually kept up with me—despite my superhuman strength.
For the first time, I thought, Finally! Someone like me!
For a fleeting moment, I let myself believe I wasn't a complete outlier. That I wasn't some freak with unnatural power. That maybe, just maybe, there were others like me, and I had finally found one of them.
But that feeling didn't last.
When I asked Iris about it, she had simply shrugged and told me her family had asked her to keep it a secret.
That crushed whatever excitement I had. If her family was actively hiding it, that meant her strength wasn't normal either. They were just better at keeping it under wraps. It confirmed what I had already suspected—we were different. And not in a good way.
Still, if nothing else, it meant I had a comrade in this weird, isolating experience.
Maybe that's why, on a whim, I had jokingly created a "secret organization" with her, just for fun.
But now, years later, I hear her name from Arthur, of all people.
How on earth did that little girl manage to get in contact with him?
My curiosity only grew stronger.
Should I follow?
At first, I didn't care about some arcade machine. But now that I heard Iris's name, the situation felt different. It wasn't about the arcade anymore—it was about her.
Back then, when I first met Iris, I jokingly talked about forming a secret organization. It was just a passing thought, something silly to lighten the mood. But what if she actually took it seriously?
And now, she's in contact with Arthur and all the people. That's what really concerns me.
Iris isn't just any ordinary girl. She's strong—inhumanly strong. If she truly believed in the idea of a secret group, there's no telling what she might have done to make it real. With that kind of power, she could have gotten involved in things she shouldn't—illegal things.