Inside the A Class classroom, Hayasaka Ai stared at Sakurai Saki, who walked toward her from the doorway with a solemn expression. She couldn't quite read him.
"Yo, Sakura-chan Good morning! Your expression right now is super interesting!" Ai-chan greeted cheerfully.
Sakurai Saki glanced at the white-haired ghost girl floating beside him, helplessly. He really shouldn't have brought her out in public.
"My pet ran away at home. I'm very worried right now."
"You have a cat at home, Sakura-chan?" Hayasaka Ai asked curiously.
"It's not a cat!" the ghost girl interjected loudly, hands on her hips. Unfortunately, Ai couldn't see her. She was unique to Sakurai Saki—a girl only he could perceive.
"Much cuter than a cat, and she clings to me and acts spoiled," Saki added.
Yakumo Bai, flattered by the compliment, blushed. "Hehe… I'm not that cute," she protested, though secretly pleased.
Sakurai Saki had brought her along to scout the area—and to protect both himself and Chika—but he couldn't shake the feeling that it might look a little scumbaggy: using one girl to shield another.
"Eh! I'm super curious! Send me a photo next time!" Ai-chan's interest was piqued. She liked cute things, though her main pastime was crushing slimes or watching hydraulic presses in action—a daily necessity to survive Kaguya Shinomiya's unreasonable demands.
'She's right next to you,' Saki thought, smiling and nodding.
"I'll send it to you next time."
Yakumo Bai, standing next to Ai-chan, whispered shyly, "I'm not that good-looking."
Sakurai Saki sat at his desk, glancing at the garden view downstairs before quickly turning away.
'A child… a rubber ball.'
He couldn't look. Even though he wasn't afraid of oddities—he'd faced plenty of urban legends—he didn't want trouble. A child looking for a rubber ball might look innocent, but if it wasn't appeased, it could kick a person's head like a ball.
Ordinary people were generally safe as long as they couldn't see these oddities—mutual attraction, the principle of the mystic world. But today's superpower broke that line, making it possible for ordinary people to be dragged into the mysterious world.
At noon, after training Shirogane Miyuki, he went to the restroom and encountered the female version of Hanako. He ignored it. Oddities rarely noticed you if you pretended not to see them.
In the afternoon, while heading to PE, he took an extra careful step on the stairs. During class, a strange face appeared on the track, mouth wide open. He pretended to overtake someone and switched lanes.
Ordinary people were safe if they couldn't see these things, but Saki had to endure them—and the misfortune accumulated fast. He changed in the locker room and noticed a name tag on the shirt that wasn't his.
'Ota-kun?' Who was that?
He shrugged it off and returned the clothes where he found them.
In just one morning and afternoon, Sakurai Saki had experienced the full burden of this superpower. The inability to turn it off pushed his emotional state to [70%].
Fortunately, nobody had been pulled into danger yet. The trigger probability was low, allowing Saki some relief. If it were higher, the school could have turned into a full-on battle royale—like King's Game, Friend's Game, or Danganronpa.
A school filled with ghosts… who would be the last survivor? The decay of morality, the distortion of human nature… what plan was the Class A representative hatching?
…Ahem. None of that will appear in the following plot.
After school, Saki planned to visit the Student Council Room. He had trained Shirogane Miyuki earlier, so the latter should be practicing in the music room. Fujiwara Chika hadn't come yet; she'd said her little brain hurt.
He pushed open the door.
"Sakurai-senpai! Good afternoon!" Ishigami Yu greeted him.
In front of him, Fujiwara Chika held a stack of Jenga blocks.
"Saki-kun~ Want to play?" she asked, just as she had finished setting up the tower.
"How many people?" Sakurai Saki asked, scanning the room. Kaguya Shinomiya hadn't arrived yet. He sank into the sofa.
"It's been a while since we played together. Let's start a round," he added.
"Count me in." Ishigami Yu set aside his handheld console.
"Then now there are three…" Fujiwara Chika began—but froze when Shirogane Miyuki suddenly appeared in the doorway.
"Eh! Shirogane-kun, are you joining too?"
"Yes. Is there a penalty for losing?" Shirogane Miyuki asked, settling next to Ishigami Yu.
Yakumo Bai, hovering nearby, narrowed her eyes. "Sakura-kun, be careful. There could be danger if you fail."
'I know,' Sakurai Saki thought. As a Superpower user, oddities couldn't affect him.
He stared at Shirogane Miyuki. "A fake is just a fake, and a game is just a game. Let's skip the penalties."
"Or do you want to die?"
Shirogane Miyuki froze, then smiled nervously. "Penalties are jokes, of course. And death… Sakurai, you really know how to joke."
Sakurai Saki then looked at Fujiwara Chika. "Chika, have you heard the story about an extra person?"
"Oh! You mean that ghost story where the number of participants in a game is one more than it should be?" Chika perked up. "Of course I know it!"
"Eh? Saki-kun, you just said Shirogane-kun went downstairs, and now you're bringing this up?" Chika gasped. Then, as if a detective had just caught a clue, she pulled out a magnifying glass and a detective hat from somewhere, donning a serious expression. "You two, trying to scare me with a ghost story, right?! Hmph! I've deduced it!"
"That's right!" Shirogane Miyuki nodded frantically. "An extra person is just a story! Nothing to worry about!"
Yakumo Bai's eyes widened. "This oddity… is denying its own existence?"
As oddities, they could perceive a person's aura. The stronger the aura, the more formidable the person. Initially, this one assumed everyone here was normal because their auras were faint. Sakurai Saki had no visible aura at all.
Later, the oddity realized—
'This one doesn't lack aura. Its aura… envelopes the entire school! Damn! What the hell is this thing!'
Poor Shirogane Miyuki had no idea why he was so unlucky. Now, all he could do was play boring board games with these people.
---
"Eh! Shirogane-kun, you're so weak!" Fujiwara Chika glared at the collapsed Jenga tower. "This is only the third round, and playing with you is already so boring."
Shirogane Miyuki clenched his fists, desperate to leave. It wasn't fair to torture an oddity like this. But the expression of the person next to him—a kind smile from Sakurai Saki—was terrifying enough that he dared not speak.
Sakurai Saki, in reality, wasn't scary; he just looked that way because he was too lazy to make an expression. "I'll go make some tea," he said calmly.
Footsteps approached from the doorway.
"Hmm?"
Kaguya Shinomiya appeared, her posture impeccable. Her eyes narrowed as she watched Sakurai Saki clumsily prepare the tea. "Sakurai-kun, please step aside. I'll make the tea."
Shirogane Miyuki trembled. Kaguya Shinomiya in Ice Mode—the rare, terrifying version—was even more frightening than any oddity. Her entire face was unnaturally cold.
"Move aside. Amateurs shouldn't ruin my tea leaves," she said icily.
Sakurai Saki promptly stepped back. He just wanted a change after too much coffee—but he knew his skill level.
Returning to the sofa, he restacked the Jenga tower. Today, he planned to vent all his accumulated resentment on Shirogane Miyuki.
"Shirogane, let's continue," Sakurai Saki said with a seemingly kind smile.
Shirogane Miyuki trembled. That tone… sounded like a death sentence.
Ishigami Yu, observing quietly, tilted his head. Were Sakurai-senpai and Miyuki-senpai in some sort of grudge match? Was it related to Miyuki-senpai's sister, who had visited last time? Had Sakurai-senpai pursued her, been rejected, and now held a grudge?
'…'
Ishigami Yu felt like he'd been playing too many dating sims lately—his imagination ran wild from the smallest things.
A few minutes later, Kaguya Shinomiya arrived with a teapot and teacups and immediately noticed Shirogane Miyuki's defeated expression.
"To lose even at this kind of game, Shirogane President, you truly are weak~" she scoffed.
Ishigami Yu glanced at Miyuki. Today, he seemed almost unrecognizable—like someone else had taken his place.
Yakumo Bai giggled softly, looking mischievously adorable. She leaned toward Sakurai Saki and secretly sipped from the teacup he held—only to scald her tongue. Ghost or not, she had a cat's tongue. Sakurai Saki blew on the tea before handing it back.
Yakumo Bai took a careful sip and made a bitter face. "It doesn't taste good~"
"Then why drink it?" Sakurai Saki muttered. Some things, he thought, were better left to sweet drinks.
He then tormented Shirogane Miyuki a few more times before letting him go.
"Shirogane, don't you have a part-time job today?"
"Oh! I almost forgot! It's getting late," Miyuki said, glancing at the clock. "I'll be going now, everyone."
It all looked convincingly casual. Without Sakurai Saki, though, this wouldn't even matter—ordinary people don't encounter oddities.
Sakurai Saki watched Miyuki leave, calm as ever. Dealing with oddities wasn't simple. While they could be contained or imprisoned, they couldn't be completely eliminated. He wasn't an expert, but he was slightly stronger than an ordinary Superpower user. Precise handling might be tricky, but crushing an oddity into powder? That was easy enough.
'Forget it,' he thought. Oddities feared death; there was no reason for this one to offend him again.
---
"Chika, want to go back together?" Sakurai Saki asked.
Only two were left in the Student Council Room.
"Eh? Go back together?" Fujiwara Chika's eyes widened. She'd never imagined Sakurai Saki would ask something like that. He was usually so oblivious.
"No? I even stopped my tutoring job," he added, deciding to keep plans light. Golden Week had plenty of time for tutoring later.
"Yes! I want to go back together!" Chika exclaimed eagerly. No self-respecting girl would refuse the person she liked.
Yakumo Bai, ever the drama queen, covered her face. "Boohoo~ You two are going home together. What about me? Sakura-kun, don't you want me anymore?"
Sakurai Saki just rolled his eyes. Could he really stop her from tagging along?
They left through the school gate.
"Chika, do you usually take the train home?" Sakurai Saki asked.
"Yes," she replied. She typically wandered through the nearby shopping district before heading home, always mindful of curfew. Her upbringing was strict, and she preferred school over home. She usually stayed until around 5:30 PM, splitting her time between the Student Council Room and the game club. This year, it seemed, she favored the Student Council Room—likely because of one particular person.
The two walked in silence for a few minutes. Sakurai Saki didn't know what to say. Chika, meanwhile, was planning how to invite him to the shopping district to have dinner with him—especially at her favorite ramen shop.
Suddenly, Sakurai Saki took Chika's hand and began running.
"Huh? What's wrong?" Chika asked, looking back.
She saw nothing—but in another world, unseen by her, a masked woman holding scissors stood in the street.
After putting some distance between them, Sakurai Saki released Chika's hand.
"Saki-kun, I want to eat ramen!" she exclaimed.
"Okay," he nodded. Almost running into the Slit-Mouthed Woman had been dangerous, but all was safe now.