Chapter 20: Hoping Everything is Still Possible
In the pristine health room.
As Kanade was struggling with where to start.
It was Mana who first broke the silence.
“Here.” Mana extended her fist towards Kanade and opened her hand above his palm.
“What is this…?”
“Sugar balls. The teacher asked me to give them to you once you wake up,” Mana explained.
Kanade unwrapped the candy and put it in his mouth.
The sweetness spreading in his mouth made him feel his strength gradually returning.
“Alright, now you should give me a detailed account.”
“This isn’t a pork chop meal, you know!?”
Mana suddenly adopted a detective’s demeanor, which made Kanade unable to help but retort.
Nevertheless, it did make Kanade feel a bit more relaxed.
“So, what exactly happened? Did Tsukimi and Nagi have a fight?”
“No, it’s just my one-sided… fault.”
Using this as a lead, Kanade told her the reason for his recent abnormal behavior.
Since this matter might involve the past disharmony between the Akira family and the Hoshimiya family, Kanade carefully observed Mana’s expressions while speaking.
He started from the beginning of the events that Nagi had encountered before.
Unlike when he confided in Chika.
Mana quietly listened from start to finish, her white, dignified face showing no emotions or reactions.
This made Kanade increasingly uneasy, and his words began to fragment.
By the end, his voice grew quieter.
However, it seemed that Mana understood.
After Kanade finished speaking.
Mana finally revealed her first expression, letting out a deep sigh.
“Ah~ Tsukimi, you really are…”
“Should I say you’re gentle or a busybody… It could never be your fault regarding the thing with Nagi…”
“But…”
“No buts! Because that incident was all my fault… Ugh, it’s not the time to bring this up.”
Mana lowered her eyelids, took a deep breath, and then raised her head again.
“So, what do you really think, Tsukimi?”
“I—”
Kanade’s mind flashed with Chika’s words.
“—want to be by Nagi’s side, but…”
—afraid that he would hurt Nagi once more.
Kanade’s head drooped despondently.
Mana seemed to see through Kanade’s thoughts and stepped closer.
“Tsukimi, grit your teeth.”
“Huh—!?”
Kanade abruptly closed his eyes at Mana’s unexpected words.
But the slap he anticipated did not come.
Just as he felt puzzled.
Suddenly, he felt a warm touch on his head.
Mana gently placed her hand atop Kanade’s head, stroking him softly.
“… Actually, there’s something I’ve always forgotten to say to you, Tsukimi.”
“… Mana?” Kanade wanted to look up but was pressed down by the hand on his head.
It seemed that Mana didn’t want him to see her current expression.
“—Thank you for repairing my mistakes and helping Nagi get back on her feet.”
“Without a doubt, you are that child’s—true protagonist.”
The golden light of the setting sun poured in through the window, filling the air with warmth and casting a cozy tone over the entire room.
That light was soft yet splendid, clearly outlining their figures, the boy and girl appearing particularly vivid in the interplay of light and shadow.
Mana withdrew her hand and returned to her usual cold tone.
“In any case, Tsukimi, make up with Nagi soon~”
“That child has been all alone lately, putting on a brave front in front of you~ I just can’t bear to watch.”
“She always eats her lunch alone during recess and heads home immediately after school…”
“… Alone?!” Kanade suddenly looked up, locking eyes with Mana.
Some sort of alarm went off inside Kanade’s heart, buzzing anxiously.
—It’s impossible! The remedy for the curse is not to be alone.
—Nagi should know that too, why…?
“Where is Nagi right now?” Kanade urgently tried to get up from the bed.
“Calm down for a moment.” Mana quickly supported Kanade, who almost fell off the bed.
“Nagi took a day off today, so she’s probably at home.”
A day off? An ominous feeling surged within Kanade…
Mana frowned as she observed Kanade’s expression.
As childhood friends for nearly seven years, Mana could tell from Kanade’s face that something was wrong.
“What’s going on? Is this a serious situation?” Mana asked as she took out her phone from her backpack.
She quickly dialed Nagi’s number.
“Beep… beep…” The dialing sound echoed in the health room, making Kanade forget to breathe for a moment.
“Hello, this is Hoshimiya Nagi. I can’t take your call right now. If you need to leave a message, please wait for the beep…”
“Tch.” Mana clicked her tongue and decisively hung up, turning the phone toward Kanade.
“Try calling Nagi’s brother. If she really is home, he should know.”
“Okay, okay…” Kanade hurriedly took the phone, grateful that calm and reliable Mana was by his side in this tense moment.
Renkai’s call connected almost instantly.
The voice on the other end was very cold, and only after realizing it was Kanade did the tone return to normal.
“Renkai, did Nagi take a day off today due to feeling unwell?” Kanade asked while silently praying that the reply would confirm that he was just overly worried.
Unfortunately, the response from the other end shattered Kanade’s hopes cruelly.
“… Nagi left the house earlier than I did today.”
Renkai’s voice grew lower: “Kanade, what’s happening to Nagi now?”
“This is…” Kanade fell into confusion, unsure of where to start.
It seemed that Renkai sensed Kanade’s current state as he softened his tone.
“Kanade, save the explanations for later. Just tell me what I should do for Nagi right now. What should I be cautious about?”
“Is it about Nagi? What happened?”
On the other end of the line, the vice president Miki’s voice could be heard, suggesting she had overheard their conversation.
When Miki realized that Nagi might have lied about not coming to school today, her mind suddenly recalled the rainy night from a few days ago.
“Could it be related to that incident where Nagi said she was cursed by an evil spirit?”
“Evil spirit?” Both Renkai and Kanade, along with Mana near him, reacted simultaneously to that term.
“Renkai, please contact Nagi as soon as possible, and make sure she is not alone.” Kanade finally regained his composure, speaking urgently.
“Understood.”
As Renkai replied succinctly, Mana pulled out another work phone from her backpack and swiftly dialed the manager.
“Miss, what can I do for you?” a calm female voice came over the phone.
“Akira, drive around the school immediately. If you see a very cute girl with waist-length black hair wearing a Seikage Middle School uniform, stay by her side immediately.”
“Got it, but Miss, are you sure I won’t get taken by the police?” Even as the manager complained, the sound of tires screeching on the ground came through the phone.
“I’ll bail you out.”
“Understood. To be honest, I’d like to see just how cute that girl is even if it means getting arrested…”
Once everything was arranged, Mana turned her gaze back to Kanade, who was turning to get off the bed.
Meanwhile, the school was already announcing a call for Hoshimiya Nagi over the intercom.
Student Council President Hoshimiya Renkai was as efficient as ever.
“Tsukimi, about the evil spirit curse mentioned on the call, could it be related to this?” Mana said, pulling an old magazine from her backpack.
At the sight of the magazine and its title, Kanade froze immediately.
“Is this the last issue? Why do you have this magazine, Mana?”
“Nagi has been secretly reading it during breaks lately.”
“I thought it was suspicious, so I ‘borrowed’ it from her drawer while she was taking a day off.”
“… You’ve really helped a lot.” Kanade snatched the self-published magazine from Mana.
Before he could search through the contents, the magazine opened to the page detailing “Evil Spirit Dokidoki.”
It was evident that Nagi had been fixated on this page.
Kanade held his breath, quickly skimming the text.
Finally, his gaze landed on a page that seemed to have been dampened by tears and dried in wrinkles.
“This stupid girl…”
Kanade cursed.
He then tossed the magazine aside on the bed and charged out of the health room.
“Tsukimi!? What are you—where are you going? You’re not well—”
Kanade didn’t wait for Mana to finish and dashed down the hallway.
—Stupid, stupid, stupid!
—What a big fool I am!!!
Kanade’s mind flashed back to Nagi’s odd behavior that day and how she had kept her distance from him since then.
“Damn it!!!” Kanade wished he could punch his past self for being so presumptuous.
—He claimed it was all for Nagi’s sake, but he didn’t even realize he had put her in danger!
—Where could Nagi be?
Kanade rushed out of the school building without even changing his shoes.
—Please, whether it’s a god or whatever, grant me that there’s still time—
—This is my wish in this life—
—If Nagi is gone—
—I…
A glint of golden light flickered in Kanade’s eyes.
…..
…..
Above the school building, a white figure circled.
The dark clouds once again gathered over Kawano City.
