"Stop... just stop..."
Humans cannot consciously control their brains, yet the brain can quietly take command of the human body.
At this very moment.
Under the brain's control, Seika—clutching the band's wristband tightly—found herself involuntarily standing before the restroom door on the ground floor.
"Damn it... Stop, please. There's still a chance to turn back..."
Seika's lovely face burned hot as she desperately used her reason to fight the desires welling up within her.
Yet, after a mere pause of a few seconds, her body—still under the brain's command—moved of its own accord to push open the restroom door.
"Why... why can't I stop?"
"Is my willpower really as fragile as tofu—shattering at the slightest touch?"
Seika sank into deep self-doubt, a wave of intense guilt washing over her. She assumed the fault lay entirely with her, never once considering that this might be a side effect of the Eden Fruit.
Had she glanced up at the mirror, she would have noticed a distinct flush of pink appearing in her eyes.
Click.
The restroom door quietly closed.
Feeling a light sweat on her palms and hearing the rapid pounding of her heart, Seika finally gave up the struggle. She surrendered control of her body to her brain, closed her eyes, and slipped on the wristband...
Account loading...
Sensory link established...
The interstellar express train departed.
"Ngh...!"
Seika's body shuddered as if struck by an electric shock; her slender neck arched backward, and in a panic, she grabbed a towel from the wall and clamped it between her teeth.
(At least... at the very least, I mustn't wake anyone else up!)
The night passed without incident.
The next day.
7:30 AM.
"Ryo, time to get up."
Nijika's bright, cheerful voice rang out. "I'm so tired." Seika rolled over, her voice slurred. "Let me sleep a little longer..."
"Get up already." Nijika reached out her right hand and poked Ryo's cheek. "We're going downstairs for breakfast; we have school after that."
"...School?"
Seika's mind was hazy; she thought she might be hearing things.
"I graduated years ago—how could I possibly still have to go to school...?"
"Huh?"
Kita's clear, pleasant voice rang out:
"Ryo-senpai actually said she graduated years ago? She must be groggy from sleep."
Immediately after, a voice that was both familiar and strange spoke up:
"Maybe yesterday's dream adventure was just too intense, and that's why she's talking nonsense."
(Wait a minute... that's my voice?!)
Seika froze for a moment, then snapped her eyes open, quickly threw off the covers, and sat up.
As everyone knows, one's own speaking voice sounds completely different from a recording, which is why Seika found that voice both familiar and alien.
"Nijika, Kita, Hitori, and..."
Seika's eyes widened as her gaze swept over the girls, finally landing on 'herself' standing behind them all.
"Shh~"
Ryo quietly raised a finger to her lips, silently mouthing the words:
"Manager, keep it a secret, okay?"
Seika: "..."
Her drowsiness vanished instantly, and memories of the previous night flooded back into her mind.
Nijika and Ryo leaving, the dropped bracelet, and herself hiding in the restroom...
In the final moments, Seika only remembered her mind going blank—as if she had briefly lost consciousness—only to wake up in the [Onsen Village] having swapped bodies with Ryo.
After leaving the village, she had quickly gone downstairs to find 'herself'—or rather, Ryo, who was inhabiting her body—and learned from Ryo about the bracelet's side effect: a soul swap. "After swapping souls, we have to do that kind of thing to switch back..."
Seika parted her lips; as the solution Ryo had proposed last night crossed her mind, the heat in her cheeks rose rapidly.
To think she'd actually have to do that with that insufferable brat...
This is terrible!
It's absolutely terrible!
"Huh? What's wrong, Ryo-senpai?" Kita looked over curiously, her eyes wide. "Your face suddenly turned so red—could you have a fever?"
"Is Ryo not feeling well?"
Nijika looked over with concern and reached out to place her right hand on 'Scum Ryo's' forehead:
"That's strange; the temperature seems perfectly normal..."
"I'm fine." Seika quickly turned her head to dodge Nijika's hand, then stood up and fled in a panic. "I'm going to the restroom!"
"..."
A moment later.
Staring at 'herself' in the mirror, Seika gritted her teeth, a look of deep resentment on her face.
"It's not a hallucination..."
"I really have swapped souls with Ryo."
"...Damn it!"
Seika wanted to lash out in anger, but she could only be mad at herself.
Mad at Ryo Yamada?
Of course not.
Ryo had simply dropped the bracelet by accident; she hadn't forced it onto Seika's wrist. Come to think of it, it was entirely due to her own lack of willpower—she had no one else to blame.
Still, Seika couldn't shake the feeling that it was all a bit too coincidental. Ryo had accidentally dropped the bracelet while massaging Seika's sore back last time, and then dropped it again last night... As far as she recalled, Ryo didn't strike her as the type to be so scatterbrained, did she?
"Look on the bright side: at least the person I swapped bodies with is Ryo, not some weird stranger..."
Seika shook her head, trying to accept reality and console herself.
"If it were a stranger, who knows what they might do with my body?"
Knock, knock, knock.
A knocking sound suddenly rang out.
"...Who is it?"
Seika turned around nervously.
The next second. A voice—at once familiar and unfamiliar—drifted lazily into the air:
"Manager, it's me."
Seika: "..."
The door opened.
"Ryo"—currently in control of Seika's body—stepped inside. Her right arm was crossed over her chest, while her left hand toyed with the lock of blonde hair draping down over her bosom:
"So, Manager, when are we switching back?"
Seika instinctively took half a step back; heat rose to her face again, and her gaze darted away:
"That method sounds incredibly sketchy... Who knows if you're telling the truth or not?"
"Ryo" leaned back against the wall, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly:
"That book Kitahara has is pretty amazing. If you're skeptical, Manager, you could always just go ask him about it."
Seika: "..."
Seeing how confident "Ryo" was, Seika found herself involuntarily inclined to believe her.
But... but the method to switch back was just so awful!
"Well, I'm in no rush to switch back," "Ryo" said languidly. "Going to school every day like clockwork is boring. This is a perfect chance to experience the life of an adult with nothing to do."
Seika raised an eyebrow at that: "I don't just sit around doing nothing, you know."
"Ryo" tilted her head to look at her: "You don't get out of bed until eleven or twelve in the afternoon. I don't think you're really in a position to say that, Manager."
Seika: "..."
So what if I sleep until eleven?
Running the shop at night is exhausting work, okay! "It seems the Manager isn't willing to switch bodies back just yet." The mischievous Ryo's pink, soft lips curled upward slightly. "In that case, let's play our respective roles properly... I'll leave today's classes to the Manager."
Seika's eyes widened. "I have to go to class, too?"
Ryo stated matter-of-factly, "The Manager is a student right now, after all, so naturally, you have to attend class. It's fine if you sleep during the lesson, but you absolutely cannot skip it. If a teacher pays a home visit, the Manager has to take responsibility."
Seika: "..."
It was likely impossible to switch bodies back today. Left with no choice, Seika agreed to assume Ryo's identity and go to school in her place.
Afterward, the two went over the necessary details in the restroom and, once they'd finished freshening up, headed downstairs together.
"Good morning, Ryo-senpai, Manager."
Kitahara happened to be carrying dishes out of the kitchen; seeing the two come downstairs, he greeted them with a composed expression.
"Good morning."
Ryo raised her right hand and replied nonchalantly.
Seika, however, couldn't help but recall the events of the previous night; her lovely face flushed red, and she quickly looked away, turning her head elsewhere out of guilt.
Kitahara noticed this but chose to simply 'ignore' Ryo's unusual behavior.
The reason was simple.
He had learned the secret of Ryo and Manager Seika swapping bodies almost immediately the night before... so, naturally, he was going to keep playing dumb.
As for breakfast—needless to say, even though the dishes were simple, the 'Cooking Towel' buff turned them into a rare culinary delight. While eating, the girls excitedly discussed the various adventures they'd had in the dream world, creating a lively atmosphere.
"I hereby declare that the 'Best of the Year' is Dual-Shadow Wonderland!"
"Real-life adventures are way more exciting than playing video games."
"I heard there are lots of big titles coming out this year; let's keep adventuring then, shall we?"
"Why wait? Let's continue the adventure tonight—we haven't beaten the game yet!"
"..."
"Kitahara-kun, let's continue our adventure tonight, okay?"
Anon looked over at him expectantly. "Hold on, let's have Nijika-senpai consult the Book of Answers first to figure out exactly what that bizarre phenomenon last night was all about..."
After finishing breakfast and setting down his dishes, Kitahara stood up and retrieved the Book of Answers.
"Huh? What's wrong, Nijika-senpai?"
Kita asked with concern.
Nijika pursed her rosy lips and reached out to take the Book of Answers:
"I'll ask the question first, and then I'll tell everyone..."
Rustle, rustle.
As Nijika completed the ritual to pose her question, the Book of Answers began to flip its pages rapidly on its own, despite the lack of wind.
Before long, a line of text quietly emerged on the blank page.
"Kitahara-kun's guess was right after all..."
Upon seeing the answer, Nijika let out a soft breath and recounted the eerie incident she had encountered the previous night.
"Whoa, that's terrifying."
"Come to think of it, it really has been a long time since we all went to Otherworld."
"Has anyone else run into a situation like that, besides Nijika-senpai?"
"Nope."
"I haven't either."
"..."
Kitahara set down his teacup and gave a light clap to draw the girls' attention:
"Everyone encounters these bizarre phenomena at different times—some sooner, some later—but the gap shouldn't be too wide... So, I plan to head to Otherworld tonight. Anyone who wants to come along can join the party; we'll save the dream-world adventure for another time."
Now that the new term had started, they couldn't afford to be as leisurely as they were during summer vacation; there were all sorts of things demanding their time. Consequently, not many people decided to go to Otherworld that night.
After the discussion wrapped up, the girls used "Fast Travel" to head off in their respective directions with Hana's help.
"I—I'm heading back now..."
Hitori whispered her farewells and also chose to "Fast Travel" home early; she absolutely had to keep the fact that she was staying out overnight a secret.
"Wait a sec." Kitahara called out to Hitori. "Let me give you this sticky note first."
"Huh?"
Bocchi tilted her face upward, looking dazed. "Isn't Hitori-chan planning to write a new song? You'll definitely need some sticky notes for that." As he spoke, Kitahara took out the [Wish Sticky Notes], tore off two sheets, and handed them to Hitori. "Here, keep these handy just in case."
"U-Um..."
Hitori stammered, the ahoge atop her head swaying from side to side:
"I wanted to try writing a new song on my own... but if I keep using sticky notes, I feel like I won't be able to break the habit..."
"Then don't break it."
"Huh?"
"Are you planning to break up with me later, Hitori-chan, and run off somewhere far away all by yourself?"
Gotoh Hitori hurriedly shook her head: "O-Of course not!"
Kitahara reached out his right hand and gently rested it on top of Hitori's head, his voice soft and warm:
"So, since we're going to be together forever, it's perfectly fine to rely on me forever, isn't it?"
"..."
Hitori blinked, finding that logic sound; her face flushed pink as she took the sticky notes and thanked him shyly:
"Thank you, Kitahara-kun..."
"Think of the wish sticky notes as a backup. Try writing the song yourself first—it's not too late to use them if you get stuck."
Kitahara bent down to look at the shy, socially anxious girl who was keeping her head lowered, his gaze intense:
"Also, please exchange that 'thank you' for a kiss."
"N-No way..." The ahoge on Hitori's head trembled shyly. "Everyone is still..."
Kitahara pointed out:
"Look up, Hitori-chan; it's just the two of us now."
"..."
Gotoh Hitori stole a glance upward, only to realize that while they were talking, the other girls had all left, leaving just her and Kitahara alone in the living room.
"Make your choice." Kitahara gazed at her intently, holding up two fingers. "Either say 'I like Kitahara-kun,' or give me a kiss. It's your call, Hitori-chan."
Gotoh Hitori: "..."
He calls it a choice, but in the end, he's definitely going to want both!
A moment later. With a soft pop, Kitahara let the panting Hitori go, satisfied.
"Lord Hitori, thank you for the treat."
"Haa... haa..."
With a burning face and legs turned to jelly, Hitori hung her head and fled in embarrassment.
"I—I'm heading back now..."
The day flew by.
Before long, evening fell.
Kitahara and Sakiko arrived at the old house and waited for the others. As time passed, Soyo, Mutsumi, and Tomori arrived one by one; finally, Nijika and Ryo showed up. The others had their own matters to attend to and wouldn't be joining the group today.
"I wonder what Ryo is up to, insisting I tag along like this..."
Seika muttered to herself, feeling a mix of nervousness and anticipation.
"Come to think of it... will I actually manage to enter Otherworld?"