Morning came without any strange signs.
The sun rose as usual.
The sky was clear.
The air felt normal.
Too normal.
Arou woke up to the sound of his alarm and turned it off with a quick motion. He sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the floor for a few seconds longer than usual.
The image of the lion from last night came back to him.
Not its roar.
Not its fangs.
But the way something that huge had simply vanished.
Arou rubbed his face.
"Just a nightmare," he muttered, even though he knew that was a lie.
---
In the dining room, everything seemed normal.
Airi was preparing breakfast.
Lumina was pouring drinks.
Nora was still half-asleep on the couch.
Shi and Priscilla had just come out of their rooms.
Yet something… felt off.
"Arou," Airi suddenly said, "did you hear the news this morning?"
Arou looked up.
"What news?"
Airi pointed at the television.
A reporter appeared on the screen, looking serious.
> "Authorities have confirmed that reports of a wild animal spotted in the city last night were simply a misunderstanding. No evidence has been found of any animal escaping from a zoo."
Arou froze.
The reporter continued.
> "However, several witnesses claim they saw a large shadow and heard strange noises before the object suddenly disappeared."
Arou's spoon stopped halfway to his mouth.
"Disappeared…?" he murmured.
Nora opened one eye.
"Huh? This city is getting weirder and weirder."
Lumina tilted her head.
"A large shadow with no evidence… That is strange."
Arou said nothing.
He lowered his head, staring at his reflection on the table.
For a brief moment—
he felt like his reflection moved a little too late.
---
The walk to school went normally.
Too normally.
Arou and Akari walked side by side as usual.
But at several points along the way, Arou noticed little things that shouldn't have happened.
A cat stopped in the middle of the street, stared at empty air, then suddenly ran away.
A traffic light flickered once, even though the power was stable.
A man stood frozen for a moment, as if he had forgotten what he was about to do.
"Arou?" Akari's voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
"What's wrong? You've been quiet."
Arou blinked.
"Eh? Nothing."
Akari studied him for a few seconds.
"You look tired."
"Maybe."
Arou quickened his pace.
He didn't want Akari to ask any more questions.
Because he was starting to wonder himself.
Not about the world.
But about the small effects of what Lin had done last night.
---
At school, the effects became more noticeable.
Classes continued as usual, but something about the atmosphere felt strange.
One student suddenly forgot what they were working on.
The teacher accidentally called a student by the wrong name—something that rarely happened.
The classroom clock stopped for a full minute, then started moving again without anyone touching it.
Nobody panicked.
They simply assumed it was a coincidence.
Everyone except Arou.
"This isn't a coincidence," he thought.
He looked out the window.
The clouds were moving slowly—far too slowly.
As if time outside the classroom was flowing at a slightly different pace.
---
During break, Arou sat alone.
He pulled out his phone and opened the news.
Several headlines appeared:
Residents Report Strange Phenomena, Experts Blame Collective Stress
CCTV Footage Missing for Three Seconds in Several Locations
Zoo Animals Become Agitated for No Apparent Reason
Arou swallowed.
"Three seconds…" he whispered.
Just long enough for something to happen.
And be erased.
"Lin," he muttered.
"Is this what you call… cleaning things up?"
---
That afternoon, after parting ways with Akari, Arou headed toward the bookstore.
His steps felt heavier than usual.
He opened the door.
The bell rang.
And in the corner of the store, Lin was already there.
Still in her form as a light-blue-haired woman.
Still sitting with a book in her hands.
Still completely calm.
As if the world hadn't just experienced a small ripple.
Arou approached her, lowering his voice.
"Lin."
Lin looked up.
"Oh. You're here."
Arou stared at her.
"There was some news this morning."
"And?"
"Some recordings disappeared. People saw strange things. Animals became agitated."
Lin thought for a moment.
"Ah… so there are still some traces left."
Arou's voice grew firmer.
"Traces?"
Lin nodded casually.
"Yes. When something is forcibly moved between spaces, the world usually leaves behind a small trace. Like ripples after a stone is thrown into water."
Arou clenched his fists.
"And you called that 'a little.'"
Lin looked at him, her expression becoming slightly more serious.
"A little, by my standards."
Arou fell silent.
"Don't worry," Lin continued.
"The ripples should disappear within a day or two. This world is quite stubborn."
Arou let out a long sigh.
"Next time… if there's another 'little' incident—"
Lin gave him a crooked smile.
"I'll tell you?"
Arou gave her a tired look.
"At least do that."
Outside the bookstore, the wind blew softly.
And somewhere in the city,
the small ripples were slowly fading—
leaving behind one unanswered question:
If a single lion could leave an effect like this…
then what would happen
if Lin actually got bored?
The bookstore was relatively quiet that afternoon.
Not as busy as yesterday, but not empty either. The air conditioner hummed softly, blending with the sound of pages turning as customers browsed the shelves. Arou stood behind the counter, sorting several books that had just been returned.
His eyes briefly drifted toward the corner of the store.
Lin was sitting there on a wooden chair near the fiction section. Her legs were crossed, her back resting lazily against the chair, her light-blue hair falling neatly over her shoulders.
She looked… surprisingly at home there.
Like a regular customer who had been coming to the store for years.
But something suddenly made Arou's chest tighten.
The book in Lin's hands.
Its cover was dark, dominated by black and deep red. The title was printed in thin, slightly crooked letters, giving off an unsettling feeling even from several meters away.
A horror novel.
Arou immediately tensed.
"—Wait."
He walked over quickly, almost breaking into a run, and before Lin could turn another page—
slap.
He snatched the book from her hands.
"Not this one."
Lin blinked once.
Twice.
Then she looked at Arou with a blank expression.
"…Why?"
Arou stood stiffly, still holding the book as if it were some kind of forbidden object. A few customers glanced over, but quickly returned to what they were doing.
Arou swallowed.
"This… isn't appropriate."
Lin tilted her head.
"Not appropriate for whom?"
Arou let out a short sigh.
"For someone underage."
Lin was silent for a few seconds.
Then—
"What are you talking about?"
Her voice was calm, almost innocent.
"I don't even have an age."
Arou froze.
"…Uh."
His brain completely stalled.
"That— I mean— that's not what I—"
Lin stared at him without blinking, clearly enjoying his little panic.
Arou quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, you're not allowed to read this book."
Lin leaned back and folded her arms.
"Fine. But why?"
Arou opened his mouth, then closed it again.
He looked at the horror novel, then back at Lin.
"…So you don't copy something from it."
Lin raised an eyebrow.
"You're that worried?"
Then—
"Hahaha."
Her laugh was light.
Far too light.
Arou instinctively took half a step back.
"Why are you laughing?"
Lin wiped the corner of her eye as if she were holding back laughter.
"Because it's funny."
"What is?"
"You," Lin answered casually.
"You really think a story written by humans could affect me."
Arou stared at her.
"That's not the point."
Lin leaned slightly forward.
"Then what is?"
Arou stopped himself from raising his voice.
"The point is… I don't want to take any chances."
For a moment, Lin said nothing.
Her gaze shifted toward the shelves, scanning the rows of books as if she were evaluating something beyond what Arou could see.
Then she shrugged.
"Fine," she said lightly.
"I'll read something else."
Arou sighed in relief.
"Good."
Lin stood, walked over to the next shelf, and pulled out a thin novel with a bright cover.
"How about this one?"
Arou glanced at it.
"…Romance."
Lin nodded.
"Interesting."
Arou rubbed his temple.
"Just don't pick horror."
Lin sat back down and opened the first page.
But before she became absorbed in the book, she spoke quietly without looking up.
"Arou."
"Yeah?"
"You look funny when you're worried."
Arou scoffed.
"That wasn't a compliment."
Lin smiled faintly.
On the horror shelf, one empty spot remained—
and for the first time since Lin appeared in this world,
Arou felt…
like he had stopped something
before it became a problem.
Even if it was only something small.