The person who likes me is a yandere.

"...Qiong might have hugged him for more than five seconds. So, Daddy and Mommy—"

"Enough with the fuss! I hugged Sora all night. It wasn't just for five or ten seconds, but I didn't die! If I didn't die after hugging Sora all night… then Dad and Mom couldn't possibly have died from a hug they didn't even know they'd hugged. They must have died from some bad luck that had nothing to do with Sora. So, Sora,"

I shouted loudly from the bridge pier:

"If I survive today, you can stop worrying!"

"……elder brother."

Qiong approached me step by step, but her body moved away as if it had encountered a magnet with the same pole.

"I'm sorry... I almost couldn't help but hug my brother."

"Who cares!"

I quickly closed the distance and hugged Qiong.

"Wait, no, it won't work now."

"No way! It's not like I only started embracing Qiong these past two days. Now you have no choice but to comply."

"...Brother, what you said sounds really vulgar."

"I am immortal. Look at me, I am still unharmed today."

It was just a matter of some silver powder falling off two teeth. You could say I'm completely unharmed, right?

"Seriously, let go, you pervert!"

I saw bicycles with their lights on speeding along the embankment road in the distance. Being called a pervert on the bridge pier by the river, I had no choice but to immediately leave her body.

Although my body is separated from Sora, I no longer feel a great distance from her. I'm happy because Sora's shout of "Pervert!" is as energetic as it is every morning.

Qiong sighed in astonishment:

"...How can a brother laugh even after being called a pervert by his sister? That's so strange."

“That’s right, I’m strange. My amnesia is strange too. So even though Sora has a strange constitution…”

But let's live happily.

Perhaps our situation is so serious that we can't just say such things...

No, but in the end, we can only enjoy life under these circumstances.

I feel unlucky on the day I get hit by bird droppings on my way to school each month... but on the other days I don't get hit by bird droppings, I can feel the subtle joy of arriving at school safely.

Happiness in life can be found in a single thought.

I've thought this way every day, even though I'm living a life of bad luck, and I'm sure I'm right.

Therefore, I am not speaking casually, but with a clear understanding:

Let's live happily.

"……elder brother."

"Even though I encountered a lot of bad luck today, it wasn't all bad."

These are the words Asuna said to me on the rooftop.

"Let's go to the convenience store later. Actually, I didn't go shopping with Asuna today. Let's go shopping together, Hinata. Of course, we should also buy some snacks. That way, today will be a happier day."

"...happier?"

"Yes, I'm happy just to be here with Qiong. Looking at the stars from the bridge pier, isn't that romantic? There wasn't even any bird droppings, it's perfect."

"Can I buy snacks that aren't mentaiko flavored?"

"Of course, let's buy out all the delicious sticks in the store."

"Ok!"

Qiong revealed the innocent smile of a child hearing an adult promise to buy a toy.

"Okay, let's go... Ah, before that, could you call Asuna for me? She should be at the abandoned school in the suburbs right now."

"...Is Xiaojie going to test his courage?"

Qiong stood up and took her phone out of her uniform pocket.

A dragonfly landed on Qiong's shoulder.

When I wanted to get closer to it, to approach the dome...

--ah.

I suddenly realized I was stepping on a broken shoelace that was dragging on the ground. My body leaned forward in the slow-motion world.

Before me is Qiong holding a mobile phone.

Qiong noticed that I was falling in her direction, and her almond-shaped eyes widened.

I could neither stand firm nor dodge!

I crashed into her as if I wanted to hug Qiong's body.

I bumped into her and she fell backward.

My momentum hadn't waned, so I continued to fall forward.

This is a bridge pier five meters above the ground.

My body and Qiong's body both fell into the river below the bridge pier.

A dark, cold object enveloped me.

I am in water where there is no distinction between up and down.

I flailed my body desperately. I waved my hands frantically, but they touched nothing. I kicked at something hard and huge—was it the riverbed? I poked my head out of the water.

The clumps of air rushed into my lungs, and I almost choked.

—It fell into the river.

After understanding the current situation, a burning sense of anxiety welled up inside me.

Where is Sora?

I searched for my sister's whereabouts on the river, which was darker than the sky.

They're not here. There's no one to be seen anywhere.

Chapter 41 You're too kind.

They're not here. There's no one to be seen anywhere.

"Qiong, Qiong!"

Water rushed into my mouth, making it impossible for me to make a sound.

As I gaze into the distance, the seemingly slow-moving river powerfully pushes me downstream from upstream.

Where is Qiong?

"Qiong! Aa ...

I called out my sister's name desperately, as if trying to erase my anxiety.

How did things turn out this way?

I just stepped on my shoelace.

Because of this stupid thing... I caused my sister to fall off the bridge pier.

Because of this stupid thing... Hinata can't be found anywhere now.

I couldn't find any trace of the dome on the water's surface. So, I had no choice but to search in the water.

Just as I was getting ready to go diving...

"—Shallow words!"

I thought I was hallucinating.

"—Shallow words!"

No, that's right, it's Asuna's voice.

I struggled desperately in the river, looking around. The levee stretched horizontally like a giant wall. A bridge in the distance. Stars that should be further away, but felt so close.

There was a figure on the riverbank. The figure was probably waving its hand vigorously.

"—Xiao Qiong is safe!"

Asuna's voice pierced my mind. The meaning behind her words pierced my mind.

I swam towards the riverbank without a care in the world.

The shoe with the broken lace came off and I don't know where it went.

The natural stone that had turned into weight in the uniform pocket also disappeared without a trace.

I swam to the riverbank. Stepping barefoot onto the stones was excruciatingly painful.

"Simple language!"

I lay prone on the gravel riverbank, looking up. Asuna, soaking wet, stood before me. I imagined various colors peeking through her dripping uniform, but the dim lighting made it hard to see clearly. But that didn't matter. Asuna was hugging Sora's shoulders.

"……elder brother."

Qiong smiled faintly when she saw me soaking wet. Knowing that Qiong was safe and sound, I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. After feeling relieved, a question popped into my mind.

Why is Asuna here...?

"hey-hey."

Soaked to the bone, the detective smugly revealed his reasoning.

"After looking at many places, I realized that when you run away from home, you definitely want to be alone, right? And when it comes to places outside of home where you can be alone, of course it's ruins and haunted places, that's common sense."

...Where is this common sense from?

"Then I ran to the bridge pier that was supposedly haunted...and saw a figure jump into the river. So I hurriedly jumped into the river to save the person."

So that bridge pier was haunted?