The person who likes me is a yandere.

"I feel like we're doing a bit too many challenging activities on our dates?"

"Ah, there are so many people. Brother, hurry up and get in line!"

I couldn't understand what was so appealing about the vocal prowess test, but Ayase rushed to the back of the line. I had no reason to disobey her, so she pulled me into the queue with her handkerchief. As we waited, the roars of the challengers rang out one after another, and the line gradually filled up... but that was all.

"...I said, Ayase."

"Julie, I love you—!"

"Wow, that's amazing! 111 decibels! Brother, you can't lose!"

"...Ah, um. I mean, Ayase."

"I...I will cherish you for the rest of my life, love you—!"

"Oh, I'm getting shy. Your girlfriend would get shy too."

"Hey, I'm talking to Ayase."

"What's wrong, brother?"

"No, that... maybe I'm mistaken... what were those challengers saying? That..."

Hinata, I love you!

"...Was it something super embarrassing that you were saying?"

"That's for sure. If you set a new record, the words you shout will be engraved on it. So, without realizing it, this challenge has become a famous romantic spot where couples express their love through loud shouts... Hey, brother, what are you doing! Where are you going!"

I decided to leave after complaining, but Ayase grabbed my belt.

"Let go of me, Ayase! How could you do something so shameful!"

"It's not shameful at all. It's perfectly normal for lovers to express their affection verbally."

"We're siblings! We're siblings! So this kind of thing is absolutely unnatural!"

"No way! My older brothers used to be super enthusiastic when it came to calling out to Ayase!"

“I said, you were just talking about your older brother from before…”

"Alright, almost at your turn!"

"Hey, don't push!"

My resistance was futile, and I was pushed in front of the statue. Ayase expertly tossed in a coin, the measuring machine beeped to indicate it was ready to complete, and the challenge stage was soon finished.

"Hey~, go for it, brother!"

...Are you kidding me? Why would I do something so shameful?

I looked around, and couples were clapping and giving me loving looks. Hey, stop it! Don't look at me like that. Even though couples are usually very affectionate with each other, you've got it wrong, we're not...that kind of relationship. This is so embarrassing, I want to escape right now...

"Brother, you can do it!"

At the very front of the crowd, Ayase cheered me on at an exaggerated volume… Why don't you shout like that yourself? Besides, please don't call me "brother," look, the onlookers are starting to gossip. What to do? I just managed to cheer her up after what happened with Parfait, I really can't bear to spoil her mood again…

"Brother, please, say 'Ayase, I love you'!"

I told you not to call me "brother" anymore! Damn it, stop! The longer this drags on, the more ashamed I feel. The people behind us are waiting; there's no other way but to bite the bullet and go for it.

All I wanted was for it to end quickly, so I steeled myself. Amnesia wasn't all bad, because after losing my memory I hardly knew anyone, so I wasn't afraid of being seen in this shameful state. I took a deep breath, filling my diaphragm with air, and then forcefully channeled the energy into my abdominal muscles.

"……ah"

Just then, I saw it.

At this worst possible time, I discovered... people I should have known very few of.

That person was at the very back of the crowd surrounding the measuring machine, and it seemed he was just coming out of the library and casually glancing in this direction...

"Shallow Words"

It's that Kansai guy who's really scary when he gets angry... Hachiyo-kun, dressed in casual clothes and wearing glasses.

The moment I saw her, all the air in my stomach seemed to escape.

Hello...

My shouts barely reached the level that the microphone could recognize, and the LCD screen displayed a value of 003, which in a sense can also be considered another kind of record.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Fury

"It's only 3 decibels, brother..."

Ayase sat listlessly on a park bench and said this in a heavy tone.

"It was 'Hello, brother'..."

"...I'm sorry."

The apology I managed to squeeze out was weaker and smaller than the record-breaking voice I had just produced.

Ayase sighed reproachfully. I didn't even have the courage to look up or sit next to her; I just stood there on the path, staring down at the stone bricks on the ground.

The sun had turned a deep, ripe orange-red, and the strange artwork standing on the off-limits lawn cast a long shadow in the setting sun, stretching all the way to the stone pavement. From my vantage point, the shadow looked like a small black trumpet. Since there was such a trumpet, why not play some cheerful music to dispel the somber atmosphere...?

All that could be heard was the distant clanging of glass, a mournful sound that made Ayase, who was sitting on the bench with her head down, seem even more pitiful.

"Ayase, I'm sorry. I suddenly felt ashamed, so..."

"........."

Ayase didn't say a word. Whether it was taking weird photo booth pictures or spilling parfait at the coffee shop, Ayase's mood always improved at an astonishing speed. But this time, she lowered her clear eyes deeply and stared intently at her knees.

"Alright, let's do it again! Let's see if my voice reaches Brazil this time..."

"who is it?"

"what?"

Ayase kept her eyes fixed on her feet, counting without looking up.

"Hello...who are you saying this to?"

"Ah, um, it wasn't directed at anyone in particular, um... no."

"...Class monitor?"

—Congratulations, you got it right! Your attention got distracted by other girls during the date.

Even if you tore my mouth apart, I couldn't say those words, so I tried my best to use lies to cover it up.

"No, no, there wasn't a class monitor. No, no one was there at the time... It's true."

"call"

Having managed to fool most of the situation, Ayase only managed to utter something that was somewhere between a sigh and a low growl.

Ayase still didn't raise her face. At that moment, Ayase's snow-white skin, which was beyond the typical Japanese features, struck me as strangely frightening.

"Um, are you thirsty? I'll go buy you something to drink."

Not thirsty

"Don't mention it, I'll be right back."

"Brother, no, not here—"

"I'll be right back!"

In short, I need to catch my breath. Ignoring Ayase's attempts to stop me, I made up an excuse and fled from the bench as if I were escaping.

"I wanted to escape, and I actually did escape..."

With a long, self-talking monologue, the coin rolled into the vending machine's coin slot.

Ugh, today was terrible. The main point wasn't to regain my memories, but rather to cheer my sister up for a date. But looking at it this way, staying home would have been much better. I made a completely wrong choice.

...If we're talking about making the wrong choice, this vending machine is another example.

I tried to insert a 500 yen coin several times, but it kept falling straight out of the coin return slot. I picked it up and tried again, and it went straight out of the slot again.

"What's going on? Damn it!"

I gave up on using the 500 yuan coins and took out a 1000 yuan bill from my wallet to make some change. Even such a small thing made me incredibly irritable. I wanted to be alone, so I passed two vending machines but didn't go in, which backfired. Today was truly awful.

Frustrated, I pressed the buttons for milk tea and lemon tea. Just then, the park's loudspeakers began broadcasting a loud and noisy announcement.

Lost and Found Notice. A guest who left a black hat in front of the Science and Technology Museum just now, please come to the lost and found as soon as possible to retrieve it. Repeating...

Hearing the broadcast, I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Who will help me find what I've lost..."

I muttered to myself with a self-deprecating tone and reached into the dispensing slot. Two plastic bottles were blocking the slot completely, not moving an inch.

"Ayase, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Would you like milk tea or lemon tea?"

I had hoped that while I was buying drinks, Ayase would demonstrate her amazing ability to switch moods for the third time, but from a distance, it was clear I was being naive; my unrealistic expectations were easily dashed. Ayase remained in the same posture as when I fled, motionless like a statue.

"...Lemon tea, I left it here."

I placed the plastic bottle gently next to her little bottom, as if offering a tribute to a statue of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

"...What a beautiful sunset!"

The setting sun, slightly lower than before, turned Ayase's snow-white skin a deep orange-red.

"Mmm, what a beautiful sunset..."

I started a conversation with myself, and then, unable to think of anything else to say, I sipped some black tea to soothe my throat. Even though I'd given the lemon tea to Ayase, I still felt a strong sourness. The shadow of the artwork in front of the bench had unconsciously changed from a trumpet shape. Its eerie shape cast on the stone floor seemed to represent Ayase's unstable mood at that moment.

"Heart-shaped..."

Ayase muttered to herself.

"what?"

"That one will turn into a heart shape..."

It wasn't until she said it a second time that I realized she was referring to the shadow of the artwork.

"That uniquely shaped artwork was actually constructed using very sophisticated calculations. Over time, it projects various shadows onto the ground, such as airplanes, monsters, and Santa Claus."

"Ah, I see."