I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

He first checked his memory to make sure it was correct before he began to analyze the current situation.

"When I encountered the paper butterfly, Qiong called to warn me to stay away from it, and then a white light appeared."

"When I woke up, I was in an unfamiliar classroom, and the school uniform was also an unfamiliar style."

The memory hasn't been messed up again; it's just been moved to a new place.

So, is this a trial space or reality?

With too many possibilities and insufficient information, Yuu Tenkuji decided to set aside these matters for the time being.

He thought for a moment, took out his phone from his pocket, and scrolled through his contacts.

It was completely empty, except for some necessary software. The whole device looked just like it had been bought—but when I opened the phone's background system and checked its internal information, it was exactly the same as I remembered.

If he hadn't remembered Qiong's phone number, he probably would have panicked for a while.

Taking advantage of the nurse's absence, Yuu Tenkuji made a phone call directly.

"The number you dialed is not in service..."

The electronic female voice had only been playing for a second when he immediately hung up the call, slowly narrowing his eyes and staring at the phone screen with a gloomy expression.

"If we can't get through to Qiong on the phone, it means this place has nothing to do with her."

Just as he disliked a world without Sora, Sora would not allow his world to exist without her.

"If this has nothing to do with her, then this isn't a trial... Is this the reality I've forgotten?"

The memories and girlfriend that need to be retrieved during the trials are all in this reality.

But how is that possible?

Why am I back in reality before I've even recovered my memories, even though I haven't completed the trial? And if this is reality, why is my sister's phone, which she's used for years, disconnected?

This world is strange in every way, and Yuu Tenkuji dared not make any rash conclusions. After pondering for a while with his brows furrowed, he swiped open his darkened phone screen again.

He took a picture of the school badge on his chest and successfully found out the name of the school by searching for it in an image.

[Private Toyosaki Academy].

"I don't recall this school being one of the 429 high schools in Tokyo."

Could it be that I've been transported to another world?

Yuu Tenkuji clicked her tongue, suppressing the uneasy thoughts that would make her feel uneasy. She did some research on the school and found that it was a private high school founded less than ten years ago, known for its free-spirited atmosphere, and it seemed to be quite popular.

As for the other intelligence, it's not important, so we'll ignore it.

He tossed his phone aside, lay flat on the bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling, suddenly unsure of what to do next.

Should we continue the trials? If this were reality, perhaps it would be easier to find what we've lost.

But they're not in the trial space anymore, and Qiong, who's in charge of managing the trials, isn't by his side. What's the point of doing this?

Perhaps even his own girlfriend, that mischievous and adorable little devil junior...

"Wait, Iroha!"

Suddenly realizing this, Yuu Tenkuji jumped out of bed like a spring.

A smile unconsciously crept onto his lips, his eyes bright and full of confidence. He quickly put on his shoes and lifted the curtain beside the bed.

"If Aya were in this world, perhaps we could get some information from her."

Most importantly, in an unfamiliar world, find familiar people.

Of course, he didn't plan to go to every first-grade classroom to call for students; that would be too inefficient. He only needed to borrow a computer, and with his network skills, he could hack into the school's backend, or even the Ministry of Education's database, to find information about Isshiki Hatake.

The phone is fine too, but it takes longer and is also inefficient.

"The computer in the infirmary..."

Looking at the lonely computer screen on the table, which had no host computer to connect to, Yuu Tenkuji couldn't help but roll her eyes: "What's going on? Is this deliberately making the level more difficult for me?"

There aren't any here. Surely all the computers in the computer lab are under repair? If all else fails, there's the audiovisual room or the library where you can borrow some.

Without hesitation, Tenkuji Yu turned and strode toward the door.

Chapter 84 Humans and Cats, Cats and Humans (31/55)

Just then, a shout suddenly rang out from outside the window.

"Meow~"

He turned his head and saw a perfectly black cat sitting majestically on the windowsill. The curtains fluttering in the wind made its dark blue eyes appear even more lively, as if it could communicate with humans through its eyes.

The bottom of the cat's ears was tied with a pair of thin red ribbons, which looked like they were tied on by a little girl who was passing by, rather than as proof that the cat already had an owner.

The cat gently swayed its tail, meeting the gaze of the stunned Tenkuji Yu directly. Its cat eyes seemed to hold a strong will.

"Meow!"

It cried out again, but this time it seemed a little more ferocious.

Yuu Tenkuji snapped out of her daze, glanced at the door of the infirmary, hesitated for a moment, and finally slowly approached the black cat.

You can go to the computer lab after class, but if you miss the cat that can't understand what it's meowing even though you have "animal language" skills, you might not be able to encounter it again next time.

Every strange thing has something to do with the truth—this is Yuu Tenkuji's experience.

Hey, can you understand me?

While extending his hands in a non-aggressive manner, Yuu Tenkuji tried to talk to the cat, his tone and expression exuding a friendliness that even animals could feel.

But perhaps his skills were all ineffective in this world, because the black cat just gave him a disdainful look, then suddenly turned its shapely rear end away from him and nimbly jumped out of the window.

"and many more!"

Yuu Tenkuji immediately gave chase, then flipped and jumped onto the lawn outside, suddenly bursting forth with a speed that left afterimages, appearing beside the black cat as he kicked up grass clippings.

The black cat seemed startled, let out a sharp meow, and jumped away, its fur bristling. For some reason, Yuu Tenkuji always found it incredibly cute, making him want to tease it a little more.

Unfortunately, he's still more interested in humans, unless he can become a catgirl.

"Don't run away, I won't hurt you... Even if I did, you can't outrun me."

Easily scooping up the struggling black cat, Tenkuji Yu smiled and tapped its nose before quickly dodging a claw that was aimed at his cheek.

"Meow!"

"You're really wicked. You were the one who meowed at me first." Tenkuji Yu snorted in dissatisfaction, his gaze suddenly turning malicious and gradually moving downwards. "I've decided. I'll check your gender first, and then decide how I'm going to deal with you."

"If you're a male cat, I'll give you a spaying/neutering package. If you're a female cat, I'll temporarily forgive your attempt to attack me, and if you're nice, I'll even buy you cat food, okay?"

Regardless of whether the cat could understand his joke, after Yuu Tenkuji finished speaking, he slowly lifted it up, pretending to check what was between its legs and tail.

However, to his surprise, the cat did not let out a shrill scream, and even its initial struggles gradually stopped.

She simply stared at him with her dark blue cat-like eyes, as if she had given up all hope of survival, abandoning all shame, numbly and emptyly awaiting what was to come, and silently planning how to drag him down to hell with her.

"..."

For some reason, Yuu Tenkuji suddenly had a feeling that if he looked down, he would have his throat scratched by a cat's claws in the middle of the night.

That's terrifying!

He wasn't trying to do anything inappropriate to it; he was just pretending to confirm a cat's gender. Why did he have to go to such lengths...?

"Haha, don't be so angry."

With a forced smile, Yuu carefully placed the cat back on the ground and, under its cold and disdainful gaze, patted its little head.

"Whether you're male or female, if you want cat food, just wait for me at the school gate after school. You can choose any flavor you like."

The black cat didn't answer with a meow, but instead gave him a disappointed look, wagged its tail, and turned to leave.

The drooping tail made it impossible for Yuu Tenkuji behind her to see any indication of her gender... but she was probably female, and a very shameful one at that.

"Even so, it's still a bit too humane..."

Thinking of this, and combined with the discovery that his beast language skill had failed, Tenkuji Yu suddenly shouted loudly at the black cat that was about to walk away:

"Are you an Animagus, or a cat demon with shallow cultivation?"

The black cat turned its head, its dark blue eyes revealing no emotion, and simply stared at him quietly.

Yuu Tenkuji knew it understood what he said, but it probably didn't give the correct answer, as it didn't react other than turning around.

After thinking for a moment, he guessed, "You were originally a human, but for some unknown reason turned into a cat? Like the Frog Prince, you couldn't find a way to turn back, so you wanted to ask me for help?"

The black cat's ears twitched, and its tail suddenly jerked up, swaying stiffly twice.

Because she only turned her head and not her body, Tenkuji Yu saw it clearly...

Well, before it noticed its gaze and realized what was happening, Yuu Tenkuji looked earnestly and sincerely into its cat eyes.

"If it is, meow once. If not, meow twice. If you're unsure, meow three times."

After a long silence, the proud yet shy black cat spoke softly.

"Meow~"

Unlike before, the meow was clear and soft, as pleasant as the sound of spring water flowing through the cracks in the rocks.

It paused, as if thinking, then continued, "Meow~ Meow~"

Yuu Tenkuji nodded.

"So, even you don't know what's going on, right?"

The black cat wagged its tail and nodded its head slightly in agreement.

Tenkuji Yu smiled at it: "Coincidentally, I've also encountered some inexplicable things..."

Before they could finish speaking, the school bell rang, interrupting the 'conversation' between the person and the cat.

Considering that people might pass by at any time, and the nurses might discover him jumping out the window to escape, Yuu Tenkuji, not wanting to cause a big commotion for the time being, said this to the black cat:

"Wait for me at the school gate after school, then come home with me. We can then figure out how to discuss the situations we've encountered, okay?"

"Meow." The black cat answered briefly and crisply, its lively and affectionate eyes gazing at him, as if it wanted to say something to him or wanted to come to his side.

But in the end, she quietly turned around, nimbly and quickly disappearing into the grass, her graceful, pure black figure vanishing from sight.

Yuu Tenkuji stood up, brushed the grass clippings off his knees, looked up at the cloudy sky, and stretched languidly as if to relax.