Tokyo Soft Rice King.

When she opened her eyes, she found that her vision was blurred as if covered by a thin veil.

She blinked, and tears slid down her cheeks. She raised her hand to wipe them away, but the tears welled up again, like an unstoppable spring.

But she couldn't remember why she cried. She remembered having a dream... a dream where she was constantly running? Why was she running?

Just as she was trying to recall the contents of her dream, she was suddenly hugged by the neck. The person who rushed up and hugged her was none other than Hikawa Makoto.

"Makoto...! You're finally awake!"

Then he pressed on her shoulder, looking at her with urgent concern.

"Zhencheng, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere? Are you still conscious?"

Upon discovering that Saionji Machi was crying, she looked distressed and wiped away her tears with her thumb while calling out to her.

"You're crying...! Does something hurt?! I'll take you to see a doctor!"

Saionji Madoka looked blankly at the person in front of her who looked almost exactly like her, and then blurted out.

"Sister... Sister...?"

That was a name she had never been able to utter since the two sisters separated and she inherited her older sister's name, but now she called it out without any psychological burden.

"Yes...! I'm the older sister... I'm sorry, Makoto... Waaah... I'm sorry... little sister..."

Now it was Makoto Hikawa's turn to break down in tears. She hugged her sister tightly again and expressed all the guilt she had felt towards her sister in her words.

“Zhencheng… I shouldn’t have let you bear so much alone… I thought I was doing it for your own good, but I ended up hurting you… I’m so sorry…”

"Waaah... Sister... I'm so sorry... I failed to be a good sister, I've brought shame to your name... I'm sorry... I've let you down..."

"No! I'm not disappointed! I've never been disappointed in you!"

"elder sister……"

Kuroba Akira, standing to the side, scratched her cheek as she watched the somewhat cheesy scene of the sisters apologizing to each other, feeling a bit superfluous in her presence.

Fortunately, this was the lounge, and the other members of the kendo club were very considerate and made room for them.

In fact, there was no need to worry about Makoto at all, because before Makoto woke up, the medical staff on site had examined her and found that the reason for her sudden fainting was hyperventilation, and there was nothing seriously wrong with her body.

This is also commonly known as "fainting from anger" or "fainting from tension," and it is also often seen in cases of excessive exercise.

Anger or tension can cause a person to breathe too quickly, leading to hyperventilation of the lungs. This results in excessively high oxygen levels and low carbon dioxide levels in the blood, which can cause dizziness or vertigo.

The medical staff also said that Zhencheng would wake up soon.

After the two sisters had expressed their pent-up emotions, Saionji Machi finally remembered what had happened before she fainted: she was in a competition, and it was the most important final round.

"Oh right! The competition is here!"

"This……"

Makoto, who had just wiped away her tears, looked very troubled when Makoto asked about the results of the match.

Zhencheng turned to look at Kuroba Akira beside him, whose face also showed a helpless expression.

Just by looking at their expressions, Saionji Machi already knew the outcome of the match.

"I see... I lost in the end..."

The match was interrupted by Saionji Machi's sudden fainting. The referee ruled that she was unable to continue the match and announced that Amayu Hikaru had won the second game.

In the end, Amayu Hikaru won the individual championship of this year's National Women's High School Kendo Tournament with a score of 2-0.

However, in the end, everyone gave a huge round of applause to the only player who managed to take a point from Tianyu Guang.

Both were far beyond the level of high school students, even touching the 'expert' level, presenting everyone with a wonderful competition.

Kuroba Akira also felt it was a great pity. He thought that Shinichi was probably in a state of flow, in the zone, and was completely focused on the game, performing at 120% of his strength. He almost won the second game.

After Saionji Machi knew she had lost, she didn't feel particularly upset, as if the one who lost wasn't herself.

When she tried to recall the dream she had just had, she couldn't remember who she was chasing.

I feel empty inside, as if something has been dug out.

"Well……"

"What's wrong? Really Orange?"

Saionji Machi murmured, rubbing her forehead.

"I think... I've forgotten... someone who's very important to me... Hmm... Who is it?... I can't remember..."

"What...! Could it be that you've lost your memory, Makoto?! Could it be a side effect of fainting?!"

Seeing Makoto's anxious expression, Makoto couldn't help but purse her lips, finding it somewhat amusing.

My sister is always like this; even the smallest thing that happens to me makes her incredibly worried, as if the sky is about to fall.

"I don't think it's amnesia... Sister, you're worrying too much..."

"No! Let's start comparing now! First, do you remember me?"

"Of course I remember, you're my older sister... although in other people's eyes, I'm only the older sister in name now..."

Hearing that Makoto still remembered her, Makoto breathed a sigh of relief. She also remembered that the two sisters had exchanged names, but she still felt a little strange, though she couldn't figure out the source of the 'incongruity' for the time being.

So she pointed to Kuroba Akira, who was standing to the side, and asked.

Do you remember him?

"Um……"

Makoto looked at Kuroba Akira, gave him a shy smile, and bowed his head to thank him.

"Kuroba-kun, thank you for cheering me on."

Kuroba Akira also politely bowed his head in response.

"No, no..."

He also felt that something was off about Zhen Cheng, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Still uneasy, Hikawa Makoto continued to ask.

"Zhen Cheng, do you remember when we exchanged names? I mean, the specific process and reasons."

"Of course I remember, it was you, sister, who wanted to make sure I suffered less with Dad..."

Then she remembered what she had said to her father before coming to the competition today. Strange... why did she call her father 'father' in her memory?

It feels so formal. The person who calls their father that should be the older sister…

"Speaking of which, sister, it seems that Dad discovered that we sisters had switched names a long time ago."

"Huh?! Really? That father of mine, who's great at cooking and music but useless in everything else? He could even tell us apart when we had different hairstyles! I thought only my mother could tell us apart!"

"Really?... Wait, does Mom know about this too?"

"Yes, she knew from the beginning and agreed with my decision. She also felt that it would be better for your father to take care of you. Mainly, she was worried that if she was busy with work, she wouldn't have time to take good care of you. Uh, it's not that your mother dislikes you, it's just that relatively speaking, I'm easier to take care of..."

"I know, because I was often sick when I was little, unlike you, my sister who's always been healthy. I wasn't much of a worry for Mom..."

It turns out that the twins' parents knew about their swapping scheme from the very beginning.

That's true. Even if others can't tell, the parents of twins definitely can, especially the mother, who must know every difference between the two children she gave birth to.

"Oh, I see... So Mom and Dad knew all along..."

After learning about this, Saionji Machi felt much less guilty. Before, she felt guilty for deceiving her parents, but it turned out that her parents knew and tacitly approved of their actions. This meant that their parents didn't really care who they took with them.

Dad does appreciate his older sister's talent more, but it's not to the point that he has to take her away. He even said, "We are very similar in personality," which shows that he actually understands himself very well... He has always been quietly caring for his second daughter.

Perhaps if both sisters had said they didn't want to separate, their parents wouldn't have separated them when they divorced.

These twin sisters were so sensible that they didn't choose to be willful, which instead caused them to be separated for a long time.

And now, their relationship has finally 'restored to normal'.

Later, Makoto Hikawa asked many more questions that only the two sisters knew, such as the two of them secretly reading pornographic books together, and the older sister taking the blame for the younger sister wetting the bed...

Kuroba Akira really wanted to say something, to show that they had forgotten he was there, but he was still listening.

It wasn't until Hikawa Makoto mentioned some embarrassing differences between the twin sisters that Saionji Mato realized Kuroba Akira was listening. She immediately stopped the conversation, her ears turning bright red.

Hikawa Makoto didn't care at all. She had already spent time with Kuroba Akira, and he had seen everything that he shouldn't have. It was just once, so he probably didn't notice these details. If she gave him a chance later, he would definitely come to verify the authenticity of the information, and then she could tease him.

Hikawa Makoto is now more concerned about her younger sister's situation. After comparing all the key memories from childhood to adulthood, she found that her sister's memories were indeed intact, so she asked about what happened last week.

"Zhencheng, do you remember going on a date with us last week?"

"Of course I remember. Kuroba-kun bought me a pair of silver ballet shoes he picked out, and then you helped me choose a suitable dress. After that, we even went to see a movie together..."

Makoto suddenly remembered her bold move of taking the boy's hand in the movie theater, and her cheeks flushed slightly. She also thought of Kuroba Akira's very intense 'response'.

Recalling the feeling of intertwining her fingers, she felt even more embarrassed. The embarrassment spread from the bottom of her heart to her whole body, and even her fingertips became slightly hot.

"Real orange?"

"Ah, it's nothing... and then... um... I think we went to eat ramen around 7 or 8, hmm... my memory of the movie is a little hazy... but I do remember it."

Upon hearing Makoto mention the crucial clue, Kuroba Akira immediately realized the problem.

The reason why Saionji Machi seemed a bit off was because her spirit had changed 'once again'!

She was neither the student council president, Saionji Machi, who imitated her older sister and seemed like a model student, whom Kuroba Akira first met, nor the Saionji Machi who later appeared on their date, who was sometimes tough and sometimes weak, wavering back and forth, and mentally unstable.

It's also not the same Saionji Mato who was transformed into a perfect older sister under the influence of Shion's talent, whom I met before the finals.

She should now be the 'undistorted Saionji Madoka before the exchange'.

In game version terms, it means reverting to the 'original version'.

So Akira Kuroba asked the most crucial question.

"Zhen Cheng, do you still remember, or rather, do you know... about your other personality?"

"Another personality? What are you talking about, Kuroba-kun? I've never had a dual personality."

"..." "...!"

Kuroba Akira and Hikawa Makoto exchanged a glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

At this moment, Makoto finally understood why her younger sister had said she had forgotten someone, and even understood why Makoto had so readily called her "older sister".

The 'perfect older sister' persona I met before the finals has disappeared.