Mygo, are you all yanderes?

"Why...why does it have to end in a fall to my death?! I don't want that!"

Looking desperately at the seemingly bottomless white abyss below, Goto Ichiri let out such a wail.

"..."

"..."

Goto Ichiri's screams and figure grew increasingly blurry until the sound of a heavy object falling into water was heard in the air. Then, her traces completely disappeared, and the whole world became quiet again, leaving only the cupboard and the two people inside doing different things.

"……Ugh."

Startled by the sudden commotion, Goto Ichiri raised his eyes and glanced at Goto Sanri, who was brushing dust off his clothes and looking very happy. He then sighed.

"Haven't given up yet?"

She closed her laptop and casually placed it on the ground. Then she walked over and knocked twice on the wall. A brand new shoji door, almost identical to the one before, reappeared in front of her, separating the white outside from the inside of the cabinet and letting the familiar darkness fill the entire space again.

"Seriously, don't you want to cause damage? Don't you feel bad about it...?"

"It's just something that appears randomly anyway, so it doesn't matter."

Ignoring Goto Ichiri's scolding, Goto Sanri happily squatted down, cupped her cheeks in her hands, and hummed an impromptu tune.

"Compared to this, this is what you call 'opportunity,' right? It must be right, right? Just like what you called 'your existence.'"

"Well, more or less..."

Goto Ichiri casually patted the air again, and a plate of fried chicken and a bottle of iced cola with condensation still on its surface appeared next to the notebook she had placed on the ground.

"This is my first time adding a second one, and yours is your first time. If nothing unexpected happens, she will most likely have her first and second times combined with an unknown third time..."

"I knew it...!"

Goto Sanri, who had even more energy and spirit than Goto Ichiri, clenched his fist tightly, his tone full of longing.

"In other words, this time we might achieve a good ending. [Die? I won't have to go through what I went through before...]"

Thinking of this, she chuckled softly twice.

This is wonderful. If she had stayed here any longer, she might have become like the person next to her, losing all expectations and turning into a complete middle-aged man. Fortunately, a new version of herself with endless opportunities has appeared.

Her wait was not in vain.

"...It will fail, won't it?"

After hesitating for a moment, Goto Ichiri poured cold water on the overjoyed person next to her.

"I can't imagine anything better than my situation back then. Everyone was gone. None of the people in Mygo had any contact with Akira. Takamatsu Akari couldn't find him either. The same was true for everyone in Mujica. Nijika and the others didn't have a chance to meet Akira. Only Kiku-san and I knew about him in the whole world."

"But Kiku-san didn't remember anything either, so only I know him and only I like him."

"But I still failed, completely failed, and failed to protect anything."

When talking about her sad experiences, Goto Ichiri hugged her head, curled up, and covered her pale face with her bangs and knees. Her voice became unsteady and was almost drowned out by her heavy breathing, as if she was immersed in a terrible nightmare.

"I shouldn't have wanted any friends, shouldn't have formed a band. I should have known that none of it was right. I should have been alone for the rest of my life..."

"...That has nothing to do with us, after all, as you said, who could have imagined that something like that would happen..."

Perhaps influenced by the suddenly oppressive atmosphere, Goto Sanri's tone became somewhat strained. She gently shook Goto Ichiri's body, trying to comfort her.

Unfortunately, this attempt at comfort was futile; Goto Ichiri continued to mutter to herself in a low voice.

“Even without us, that kind of thing would have happened to Ming sooner or later. Now that we know about it, shouldn’t we be even more proactive in protecting him? After all, we’re the only ones who know the truth.”

"...You agree, right? If it weren't for us, Akira would be so pitiful, so we have to..."

"...So now there's a third person. We should cheer up... Waaah... Are we going to stay in this little space forever?"

6. "...So, can you please stop crying? I share your emotions, and seeing you like this really hurts me too..."

Unbeknownst to her, Goto Sanri's words of comfort were already choked with sobs. Her face was covered in tears, which dripped onto the floor. Perhaps because she was in so much pain and discomfort, she had lost the strength to squat down and could only sit on the floor like Goto Ichiri, wiping away her unstoppable tears again and again.

"I, I don't want to cry! I'll look ugly if I cry, and no one will like it if they see me... Waaaaah..."

The two who were terrifying in Goto Ichiri's eyes just moments ago now resemble two little girls who have lost their most beloved toys, sitting on the ground crying alone, with no energy left to even huddle together for warmth.

"...Hope, protection? Can we, Goto Ichiri, the most useless guy in the world, really do it?"

"Goto Ichiri" said in a hoarse voice. With her last bit of strength, she opened the folder containing photos that were all the beautiful memories that had appeared in her mind.

Looking at these photos, the corners of her mouth slightly turned up, but the smile quickly disappeared, leaving only her empty, large eyes staring straight at them.

"Do you know if Mygo is involved this time? Is Mujica involved? Can I really do it with no prior information?"

Volume 1: Chapter 168 (2k)

"...But there is still hope...as long as we seize the opportunity..."

"hope?"

Goto Sanri seemed to want to say something more, but before she could finish, she was interrupted by Goto Ichiri.

"Haha...Is there any hope...?"

Goto Ichiri let out a bleak laugh, and the tears she had finally managed to stop started flowing again, running down her cheeks and dripping onto the floor, wetting it.

“I see no hope at all. Without them, we can't do anything on our own; with them, we still can't do anything—do you want to experience failure again? I don't want to anymore. I'm so scared… Rather than trying and getting the same result as before, I might as well just lie here. At least here I can still reminisce about the past…”

"..."

Goto Sanri said nothing, but silently got up, walked to a corner that was a little far away from Goto Ichiri, sat down, picked up the guitar that had suddenly appeared, put on headphones, and played quietly.

"...What are you still doing?"

Seeing Goto Sanri's behavior, Goto Ichiri remained silent for a while before asking a question.

"...I want to play the guitar, I want to write lots and lots of songs, I want to become even better, so that when I go back I can continue to form a band with everyone..."

"I must muster up my courage, throw myself into Ming's arms, tell him what we've been through, and then never let go again..."

Goto Sanri played the guitar, her tone returning to calm. Without turning her head, she spoke, her fingers flying across the strings, the notes chaotic and out of rhythm, completely unlike her usual level.

"..."

"Whatever you want..."

Goto Ichiri hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not stop her. She simply turned over again, refusing to look at Goto Sanri, and fell back into her withdrawn state.

She knew perfectly well what the other person was thinking; they were simply numbing themselves with self-deceptive fantasies, forcing themselves not to think about the bad possibilities.

If she were truly so confident in that new version of herself, how could she not even be able to play the guitar properly, which is practically an extension of their bodies?

It's clear she's the same person she was in the past; she's exactly the same as she was back then. She wasn't defeated by the first setback, but still holds onto her hopes for a bright future.

When she lived her second life, she was the same; she had expectations for everything and worked hard for it, but the results were not satisfactory.

Let her be happy for a while longer since she hasn't been thoroughly beaten. Soon she will become like me, losing all hope for everything.

What hope? It's all an illusion. She can't do anything right at all...

After a long sigh, the air returned to its initial tranquility, with only the increasingly frenzied guitar music still echoing.

........................

"……classmate?"

"Classmate, are you okay?"

"Hey, hey, can you hear me?"

The worried voice in his ear grew clearer and clearer, and Goto Ichiri snapped out of his daze to see Kusano Akira's somewhat worried face.

“…!”

Blinking her azure eyes, Goto Ichiri stared blankly at the person in front of her, then quickly looked down the moment she realized she had returned from that demonic cave.

“…That’s…that’s wonderful…”

Seeing herself still wearing that incredibly beautiful outfit, Goto Ichiri burst into tears of joy.

There was no demonic cave after all; it was all a dream. How wonderful! She thought she was really going to die. (Road)

It must be a dream. Could it be that superpowers really exist that can teleport someone away and then bring them back, changing their clothes along the way? Don't be ridiculous, how could that be? This must just be a dream she had. (Shan)

Is this what it feels like to survive a catastrophe? Even the face of this school bully seems so kind and approachable compared to those two imposters... Hmm? School bully? (The last part is a separate, unrelated question.)

Goto Ichiri suddenly looked up at Kusano Akira, who had somehow gotten incredibly close to her and was still holding down her arms.

No, no, no, no, no…! She'd completely forgotten there was someone like this beside her! What to do? The fake person is gone, but there's still a dangerous individual here!

What happened before the dream? Why are they in this position now? Calm down, Goto Ichiri, think about it...

Could you please tell me your name?

"..."

Oh right, she got hit on.

I got hit on by this super popular guy.

I was approached by this guy who looked intimidating and had a girl who was supposed to be a bad girl in the making.

"Hey kid, should we call an ambulance? Or do you have any medicine here? Can you even hear me?"

Kusano Akira gently shook Goto Ichiri, who was lost in thought, and asked somewhat anxiously.

He didn't know what was going on, but after he said his name, the girl in front of him suddenly froze and didn't respond at all no matter how he talked to her. He was so scared that he thought the girl might have some kind of illness and that something was wrong with her.

She finally reacted just now, but her reaction was very strange—she suddenly lowered her head and cried, saying something like, "That's great!"

"Ah... I, I'm fine..."

Goto Ichiri returned from her inner world and spoke somewhat weakly to Kusano Akira.

“没事吗……！那就太好了，我还以为同学你是2…9↓【4」0◎435々64仲U：身体出现了什么问题呢，差点就叫救护车了。”

Seeing that Goto Ichiri finally responded to his actions, Kusano Akira breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's alright, thank you for your concern... Um, excuse me, could you please...?"

Goto Ichiri stiffly shifted her body, pointed at Kusano Akira's arm that was holding her, and whispered, looking somewhat nervous.

She hoped that directly saying "no" wouldn't get her sent to the mine. But then again, she'd been through hell before, so being sent to the mine suddenly didn't seem like such a serious matter. Thinking that way, she suddenly wasn't afraid anymore—no, she was still very afraid.

She felt that living a life with absolutely no hope was more terrifying than death. In some of the comics she had read, people who were forcibly sent to the mines lived very miserable lives.

For example, they work in high-intensity environments without any protective facilities, and can only eat miso soup and small fish every day. If they get sick, they are basically just thrown into the infirmary to die. If they have a bad relationship with some of their coworkers, they may be assassinated, and the managers will not care.

Volume 1: Chapter 169. The Position of a Friend (2k)

As for the idea of ​​escaping the mine through his own efforts? That's pure fantasy.

She didn't think she had the same patience and ability as Andy in "The Shawshank Redemption," and even Andy escaped in the last century before the prison's sewer system was improved.

"Sorry about that."

Kusano Akira released Goto Ichiri, raised her hand to grab the back of Roku's head, Kyu rubbed the back of her hair, and Hachi smiled apologetically at her.

"I noticed you weren't reacting at all, so I thought something was wrong and did this in a moment of panic. I'm really sorry if I offended you."

……what?

Goto Ichiri looked at the boy in front of her who, after saying those words, not only became less intimidating but also a bit silly, and her mouth unconsciously opened slightly.

Is this person... a little different from the one she thought he was?

He seems like a much kinder person than he appears, and judging from what he just said, he seems to be a pretty good person? I thought she had a health problem and was about to call an ambulance.

Because I was startled at first sight, I didn't observe him closely enough, and I didn't dare to look him in the eye, let alone get to know him.

So, just now, she really did judge people by their appearance again? She misunderstood a kind person who just looked a bit fierce?

That won't do; I have to apologize to him.

"Ah, um, it's okay..."

After making up her mind, Goto Ichiri clasped her hands together and whispered.

Although she always apologizes subconsciously, she is not very good at this kind of thing because she doesn't talk to people often. She felt a little nervous at the thought of having to apologize to this unfamiliar man.

"Is it alright? That's great."

Kusano Akira smiled and smoothed down the hair that he had just messed up.

"And also, well, well, well..."

The words of apology were barely out of his mouth when his teeth bit off the last syllable, turning the rest of the sound into a hot, humid breath. Goto Ichiri's face turned bright red.