001

“All right, see you tomorrow, everyone.”

With that, Miss Mikami, our homeroom teacher and exam proctor, stepped out of the classroom. Class 2-7 had just finished the last period of the day: Mathematics. The worst subject ever—one I couldn’t possibly survive even with my half‑vampire abilities. Back in first year, math exams were never easy. Now the level had gone up. Even harder than before. I didn’t dare imagine what my score would be.

“How’d it go, Yamato?”

That voice pulled me back to the surface. I lifted my face from the desk and turned to the side. A girl with long hair in a single braid and nerdy glasses was smiling at me. A soothing smile, the kind she always gave when facing a pathetic loser. For some reason, seeing that smile only shook my heart wider. I envied geniuses like her.

“...So‑so,” I answered quietly.

“So‑so?” she repeated, tilting her head a little. “Meaning good?”

“Uhh.”

“That’s surprising. I didn’t think you could handle such a difficult exam—”

“Fine, it was terrible. Happy now?!”

A second later, she burst out laughing. Cheerfully, like some mischievous person who’d just pulled off a good prank.

“I knew it.”

“You knew it?!”

“Ah, sorry,” she corrected herself. “It was inevitable—that’s probably more accurate.”

“Inevitable? Are you saying my failure was a natural occurrence?”

“It’s like day and night. Definitely.”

She smiled again. A very wide smile. An annoying smile. The infuriatingly wide smile of a mischievous class president...

“Sorry, I really shouldn’t laugh at someone else’s misfortune,” she said, covering her mouth, then murmured in a resonant voice. “Ah, but you’re not human, right? So it’s fine.”

“What do you think I am, exactly...?”

“An abstract creature that, for some reason, only I can see.”

“I’m abstract?!”

“Not literally. But figuratively, yes.”

Not literally. Through analogy.

I hadn’t spoken to anyone in this class since I’d entered it. I spent my days alone and went straight home after school. I had no friends. The only human—aside from Miss Mikami—who wanted to talk to me was this girl. Her name was Takanashi Kotori.

“So you didn’t get all of them, did you?” Takanashi asked, still smiling.

“I managed three problems. But I don’t know if they’re right.”

“I’m so sorry for you...”

She pressed both hands to her mouth again. That gesture clearly showed admiration. Astonishment at my stupidity, more precisely.

“Don’t you remember anything I taught you yesterday?”

She’d given me a quick tutoring session right after school in the library the day before. She’d explained a bunch of formulas and everything related to today’s exam. Our study session ended just before the school closed. I’d gotten a lot of insight from those two short hours. Unfortunately, I hadn’t had time to review all that material because I had to deal with some irregular activities in town last night.

“Aaahhh—” She huffed in annoyance. “Such a waste. I go out of my way to help, and you just throw it away. My hard work for two whole hours—all for nothing.”

At least I answered three questions.

“S‑sorry...”

I hung my head weakly, apologizing.

“So, is there a reason you didn’t have time to study yesterday?”

She always asked that whenever I got a low score. And I had to come up with a convincing reason. An explanation.

But before I could say anything, the girl had already raised her hand to face level, signaling stop.

“No need to say it. I already know.”

“You already know?”

“Of course—it’s because you forgot there was an exam today, right?”

She pointed at me as if certain of it.

“Your intuition for jokes is seriously questionable.”

“What do you mean? I’m not joking. You really are forgetful. You’ve had senior dementia ever since you entered high school.”

Baseless exegesis. Where on earth did she get that from? Takanashi Kotori needed to correct every false impression she had of me, starting now.

“I’m way too young for that kind of old‑age disease.”

“But you forget things all the time. You forget to do your homework, you never remember quizzes, and you often leave behind the textbooks we’re supposed to bring. You could become famous if you joined a community of forgetful people. You might even get a Guinness World Record for your forgetfulness.”

That’s a huge award! Too bad I wouldn’t be happy getting it for that reputation.

And one more thing: I’m not forgetful, and I don’t have dementia. I just don’t have enough time to remember everything.

“Forgetfulness is one thing. But there’s another crucial flaw: your laziness.”

My laziness. Yeah, that too. Because I don’t have enough time to do everything.

“If you’d just put in a little more effort, you could get better results. You didn’t study, so you failed. That’s the bottom line.”

She sure was diligent when it came to lecturing others. Especially about studying and school activities. Though I honestly couldn’t tell whether she was trying to encourage me or just making fun of me.

“You need to fix that lazy attitude. Lazy people won’t get anywhere if they keep coddling their laziness. The world doesn’t need deadweights like you, you know.”

Really. So detailed and cruel.

“That was sarcasm, right?”

Her face still smiled at me with that mischievous expression.

“Wrong—that was my scolding. A leader’s grumble to a subordinate who won’t crawl out of the pit of negligence. See, I actually care about you, Yamato. So you should care about yourself too and start changing for the better. Don’t be lazy forever. You’ll only learn your lesson if you get held back.”

“Please don’t say such scary things...”

This girl was terrifying. Her words were like roses. “Then start fixing yourself and study hard.” Yes. Beautiful flowers with thorns.

“Fine, fine... I’ll try my best.”

“Your best? That’s still not enough to satisfy me,” she said, cracking her knuckles. “You’re not saying it with your whole heart! You’re only half‑hearted! Come on, say it with more convincing motivation!”

What are you, an Olympic coach?!

“I’ll do it!”

I raised my voice and thrust my arm high. The whole class stared at me.

“Good.”

Takanashi smiled. The lenses of her glasses gleamed brightly from the reflection of the evening sun. She patted my shoulder a few times, as if proud of something.

“Now that’s what I call a good kid...”

Takanashi was indeed steadfast in playing her role as the model student and president of Class 2‑7. She carried out her duties with full dedication. There was no one else like her in this school. Takanashi Kotori truly deserved to be called an ideal leader. While everyone else kept saying that the class president position was a disadvantage, she embraced the role with an open heart. It really wasn’t easy to accept that job. You had to handle everything beyond expectations and never get paid a cent. Troublesome work for others, with nothing in return. Of course, the majority of people would think being class president was a pain.

Maybe that was why she no longer wanted the position for yet another term.

“......”

My eyes caught a figure. A girl who had just risen from her seat. She walked toward the exit, ignoring everything, strode into the hallway, and disappeared without a word.

Once again, the one‑eyed girl, Kasuga Kaneko, left the classroom as soon as school ended, without any pleasantries.

“Kasuga.”

Takanashi fixed her gaze on the door Kasuga had just passed through. The corners of her eyes suddenly drooped. Again. As if saddened by the departure of a beloved sweetheart.

“Takanashi.”

Hearing my call, a second later Takanashi turned back to me. She tried to put on her friendly smile again. The face that had been clouded a moment ago returned to its usual brightness.

“Going straight home today, Yamato?”

She didn’t address her feelings at all, asking that question directly.

I looked away slightly. “That’s a rhetorical question.”

“Meaning you are going straight home, right?”

I had no friends or club activities at this school. Also, for safety reasons, I wasn’t allowed to mix too much with humans. So I didn’t have many choices except to go straight home after school. Unless there was something specific—like buying ingredients for dinner.

“In that case,” Takanashi said, rising from her seat, “what a coincidence.”

“Coincidence?”

“The library just got a donation of new books yesterday. They haven’t been arranged yet and need to be sorted soon,” she continued, stepping a little closer to my desk, bending over, smiling sweetly with one eye closed, striking an adorable girl pose. “Could you help us arrange those books?”

Yes. Or this kind of errand. Helping Takanashi do something. Like I always did.

“You can, right... Of course you can. You can’t possibly say no to me.”

It wasn’t that I couldn’t—it was impossible. I owed you too many debts from this past year. Debts of gratitude that were hard to repay except through servitude. If not for Takanashi, I wouldn’t even be in this class now. She’d helped me so much with lessons and often gave me cheat sheets for homework I’d forgotten to do. That was the essence of her remark.

“I’ll help...”

“Now that’s what I call a good kid,” she praised, smiling even wider. “You really are different from the others. You care more. You’re always there when needed.”

Easily taken advantage of, more like. Kindness is indeed a noble thing. But sometimes, if not handled properly, it becomes a troublesome burden. This girl used her kindness to bind me so she could use me whenever necessary.

“It’s sincere, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, maybe you’re helping because you feel obligated. I wouldn’t know.”

Seriously, why would you say that... “I’m not forcing you.”

“It’s sincere, okay, sincere! When have I ever not been sincere when you needed my help?!”

“Never, right?”

“Never!”

“Ehehe.”

Damn... Why are you laughing like that? And so sweetly, too. She really was a cunning girl.

“It’s really sincere, right?”

“Takanashi...”

“Ehehe— Yeah, yeah.”

Seriously. I felt like a little bird now. Trapped in the snare of a dangerously sweet girl. Somehow, that snare made me a little softer than usual.

“Then let’s go.”

With a rough tug at my collar, Takanashi dragged me to my feet. We quickly rushed out of the classroom and headed to another building where the school library was.

She was indeed a bit rough and direct. But her hands were as soft as any girl’s hands. She was like a picture of black and white. This was the Takanashi Kotori I knew