Saturday morning, sunlight streamed through the window, casting light into Kaedehara Tōru’s room.
The air still held the lingering scent of last night’s passion, not yet fully dissipated.
The bed was a mess, still bearing traces of what had transpired.
When Kaedehara Tōru opened his eyes, the spot beside him was already cold.
The sound of rushing water came from the bathroom.
A few minutes later, the water stopped.
The bathroom door opened, and a wave of steam billowed out.
Kamuro Masumi was wearing her school uniform from yesterday, the buttons of her shirt meticulously fastened, as if last night had been nothing more than a hallucination.
But the faint dark circles under her eyes and the slight awkwardness in her gait betrayed the true state of her body.
“Are you okay?”
Kamuro Masumi’s body stiffened for a moment.
She shook her head without turning back.
“I’m fine.”
With her back to him, she adjusted her collar and skirt, then walked straight toward the door.
“Just leaving like this?
Not having breakfast?
My cooking is actually quite good.” Kaedehara Tōru watched her back, his tone tinged with teasing.
“No need.”
Her hand rested on the doorknob, and she paused for a moment.
“I…
need to go back and get some sleep.”
The door was pulled open, then gently closed.
Kaedehara Tōru lay in bed for a few more minutes before lazily sitting up and stretching.
Last night had taken a lot of energy, but right now, he felt unusually energised.
He got out of bed barefoot, cleaned up the traces on the bed, and then walked into the bathroom.
The bathroom was still filled with steam.
He turned on the shower, and the icy water poured down from overhead, instantly enveloping him.
The water pounded against his body, bringing a biting chill, but it also dispelled the last traces of his sleepiness.
After showering, he changed into his school uniform but didn’t rush out.
Instead, he sat down at his desk.
He let his consciousness sink into the system interface in his mind.
『System Shop』
『Skill: Eidetic Memory』
『Effect: Grants the host perfect memory.
All information received through sight and hearing can be selectively and permanently stored in the brain.
』
『Price: 200 points.』
For the various special exams in the future, as well as games played against others, a powerful memory was undoubtedly the most basic and important weapon.
Relying solely on the vague memories of the plot from his previous life was far from enough.
『Purchase: Skill: Eidetic Memory – 200 points』
『Confirm.』
『points – 200.
Remaining points: 273.』
『Skill: Eidetic Memory equipped.』
A cool sensation instantly spread from the depths of his brain, and he felt his thinking become clearer than ever before.
He picked up a book from the table, randomly flipped to a page, scanned it once, and then closed his eyes.
Every word and punctuation mark on that page rearranged itself in his mind, as if he were reading a copy carved into his consciousness.
“Very good.”
Kaedehara Tōru closed the book with satisfaction, slipped his phone into his pocket, and left the room.
Today was the weekend, and he had only one thing on his itinerary: the library.
…
The Library of Advanced Nurturing High School was a multi-story building with a very modern design.
Huge floor-to-ceiling glass curtain walls filled the entire interior of the building with bright light.
Kaedehara Tōru walked into the library.
It was exceptionally quiet inside, with only the occasional sound of turning pages and soft footsteps.
Rows of huge bookshelves divided the entire space into countless aisles.
He didn’t look for books immediately; instead, he first checked the library layout map at the retrieval terminal in the first-floor lobby.
The library’s collection was astonishingly large, covering almost every academic field.
Just as he was about to head deeper inside to find a few books of interest, his gaze was drawn to a figure not far away.
It was a girl with long, silky silver-white hair and purple eyes, making her look like some kind of harmless little animal.
She was standing in front of an extremely tall bookshelf, on tiptoes, stretching her arm, trying hard to reach a book on the very top shelf.
She tried several times, but her fingertips were always just a little bit short, unable to reach it.
She puffed out her cheeks in distress, looking incredibly cute.
Shiina Hiyori.
A student from Class C, a pure, fanatical book lover.
Kaedehara Tōru took a step and walked silently behind the girl.
As the girl once again stood on tiptoes and stretched her arm, a large hand reached over from above her head and easily took the book down from the shelf.
Shiina Hiyori was stunned; she felt a tall figure looming behind her.
She turned her head, looked up, and saw a boy much taller than her, holding the book she wanted and looking at her with a smile.
“Is this the book you wanted, classmate?”
“Ah…
y-yes!
Thank you so much!”
Shiina Hiyori hurriedly bowed and took the book with both hands, and her face was full of a grateful smile.
It was a thick hardcover book, and the title on the cover was “The Offering to Nothingness”.
“A book by Nakai Hideo.”
Kaedehara Tōru looked at the book and said casually, “The structure of an anti-novel, along with the deconstruction and criticism of detective fiction itself…
a very good choice, but for someone encountering it for the first time, it might be a bit ‘off-putting’.”
Shiina Hiyori had been immersed in the joy of getting her beloved book, but upon hearing this comment, she suddenly looked up.
In those eyes, a flash of surprise and joy at meeting a kindred spirit instantly erupted.
“Y-you know this book too?!”
Her voice had risen a little due to excitement, but then she realised she was in the library and hurriedly covered her mouth with her hand, lowering her voice.
“Sorry…
it’s just that very few people would know about this book.”
“As fellow fans of detective fiction, isn’t it normal to know some classic masterpieces?” Kaedehara Tōru’s smile remained unchanged.
“A fan of detective fiction!”
Shiina Hiyori’s eyes lit up even more.
She hugged the book and unconsciously leaned a step closer to Kaedehara Tōru.
“Um…
classmate, what genre of detective fiction do you like to read?
Is it the logical deduction of the Honkaku school, the trick innovation of the Shin-Honkaku school, or the atmosphere of the hard-boiled school?”
She fired off a series of professional questions like a machine gun, her eyes filled with anticipation as she looked at Kaedehara Tōru.
For a true bookworm, meeting a potential kindred spirit was no less exciting than Columbus discovering the New World.