A pure white short-sleeved shirt and dark blue shorts.
The legendary gym uniform that supposedly emphasized the delicate figures of youthful girls.
Yet when Madoka Kaname wore it, the only impression she seemed to give was one of cuteness.
Come to think of it, most people’s first impression of Madoka was probably something along the lines of:
She’s so tiny and adorable, almost like an elementary school student.
Makoto vaguely remembered Sayaka, her best friend, once teasing her for being childish because she liked eating spaghetti with a spoon.
As for why Homura Akemi, a girl who had traveled through time, was so deeply attached to Madoka Kaname, Makoto had never really understood.
But if someone were to ask what Makoto himself had thought of Madoka before all this—
Ordinary and happy.
That was probably the best description.
An ordinary kind of happiness.
The happiness of an uneventful life.
Maturity was the opposite of happiness, while innocence was closely related to it.
Wasn’t the fact that Madoka resembled an elementary school student also evidence that she still viewed the world through the innocent eyes of a child?
She was innocent because she was happy.
And she was kind because she was innocent.
Anyone who had interacted with Madoka could probably sense the gentleness she extended toward everything around her.
Because she had always lived surrounded by happiness, she naturally treated the people around her with the same warmth.
If nothing unexpected happened…
The girl named Madoka would gradually grow up and eventually meet someone special.
That person might not be wealthy.
They might not be particularly handsome.
But they would undoubtedly love her, and Madoka would love them in return.
The two would live a peaceful, ordinary life together, enjoying their happiness without any great disturbances.
Perhaps, somewhere along the way, they would even raise a child who, just like Madoka, would grow up surrounded by love and happiness.
This imagined course of Madoka’s future wasn’t simply something Makoto had invented without reason.
Rather, it was the conclusion he had reached after spending a considerable amount of time analyzing the personalities of his classmates.
After all, art originated from reality.
In order to create convincing characters for his fantasy worlds, Makoto habitually collected observations and sought inspiration from all kinds of people and situations.
And in Makoto’s eyes, Madoka Kaname’s personality was perhaps one of the clearest real-world representations of the word happiness.
A fulfilling and wonderful childhood.
Loving, understanding, and open-minded parents.
Having grown up in a happy environment, Madoka had no particularly strong desire for external possessions.
She didn’t need material things to fill some emptiness in her heart.
For that reason, she probably wouldn’t be easily tempted by money, nor would she be readily captivated by someone’s attractive appearance.
She believed that her feelings were more important than wealth or physical beauty.
If there was something she truly desired, that desire would surely originate from deep within her own heart.
She might want to become an outstanding person, but the excellence she pursued would be defined by her own values rather than other people’s judgments.
There was no need for dramatic highs and lows.
No need for a life filled with extraordinary twists and turns.
Madoka Kaname, a kind girl who cherished both herself and others, would simply live an ordinary life that left her feeling satisfied and fulfilled.
And, strictly speaking, Makoto believed that someone like her should have absolutely nothing to do with someone like him.
The reason was obvious.
After all—
Wasn’t he a psychiatric patient?
He treated fantasy as reality and reality as fantasy.
How could someone as strange as him possibly fit into the peaceful everyday life of an ordinary person?
The simple happiness enjoyed by ordinary people was something that seemed fundamentally out of reach for someone with his condition.
The best path for a girl named Madoka Kaname was to remain an ordinary but happy person and live out a life filled with the happiness that belonged to her.
Getting involved with him would probably only bring her misfortune.
Makoto’s reputation at school was mixed, to say the least.
He himself was capable of dealing with the various opinions people held about him.
But there was absolutely no reason for a girl like Madoka to have to deal with any of that.
Then again, that doesn’t seem quite right.
If she’s really the way I imagine her to be, she shouldn’t have anything to do with Homura Akemi in the first place.
Not to mention…
As he continued making these sarcastic observations to himself, Makoto refocused his attention on the girl standing before him.
The pink-haired girl with twin tails had retreated a few steps and was now quietly waiting for him to regain his composure so they could talk.
To be perfectly honest, aside from happiness and innocence, Makoto’s impression of Madoka also included several other important qualities.
Cautiousness, timidity, and shyness.
When he first opened his eyes and saw Madoka, his gaze had immediately swept across the surrounding area.
After all, how could a timid girl like Madoka possibly do something as unexpected as suddenly grabbing his hand?
Yet the reality was—
Madoka Kaname was genuinely the only person standing in front of him.
Apparently, she was considerably bolder than he had imagined.
Makoto Tsukimi: “Did you need something, Kaname?”
Madoka Kaname: “Ah, um…”
The girl looked toward Makoto and nodded cautiously.
Her pink twin tails swayed adorably with the movement.
Madoka Kaname: “I came to ask whether you and Homura know each other.”
Makoto Tsukimi: “I wouldn’t exactly say we know each other. As for what happened this morning, she was probably just spacing out. I don’t think she was actually looking at me.” Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
He offered a simple explanation of their relationship.
As he continued speaking with the girl before him, Makoto looked around and finally spotted two figures beneath the shade of a tree on the opposite side of the athletic field.
Madoka’s close friends, Sayaka Miki and Hitomi Shizuki, were watching them from a distance.
When they noticed Makoto looking in their direction, they waved at him in a friendly manner.
I knew it.
There’s no way her best friends would let Madoka meet a weirdo with a questionable reputation like me all by herself.
Having confirmed that Madoka’s “guardians” were nearby, Makoto finally relaxed a little.
Makoto Tsukimi: “So, Kaname, did you suddenly come to ask me about this because you noticed some kind of connection between yourself and Homura? When she first arrived as a transfer student, she was actually staring at you the whole time, wasn’t she?”
Madoka Kaname: “Well…”
The girl quietly glanced to the side for a moment.
Then, looking somewhat embarrassed, she began nervously rubbing her fingers together.
Madoka Kaname: “Actually… I feel like I’ve seen Homura in a dream before.”
As she said this, Madoka secretly raised her head and glanced at Makoto.
Only after seeing that he hadn’t reacted to her words with an expression suggesting he thought she was an idiot did she finally let out a small sigh of relief.
The somewhat insecure girl wasn’t entirely confident that others would take her words seriously.
Perhaps the reason she had approached Makoto Tsukimi in the first place was that she wanted to find someone who had experienced something similar, someone who could understand how she felt.
But judging from his response, it seemed that his circumstances were rather different from hers.
As these thoughts passed through her mind, a hint of disappointment appeared on the pink-haired girl’s face.
Seeing her expression, Makoto spoke up.
Makoto Tsukimi: “You think you’ve seen her in a dream? Then how about drawing what you saw?”
Madoka Kaname: “Can I really?”
The pink-haired girl raised her head in surprise.
Perhaps because Makoto had shown complete trust in her words, Madoka seemed even more surprised by his suggestion.
Makoto Tsukimi: “Of course. There’s no problem with that.”
He handed his tablet and stylus to Madoka.
Makoto Tsukimi: “It’s pretty easy to use. You just need to adjust this setting, this one, and this one over here.”
He gave her a brief demonstration.
Madoka cautiously accepted the tablet and stylus from him, listened carefully to his explanation, and then began drawing with remarkable seriousness.
Despite appearing somewhat insecure and timid, and despite this being her first time using these tools, she showed no trace of hesitation or anxiety when carrying out a task someone had entrusted to her.
Makoto quietly observed the girl as she drew.
Sunlight filtered through the gaps between the leaves, casting patches of light and shadow across Madoka’s figure.
Her composure wasn’t the kind of forced calmness someone might adopt to conceal their nervousness.
Rather, it was the steady confidence of someone who had already thought things through and formed a clear picture in her mind before beginning.
When the girl concentrated on something, she seemed to possess a peculiar aura that made her surroundings grow quiet.
Could it be that beneath her timid exterior, she’s actually a rather confident and strong-willed person?