Ai slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath.
The performance just now gave him a sense of exhaustion after catharsis.
The effect of Soul Resonance was even better than imagined; even though he was just playing unplugged, he felt as if he and this broken guitar had merged into one.
“Um…”
A timid voice suddenly rang out from the side.
Ai’s fingers slammed onto the strings, cutting off the resonance.
He turned his head, his gaze instantly returning to its usual coldness.
Standing less than five meters from the bench was a gray-haired girl.
A few blades of grass clung to her clothes, and she tightly clutched a stone in her hand, staring at him with an expression as if she had seen an alien…
no, as if she had seen one of her own kind.
Takamatsu Tomori.
Ai’s heart stirred slightly.
The lead singer of “MyGO!!!!!,” the woman who possessed “gravity magic.”
However, the moment Ai saw her clearly, his brain suddenly “short-circuited” uncontrollably.
Because in his mind, along with the appearance of Takamatsu Tomori’s face, countless meme video bullet chats from Bilibili in his previous life instantly flooded the screen:
[PenguinWalk.gif]
[Why did you play Haruhikage!!]
[Do you want to be in a band for the rest of your life?]
[I am doing this to become human…]
Especially that meme-worthy image of her in a penguin suit, waddling as she walked, overlapped with the dazed, empty-eyed girl before him.
*Pfft…*
The corners of Ai’s mouth wanted to curl up uncontrollably.
It was a physiological, conditioned reflex to a “meme.” He almost laughed out loud on the spot.
But—
At the very moment that hint of a smile appeared.
*Zzzzt—!!!*
A sharp pain, as if his soul was being torn apart, exploded from deep within his brain without warning.
“Ugh!”
Ai’s body jolted, and the corners of his mouth that were about to lift instantly froze.
It was a punishment mechanism set by the system.
Since his soul and body had not yet merged, intense emotional fluctuations would lead to a soul rejection reaction.
Pain!
It hurt so much!
It was as if someone were using an electric drill to frantically stir inside his temples.
Ai gritted his teeth, his face instantly turning pale, and fine beads of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
His hand gripped the guitar neck tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.
To suppress the intense pain, he was forced to pull back all his expressions.
But in Takamatsu Tomori’s eyes, this scene took on a completely different meaning.
She saw that the boy seemed to want to smile the moment he saw her, but then immediately showed an expression of extreme agony.
That pain wasn’t physical; it was more like a sorrow from deep within the soul overflowing, uncontrollable.
He was enduring.
He was suppressing a massive amount of sorrow.
“Your voice… is in pain.”
Takamatsu Tomori took a small step forward; her logic was very jumpy, and her way of speaking was strange.
“The guitar is crying… Are you crying too?”
Ai had no time to answer her right now.
He was struggling against the intense pain and could only squeeze out a few words through his teeth:
“I’m… fine.”
But his voice sounded hoarse and trembling, further confirming the “fact” that he was in sorrow.
Takamatsu Tomori watched him.
That intuition was frighteningly sharp.
The side effect of Soul Resonance had indeed taken effect—attracting Eccentric Girls.
The system panel popped up at the right time.
[Ding! Target for conquest discovered!]
[Name: Takamatsu Tomori]
[Status: Resonating / Confused / Wants to collect you]
[Favorability: 10/100]
[Description: Your music touched the “gravity” deep within her. And the brokenness you just revealed while holding back a laugh (crossed out)… because of pain, made her feel that you are a “stone” emitting a sorrowful light, worthy of being collected.]
Ai took a few deep breaths and finally recovered.
Damn system settings.
In the future, when seeing characters who come with their own meme material, he had to be mentally prepared, or he’d eventually die of pain.
He packed up the tools on the ground, slung the guitar bag over his shoulder, and stood up to leave.
“You heard wrong. Go home early; strange things come out when it’s too late.”
He glanced meaningfully behind Takamatsu Tomori.
Although she didn’t have Spiritual Vision, as someone with a constitution that “easily gets caught up in trouble,” wandering around a park late at night was indeed unsafe.
Just as he was passing by.
A hand lightly grabbed the corner of his shirt.
“Um…”
Takamatsu Tomori lowered her head, her voice small but firm.
“This… is for you.”
She opened her palm.
In her palm lay the heart-shaped pebble, still carrying the warmth of her hand and a bit of dirt. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
“It’s also a lost stone… very much like you.”
“I’m giving it to you.”
Ai looked at the stone.
Refuse?
If he didn’t take it, she would probably stand here all night.
And right now, he didn’t have the energy to deal with this Eccentric Girl.
He reached out and took the stone.
A rough texture, with a hint of coolness.
“Thanks.”
This time, he didn’t stay any longer and strode away from the park.
His back looked a bit flustered, as if he were running away.
Takamatsu Tomori stood under the streetlight, watching the boy’s departing figure.
She clenched her empty palm; the sensation of their fingertips touching seemed to linger.
“Fujiwara… Ai.”
She had just seen the name on the guitar bag’s name tag.
“‘Ai’… does it mean sorrow?”
A mysterious light flashed in the girl’s eyes, as if she had found a new beacon.
“I also want to… become human.”
…Meanwhile.
The Yotsuya household.
The bathroom was filled with steam.
Yotsuya Miko was soaking in the hot water, only half of her head showing.
The water temperature was high, giving her skin an enticing pink hue.
But on the shelf at the edge of the bathtub, what was placed there wasn’t toiletries, but a crumpled tissue.
It was the tissue Ai had used to wipe her tears in the classroom today.
Miko reached out a wet hand and carefully picked up the tissue.
Even though it was already dry and even had some tear stains, in her eyes, it was more precious than any protective charm.
She brought the tissue to her nose and took a deep breath.
That familiar, crisp scent with a faint hint of mint had faded, but it could still be caught.
*Sigh…*
Miko let out a satisfied sigh, her gaze gradually becoming dreamy.
As long as she could smell this scent, the evil spirits clinging to the bathroom ceiling, hanging upside down and watching her, didn’t seem so terrifying anymore.
“Fujiwara-san…”
She murmured to herself, her voice sounding exceptionally sticky in the steam-filled bathroom.
Her hand slowly slid down from her collarbone, her fingertips grazing her skin.