Chapter 311 The Forgotten, the Entangled, and the Vanished

What would it be like when a person was completely forgotten by the real world? When they ceased to exist entirely, and nobody around them cared in the slightest?

If possible, Miko hoped she would never have to learn the answer.

But after waking from her dazed state, after discovering that she had returned to the same street where she had first disappeared, after going home, taking a shower, changing out of her dirty clothes, and before she even had time to sort through her emotions, she received a phone call from the school.

Over the phone, the school sincerely apologized to her. They explained that a malfunction in the class assignment system had mistakenly placed both her and her friend Yurikawa Hana into a class that had already been canceled and no longer had any students. They assured her that she would be transferred out of that empty class immediately and that her normal studies would not be affected in any way.

At that moment, Yotsuya Miko did not know how to describe what she was feeling.

All twenty-three of her classmates had died.

Yet their teachers, their parents, and everyone else in the world who had ever known them had completely forgotten that they had ever existed. They were utterly indifferent, as though those people had never existed from the very beginning.

Even her friend, Yurikawa Hana—her only friend in the class—had forgotten all the other students. Every memory she had of them was gone.

The feeling terrified Miko.

She realized that if she ever died and Takumi failed to bring her back through a rollback, she would face the same fate.

Her mother would forget her.

She would look at the things in Miko's bedroom and wonder why they were there.

Her friend Hana would believe she had never known anyone named Yotsuya Miko. She would think she had always been alone and would perhaps go find other girls to befriend instead.

Even if someone spoke her name and told others about her existence, it would be meaningless. Everyone would have forgotten everything completely. Nobody would ever remember again. They would only think it was something unrelated to themselves.

She hated that feeling.

And she had no idea how to dispel the unease growing inside her heart.

If it were Senpai...

Only then did Miko remember that she had never gotten Takumi's contact information.

She returned to Takumi's house, but by then it had become a wreck. Firefighters were clearing away the damage, and no matter how hard she searched, she could not find any sign of him.

Senpai... where are you right now?

Feeling dejected, the girl turned around and returned home.

Only then, in a daze, did she realize that she seemed to have gained some kind of special power.

As long as her willpower held firm, she could temporarily avoid death.

After encountering an Aberration, she could automatically discover safe locations based on her surroundings.

And both her physical abilities and willpower had been enhanced.

With the power of these three blessings bestowed upon her, Miko—who had once possessed nothing more than an ordinary person's physique—instantly gained physical capabilities that surpassed human limits. In fact, while washing her hands, she accidentally ripped the faucet right off the sink.

Because Takumi and Mai had previously explained some basic knowledge about the Sacrifice Game to her, Miko knew that she had received blessings from an Aberration.

Yet gaining supernatural power did not make her happy.

Instead, it only worsened her mood.

After all, even Mai—a standout among Red Moon-level players—had once been captured by Aberrations and subjected to a fate worse than death.

So what use was the power she had gained?

In the perilous world of Instances, these abilities could not free her from danger. She would still have to face death again and again. And given her unique perception ability, she would probably encounter even more danger than most players.

One month?

The girl turned toward the calendar in her room, her expression growing even gloomier.

No.

According to Miss Kumagai, she had not entered the game through normal means. She had been dragged into it as an ordinary civilian. Therefore, her first mission would follow the same schedule as the other players'.

And now, less than half a month remained until the next mission began.

Which meant that in just a little over two weeks, she would once again enter an Instance world.

A place as terrifying as Fujihana Middle School.

"Senpai..."

Where are you right now?

Curled up on her bed, Miko whispered softly, hoping that Takumi would somehow appear before her.

As for Takumi himself at this very moment...

Well, he was spacing out.

Takumi stood by the window, staring outside with an indifferent expression.

At this moment, he looked like a sage detached from the mortal world itself.

As though he had already seen through all the joys and sorrows of human life.

As though he were about to step onto the path of ascension.

"Uwah, Takumi, that was way too rough."

Behind him, Chika complained in a small voice. Holding up a pink bra whose strap had been torn off, she tried several times to fix it before finally giving up. It was completely ruined and impossible to wear now.

"You're practically a pervert. We came all the way here to bring you food, and then you go and do something like this..."

While complaining under her breath, Maki pulled on a pair of black stockings, only to discover that several holes had already been torn into them. After hesitating for a moment, she sighed, took them back off, and slipped her bare white feet directly into her shoes.

By now, night had completely fallen.

Nearly five hours had passed since Chika and Maki arrived.

As for what the three of them had been doing during those five hours, the disheveled bedsheets and torn bedding spoke for themselves.

"It was just... impossible to hold back in that situation."

Takumi shook his head, a hint of uncertainty creeping into his voice.

At the time, Maki and Chika had simply been worried that Takumi had gone too long without eating after sleeping for such an extended period. The two of them had personally prepared lunchboxes and brought them over for him. Unexpectedly, while he was eating, Chika suddenly got the idea of feeding him herself. Naturally, Maki couldn't just pretend she hadn't seen it, so she joined in as well, while Takumi happily accepted all of it. Then, somewhere along the way, nobody knew who started it, but the three of them ended up tumbling onto the bed together.

And after that...

Well, everyone knows what happened next.

It had to be said that after receiving yet another blessing that enhanced his physical abilities, Takumi's combat power had risen considerably. As a result, this particular contest had lasted an impressively long time.

Back during that glorious one-versus-two duel in the hotel, Takumi had gradually begun losing ground during the latter half of the battle. He had been forced to rely on a certain amount of technique and outside assistance, even sealing away the stronger Chika with ropes, just to ensure that he wasn't defeated.

This time, however, Takumi's strength had reached the point where he no longer needed any external help. Relying solely on his own power, he had managed to overcome both formidable opponents.

"Takumi, what are you thinking about?"

A soft, warm sensation came from behind him.

Chika gently rested her head on his shoulder. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and her entire upper body pressed snugly against his back.

Takumi only needed a brief glance over his shoulder to confirm Chika's current state. The sight immediately caused the calm he had just regained to waver ever so slightly.

At the same time, the fully dressed Maki walked over and sat beside him.

Although she couldn't bring herself to cling to him as boldly as Chika did, she still scooted as close as possible and sat beside him with a slightly bashful demeanor.

Outside the window, the city lights painted the night with a dreamlike glow.

Feeling the presence of the two girls, the lingering ripples in Takumi's heart gradually settled once more.

He reached back and held Chika's hand, then used his other hand to take Maki's smaller one.

The three of them sat there quietly for quite some time.

"Oh, right, Takumi. I've already found a construction company for you. It'll probably take around two to three weeks before your house is repaired."

At that moment, Maki suddenly spoke up.

Her gaze wandered slightly, and it was impossible to tell what she was thinking about.

"Yeah, that sounds about right. I suppose I need to start thinking about where I'll be staying during that time."

Takumi nodded seriously.

Only then did he remember that his house had exploded.

"Then, Takumi, would you like to stay at my place?"

Chika blinked and leaned forward, asking with obvious excitement.

"Absolutely not!"

Maki objected almost instantly.

Even though the balance between the three of them had now been established and she had managed to accept the current situation, there was absolutely no way she could accept giving Chika even more time alone with Takumi.

"If that won't work, then how about Takumi stays at Maki-chan's house instead?"

Entirely unsurprised by Maki's objection, Chika smiled and immediately offered another suggestion.

"Th-That... um, my house probably isn't possible..."

Caught completely off guard by the proposal, Maki struggled for quite a while to come up with a response.

In the end, she could only mutter softly.

"Alright, alright. I'll be staying in the Shuchiin security dormitory for the time being. I won't be going anywhere else."

Then, after a brief pause, Takumi continued: "Oh, right. Maki, Chika, I need you two to find a way to transfer a girl named Yotsuya Miko into Shuchiin. Ideally, into your class. She's the only survivor among the ordinary people who got dragged into the Instance. At this point, nearly all of her classmates are gone, and she possesses an even stronger perception talent than I do. Of course, she'll have to agree to it herself, so let's go talk to her tomorrow and see what she thinks."

Takumi decisively cut off the conversation and announced his decision.

After hesitating briefly, he ultimately chose to tell them about Miko and ask his two adorable girlfriends for help.

Truthfully, he felt somewhat guilty about it.

After all, he could sense Miko's vague feelings toward him, and he himself did have those kinds of feelings toward her as well.

"Yotsuya Miko, huh? Hehe. Takumi really isn't very honest, is he?"

As expected, the corner of Chika's mouth curled upward into a knowing smile.

"...Hmph."

Maki let out a cold snort.

The dissatisfaction on her face was already painfully obvious.

Looks like I'll have to explain everything that happened inside the Instance from beginning to end and make the situation with Miko completely clear.

Looking at the expressions on both girls' faces, Takumi sighed inwardly and prepared himself for a thorough interrogation.

At the exact same moment that the two girls revealed those dangerous-looking smiles, elsewhere in the Shinomiya residence, Kaguya rubbed her forehead with a somewhat vacant expression before turning toward a servant standing at the doorway.

"What was the result?"

Kaguya asked coldly, making no effort whatsoever to hide the irritation and impatience in her voice.

"...My deepest apologies, Lady Kaguya. We still haven't been able to locate Miss Hayasaka."

The servant lowered his head and bowed as he apologized.

Hearing those words only made the irritation inside Kaguya even harder to suppress.

"Leave."

Doing her best to restrain her emotions, she casually dismissed the servant.

"Hayasaka... where exactly did you go?"

From childhood until now, this personal maid who had accompanied her for so many years was, for Kaguya, almost the only truly close friend she could trust.

Not even Chika.

Not even Takumi.

In Kaguya's heart as it stood now, neither of them carried as much weight as Hayasaka Ai.

And now, she was gone.

Without the slightest warning, she had simply vanished...

"Lady Kaguya."

The servant's voice rang out again, interrupting Kaguya's thoughts.

"What else do you have to say?"

Seeing that the servant had ignored her order to leave, Kaguya's mood worsened even further, and her tone became noticeably colder.

"Although we haven't found Miss Hayasaka, we have confirmed the last location where her phone signal disappeared. I believe it's a place you're familiar with."

As he spoke, the servant took out his phone, opened a map, and stepped closer to show Kaguya the displayed area.

"This is..."

In truth, Kaguya couldn't read digital maps at all. Without changing her expression, she merely glanced at the screen before looking directly at the servant.

"This is Mr. Takumi's residence. More specifically, the signal was last detected in his backyard."

The servant's next words caused Kaguya's pupils to contract involuntarily.

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