"But I'm the real Soyo..."
Soyo nervously bit her lower lip, but quickly calmed down upon noticing that everyone else's expressions remained normal. She scanned the living room and soon realized someone was missing:
"Are you... Anon?"
"Hehe~"
A radiant smile instantly bloomed on Anon's face as her figure and appearance rapidly shifted, revealing her true self:
"That's right, it's me!"
"How is Anon able to take on my appearance?"
Soyo was astonished.
"It's that Queen that Kitahara-kun tamed..."
Sakiko lowered her voice and quietly explained the situation to Soyo.
"I see." Soyo looked over with curiosity. "To think it can transform into anyone... that's amazing. Kitahara-kun, come over and eat."
"Coming."
Kitahara-kun stood up, sat at the dining table, and began his meal.
Anon, meanwhile, was full of enthusiasm and continued experimenting with transformations into other girls. While her clothes didn't change along with her form, her appearance, voice, physique, and height all shifted—making it impossible even for those closest to them to tell the difference.
"Next up, I'll transform into Hitori..."
Anon's features shifted rapidly, and in a flash, she took on Hitori's appearance.
"Whoa, my shoulders feel so heavy."
Anon lifted her hands to support the weight of her chest:
"I used to secretly envy how well-endowed Hitori is, but I never realized it was actually such a burden for her."
"N-no, stop it!"
Seeing 'herself' weighing the weight of her own chest with her hands, Hitori's face flushed bright red instantly; her embarrassment was off the charts.
(Doing something like that in front of everyone... it's so embarrassing, so embarrassing, so embarrassing... Please stop!)
"Anon, stop teasing Hitori-chan."
Kita stepped forward with her hands on her hips to defend her friend. "Eh, alright then..."
Anon's eyes darted over, a mischievous glint appearing on her pretty face:
"The next target for my transformation... is you, Kitahara-kun!"
However, after waiting a moment, Anon noticed no change in her body; she tried transforming into other girls instead and found it worked perfectly fine.
"That's strange. Why can't I turn into Kitahara-kun?"
Anon looked over, puzzled.
Kitahara calmly replied while eating his meal:
"Naturally, it's because I issued a ban—forbidding Aoi from transforming into a male."
Turning into a girl was fine, but turning into a male was a no-go; he just couldn't bring himself to accept that.
As his "number two mount," Kitahara's orders held the highest priority, so Anon's command to transform into him naturally went unheeded.
"Eh, no way." Anon quickly scooted closer, acting coy and wheedling, "Only being able to turn into girls feels so boring."
"Bored, are you?" Kitahara raised an eyebrow and lowered his voice. "Come to the onsen at midnight; I guarantee you won't be bored then, Anon."
Anon's face flushed slightly pink, and she couldn't help but shoot him a playful, reproachful look:
"We've already had such a tiring day—you should get some proper rest tonight, 'Small-fry-kun,' instead of filling your head with lewd thoughts!"
Kitahara used a bit of reverse psychology: "Don't tell me you're scared, Anon?"
"I'm not scared at all!"
"Even monsters can last three minutes against Ultraman, but Anon..." Kitahara sighed. "Never mind."
"Don't underestimate me!" Anon's cheeks puffed up indignantly. "Fine, I'll give it a shot!"
Now that she had Aoi's symbiotic link, she felt much stronger; surely she wouldn't be a pushover anymore?
For the rest of the time, the other girls curiously tried out Aoi's symbiotic ability; it must be said, the sensation was quite pleasant.
Once the trial period ended, Kitahara recalled Aoi—safety came first, after all.
After a late-night snack, Kitahara and the girls headed to the onsen resort for their nightly soak.
After the bath, the girls went their separate ways and headed home. At midnight, the pink-haired girl snuck over. She first asked Kitahara to have Aoi activate the symbiotic form, then proceeded to test whether she was still a "combat weakling"—and it had to be said, her combat power had indeed increased significantly.
The night passed uneventfully.
The next day.
Tokyo remained under a city-wide lockdown.
Kitahara headed out early, boarding a special vehicle dispatched by the Bureau to continue the sweep for "Impostors."
Compared to the previous day, the number of Impostors was noticeably lower; ultimately, only a dozen or so were found.
By the third day, aside from a single Impostor, nothing else was discovered.
Upon returning home that evening, Kitahara first destroyed the ordinary Impostor parasite that had been sealed inside a poster. He then brought out the "Book of Answers" and let the girls ask questions; only after learning that every Impostor parasite—except for Aoi's—had been eliminated did he finally set his mind at ease.
As for the unfortunate humans who had been deeply parasitized, some had begun to wake up thanks to the Bureau's specialized treatment. However, all suffered from lingering aftereffects to varying degrees—such as auditory or visual hallucinations and mental lethargy—requiring long-term recuperation to return to normal.
All in all, the Impostor incident had come to an end.
Another day flew by.
The city-wide restrictions were finally lifted, and the metropolis—which had been forced to a standstill—sprang back to life.
After a morning meal, Kitahara set out on his scooter. The sky was clear and the sun was bright; pedestrians bustled about, and everything had returned to normal. Hardly anyone realized the world had just skirted the edge of destruction.
"Kitahara-kun, good morning..."
He arrived at Hitori's house and had just come to a stop when the front door flew open, and the pink-haired girl with the signature ahoge snuck out.
"Hitori, good morning." Kitahara smiled at her and handed Hitori a small mango. "Save this for lunch. Let's get going."
"Thank you, Kitahara-kun."
Hitori whispered her thanks, stowed the mango away, put on her helmet, and mounted her scooter, following close behind Kitahara. The sky remained the same, and the season hadn't changed, yet after enduring three days of citywide lockdown, Hitori felt the air was remarkably fresh—and she herself was brimming with newfound energy.
(I get to ride my bike to school with Kitahara-kun again... I'm so happy!)
(If only life could stay like this forever... As for the end of the world—please, let it never happen!)
"Hitori, how are the lyrics coming along?"
While waiting at a red light, Kitahara turned to look at Hitori and asked about her progress on the lyrics.
"Ah..."
Hitori instantly panicked, stammering with a guilty conscience:
"Um... everyone's been staying indoors lately, and Futari kept asking me to play with her, so I haven't finished writing the lyrics yet..."
It was true that she had been keeping Futari company.
It was also true that the lyrics weren't finished.
But there wasn't actually a strong causal link between the two.
Futari was still just a child who washed up and went to bed early; Hitori had plenty of time to write lyrics. The reason she hadn't written them wasn't really a lack of inspiration—it was mainly a flare-up of her procrastination.
From a biological standpoint, once an individual's basic survival needs are met, they slip into a lethargic "standby" mode. This holds true for animals across the board—whether on the African savanna or in the tropical rainforest—once they've had their fill of food and drink, they choose to rest.
Humans share these animal traits, so we instinctively want to put off any activity unrelated to survival—like studying or working.
So, procrastination isn't something to be ashamed of; it's an instinct honed over tens of millions of years of evolution.
Hitori had originally thought her procrastination wasn't that severe, but after using the "Wish Sticky Note" last time, it had spiraled completely out of control.
It couldn't be helped; having experienced that state where ideas flowed like a torrent and her pen moved with unstoppable speed, trying to write lyrics in isolation now left her tearing her hair out, unable to put a single word on the page.
"It's getting late," Kitahara gently reminded her. "There's only half a month left until the school festival performance. There are class activities to handle, Ryo-senpai needs to arrange the music, and you all need to rehearse—in short, we need to pick up the pace."
"Mm-hmm." Hitori nodded quickly and replied in a low voice, "Tomorrow's the weekend, so I plan to use the Wish Note then to avoid causing trouble for everyone..."
"..."
They rode in silence.
The two of them wobbled their way to school on the scooter, parked it in the designated area, and then went their separate ways.
Hitori headed back to the classroom, while Kitahara planned to drop by the club room.
As he walked through the school garden, Kitahara suddenly spotted a familiar girl with short gray hair standing right in front of a cluster of rose bushes. Even though he could only see her from behind, Kitahara recognized the girl instantly:
"Tomori?"
Reiko turned her head at the sound of his voice; her eyes looked slightly puffy.
"Good morning, Makoto-kun."
Kitahara walked over to Tomori's side. "What are you looking at, Tomori?"
Tomori answered softly, "I'm watching a butterfly."
Following her gaze, he saw a pale yellow butterfly fluttering gracefully above the flowerbed.
Instead of asking why she was interested in the butterfly, Kitahara said gently:
"Then I'll watch it with you."
Tomori had rather unique interests—she liked insects, collecting all sorts of adhesive bandages, and gathering various stones. She was sensitive and observant, sometimes marching to the beat of her own drum; pausing to watch a butterfly was perfectly in character for her.
The two stood before the flowers, quietly watching the butterfly dance on the air until it eventually fluttered away.
"Makoto-kun, have you ever heard the idiom 'Zhuang Zhou Dreams of a Butterfly'?"
Tomori looked up at him.
"Of course I have," Kitahara nodded slightly. "'Zhuangzi's dawn dream confused with the butterfly; Wangdi's spring heart entrusted to the cuckoo...' What did you dream about, Tomori?"
"Last night, I had such a long, long dream. It felt like I had lived through an entirely different life..."
Tomori bit her lower lip and placed her right hand over her chest, a look of bewilderment flashing in her eyes.
"In that dream world, you weren't there, Makoto-kun. I formed a band with Anon, Soyo, Taki, and Nyamochi. While we were performing on stage, Sakiko ran out in tears. Later, she formed an amazing band with some other girls and played at the Budokan after just one month."
"But the band Sakiko formed broke up quickly, and Mutsumi started acting strangely. At the very end of the dream, everyone gathered together again and played while crying, until I finally woke up in tears..."
No wonder your eyes were red and puffy; I thought you just hadn't slept well, but it turns out you'd been crying! "The dream felt so real." Tomori clutched her chest, her voice tinged with confusion. "After waking up this morning, I couldn't tell if the world in the dream was the real one, or if the world I'm in now is just an illusion."
Snap.
Kitahara lightly snapped his fingers to activate his Domain, then reached out and pulled Tomori into his arms.
"Mmph..."
A blush rapidly spread across Tomori's face; her body tensed involuntarily as she spoke shyly:
"S-someone might see us..."
There weren't many students in the garden this early, but it wasn't completely empty; the Gardening Club members were bound to show up eventually.
"Don't worry, I've already activated my Domain." Kitahara looked down at Tomori, his gaze intense. "I have a way to help you distinguish between the dream and reality."
"What way?"
Tomori looked up at him.
"It's simple..." Kitahara lowered his voice. "We just need to get a little lewd."
"Huh?"
Tomori's eyes widened in a daze.
Does getting lewd actually have that kind of effect?
Or is it just... that Kitahara-kun simply wants to get lewd?
Kitahara wore a look of utter seriousness as his right arm wrapped around the girl's soft, slender waist: "Zhuangzi dreaming of the butterfly has been a philosophical question since ancient times. Ordinary people only ponder philosophy when they're lonely. So, as long as you don't feel lonely, Tomori, you naturally won't be thinking about such profound questions."
Tomori's heart began to race: "B-but that doesn't mean we need to get lewd..."
"Alright, I'll be honest." Kitahara's gaze burned with intensity. "I just want to tease and 'Take advantage of' you a little."
Tomori: "..."
"Let's go. We're heading to the Onsen Dimension."
With the Domain active, they could travel to the [Onsen Dimension] anytime, anywhere—no need to worry about being seen. It was incredibly convenient.
"N-no..."
Tomori's voice turned shy. Out here, the most that would happen was kissing or hugging, but if they went to the Onsen Dimension... there was no telling how he might tease or "Take advantage of" her.
Unfortunately, her shy refusal was too faint and lacked any real conviction. Kitahara simply pretended not to hear it and carried Tomori straight into the Onsen Dimension. I cannot write much about what happened next; any attempt to describe the details would surely trigger the censors and get the content blocked. Suffice it to say, a few minutes of real-world time later, Kitahara and Tomori reappeared out of thin air.
"Tomori, are you still feeling lost?"
Kitahara smiled as he looked at the girl in his arms.
Tomori's face was burning hot—red enough to bleed—and she was too shy to even look up. Her voice was thick with embarrassment:
"I... I'm not lost at all anymore..."
Her mind was completely filled with the memory of the intimate service she had performed at the onsen resort; there was no room left for anything else.
"That's good." Kitahara released her and asked softly, "You really want to sing again, don't you? How about we get everyone together to recreate that scene from the dream and put on a performance at the school festival?"
Tomori's eyes lit up, clearly tempted, but she soon shook her head:
"The deadline for submitting event applications has already passed..."
"Rules are rigid, but people are flexible. Just because the application deadline has passed doesn't mean we can't arrange a performance." Kitahara spoke gently. "As long as you want to sing, leave the arrangements to me. I should be able to pull some strings with the Student Council."
As he spoke, Kitahara took out his phone and sent a message to the council secretary.
He had saved the lives of Reiko and Matsusaka during the "Imposter" incident; surely, his "pull" with them would still work.
The message was quickly marked as read.
Less than ten seconds later, a reply popped up from Matsusaka.
His influence had worked.
"Matsusaka-senpai replied; she says squeezing in a performance is no problem at all."
Kitahara held his phone up for Tomori to see.
Seeing the message, Tomori's eyes shone even brighter, though she still hesitated slightly:
"I wonder if everyone has the time... or if they'll agree..."
"We can just send a message and ask," Kitahara said softly. "Do you want to ask them yourself, or should I do it for you?"
"Thank you, Makoto-kun. I want to ask them myself."
Tomori took a deep breath, and her gaze quickly became determined. "Then ask them yourself." Kitahara put his phone away, deciding not to overstep his bounds. "Let's go—to the club room first."
"Okay..."
Upon arriving at the club room, Tomori took out her phone and mustered the courage to message her former bandmates one by one, proposing that they reunite for the school festival performance.
Taki: "Huh? Tomori wants to sing at the school festival?"
Soyo: "It's rare for Tomori-chan to work up this much courage; I'm totally on board."
Mutsumi's reply was far more concise—just two words: "Sure."
Finally, Sakiko: "I'm sorry for the trouble I caused everyone in the past... I'm really looking forward to this performance."
Tomori held her breath nervously. "Sakiko said yes?"
Sakiko: "That's right."
Seeing the affirmative reply, Tomori—who rarely showed her emotions openly—broke into a rare, happy smile.
Soyo: "We can finally get together and perform again; I'm so happy~"
Taki: "Hold on a sec. If I recall correctly, the school festival is only two weeks away, right? Is there enough time?"
Soyo: "No problem. With Kitahara-kun around, we can train in our dreams."
Taki: "Even so... what about the songs?"
Mutsumi: "Haruhikage..."
Tomori: "I'll write a new song."
Soyo: "Good luck, Tomori."
"..."
Just as Tomori was engrossed in the discussion, a bright, cheerful voice suddenly rang out beside her:
"Tomori-chan, what are you doing? You look so focused."
"Ah..."
Tomori looked up and realized Anon had appeared in the club room at some point; a look of guilt flashed across her face.
Back at the start of the term, Anon had invited her to form a band. Had she not met Kitahara—and subsequently entered the "Otherworld"—she likely would have formed a new band by now, just as she had in her dream.
Yet here she was, secretly teaming up with others for the school festival performance; a wave of guilt and unease washed over her instantly. "Um..."
Tomori bit her lower lip; she hesitated for only a couple of seconds before her gaze quickly turned resolute.
She couldn't lie.
She had to tell the truth.
It was already terrible enough that she hadn't asked Anon to come along—under no circumstances could she deceive her!