My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

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"I say this because you must be in cahoots with the thieves."

"why?"

That's how it works when you calculate it.

"What do you mean by 'calculation'? What is 1 + 1? The answer is me—like this?"

"That's right."

This unexpected affirmation made me stare at Mizuto's face. "Huh?"

"The travel manuals were stolen from Yoshino's group of four, and another group of three girls, making a total of seven girls. All of their travel manuals were switched—but only the spy's copy could be retrieved after the switch and then used to switch with other people's copies, so the thief group needed at least six travel manuals for the switch."

"Let me think... We used four portions with Yoshino and the others... and got one back... Including the one we got back, we used three portions... So it's six portions."

Shuidou nodded in response to me as I counted on my fingers, and then said:

"In other words, there were six thieves besides the spy. And as I just mentioned, there were seven victims, including the spy. In addition, only girls were involved in this incident, and the travel brochure was printed with the class number, and the brochure was printed according to the number of students."

"So that means only the girls in our class—oh…"

As they talked, I finally understood.

Indeed, that's how it works when you calculate it.

Because──

"There are only fifteen girls in our class..."

"There are thirteen manuals in total—meaning there are thirteen victims and thieves combined. Only two girls in our class are unrelated to this."

Fifteen minus thirteen equals... two.

Now that the number of victims is clear, once we know which two people are unrelated to the incident, we can naturally determine who the thief's accomplice is.

Moreover, one of these two people is very easy to guess.

"Yui took the initiative to investigate the stolen travel guide herself. It's highly unlikely that she was in cahoots with the thieves. But even without that as evidence, her reaction alone tells you she's not involved."

"You two are so in sync! How sweet!"

Xiaoyue made a somewhat old-fashioned joke.

Of course, I know I have nothing to do with this—but Mizuto trusts me. But then again, I'm not really good at lying.

"Then there's only one person left—"

Ignoring Xiaoyue's sarcastic remarks, Shuidou said.

"I already had a good idea about this person, so I confirmed it using a simple method."

"What's a simple method?"

When Xiaoyue asked him, Shuidou answered calmly:

"Since the thief's accomplice used his own travel manual to switch the other one, they had to use the manual stolen from Yoshino and the others—that is, the manual with various annotations made for coded communication. No matter if they used a mechanical pencil or something else, erasing the annotations would leave some traces. I can immediately judge the other person's innocence by whether there are traces or not just by saying 'I'd like to borrow the manual.'"

This sentence reminded me. I remembered the actions that Water Fighter had taken on the way to the aquarium—

"As soon as I told Isana, she immediately showed it to me. What she gave me was a manual with no writing on it."

--- Hmm, it's kept very clean.

Looking back now, that remark did sound a bit strange. Mizuto was rather easygoing; his room was a mess, piled high with books, and he wasn't particularly clean or organized. Given his usual personality, he shouldn't have praised someone for keeping their school trip handbook clean.

"So you were already certain back then... that Dongtou had nothing to do with the travel guide incident."

"That's right. Now the two people who were not involved in the incident have been identified. As a result, it's clear which group stole the handbook—including Asuha-in, Minami-kun, and you too."

The reason I chose Xiaoyue from among the seven thieves to talk to was partly because we were quite familiar with each other, and partly because she was probably the only one who would go so far as to switch the handbook to protect my reputation. I had a vague feeling all last year that Xiaoyue's behavior would become a bit extreme whenever she talked about things related to me.

Although there's no evidence, I'm pretty sure she's the mastermind behind this incident. As if confirming my suspicions, Xiaoyue didn't refute anything, just smiled and listened to what Shuidou had to say.

"Irito-san, your insight into things has become so sharp—I surrender, I surrender. I didn't want Yui to know, but since you've found out so much, I can't make up any more excuses."

"Xiaoyue... does this mean you've been protecting me in this way all along?"

I remembered something from when I first entered second grade... She asked me, "Do you know how to reject a confession?" Ever since then, suddenly people have started confessing to me. I always thought Xiaoyue must have been secretly helping me avoid being confessed to, but I never expected...

Xiaoyue scratched her cheek awkwardly and said:

"It's just that I almost never act so directly... Usually, I'd use LINE to keep them in check, or subtly use some tricks to make them back down. Oh, by the way, Kawanami is an accomplice too. He's not involved in this manual incident, but he usually takes care of anyone who's trying to mess with Yui or Irito."

"I already guessed it was pretty much right. But saying 'get rid of' seems a bit damaging to that guy's reputation."

Mizuto shrugged. It's probably because Kawanami-kun often does this that he was so shocked… when he saw Higashi-kun appear next to Mizuto.

"I originally thought it wasn't necessary anymore—but since we're on a school trip, I wanted you two to enjoy some time together, so I helped chase away some unwanted people, you know, I mean, shoo people away."

"You've become much gentler in your dealings with others."

"Irito-san, you've been misunderstanding this for a long time. Actually, I've been this mild-mannered for a year now, and I've only made this mistake once."

"Making one mistake is enough to exceed the limit..."

I feel like they're talking about things I don't know. But more than that, I have other questions I want to figure out.

"So Asuhain-san was using being pestered as a way to keep Yoshino and the others occupied... Then was that her purpose in doing that thing before? -- Is that why Asuhain-san confessed to Mizuto?"

By getting close to Mizuto, I can use Yoshino and the others' sense of autonomy to distract them... Confessing beforehand will prevent Mizuto from discovering the truth.

Could it be that... she did all that for this purpose?

"Ah—wait, wait! Yui, don't misunderstand!"

Xiaoyue hurriedly explained.

"I didn't bring that up! I would never ask someone to fake a confession for something like that!"

Then Xiaoyue added, "Unless I go on stage myself." Judging from her tone, it was as if she had actually done it.

"So, it was Asuha-in who suggested it. I originally just wanted to borrow the handbook from her—but as soon as I asked, she suggested we do it this way instead."

"Asahina-kun volunteered...?"

Xiaoyue hugged her slender arms, tilting her head in confusion.

"I did tell her she didn't need to do so much—but she wouldn't listen, saying that doing it this way would increase the success rate. I thought maybe she actually really liked Irito-kun, so I didn't ask any more questions... But judging from what happened last night, it seems more like..."

Xiaoyue glanced at me. "N-no, I don't think Asuha-in's feelings are...that kind of thing...right?"

Shuidou also crossed his arms and said to Xiaoyue:

"So you know nothing about Asuhain acting strangely from the second day onwards?"

"I don't know! I tried to ask her indirectly, but she wouldn't tell me anything... Maybe I should have stopped her from faking her confession back then..."

"I can't say for sure. Only Asuhain herself knows the truth about that—that's how it is for now."

Facing Xiaoyue's dejected expression, Mizuto spoke calmly.

I gradually began to understand the situation... Now I know what Asuha-in-chan has been going through lately... But on the other hand, I still have no idea what she's thinking since the start of this school trip.

"It's about time to prepare to attack the main camp."

"Headquarters..."

I know what he meant.

Asahi-no-Yuan entered the aquarium earlier than us or Xiaoyue and the others.

Mizuto looked directly into my face, his gaze both gentle and strong, making me want to rely on him immediately. But his next words didn't include any pampering.

"You have to do the rest yourself."

“Eh…?”

Seeing my confusion, Mizuto continued, as if teaching a child:

"It's pointless for me to continue solving all the mysteries—because that's not what she wants from me."

Why do I have to keep thinking about you like this?

—Anyway, you wouldn't understand what I'm thinking, would you?

It was me who was pushed far away...

It was I who wanted to get closer to her.

The person who wants to understand her—is me too.

"……I see."

Although I feel very uneasy.

Although I feel timid.

But I have already gained enough support and strength.

Therefore, I must make the effort myself from now on.

I'm going to unravel the mystery surrounding Asuhain-kun.

So that she can never again... assume I wouldn't understand.

Yume Irito ◆ The only weapon, the only relationship

As you pass the ocean viewing room, the lights suddenly dim, and the surrounding tourists become shadowy figures.

In the darkness, a large illuminated specimen of the giant squid greeted me... Its pale skin and slender tentacles, illuminated by the light, made it seem more like a monster than a living creature.

Next up is the deep-sea area.

In the pitch-black darkness, individual water tanks emitting a hazy, deep blue glow, along with artificial lights on the explanatory panels, are arranged at equal intervals...

Because of the large crowd around me, I didn't find it scary like a haunted house. But everyone else was with their families or partners, while I walked alone in the dimly lit passageway, as if I were gradually drifting away from the lives of ordinary people... Gradually, I couldn't see the light on the sea surface anymore... which gave me a real sense of what it feels like to dive into the deep sea.

As I walked through the darkness, I thought about the past.

I once asked Asuhain, "Why are you so determined to beat me?" I remember her answer was like this:

—Because that's all I have to offer.

She said that studying was the only way she could stand up to others—only by doing so could she get back at those who mocked her.

—And then—you appeared before me, Irito-kun.

The way she looked at me back then, that kind of spirit—I've gradually forgotten it all…

She always looked at me with that same gaze. Looking at the one who had taken away her only weapon, her mortal enemy, the most formidable foe in her life.

At the same time, I also recalled the lukewarm reactions of my senior, Ya Shuang, when we talked about dating. Every time we discussed that kind of topic, did she feel inwardly that she couldn't become like us? Because if she could also talk about the kinds of topics that ordinary girls like to discuss, she wouldn't need to maintain her individuality through studying.

When did I start to switch sides?

Like Asuhain, I used to rely solely on my serious personality as my inner strength. I even found myself igniting my fighting spirit when I lost a math test, just like Asuhain. But gradually, I encountered more valuable people and things, and slowly, I no longer needed to rely on just one thing as my inner strength.

I remember Mizuto once jokingly saying: "You've become really amazing now."

Honestly... I've become so arrogant, never realizing that almost nothing and no one is something I've achieved on my own. It's all because of knowing Mizuto that I've gained these precious things. At some point, I became unable to empathize with someone who has nothing—no, someone who only has one talent.

I'm just an empty high school graduate.

Some call this growth, but can losing empathy for one's past self truly be called growth...? Am I just running away from my true nature...? In the end, I'm still a shy, pessimistic, and narrow-minded person. If deliberately ignoring these flaws in life is called growth, it's too heartbreaking.

After all, that means the more you grow, the more things you don't understand...

I think I can understand why Shuidou and Dongtou don't try to make more friends—because they cherish who they are in the present moment. They believe that affirming themselves in the present moment and upholding this attitude towards life is the greatest happiness, so they don't force others to understand them. If they happen to be understood, they consider it lucky; they'll cherish those friendships when they meet true friends someday. They have a very open-minded view of things.

What about Asuka-in...?

I used to long to meet someone like that, someone who understood my feelings, whether as a friend or a lover. I wanted to prove to myself that I wasn't alone.

If that's the case, then Asahi-chan—

After passing through the dark space extending between the individual water tanks, you'll see a passageway on your right. Ahead of the passageway is a wall curving to the left, with two rows of small, square, window-like water tanks embedded in it in a staggered arrangement. Near the ceiling, a sign emitting a faint blue glow reads, "Small Creatures of the Deep Sea."

Perhaps because everyone was gathered in the individual sink area, there were fewer people here. There were four or five tourists admiring the mini sinks on the curved wall. As I walked past them, I saw two blackboard-sized sinks set up on the wall to my right.

In front of it stood a young girl.

She gazed intently at the deep sea world illuminated by the faint blue light—watching fish with large, darting eyes swimming in the water.

Her profile was breathtakingly beautiful. Although she was already very pretty, the interplay of shadows in the passageway and the light from the sink made her appear like a sculpture by a renowned artist, possessing an extraordinary beauty.

The more one is free from emotions and desires, the more beautiful one appears—it's truly ironic how ordinary people perceive beauty.

It was only then that I realized how slow I was to realize things.