Vol 1 Chapter 1 (2/2)

“…I’m popular, so there’s no need”

It was a frankly lying line, Nanami and the others looked doubtfully at hier like a monkey

“Tch! And I thought ere mates!”

He suddenly slipped into a Kansai dialect and clicked his tongue, leaving

Everyone around thought his reaction was half a joke and laughed

However, Nanami could see that his behaviour was from the bottom of his heart

That was another…

Nana hie actions

The pressure of her further sharpening expression made him not look in that direction even harder than before when a feh not as much as Nanami’s, stood in front of him

“Hey, you! I’ll make you my manservant! First join my club Because whatever club you enter…”

The girl started a conversation looking down on him as if it were only natural

Souta once again cast his eyes above her head, his expression clouded and he fell silent as if searching for words, then, with pained, sad and lonely eyes, and spoke, slightly withdrawn

“…Sorry, I’m a sadist”

Frankly, he was far fro constitution tore it, Nanami retorted mentally with

“You liar!”

But, the girl stepped back in shock, showing a reaction to his words

“With that depression!? Fellow sadists have far too bad compatibility!”

So this girl really is a sadist thought their classirl that walked away from Souta

Speaking of Kikuno, to her eyes as an elder sister watching over their younger brother, he waswarm friendshi+ps with his classmates (it seemed she couldn’t see him objectively) and she kindly watched him even as he was uneasy

After that, classmates that had an interest in him came up and spoke to him, and the same sequence played out and they left

After watching the conversations, Nanami was convinced

“He’s…”

After the classmate introduced themselves, he’d look above their head and his expression would cloud

Taking their reaction of giving up unnaturally easily after Souta’s words of refusal, she was sure he saw so there They wouldn’t come after that

“It’s suspicious… it’s way too suspicious!”

At break, while people came up to him and were rebuffed, the number decreased, and by lunchtime, no one did

She didn’t esti down at Souta in the chair behind her

“I’ you for a moment”

“…I refuse”

“Refusal isn’t allowed”

Even standing she wasn’t particularly tall, but her bearing itselfdown frolanced upwards

“Again”

He nodded after looking at her head and she scowled at him

Nanami had seen many people examine expressions, but this was the first time she’d seen someone examine someone’s head There were occasionally cats that did In that way, Souta was closer to cats than huht, nyan, lick lick

Of course, he didn’t lick, and Nana no for an answer

“It doesn’t affect me, but I think it’s for your sake”

His way of speaking was cold, but that was Souta’s clumsy consideration However, Nanaer around above her head, s unkindly

“Well, perhapsyou is for your sake”

“…”

Frowning that he was beaten, he reluctantly stood, he didn’t knohe didn’t want to talk about here

“What’s wrong, Sou-kun? Shall I come with you?”

Kikuno couldn’t contain herself watching worriedly from the side and offered this to Souta

But ht a cold sweat to those ere listening to the conversation around

“That’s overprotective in this situation…”

“How spoiling…”

“She’s a way too spoiling older sister”

He couldn’t have heard the cries from their hearts, but he shook his head with a bitter smile

“It’s okay, Okiku-nee”

Even with that reply, Kikuno watched them leave, oddly not convinced

Until they reached the roof, Nana up the stairs, where she stood ied for what to say

“I’ll say this first I can’t leave strange happenings or people alone Or maybe it’s that I have an unusually curious personality for odd phenoo unsolved Based on that, well” Nanah and readily approached Souta, “Now, I’ll take your confession!”

“Eh… C-confession about what…?”

Souta wasn’t playing duh handedness to think people understanding her aims was only natural, but it was because she’d not communicated properly

She wanted to rage with ‘What don’t you understand!?’ but she gave in for once and explained precisely

“…You always… look above people’s heads… and then make a decision, don’t you?”

Like in the classrooer above her head, Souta made an easy to understand displeased expression

That itself was half a confession Like catching so in secret with pizza, fried chicken, Caesar salad, fries, spaghetti and a tuna sandwich protruding fro in secret they’re eating loads!

“A-ah… I wonder…”

Right after his dismay, Souta played duuts

“You’re playing dumb! You really are, aren’t you!! The proof shi+nes!!”

He didn’t really understand her words, but she came forcefully towards him

Souta let out a helpless sigh at being brought along by a botherso for what to do looked above her head

“See!! You did it again!! What’s there!?”

“…If I explain, will you promise not to stay around me anymore?”

“That obviously depends on what you say!”

Souta scratched his head, wondering ith this utterly straightforward girl

“It’s just preparations to make me feel better If you do that, I’ll just be able to be optimistic”

“Liar!! Your words after looking at people’s heads are always pessis like to not stay around if you talk? There’s hundreds of those kind of vague lies!”

And there was that too… Souta looked to the heavens

“See!! I have videos as proof! You’re clearly looking at so, aren’t you!? In this video too! And this one! This one! And this one!”

Nana their classmates on her phone

“…Uh…?”

Because she was showing them one after another, she went too far and showed hi to do with it

“Gyaaaaaa!! D-don’t loooooook!!”

Incidentally, it was a video she had taken during the spring break of the last time she wore her middle-school uniform, it truly is a shame you couldn’t see it

In spite of showing it herself, she had an extreirl that could easily use this kind of logic Specifically, the dreadfulness of poking Souta in the eyes

“Gyaaaaaa!! My eyes! My eyes!”

Speaking of that dreadfulness, it no longer had anything to do with logic

“Don’t dodge the question, confess!!”

“My eyyyyes! My eyyyyes!!”

Souta was rolling on the floor, holding at his eyes, it looked kind of fun

After rolling for a while, Souta keenly felt thehe should frankly tell the truth, he sat up properly

“…If you could… I’d like you to keep what I’m about to say a secret”

“If you erase that video from your hippocampus”

“…”

Souta had a troubled smile for a few seconds as he wondered how to answer, but he already felt that it wouldn’t end si way of speaking grew more serious

“Do you know… ‘flags’?”

“Flags?”

In Nana se adrift in a sea Only the ‘la’ lined up

“Survival flag, death flag, ro… People’s state and behaviour, all phenoenerally called flags Flags are often set, or said to topple, but if so, they will die, if they have a ro set on them, they’ll be fond of the one that set it… it’s that kind of thing”

Now that he said that, Nana so

“I… can visually see those flags”

“… You can see thes?”

Souta nodded

“I can see them… and somehow understand what I need to say to topple them…”

“To topple… the flag”

Nanaht

“So… that salary”

“Had a death flag…”

“And the boy that said to ask hiirls…”

“Had a friendshi+p flag”

“The girl that invited you to her club…”

“Had a ro…”

Nana he remembered

“After all’s said and done… he’s a flag crusher then”

Listening to hi she didn’t believe it at all, nor did she by the end

She didn’t, but the trailer thison it

“…So, the death flag is fine, but why did you topple the friendshi+p and ros? Don’t you want a friend or a lover?”

“…”

It looked like she struck a nerve, Souta’s expression clouded and he sat on the steps in the corner and hung his head

“It’s fine I’m already…”

“Even if you say you’re fine…”

Seeing Souta, who seemed always depressed lower his shoulders even more, Nanami felt it was like he hadn’t said it

“If people stay with et hurt again”

Souta proclaimed that to Nanami but she felt he was the one hurt the most

How badly had this strange power hurt him to make him like this?

Was he guilty because he was the only survivor of the sinking of that cruise shi+p?

Or was it possibly both?

Nanami didn’t know that

Even so, Nanami looked painfully down at hi his power to save people like he had earlier, and to keep people at a distance

Nana with interpersonal skills In fact she ith the a different vector than Souta, but still extremely weak

So… she was annoyed at the syhtly lonely smile on his face

For an instant, just an instant, she had a sirinding her teeth, she opened her mouth

“I…”

“…?”

“In the first place, I don’t feel even a sen of love or friendshi+p for you, so I can’t have a flag! In fact, a flag wouldn’t raise for that pathetic attitude!”

She stood i imperiously

“You don’t have to worry about breaking so that’s already broken, do you!? So! I’ll cory at you when I want to!!”

“…”

Her attitude and tone were angry And her words themselves were far from favourable, so he blankly stared up at her when he could talk

However, Nanami’s aire happiness

It ht have been because he could feel that deep inside Nanami’s heart, she was bad with people like him

“…You’re kind Thank… you”

Souta said so shyly, but it was nothing co said it

Her skin was a pale white so it was easy to see the reddish tinge spread down to the bottom of her throat, with a cry like howl she pushed at Souta’s nose

“I-it’s Nanaht Bladefield! …Nana called by my family name I don’t want ‘san’ and if you use ‘chan it’s the death penalty!”

She finally introduced herself as she calmed down and her blush settled, Souta nodded

“Right… Nanami-sa— Nanami… You can call me Souta too”

As he was about to say ‘san’, Nanalared at him and he smiled wryly

The fact that Nanami already seemed to dislike him so it wouldn’t be too much worse if she completely disliked him was probably the source of his defiance In any case, for the first ti time, Souta met someone he could become friends with

He couldn’t see even a hint of a flag on her head, it put him unusually at ease