The day after, school was naturally closed.

In the first place, aside from the teachers and those who were absent, everyone else had collapsed. It even made the national news, and I heard that the police and media had gathered at the school.

I’m the only one who came out of it okay, but the media didn’t come near me thanks to the efforts of the

Kamizuki

family and the cleanup team. They kept our information hidden, spun a plausible cover story, and maintained strict control over the details.

That’s what my mother told me.

Meanwhile, I couldn’t bring myself to watch TV, so I kept weaving and unweaving

Silveit

, facing the haziness I felt in my chest. Then suddenly, a call came from Irena, asking me to come over.

As soon as I answered the call, I felt restless and decided to head to Nina’s house.

I pressed the room number at the familiar entrance to the spotless apartment complex.

After a brief holding tune, a clear voice came through the intercom.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Itsuki. I’ll let you in now.”

“He’s here!? Itsuki’s here!!?”

“Calm down, Nina, just a little—”

I heard Irena’s voice cut off at that point. As I hit the button for the elevator I’d ridden so many times, I wondered to myself if

Nina was okay.

I’d been visiting Nina’s place for over a year now, so even the manager recognized me.

Passing through the inner corridor, I rang the doorbell.

The door promptly opened with a click.

“Excuse me.”

“I apologize, Itsuki, for asking you to come out like this.”

“No, it’s okay.”

The one who greeted me looked like an exhausted Irena. Dark circles had formed under her eyes, making me think she hadn’t slept a wink since the previous day.

“Anyway, how is Nina…”

“Itsuki! You came!!”

Before Irena could reply, Nina dashed down the hall toward me. Her hair was disheveled, and her eyes were red, likely from crying.

Without stopping, she threw herself at me. I knew she’d be coming, so I managed to catch her without falling backward.

I caught her, but then she squeezed me tightly, as if she couldn’t let go.

“I’m so glad… I’m so glad you came, Itsuki. I thought you might not come to see me anymore. When I opened my eyes and you weren’t there, I was afraid you’d finally given up on me…”

“…I’m here.”

As she took shallow, quick breaths, I gently stroked her back.

That was all I could think of to do for her.

“…Please, come inside, Itsuki,” Irena said.

I started to step inside, but Nina, still clutching me tightly, wouldn’t move.

“Nina, I can’t come in if you don’t let go.”

“…If I let go, you might disappear.”

“I won’t leave.”

“…No. I won’t let go.”

Seeing that I had no choice, I reinforced both my arms with

Silveit

.

Then I carried Nina in my arms and walked into the room.

As soon as I entered, I was greeted by the sight of a mess. The usual clean, white, Scandinavian-style decor was barely recognizable. The sofa was flipped over, the curtains were torn, and the table was split in half.

“W-what happened here?”

“Nina threw a fit.”

As I was still in shock at the mess, Irena let out a quiet sigh and explained.

“Threw a fit…really?”

When I asked Nina, still clinging to me, she didn’t respond.

It seemed she didn’t want to talk about it.

“Well, I’m glad you came. Now that you’re here, she’s finally calm,” Irena said, clapping her hands together. At that moment, dozens of fairies appeared, and immediately got to work righting the furniture, stitching up the curtains, and, within moments, tidying the room. The broken table, it seemed, was beyond saving—they began dismantling it instead. Apparently, it was trash.

It made sense now. They’d probably left the room as it was because Nina would just destroy it again if they cleaned it. Fairy magic sure is handy.

While I was thinking that, Nina suddenly looked up at me, grabbed my hand, and started dragging me away from the living room.

“H-hey! Where are we going?”

“To my room. I’m going to practice my magic.”

“Practice? Are you sure…you can still use magic?”

When I asked her, she quietly shook her head.

“Because if I can’t use fairy magic, Itsuki won’t stay with me, right? If I don’t have magic to teach you, or if my mom’s the one casting magic, then there’s no point to me…!”

“No, that’s not…”

“I need Itsuki by my side. If I can’t give you any worth, then I have no reason to live!”

Nina’s face twisted as if some switch had flipped inside her. Then, in the next moment, she started crying uncontrollably.

“Because I laughed when my dad died. I laughed when I watched everyone else get killed! I have no reason to live! I should just…”

“Nina!”

My voice came out louder than I intended, making Nina stop crying for a moment.

Regretting my tone, I softened my voice and continued.

I’d seen Nina work hard with my own eyes.

I’d seen her try to overcome her trauma, more than anyone else.

She had faced her past and her weakness, and she was striving to be strong.

“It was the monster’s fault, Nina. Not yours.”

Death is an absolute.

It comes without mercy, without condition, to anyone.

To this day, I still have nightmares about that day—when my ordinary life was torn away.

I remember it all too easily: the pain, the helplessness, the overwhelming suffering.

“There’s no way someone as innocent as you deserves to die, Nina.”

That’s why, no matter what happens, I reject the idea of

death

.

“So, will you…stay by my side, Itsuki?”

“Of course.”

“Why?”

“Because we’re friends.”

I couldn’t think of anything else to say, so I told her that. With tears pooling in her eyes, Nina started to cry again, even harder this time.

I didn’t know what else to do, so I just held her hand as she cried.

I stayed by her side until she cried herself to sleep.

That was about all I could do.

And then, two days later, I received an invitation to a hot spring trip from Irena.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep