"Notice for Jhin's Participation in the Blue Sea Feast
One. Please do not leave the student dormitory after lights-out. If it is necessary,
please contact the dorm manager.
Two. Please trust the companion given to you at [XXXX]. She is trustworthy
.
Three. Whatever you do, do NOT let them find you!!!!!
Four. Stop _, it is the source!"
Five."
The above was what appeared on the blank sheet of paper after the bell rang. Jhin had no idea why these things were written there. Aside from rules one and three, which were complete, all the other clauses had portions that were erased or impossible to read. As he followed behind Kyaru, four large characters suddenly flashed through his mind.
Rules Horror!
But... does this thing really look like Rules Horror...? Not even the basic rules are complete. Isn't this just blatantly trying to get people killed?
No one could resolve Jhin's confusion, and right now he didn't dare reveal the contents of the paper to anyone else. If he happened to violate the missing fifth rule, or if the other person happened to be one of the "them" referred to in rule three, then things would get really out of hand.
Following Kyaru into the plaza packed with a sea of people, standing beneath the spotlight of the central stage was a "silver-haired beauty" of androgynous appearance, dressed in a sharp suit. She held a microphone and swept a kindly smile around the crowd before slowly speaking: "Students, welcome to this year's annual Blue Sea Feast!"
"As Principal, I am delighted that so many students from different grades are once again taking part in the festival. This represents your recognition of the school and your longing for the merfolk. I won't waste words with idle chatter—no doubt you've grown tired of hearing it all from your homeroom teachers."
The Principal spread both arms wide, as if to embrace the students before her, a fervent expression on her face as she declared: "Take out your student IDs, find the companion that makes yours glow, form a team, and begin your contest for the champion's Merfolk's Blessing!"
"Ohhh!!!!"
Compared to the excited reactions of everyone else, Jhin only felt that the Principal's raised-arm gesture sent a chill down his spine. He couldn't shake the feeling that she was about to pull off some unprecedented, colossal spectacle.
There was no need to make contact with the Principal—better to stay away. Anyone who could make a gesture like that didn't seem like a good person.
He took his student ID out of his pocket, and to his surprise, it immediately began emitting a faint blue glow.
"Ah—" A soft gasp came from beside him. Kyaru, holding a student ID that was glowing the same way, stared blankly at Jhin. It took her quite a while to snap out of it, and then, caught between laughter and tears, she said: "What a coincidence... the two of us are actually companions."
"Then I'll be counting on you from here on."
"Mm!"
After the two shook hands, the light on their student IDs formed the number "404." Seeing that her companion still wore a completely clueless expression, Kyaru had no choice but to explain: "This is the dorm assigned to us after teaming up. Starting tonight, we'll be acting together."
Jhin's eyes went wide in an instant. He pointed his index finger at himself, then at her, his tone full of confusion: "We... sleep in the same room?"
"There's... there's no helping it. Those are the rules. It's very rare for a mixed-gender pair, but it's not like it never happens." Kyaru's little face flushed red as she finished, then she gazed at him with a serious expression: "I have a decent impression of you, but don't get the wrong idea—it's not like I have feelings for you. My goal is the championship!"
"Understood. Let me ask in advance—how many beds are in the room?"
"Two, of course. Don't tell me you thought becoming companions meant sleeping in the same bed." A look of scorn flashed in her emerald eyes, as if to say this man's head was full of filthy thoughts.
Jhin shrugged, utterly indifferent: "If there were only one bed, I was planning to sleep on the floor. And if your conscience couldn't handle that, letting me have the bed while you lie on the floor would work too."
"..." Kyaru fell silent. She sized him up for a long while before finally squeezing out a single sentence: "You know, your personality completely doesn't match your looks."
"Does it? I think I have a great personality—I respect my elders and cherish the young, and I'm especially good to my sister. Every few days I drag her out of bed to exercise, and I'm skilled at unclogging drains, always helping classmates deal with blocked pipes whenever they've got the trouble."
"Those things you mentioned... are they for real?"
"A hundred percent real."
"So is your sister a third-year senior?"
"Hiss~ what was my sister's name again?"
Kyaru rolled her eyes at Jhin: "You're asking me for your own sister's name?"
He covered his forehead and closed his eyes, straining to remember, but a layer of fog always shrouded his mind, as if looking at flowers through a mist—everything was blurry and indistinct.
"All right, all right, if you can't remember, then don't bother. We'd better hurry back to the dorm. It's almost lights-out." Kyaru let out a soft sigh, uncertain whether being saddled with an amnesiac teammate was a good thing or a bad thing, hoping the coming contest would go smoothly.
Jhin nodded helplessly: "I'll have to trouble you to lead the way."
She wove through the campus hallways with practiced ease, and soon brought him to a door on the fourth floor of the student dormitory, marked with the red characters "Room 404." She pushed it open and stepped inside; apart from two simple beds, there was nothing else in the room.
"This is where we'll be resting from now on. The bathroom's over there, and the toiletries are in there too. As for a change of clothes, we can just buy some at the stalls tomorrow. You didn't lose the festival wallet the school handed out, did you?"
"Mm."
"Good. I'm taking this bed!" Kyaru flopped onto the bed on the left, kicked off her shoes, and rolled around gleefully. Those alluring legs wrapped in black stockings drew Jhin's gaze like a magnet.
He glanced twice before forcing his eyes away, recalling that the first rule on the blank paper stated that after lights-out, one had to contact the dorm manager to go out.
But there wasn't any communication tool like a telephone in the room. So how exactly was he supposed to contact her?
Seeing Jhin pacing around the dorm for no apparent reason, as if searching for something, Kyaru sat up hugging a soft pillow: "What are you doing?"
"Ah... I was thinking, since this is a student dormitory, there should be a dorm manager, right? How do you contact or find her?"
"There." Kyaru lifted her chin, gesturing for him to look toward the main door: "There's a red button over there. If you want to contact her, just press it once. But you'd better have something urgent—if you go pressing it carelessly, the manager will punish you, and the outcome is miserable!"
"I see. Understood."
Without the slightest hesitation, Jhin walked over to the side and pressed the button. This action alone startled Kyaru so badly she sprang up off the bed.
"I already told you only to press it if there's something urgent—are you actually listening to a word people say!?"
Her complaint had barely fallen silent when footsteps gradually approached from outside the door. He narrowed his eyes and fixed his gaze on the door.
The steps were steady, the sound like someone wearing leather shoes. Judging by the volume, the person's height probably didn't exceed one meter sixty.
"Knock, knock."
The dorm manager very politely rapped twice on the door, and after that made no further sound.
Under Kyaru's urging gaze, Jhin grasped the handle and opened the door: "Coming, coming, so sorry about that."
A pink-haired girl in a black-and-white maid outfit stood in the hallway, giving him a smile: "Hello."
____
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