"Sagiri-chan, we're going to the Tanuki Teahouse later to buy souvenirs. Do you have any specific gifts you want?"
Yanami leaned close to the phone and asked softly.
Sora's little sister is my little sister, of course I have to take good care of her.
As for the future mentioned in the diary where Sora and Sagiri get married, with me here, I will absolutely not let such a terrible future become reality.
"No." Sagiri quickly averted her small face, not wanting a gift from anyone else at all. "Just having Onii-chan buy me a gift is enough."
"Okay then..."
Yanami sat back down in her seat, feeling regretful.
"Nii-san, I want to see the scenery." Sagiri said softly.
Wanting to see the scenery was true, but wanting to be alone with Sora was also true. She had been chatting with the others just now and hardly had a chance to speak to Izumi Sora.
"Alright."
Izumi Sora agreed, stood up holding the phone, and started showing Sagiri the scenery.
Unfortunately, with traveling, you can only truly feel the significance if you go yourself. Looking at scenery through a phone is hard to evoke a resonance.
After looking around for a bit, Sagiri quickly lost interest. After reminding Izumi Sora to come home early, she ended the video call.
Izumi Sora put away his phone, met up with the girls, and then they successively visited scenic spots like the Rabbit Shrine and the Bell of Tenjo, and even saw the famous 'Superb View Swing' that was popular on social media.
"That swing looks very interesting." Yanami's eyes sparkled brightly. "I want to go play."
Elf put her hands on her hips, her tone lazy: "But the line is super long, I don't want to wait in line at all."
Angel-sama didn't speak, just turned her head to look at Izumi Sora.
The night they signed up for the Tokyo Marathon, during the repeated time rewinds, the two of them had swung on the swing in the park under the moonlight. Looking back now, the image of that time remained exceptionally clear.
Compared to this overcrowded, internet-famous swing where countless tourists take photos for social media, Shiina Mahiru missed the swing under the moonlight that night more.
Izumi Sora noticed and silently turned his head to look.
Their eyes met.
Everything was understood without words.
There were simply too many tourists lining up; it would take at least an hour. Although 'Inmate Eight' liked it, she hated waiting in line even more. After taking a few simple photos, the group went to the Tanuki Teahouse again.
Though called a teahouse, it actually had nothing to do with tea. It was just a small souvenir shop.
"As expected, whenever it's the weekend, the scenic spots are full of people."
Kuroneko crossed her arms over her chest, muttering softly.
"So strange..." Yanami Anna stood curiously in front of a shelf. "It feels like souvenir shops everywhere always sell socks."
Hearing this, Shiina Mahiru looked at the limited-edition socks on the shelf, raising her hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear:
"Probably because you wear socks every day. As long as you pick up the socks, you'll remember today's trip."
Izumi Sora agreed:
"Mahiru makes a valid point."
"Then I'll buy two pairs." Yanami Anna's eyes lit up. "I'll alternate wearing them!"
A trip to Mount Fuji for a perfect date, no matter what, must be properly commemorated.
After buying the souvenirs, Izumi Sora and the girls paid and left, preparing to line up to take the cable car down the mountain.
After another long wait in line, they finally got on the cable car.
The cabin wasn't large, but there were many passengers taking the cable car. Everyone had to stand, making it quite crowded.
The cable car wobbled and soon reached mid-air. A strong gust of wind blew from the valley, causing the entire cabin to sway instantly. The passengers inside fell into a panic.
Bump.
A girl's soft body involuntarily crashed into Izumi Sora's embrace, followed by a familiar, delicate orchid scent wafting into his nose.
"Careful."
Izumi Sora reached out his right hand, wrapping his arm around Kuroneko, who had 'thrown herself into the net'.
"Pervert Sora, let go of me." Gokou Ruri's pretty face flushed slightly, glaring shyly. "You're covered in sweat, it smells terrible."
While speaking, Kuroneko took a step back, but the cable car was still swaying, making it hard to steady herself. As a result, with a bump, she crashed into Izumi Sora's embrace once again.
"The first time was an accident, the second time definitely isn't, right?"
Izumi Sora tightened his arm slightly, pulling Mahiru into his embrace, and looked down:
"Thanks for the meal."
"..."
Gokou Ruri gritted her silver teeth in shame, but unfortunately, the cable car's swaying grew stronger, so she could only obediently hide in Izumi Sora's embrace.
Meanwhile.
On the other side.
"This feeling... is so familiar..."
Yanami Anna, squeezed by the window taking photos, the ahoge on her head swaying gently, suddenly had a cherished memory awakened by the swaying cable car.
"I remember now... it was the day at the amusement park!"
The day they went to the amusement park, they were riding the Ferris wheel when they encountered strong winds. The Ferris wheel swayed back and forth high in the air, making her feel like her life was about to restart.
It was also that time when she finally gathered her courage, took the initiative, and secured the most important kiss of her life.
"Sora..."
Yanami Anna couldn't help but turn her head, searching for Izumi Sora's figure.
The next second.
The smile on 'Inmate Eight's' face quietly froze.
"Meow meow meow?"
"It was only the time it took to take a few photos, how did Sora end up hugging Ruri-chan?"
"Thieving cat Ruri!"
Yanami Anna quietly clenched her pink fists.
Sure enough, there are only two types of girls in this world: childhood friends, and thieving cats!
Besides me, all other girls are thieving cats!
A moment later.
The cable car wobbled its way to the foot of the mountain.
Kuroneko quickly took a half-step back, breaking free from Izumi Sora's embrace, her pretty face flushed red as she hid to the side.
The doors opened.
Izumi Sora and the girls filed out of the car.
Stare—
Yanami Anna held her hands against her chest, looking over with a resentful gaze.
"Ruri was bumped into by someone just now and couldn't stand steady." Izumi Sora remained composed, naturally knowing what 'Inmate Eight' was thinking. "If I didn't hold her, she would have fallen."
Yanami Anna muttered softly: "...There were so many people on the car, it would be hard to fall even if you wanted to!"
Time quietly slipped away.
Unknowingly, the sky grew dark.
After eating at a restaurant, Yanami Anna clutched her stomach, her whole body relaxing:
"It really was a perfect day."
"That's it for perfect?" Izumi Sora took out his phone, opened the itinerary he had made with 'Inmate Eight' earlier, and showed it to Yanami. "Next is a night climb of Mount Fuji. It will take about six or seven hours to reach the summit, just in time to see the sea of clouds and the sunrise tomorrow morning."
"Eh?"
Looking at the itinerary on the phone, the smile on Yanami Anna's face quietly froze.
Spending the whole day playing around the area, and then going for a night climb of Mount Fuji in the evening—that was indeed Yanami's plan.
Unfortunately, plans can't keep up with changes.
From leaving the house in the morning until now, Yanami's stamina was almost depleted. Now she only wanted to lie down and rest; she didn't want to move a single muscle.
Continuing to night climb Mount Fuji... she would die, right?
"Ahem..." Yanami Anna made a fist with her right hand, holding it to her mouth, and coughed lightly twice. Then she looked at the others. "What do you guys say?"
"I'm not climbing anymore." The usually proud Elf slumped on the table, her voice lazy. "My heels hurt super bad, and my calves are sore. My legs might cramp again tonight. I want to go back and rest."
Kuroneko shook her head as well: "My magic power is burnt out."
Shiina Mahiru still had stamina, but her foot injury hadn't healed yet, making it equally unsustainable.
"Since everyone is tired, let's call it a day." Yanami Anna quietly breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said. "We can just teleport over tomorrow morning to watch the sunrise."
Hearing this, Izumi Sora looked over: "You also said yesterday that we'd study together on the weekend."
"Ah, I forgot..." Yanami Anna slapped her forehead, sticking out her delicate pink tongue. "Then I'll come over next time I have free time. It's getting late, let's go home, let's go home, teleport home."
Izumi Sora looked around at the other girls: "What do you guys say?"
The girls all cast their votes in agreement, expressing their desire to go home and rest.
"Then let's go."
Izumi Sora stood up.
The girls followed behind him, paid the bill together, and then left the restaurant, arriving in a dimly lit, deserted alleyway.
"Grab my hand." Izumi Sora extended his hands. "Ready to head back."
The girls exchanged a glance, stepping forward one by one to grasp Izumi Sora's fingers.
"Teleporting back from Mount Fuji will most likely trigger side effects." Shiina Mahiru looked up, gently reminding him. "Sora-kun, don't go straight home. Come to my place first."
Yamada Elf's gaze shifted, and she hurriedly said: "Come to my place, come to my place. Mahiru's house is so clean, the floor will definitely get dirty, right? It just so happens I have a housekeeper coming to mop the floor tomorrow, so it doesn't matter."
"Then to Elf's house... we're off."
Izumi Sora took a step forward, and the figures of the group vanished instantly.
The next second.
The space in Elf's house warped slightly, and everyone appeared out of thin air in the living room of Elf's house.
"It's so dark..."
Yanami Anna's soft cry rang out nervously.
As everyone knows.
During the Age of Discovery, pirates would wear a black eyepatch over one eye. It wasn't because they were blind in that eye, but because when entering the ship's cabin, the sudden shift from light to dark would cause temporary blindness.
Coupled with the slight dizziness caused by teleportation, the girls were unsteady on their feet for a moment.
In the chaos, Izumi Sora felt someone almost fall and quickly reached out an arm to catch them. An indescribable sensation instantly filled his palm, and his right hand instinctively grasped it.
"Mmm..."
The girl's trembling, soft hum sounded quietly.
Izumi Sora: "..."
Very good.
By identifying the voice, he could already determine who he had caught.
"Don't panic, everyone." Yanami Anna's voice quickly rang out. "Let's use our phone flashlights first."
As the girls unlocked their phones, the faint light instantly dispelled the darkness in the living room.
(S-Sora-kun...)
Shiina Mahiru's pretty face was burning hot. She wanted to break free, but finding Izumi Sora motionless, she instantly became nervous.
(Oh no, the side effect has appeared...)
Shiina Mahiru held her breath, the girl's sense of shame rapidly overflowing.
(I absolutely don't want everyone to see me being held in Sora-kun's arms, and even being... no matter how you think about it, it's too shameful!)
(What do I do, what do I do?)
In a moment of crisis, Shiina Mahiru subconsciously activated Time Stop.
The entire world froze abruptly.
Shiina Mahiru tightly bit her lower lip with her pearly white teeth. Enduring her shyness, she hurriedly pried Izumi Sora's fingers open one by one, and then quickly slipped away.
After fleeing to a safe distance, she quietly ended the Time Stop.
"I'll go turn on the lights..."
Yamada Elf's voice sounded again. Holding her phone, she walked towards the entryway and quickly pressed the switch.
Click.
The lights came on.
The bright light instantly dispelled the darkness of the living room.
"It's bright now." Kuroneko exhaled softly. "As expected, humanity simply cannot live without electricity now."
Yanami Anna's gaze shifted, landing on Izumi Sora. Tilting her head in confusion, she said:
"Sora, your posture is very strange..."
The girls all looked over curiously.
They saw Izumi Sora standing perfectly still. His left arm was in an embracing posture, while his right hand was shaped as if gripping something. In short, it was quite strange.
Hearing this, Shiina Mahiru's pretty face flushed red, her heartbeat accelerating.
(Oh no, I forgot to put Sora-kun back to a normal position... but as long as I wasn't caught red-handed, it should be fine, right?)
Kuroneko furrowed her delicate eyebrows gently: "It looks like he's hugging something..."
"Don't make wild guesses." Izumi Sora spoke up, his expression unchanged. "I felt a bit dizzy teleporting back just now. I don't know what happened, but I ended up in this position... Also, the 'involuntary' side effect has appeared, so don't issue commands recklessly."
Seeing Izumi Sora hide the truth, Angel-sama quietly breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said:
"Sora-kun, hurry up and take off your shoes, don't dirty the floor."
Being in an involuntary state, Izumi Sora naturally obeyed obediently, bending down to take off his shoes.
"And everyone else too." Shiina Mahiru covered her chest with her right hand, quickly shifting everyone's attention. "Don't walk around, everyone take off your shoes."
"Okay."
"Take off shoes, take off shoes."
"..."
When everyone had taken off their shoes, Shiina Mahiru quickly took the shoes to the entryway, then opened the shoe cabinet, brought over a few pairs of sandals, and had everyone change into them.
After a simple wash-up, Elf's gaze shifted. She sat down on the sofa, crossed her arms over her chest, crossed her right leg over her left, then tilted her small face up with a smug smile:
"Idiot Sora, hurry over and massage my legs."
Finally encountering the side effect, of course I have to toy with Idiot Sora.
In the involuntary state, Izumi Sora naturally lacked the ability to refuse. He strode over to Elf, half-kneeled down, grasped Elf's right leg, and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"Ah..."
A tingling, sour sensation exploded in her calf, causing Elf to involuntarily let out a low cry.
Yanami Anna's expression was subtle, unable to resist complaining softly:
"Elf's voice is so terrible."
"I-It was too sudden..." Yamada Elf's small face quickly flushed red, hurriedly raising a hand to cover her pink lips. "It's all because Sora's grip is too strong..."
Meanwhile.
Elf's phone suddenly rang.
"Eh, it's a call from Sagiri..."
Yamada Elf's hand trembled, accidentally accepting the call.
The next second.
Sagiri's voice rang out:
"Elf, I saw the lights in your living room suddenly turn on. Could it be a burglar..."
Before she could finish, Elf couldn't hold back anymore, letting out another soft groan:
"Mmm... ahhhhh!"
Sagiri: "What is that sound, meow?"
Before Sagiri could ask, Elf's voice sounded again:
"I-Idiot Sora... be gentle... it hurts so much..."
Sagiri: "..."
Didn't you guys say you went traveling? What are you doing behind my back!