Yes. While I Was Spinning the Wheel to Make Gyoza Wrappers, for Some Strange Reason, I Ended Up with This – Part 03

I headed straight home after school. Or rather, Tomonori dragged me there against my will. I pushed open the front door, rubbing my temples against the dizziness from the sunlight. She didn’t have to pick the sunniest path possible, damn it.

Sera peeked out from the living room. “Oh? You’re home early.”

“Yeah. Tomonori walked me back. Weather like today’s not enough to knock me out.”

“Still as close as ever, I see.” Her expression darkened.

Sera and Tomonori were from rival organizations. Maybe she was feeling a little jealous.

“I’m heading to the planetarium,” I said.

“Planetarium? You’ve found Miss Hellscythe?”

“N-No. I’m just hanging out with Tomonori.”

“I… see. Well, perhaps a break is necessary. Sometimes it’s more effective than rushing about in a panic.”

Her tone carried a faint edge. It would’ve been easier if she’d just come out and said, “This isn’t the time for that.”

Still pressing my head, I went upstairs and changed clothes. There was still time before our meet-up, but with nothing to do at home, I might as well leave early.

On my way out of my room, I bumped into Haruna. She wore an oversized T-shirt and nothing but polka-dot panties underneath. Her cheeks were stuffed with a popsicle.

“Wuh? You’re home. Going somewhere?”

“Yeah. I have a date.”

“A d-date? Dun-dun!”

What’s with the mystery thriller sound effect?

“Y-You dummy! I’m not going! I get you wanna go on a date with me, but…”

“Not with you.”

“What?!” Haruna froze like a statue.

I walked past her and headed downstairs.

---

We met in front of the station. There was still about fifteen minutes before the agreed time, yet Tomonori was already there waiting. The moment she spotted me, she waved and ran over.

“You’re late, Aikawa.”

“No, I’m actually early.”

I wondered how many times I’d even seen her in casual clothes. I’d expected something simple, like a T-shirt and jeans, but her slender legs were bare under her shorts. A white shirt and black vest framed a chest that looked noticeably fuller than in her uniform. Instead of sneakers, she wore boots.

“Here’s your ticket. C’mon, let’s go.”

She grabbed my hand and half-skipped toward the ticket gate. We had to be there by five, apparently, so she was in a hurry.

On the train, Tomonori’s smile never faded. I could almost hear her humming. She really did look like a boy when she was like this.

I could have simply enjoyed the ride, but since it was just the two of us, I figured I’d try to get some intel on the Vampire Ninjas. But nothing came to mind.

Questions only Tomonori could answer. Something I needed to ask before the chance slipped away. Right. Speaking of Tomonori…

“I’ve been wondering, why did you pick the name Yuki Yoshida?”

“Hmm.” She thought for a second, then said, “Oh, right.” It looked like she’d forgotten. “It’s just, starting with Yoshi makes it sound girly, doesn’t it? I wanted something that felt more feminine.”

“Mael sounds girly too.”

Her face tightened. “When they gave me that name, I was happy. I thought it was a good one.”

“When they gave it to you? Normally you get a name before or right after you’re born.”

“We Vampire Ninjas don’t get names until we finish training. When they decide you’re ready to fight yokai, they let you drink Eucliwood Hellscythe’s blood and become a Vampire Ninja. That’s when you inherit your name.”

“Like a kabuki actor.”^[1]

“Pretty much.”

We both laughed.

“Anyway, last year I caught the acting chief playing a PlayStation game.”

“Yeah? And?”

“I saw it… an enemy monster using Maelstrom.”

“So, it’s a video game move?”

“It crushed me. I wanted a different name right away. And once I started high school, I knew I’d need an alias anyway.”

“You’re telling me you go to school just for that?”

“The thing is… it was a squid using Maelstrom.”

“Sorry.”

Yeah, that had to hurt. I wondered what game it was. If it was from a Saga^[2] game, I’d want to meet the guy. Anyway, there was something else I wanted to know.

“Hey, have you heard about Sera?”

Tomonori and Sera were from rival groups, but they were both Vampire Ninjas. Tomonori had to know Sera abandoned her mission. Did she hate her enough to want her dead?

“You mean Seraphim? Yeah… of course I’ve heard.”

“Do you find her actions inexcusable?”

“I get how Seraphim feels… but honestly? As a Vampire Ninja, what she did is inexcusable.”

Even she thought so. Could she be thinking of killing Seraphim too?

“But you know… she’s pretty amazing.”

“Amazing?”

“Yeah. That’s not something you do without conviction. Worst case, you get branded a rogue and hunted down until you’re dead. So I think both Seraphim, for choosing that path, and Eucliwood Hellscythe, for making her want it that badly, are incredible. That’s why… I don’t want to kill her.”

I see. Right. This was who Tomonori was. She could see things for what they were, not just by the code or appearances. And that’s why, I…

What’s this? Damn it. Again. My chest was tightening, that prickling feeling coming back. Why? All I could see in my head was that lonely look on Eu’s face.

---

To be honest, I hadn’t cared much about going to a planetarium and figured I’d probably just fall asleep. But the woman doing the narration had a surprisingly lovely voice, and the next thing I knew, I was listening intently to her talk about the Summer Triangle^[3] and the myths behind the constellations.

“Whoa! No way! That’s awesome, Aikawa!”

Tomonori reacted loudly every time something caught her attention. Her childlike enthusiasm drew a few amused chuckles from the people around us, but sitting right next to her was just embarrassing.

“Tomonori, could you tone it down a bit?”

“D-Don’t call me Tomonori here!”

Where would be okay, then?

“Anyway, just keep it down.”

Of course, my warning had no effect. She was practically bouncing in her seat like a kid.

Seriously, you’re the only one making a scene. Look around. Everyone else is…

“When’s the Red Comet^[4] showing up?!”

Everyone else is…

“And what’s with that Big Dipper? Where’s the Death Star?!”^[5]

Okay, so there was one more noisy person.

The moment I heard their voice, I nearly slid out of my chair. It was a voice I didn’t want to hear under any circumstances.

“Haruna, please calm down.”

“But they didn’t even mention Planet Namek!^[6] I took Namekian as an elective just for a moment like this!”

So Matellis actually offered Namekian as a course? I kind of wanted to take that.

No, no, focus. Just ignore her. Yeah. There was no one there. No one at all.

When the topic shifted to Altair and Vega, I thought of Tanabata. I wondered what Eu was doing right now. I wanted to see her. To talk to her. Even if they were fifteen light-years apart, Orihime and Hikoboshi still fought to meet each other. If I knew how, I’d…

I couldn’t keep that train of thought for long.

“Vega!” Haruna called out, mimicking the old Sega jingle.^[7]

Don’t say it like that.

“NEC’s Wega!”^[8]

Why did she sound like some overhyped guy on an infomercial? And Wega was a Sony brand.

“What about Iscandar?^[9] Forget about the boss of Shadaloo^[10] and the whole any random point can look like an animal if you try hard enough thing. Show us some real stars and planets already!”

Why couldn’t she tell fiction from reality?

No. Don’t do it. Don’t take the bait.

“What’s wrong, Aikawa? You’re kinda twitching,” Tomonori asked worriedly.

Yeah, partly thanks to you too.

“I’m fine,” I said.

More than once, I nearly turned around to point at her and yell, “Wrong Vega!” but Tomonori’s voice kept me from snapping.

I’d held out. Good job, me.

---

1. Every kabuki actor has a stage name, which is different from the name they were born with. These stage names, most often those of the actor’s father, grandfather, or teacher, are passed down between generations of actors’ lineages, and hold great honor and importance.

2. SaGa is a long-running series of science fantasy RPGs developed by Square Enix and created by Akitoshi Kawazu, originating in 1989.

3. The Summer Triangle is a prominent seasonal asterism in the northern celestial hemisphere, composed of three bright stars: Vega (Lyra), Deneb (Cygnus), and Altair (Aquila).

4. The Red Comet is the iconic nickname for Char Aznable, one of the central figures in the Mobile Suit Gundam universe, particularly the Universal Century (UC) timeline.

5. In Fist of the North Star, 死兆星 (shichōsei) is another name for Alcor, a 4th‑magnitude star in Ursa Major near the Big Dipper. It appears above those fated to die. If you can see it, death is said to come within the year.

6. Planet Namek is a fictional planet in Dragon Ball and the homeworld of the Namekian race, known for creating the Dragon Balls.

7. The iconic Sega jingle, often featuring a pitched-down, echoing choir shouting “Segaaaaa!” over a two-chord melody, is a staple of early 1990s gaming, famously used in Sonic the Hedgehog.

8. NEC (formerly Nippon Electric Company, Limited), founded in 1899 and headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, is a leading Japanese multinational provider of information technology (IT) and network solutions, including AI, IoT, and telecommunications equipment.

9. Iscandar is the name of a planet in Space Battleship Yamato, home to an advanced civilization that aids humanity in the series.

10. Shadaloo is the primary antagonistic paramilitary criminal organization in the Street Fighter universe, and one of its member is a guy named Vega.