Chapter 4: Sabotage

And so Day 3 of the Isolation Zone began. The sun rose in the sky, and from that they extrapolated that it was morning, although it didn’t quite feel like the correct amount of time had passed.

That morning, there was no intercom announcement summoning them to the gym.

There were very few people wandering around the school. Perhaps they had finally come to terms with the fact that they wouldn’t be able to find a way out. Most of them had relegated themselves to a space where they felt comfortable. As the CRC walked around campus, they tried to peek into a classroom when they were suddenly stopped:

“Hey. That’s our room.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry.”

The students were starting to get territorial.

Had their speech yesterday made any kind of impact at all?

The vast majority of the population had chosen to stick to their phenomenon groups. And outside of a few close friends, they didn’t interact with anyone outside of those groups.

The CRC split into two teams: Taichi/Nagase/Kiriyama/Chihiro and Inaba/Aoki/Enjouji. Their goal: to speak to the students about their proposal from yesterday and try to win them over. Granted, they planned to go over the details later that night, assuming everyone would meet up again, but until then, they wanted to lay the groundwork while collecting feedback at the same time.

“I’m back!” Kiriyama called, returning from her solo visit to the track team clubroom. Evidently the body-swap girls were still cooped up in there. “Ugh... I was really hoping to talk to Yukina today.”

“No luck?” Nagase asked.

“She’s still out there, searching for Misaki-chan.” She grimaced like it was tearing her heart in two.

Taichi and the rest of his team were combing the East Wing. Every time they encountered other students, they spoke to them. But for some reason, very few were willing to give them the time of day.

At the next clubroom, one of the students met them at the door without letting them inside. “There’s five people in our group, but two of them aren’t here right now. Could you come back later?”

“They didn’t vanish, though, did they...?” Kiriyama asked awkwardly.

“No, no. Although we’d really like to get out of this world ASAP so I can stop having to deal with this phenomenon. And while we’re on the subject—actually, never mind.”

“Okie-doke! See ya later,” Nagase replied cheerfully. And with that, they walked off.

“Should we really just let it go, Nagase-san?” asked Chihiro. “I get the sense they’re not actually going to let us in later.”

“I know, but we can’t just force our way in there.”

“I wonder what’s going on. What’s the harm in hearing us out, you know?” Taichi mused aloud. Now that they’d confessed about their past experience, one would think these people would have a lot of questions for them.

“Maybe they’re afraid of us...?” Kiriyama suggested.

“Let’s hope Inaban’s group is having an easier time. First they warm up the room with Aoki’s charisma and Enjouji’s adorable puppydog eyes, and then Inaban goes in for the kill, or something!”

Taichi wanted to believe Nagase was right. And at the same time, he felt a competitive urge to try harder. With his motivation restored, he set off once more.

The jazz band group was holed up in the practice room on the top floor of the East Wing.

“H-Hey there, CRC,” Shiroyama greeted them as they stood politely outside the door, waiting for permission to come in. His smile looked stiff, but hopefully Taichi was just seeing things.

“You guys doing okay? Any problems? Or is it more of a ‘What part of this looks okay to you?!’ kinda situation?” Nagase joked lightheartedly.

“No real issues here,” Shiroyama answered offhandedly.

“Your group’s phenomenon involves lying and saying messed-up stuff, right?” asked Taichi.

“Wrong.”

“Huh?”

“Oh, sorry... No, you’re right. That was the phenomenon just now.”

“Oh, I see. Wow, that sounds obnoxious to deal with.”

“That’s putting it lightly... Anyway, what are you doing here?”

“We were wondering if we could talk to you guys,” Kiriyama answered. “It’s about the stuff we mentioned last night.”

“Uhhhh... Sorry, Kiriyama-san. Not that I think you guys are flat-out wrong or anything, but... well... with our phenomenon, there’s no telling when we might say something horrible. And I really don’t want to create any misunderstandings, so...”

“We can handle it,” Nagase replied reassuringly without missing a beat.

“But we can’t.”

All they wanted was to stand inside the room and say their piece. Otherwise they couldn’t get anywhere.

“Listen to me, Shiroyama. We’re all dealing with phenomena here. I’m sure you understand, but these things aren’t your fault. So when the phenomenon strikes, the other people around you will understand.”

“They won’t.”

But this denial didn’t feel natural. It felt like a mechanical, automated response.

“Was that the phenomenon, too?”

“Yeah, it was... but at the same time, it wasn’t.” Averting his eyes, Shiroyama sadly shook his head.

What? Taichi stared back in confusion.

“Why do you want us to stick together so bad? I mean, sure, it’d be great if we could all help each other, but it’s just not realistic.”

“Maybe not completely, but it’s a goal to work towards—”

“That’s bizarre,” Shiroyama cut in sharply. There was a moment of silence.

“Uh, Shiroyama? Was that...?”

“No, it wasn’t the phenomenon. It was all me. It was me. It was me!” he repeated over and over, like he was trying to convince himself... like he was fighting himself. Was the phenomenon starting to take its toll on his sanity?

If any attempt to help him would only make it worse, then there was no point. Their only option was to back down.

“Okay, well, we won’t force you. We just want to keep everyone safe, that’s all.”

“I just don’t get it,” Shiroyama whimpered, his eyes tinged with fear. “How are you able to focus on other people right now?”

In the end, Shiroyama was the only member of the jazz band they managed to speak to that day.

Downstairs, in the first-year classroom, Kimura’s group had an even more aggressive stance.

“U-Uwa... Are you seriously on the CRC’s side...? Ouch!”

Shimono, the guy with glasses, jabbed Kimura hard in the side.

“What do you mean, on the CRC’s side?” Chihiro muttered.

“Uh, nothing! It’s nothing. Anyway, that’s all we have to say.”

And so Shimono and the rest of the first-years headed back into their classroom.

“W-Wait! Don’t leave me here!”

“Hey, Kimura.”

Taichi grabbed him by the arm. He could be a bit of a ditz, so a more direct approach was necessary.

“Eeeek! Strike me, command phenomenon! Shimono, Tada, hold it right there! ...Ugh, I should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy!”

“Why are you in such a hurry to run away from us?”

“I’m not running from you, Yaegashi-san! I’ve got a ton of respect for you.”

“Then why are you acting so weird?” Chihiro asked, joining the interrogation.

“Because of the rumor—ack!”

“What rumor?”

“Taichi!” called Nagase.

“Chihiro-kun!” shouted Kiriyama.

“Don’t mess with him too much!”

“It’s bullying!”

They were right, of course, but... it felt like Kimura just let something slip.

“Please... could you tell us about the rumor? We might be able to shed some light on the situation.”

“...Well, okay, I’ll tell you... but this is just stuff I overheard, alright?” Hesitantly, Kimura glanced at them, then back at the classroom door. “There’s this weird rumor going around that... your club is trying to make us all have to stay here longer. And some say that you’re the ones pulling the strings behind the scenes.”

“What are you talking about? Who on earth would think that?” Nagase muttered.

“Well, I heard it from another first-year, but he said he heard it from someone else. Someone on the student council, I think...?”

When it came time to meet back up with the other team, they returned to the clubroom, where they found Inaba, Aoki, and Enjouji waiting for them. As soon as they walked in, Inaba shouted “You’re late! Let’s go!” and pushed them right back out again. “We have to find out if the student council is spreading rumors about us!”

Clearly they’d heard about it, too. With Inaba leading the way, the CRC headed to the student council office in the West Wing.

“We’re coming in!” Inaba called, opening the door after a quick, perfunctory knock.

“Oh, it’s you... You actually...?”

There was only one person in the office: bespectacled vice president Sasaki. As the seven members of the CRC filed into the room, he scooted his chair backwards. What are you so afraid of?

“Wh-What do you need?”

“Heard you assholes are spreading rumors about us. That true? Huh?”

“I... I haven’t...”

“Inaban, you’re freaking him out! See that? He’s got his back pressed up against the wall!”

“You’re right. We’re not going to get anywhere with this wimp. Where’s Katori?”

“...I don’t know...”

“Oh, I don’t buy that for a second. I know you know where he is, so don’t hide it.”

“I really don’t!”

“Alright then, we’ll find him ourselves. If you see him, let him know we’re looking for him.”

If Katori was out walking around campus, then their only option was to check all the populated areas. First, they sent Nagase and Chihiro to comb the West Wing. Then the rest of the CRC headed down the stairs to the first floor.

There, at the connecting corridor leading to the North Wing, they found a student council member—a secretary—standing all by himself.

“What’s goin’ on?” Aoki asked.

“Oh, uh... nothing.”

Then why are you standing around here?

“There’s definitely something going on,” Inaba muttered suspiciously, and the secretary averted his eyes.

Clearly Katori and the student council were plotting something.

“Looks like we’d better hurry. Let’s split up!”

“I’ll check the gym!” shouted Aoki.

“Then I’ll take the North Wing,” said Taichi.

“Taichi, you start on the ground floor and work your way up. I’ll start on the top floor and work my way down!” said Kiriyama.

“I... I’ll head over to the East Wing, then!” said Enjouji.

And so the four of them took off.

The North Wing was home to the staff room and a handful of special purpose classrooms; Taichi checked each of them in turn. There were students hanging out on the upper floors, but unsurprisingly the staff room was completely deserted. Then, right as he reached the second floor, Kiriyama came down from the third floor.

“I checked all the rooms and asked everyone I came across, and they said Katori-kun isn’t here.”

“Gotcha... Wait, what? All the rooms?! Already?!”

She must have been moving three times as fast... How was that even possible?

From there, they moved from the North Wing to the East Wing.

“Taichi! Yui! Over here!” Aoki shouted from behind them. “Someone saw him walk into the dojo!”

Ordinarily the dojo was only used for judo and kendo practice. It was located on the first floor, directly beneath the gym.

“I’m gonna go find Inabacchan and the others!”

And with that, Aoki headed off to the West Wing while Taichi and Kiriyama headed for the dojo. On their way, they encountered another student council secretary standing in the hall, alone.

“Katori’s in the dojo, right?” Taichi asked... but the girl simply stared at the floor in silence. So they ignored her and kept going.

When they arrived outside the dojo, they could sense people inside.

“What do we do, Taichi? Should we wait for the others?”

“I’m sure they’ll be here in no time. Let’s go in.”

Gripped with indescribable panic, Taichi slid the door open and stepped into the dojo.

Inside were about ten... no, seven people: Katori, the four members of the student council outreach committee (including Fujishima Maiko), and two other male students. Taichi had never shared a class with them, and he didn’t know their names, but he recognized them as fellow second-years.

Katori and the outreach committee were standing around the two boys in a wide circle. There was a strange, palpable heat in the air that brought Taichi to a sudden stop.

Katori turned to look at the intruders, an icy smile plastered on his handsome face. Then he looked away, seemingly having lost interest, and Taichi naturally followed his gaze. The two unaffiliated students stood facing each other, their hands balled into fists. And then, out of nowhere—

“Graaaaaahhh!”

—one of them swung his fist at the other. Thud.

“Guh! ...Raaaahhh!”

Then the other boy punched back—thud.

With the meaty impact of bone on bone, this was now a bona fide fistfight.

“Don’t hold back! Let him have it!” Katori goaded them. Meanwhile, the outreach committee watched on in silence.

What am I looking at...? No, forget that—we have to stop them!

“Stop!”

“Stop it now!”

At last, Taichi and Kiriyama recovered from their shock and regained their voices. But the boys didn’t stop—they weren’t listening. Not even the onlookers paid them any mind... except Katori, that is.

“It’s too late.”

He spoke as though he already knew what the outcome would be. As though he could see the future.

“Just disappear already!”

“No, you!”

Another punch. Then another. The sound of each impact made Taichi’s stomach turn.

Stop! I can’t bear to watch this!

Before they could run in, one of the boys dropped to his knee, and the fight came to a standstill. Sure enough, Katori was right—they were too late.

Just then, they heard voices behind them—

“The heck are you doin’?!”

“You goddamn morons!”

It was Aoki and Inaba.

“It’s the CRC!” Fujishima whispered, frightened, like a child whose parents just walked in on her misbehaving.

Now nine people surrounded the two brawling boys: Katori, the four outreach committee members (three girls and one boy), Taichi, Kiriyama, Inaba, and Aoki. Then, out of nowhere, one of the brawlers started to laugh.

“Haha... haha...! There... That’s all we need to do, right?” He sounded completely broken inside.

Then the other one started to laugh, too. “Good! Now we can kiss this place goodbye! Hahaha!”

Neither of them were making any sense. Almost like they were both in their own little world.

“It’s over... It’s over, it’s over, it’s over, it’s over!”

“With this, we’ll be saved! Right?!”

“We gotta be! I’m sure of it... I’m sure... Hnn...”

They were laughing, and yet... they were crying, too. Crying and laughing. Then, out of nowhere, it all came to a stop.

“Goddamn it... The last thing I wanted to do was punch my own friend!”

“We don’t have a choice, remember?! Besides, you said you were cool with it!”

“This is all because of the phenomena! The stupid phenomena!”

“But at least now it’ll come to an end, right? It’s over now?”

They rambled on and on... until suddenly, something changed. All hostility and tension evaporated.

“What the?”

“Huh?”

They looked at each other, perplexed.

“Hey, uh... why’s everyone standing around us in a circle?”

“No clue. And why’re we in the center?”

It was as if the shouting and punching had never even happened—not a single bruise to be seen.

“Anyway, have we met? I don’t think so. Are you a second-year?”

“Yeah, I am. Weird to think we never bumped into each other until now... So what’s going on? What am I doing here?”

They had lost their memories of each other. Lost everything they’d built right from the moment they first met.

“Hey, do you recognize me?” Taichi asked on the spur of the moment. One of the boys looked over.

“Huh? Of course I recognize you, Yaegashi—”

And then the two boys vanished, just like that. There were no adjectives quite adequate enough to describe it. No gradual transition. It all happened so fast, Taichi half-wondered if they were ever there to begin with.

The room went completely silent... save for...

“I did it... At long last, I actually did it... I knew it! This was the right answer all along!”

Katori was rejoicing.

“I’ve found a way out of this world!”

“No, you haven’t!” Inaba roared, flinging a metaphorical wet blanket on Katori’s celebration.

“...Is that so, Inaba? That’s funny... You sound rather sure of yourself,” he replied in a perfectly calm tone of voice. The change was so sudden, it was mildly terrifying.

“There’s no way this is the ‘right answer’! Did you see them just now?”

“Are you speaking from past experience? Is that it?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Informed by your connections to the mastermind, I’m sure?”

“What... What the fuck...?”

“Seriously, what are you talking about? We heard you’ve been spreading rumors about us.” Kiriyama hissed through her tears. Taichi could practically feel her anger boiling over.

“I was simply honest about an observation I had made. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“How is that any different?! What’s your beef with us, Katori-kun?!” Kiriyama demanded, seething quietly. But she wasn’t the only one. Right now, she represented the entire CRC.

“I’m merely acting on behalf of the entire student body.”

“Oh yeah? Smearing us to make yourself look better? Whatever. Let’s set that aside for now.”

Inaba’s tone was steely. Instead of venting her fury, she was using it as fuel to systematically tear down her opponent.

“What did you do to those two students who were here just now?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I was helping them escape,” Katori gloated openly. “Once it was discovered that students were disappearing, the student council started gathering information. And from there, we learned that most of the disappearances took place immediately following a falling-out with a friend.”

He spoke confidently, like he was standing at a podium.

“So we asked two students in the same phenomenon group to punch each other. Of course, we made sure to explain the situation and get their consent first. Both of them agreed that they hated this place so much, they were willing to take any risk to get out of here. Isn’t that right?” he asked the outreach committee.

All four of them nodded dutifully. Fearfully.

“But... but you saw the way they acted before they disappeared! You really think you should be making them do this? Right at the end, they were acting like they’d forgotten each other completely!”

“It’s just a temporary effect during the transition between worlds. Once they return to reality, they’ll be back to normal.”

“Just because you want to believe that doesn’t make it true!”

“How would you have any idea what’s true?!” Katori roared back. “Right from the start, you’ve all been so freakishly calm! Not a trace of emotional distress to be seen! And then it turns out you’ve been through all this before!”

“You’re hardly any different, Katori,” Taichi pointed out calmly. “You’ve been trying to lead these people, same as we have.”

“Only because they were all expecting me to! And someone has to do it!”

“I get that you’re trying to help people,” Inaba nodded. “But I’m letting you know here and now: you’re going about it the wrong way. This ain’t it, chief.”

“How can you be so sure? Where’s your proof?”

As much as Taichi wished they could just be honest and admit that they’d learned the rules through «Heartseed», doing so was forbidden.

“You don’t have proof, either. So stop making other people into your guinea pigs.”

“I’m not making them do anything. I’m letting them decide for themselves.”

At first glance, personal freedom seemed like a valid argument, but upon further inspection, it fell apart completely. Not everyone had the same information; not everyone was capable of rational decisions.

“Satisfied? I’ll explain it to everyone later.” Katori blew off the discussion and headed for the door. “Go ahead and gather people, as we planned,” he instructed the outreach committee. “As many as you can get in a timely fashion.”

Only then did the four of them finally spring to life.

“S-Sure thing!”

“...Right...”

“O-Okay...”

“Are you guys seriously okay with this?!” Aoki called after them, but their only response was a passing glance. They all dashed out of the room like they couldn’t bear to stay for a single second more.

“You really think this is the right thing to do, Fujishima?” Taichi asked. After all, Fujishima was the only one who had yet to speak.

“I’m just... following the president’s orders, that’s all.”

“You saw what happened to those students, didn’t you?”

At this, Fujishima shuddered and wiped at her eyes. “Here in this world, I serve the student council president as part of the outreach committee. It’s my job.”

Whether she was currently under the effects of her phenomenon, it wasn’t clear.

■□■□■

The student council summoned all the nearby students to a classroom. Without the aid of the intercom, they only managed to draw in about thirty. Add in the student council and the seven members of the CRC, and that number approached forty.

Taichi recognized most of these people. Nakayama, Setouchi, Watase, Ishikawa, Miyagami, Sone, even Kimura... as well as one Kurihara Yukina standing in the corner, her face as pale as a sheet.

“Yukina! I’m so glad to see you!” Kiriyama gushed, stepping away from the CRC to greet her best friend.

“Yeah, I’m here. It’s possible Misaki already found her way out of this world... in which case, I’d better go after her.”

“No... Yukina, no...”

From a distance, Taichi could see the enthusiasm drain from Kiriyama’s face in real time.

By the time Nagase finally arrived, she was already up to speed on what was going on.

“Are you sure we shouldn’t stop them, Inaban?”

“I considered using force, but if we did, we’d only hurt our image. And if they stop trusting us, we’ll be powerless to save them.”

All Katori wanted to do was talk, and if everyone else wanted to listen, then there was no clear reason for them to interfere.

Then Katori’s speech began, and Kiriyama rejoined the group.

“Listen up, everyone. We, the student council, have found a way out of this world.”

It was exactly what they wanted to hear most. Instantly, his audience was captivated.

“YES!”

“For real?!”

“Finally!”

“We can get out of here!”

A fiery fervor engulfed the room. Perhaps the CRC had underestimated just how badly the students yearned to go back home. It made sense now, of course, but for the most part, everyone had kept quiet about it in the CRC’s presence. After all the rounds they made, how could they have overlooked something so critical?

Then the room fell silent once more, quietly bubbling with excitement.

“You’ve all heard the stories about people disappearing, right?” Katori asked, the whole room hanging on his every word. “Well, I looked into it. And I’ve discovered the requirements necessary to make it happen.”

From there, Katori explained that if two members of a phenomenon group were to duke it out, they would be freed from the world. He told them about his experiment with the two boys from earlier.

“We still don’t have all the details. It’s possible you don’t need to be in the same phenomenon group for it to work. Or maybe you don’t need to attack each other physically. We’ll keep experimenting until we learn more information.”

From the way he spoke, you’d never think he was suggesting that the students enact violence upon each other.

“All we know for sure is that a fistfight between group members is guaranteed to work.”

“A fistfight...?” one of the female students whispered.

“Haven’t you noticed? In this world, we may feel pain, but our bodies don’t actually take damage from anything, including a punch or two. Don’t you think maybe that’s a hint pushing us in this direction?”

It was pure fiction, of course. But one look at the relief on everyone’s faces and it was clear: this was a fiction they needed. All that remained was each individual’s consent.

“But there’s just one problem,” said Inaba Himeko, who had chosen this moment to break her silence.

She had warned them in advance that she would choose the perfect timing to begin her counterargument, and the rest of the club had been waiting with bated breath.

“Just because people are disappearing, it doesn’t guarantee that they’ve escaped. We don’t know for a fact that they’re safe, either.”

“Okay then, let’s assume for a moment that not everyone who has disappeared from this world is safe. In what way are they endangered? And if they are in fact seriously endangered, surely we would know about it by now. At this point, we can’t just take rumors as fact.”

Despite her counterargument, Katori held his ground. Unfortunately for him, Inaba wasn’t done.

“You know, you forgot to mention something about those two boys you mentioned. Right before they disappeared, they both seemed to have forgotten each other completely. Almost like their memories were erased. Or were you planning to keep that part a secret?”

This was an inconvenient truth, and chances were high that Katori had chosen not to mention it on purpose.

“As I was saying, not much is widely known about the rules of this world. Isn’t it possible that our memories of the phenomenon will be erased as we transfer back to the real world? That would explain why these supernatural occurrences aren’t common knowledge. And perhaps that was why it appeared as though those students had forgotten each other.”

“No way. They didn’t just ‘appear to have forgotten’—they literally did. Not only that, but they were emotionally traumatized. That’s not a healthy state of being.”

“Alright then, I see that you’re opposed to my proposal. So, do you have an alternative solution?”

He had placed his full confidence in the method he believed he had discovered. And given that the other students were desperate for a ray of hope, it felt like the crisis was coming to a head.

“There might indeed be a way out. But it’s dangerous to take risks without any concrete proof. Our club has survived these phenomena in the real world, and there was never any special way to escape it. All we could do was lay down some ground rules and stay together. Eventually it will end—you can all feel it, am I right?”

That was the correct path.

“But when is ‘eventually’?” asked one of the girls, almost offhandedly.

“One to two weeks, at the absolute most—if we all work together and stick it out. But obviously we won’t just sit around. We can look for other ways out, too.”

Taichi prayed desperately for them to understand that this was the right way to go. He prayed for everyone to believe in them.

“It’s going to be okay. We’ve been through this tons of times before. As long as we all work together, we will get through this,” he called brightly.

But Katori shot him down.

“Don’t make me laugh.”

Taichi started to protest, but his desire to do so was quickly extinguished.

The vibes Katori was giving off... No, it wasn’t just him. Everyone in the room was giving him the same vibes—so intense, it threatened to swallow him whole.

“These phenomena are freakish and... unnatural,” Katori spat, with more weight than a single person should have been capable of.

They had all accepted the phenomena as a result of the hypnotherapy... but that didn’t change the weight of the phenomena themselves. If anything, it only made it all too easy for the phenomena to gnaw at them.

“You’ve been through this tons of times? That’s not possible.”

“We’re not trying to say this is easy. We know everyone’s having a hard time—and we can’t possibly begin to imagine your suffering. But that’s exactly why we’re proposing this.”

“We’re all in this together! We can do this!” Nagase shouted, lighting up the room with her sunshine.

Indeed, all they could do was offer light and warmth to those trapped in this world. They couldn’t force anyone to do anything; they could only hope that people would turn toward the light of their own accord.

“We’ll help you as much as we can!” Kiriyama pleaded.

“Let’s all band together! Right, kids?” Aoki asked the CRC first-years.

“Right,” said Uwa.

“I... I’ll do my best!” said Enjouji.

They wanted to show everyone what true unity looked like. What hope looked like. They wanted to bring the power of human connection to the Isolation Zone.

“How am I supposed to believe that?” Katori asked, his words heavier than ever before.

No... they weren’t just his.

Confused, Taichi shifted his gaze.

All eyes were on them, boring into their skulls. Their mouths didn’t move, and yet they were trying to communicate something.

It was then that Taichi realized: Katori represented the will of the people. He controlled the flow of the current. And his words were theirs, too.

Amid those thirty gazes—those sixty eyes—was there anyone who believed in them?

Surely there had to be at least one person... right...?

Watase, Nakayama Setouchi, Ishikawa, and all their other friends were looking at them anxiously. But they were surrounded by suspicion and doubt, and they couldn’t speak up. They could only watch and see for themselves.

Why can’t they just trust us?

“We want to get out of here as fast as we can,” muttered Nakayama Mariko, gazing into the eyes of her best friend Nagase Iori.

“Seriously, if we don’t escape this phenomenon...” Setouchi Kaoru mumbled vaguely.

These girls were some of the most patient people Taichi knew. And if even they were tired of the Isolation Zone, then surely everyone else was, too.

They should have known that the gradual passage of time would have devastating effects, and yet it completely blindsided them. At this point, no amount of human connection would fix the damage done to their hearts.

With no trace of hope, a dark shadow was threatening to engulf the light.

“I know things are lookin’ real bad, but that’s all the more reason to believe in the power of unity!” Aoki proclaimed desperately.

They couldn’t give up yet. Surely there was still a chance. Surely they could still get through to everyone.

“Yeah!” Kiriyama chimed in. “Like, back in the real world, we—”

But then Katori’s eyes glinted sharply, like a wolf catching sight of its next meal.

“Remind me what phenomenon your group has, Kiriyama?” he asked her directly.

“Huh? Um... w-we can read each other’s minds. At random,” she replied, restating the cover story they’d agreed upon in advance. But why would he ask her that?

“And the moment it happens, the subject knows exactly what was ‘read.’ Isn’t that how you all said it worked?”

We did? Taichi couldn’t remember any of them ever saying that.

“Wai—” Inaba began, like she’d caught on to something, but it was too late.

“Y-Yeah, exactly.”

“In that case, could you give us an example of something you ‘read’ today? Anything will do,” Katori continued.

“I’ll answer that,” Inaba cut in.

“I didn’t ask you, Inaba. I’m asking Kiriyama. Now then, go ahead.”

“Wh-... Why should I have to tell you that?” Kiriyama stammered, her expression tearful.

“Because I think maybe your club doesn’t actually have a phenomenon at all.”

For the briefest of moments, Taichi’s sight warped from the impact.

“Why would you think that?” Nagase asked, her voice dry.

“Because you’re too calm. You’re not suffering at all. You have the mental capacity to focus on other people,” said Katori.

“That’s because... we have experience with these phenomena,” Taichi cut in hastily.

“Yes, you’ve said that. Now then, Kiriyama... Prove to me that your phenomenon is real.”

“Wh-Why me...?”

“You’re targeting Yui on purpose, aren’t you? You’re disgusting,” Inaba growled through gritted teeth.

“And what about you, Prez? You’ve been doin’ all kinds of stuff for other people. It’s hard to believe your phenomenon is real, either,” Aoki shot back stubbornly.

“I’m only doing this because I have no choice. If I didn’t do it, no one else would.”

He had the volatile energy of a cornered animal.

“No one else? That’s not true! We coulda done it!”

“Excluding the CRC.”

“...Well, okay, maybe everybody else is too busy dealin’ with things. But why do we gotta be excluded, man?!”

“If you don’t want to be excluded, then prove your phenomenon is real. Let’s see... I’ll take one more volunteer in addition to Kiriyama. Both of you write down some of the mind-reading exchanges you’ve had today, and I’ll contrast them—”

“Don’t treat us like liars!” Inaba roared, silencing the room. “It’s despicable.”

She was probably trying to get them out of having to prove anything.

“Just do it already,” muttered a third party—Miyagami. When everyone turned to look at him, he shook his head and adjusted his rectangular glasses. “Uh, sorry! I just... don’t want us to waste time pointing fingers. And it shouldn’t take too long to prove it.”

Knowing him, he didn’t mean any harm by it... but things snowballed from there.

“Just prove it already!”

“I wanna be done with this!”

“Why are they so quiet all of a sudden?”

“You don’t think...?”

The murmurs spread like wildfire, slowly closing off all exits. Taichi looked at Inaba, but she didn’t have any cards left to play; her gaze flickered to and fro, seeking an answer. So his next thought was to take action himself, but... he didn’t exactly have a master plan up his sleeve, either.

All they could hear was the unintelligible sound of whispering.

They were one step away from plummeting to their doom—but not because of a «Heartseed» or a phenomenon. No, their attackers were fellow human beings. Friends from school. Surely they all shared the same desire to escape the Isolation Zone, and yet...

“So you refuse to give us proof? Because I’m going to take that to mean your phenomenon isn’t real.”

They knew it was their final warning, and yet they couldn’t argue.

“C-Come on, Uwa! You could probably tell him yours, right? Just do it!” Kimura urged Chihiro.

Meanwhile, a different first-year called out to Enjouji: “Enjouji-san!”

“Yui...?” Kurihara’s face was now so pale, she was practically a ghost.

Then Aoki’s friends from class, Katsuragi and Matsui, called out to him:

“Aoki!”

“Aoki-kun...!”

“Tell me it’s not true, Iori,” Nakayama pleaded, her eyes full of tears as she gazed at Nagase.

“I know you’re not the type to lie, Yaegashi,” said Miyagami.

“You’re always honest to a fault. It’s your number one selling point,” said Sone.

“This is all part of your strategy, right, Inaba-san? There must be some reason, correct?” Fujishima asked in a shaky, hopeful voice.

But it was too late.

The door swung open, and a male student walked in. Given the timing, plus the aura he radiated, everyone instantly turned to look... and Taichi probably wasn’t the only one who felt goosebumps prick up his arms. The mood in the room changed instantly.

Could a mere human achieve this effect? No, surely not. But this was no mere human; this was something else wearing its skin. Something lifeless and lethargic... and decidedly neither «Heartseed» nor «The Second».

“...We were wondering what you were doing in here...” it murmured as it looked directly at Taichi and the others.

One could only guess how this entity must have appeared to the rest of the room, but to the CRC, it looked an awful lot like «The Third».

The other students started to murmur fervently among themselves.

“There’s something off about him...”

“I think maybe I’ve met him before...”

“I know, right? I’ve definitely met him... but it wasn’t him at the time...”

“It was right before we came here... and he was explaining it all to us...”

Evidently «The Third» had approached them all directly at some point back in the real world.

“I don’t really understand it, but... I feel like it’s his fault we’re—that I’m—”

“Something tells me we should stay away from him...”

Even without concrete knowledge, deep down, they could all somehow sense its omnipotence. And yet it didn’t pause to acknowledge them at all.

“That said... you weren’t causing much trouble... so we decided your presence was harmless... Entertaining, even... Though we have to wonder how exactly you managed to get in... But this turn of events is entertaining, too...”

This confirmed that «The Third»’s group had indeed turned a blind eye to the CRC thus far.

“However... at this point... all we can do is step back... but before we do that... there’s one last thing...”

Why was it here? What was it after?

Slowly, it raised a hand and pointed at Inaba. At Nagase. At Taichi. At Kiriyama. At Aoki. At Chihiro. At Enjouji. Then it turned its head and looked at the rest of the room.

“The reason all of you are here... lies with them.”

And that was all it took to turn everything on its head.