Where am I...?
"Hey..."
A pure white space stretched out before my eyes.
Rather than just being white, it was a world of light where high-intensity radiance reflected and diffused infinitely, making everything else invisible.
"Hey, listen..."
Even as I asked myself where I was, somewhere in my heart, I realized that this place was likely nowhere at all.
Yes.
This was a world where concepts like latitude and longitude, vertical and horizontal, and even time did not exist. A world where the boundary between self and space vanished—a world where only souls drifted.
"Ta... Takuto-kun?"
As if responding to something, the space increased its brilliance once more.
"Huh, uhm..."
The temperature of my soul rose, and eventually, it sought to open the door to a new world.
Ah, I’m sure of it.
This must be what they call "heaven"...
"Hey, Konuma-kun!"
"Hah!"
My shoulders were shaken firmly, bringing me back to my senses.
Before my eyes, a beautiful black-haired girl was peering into my face with a worried expression.
"Are you okay...?"
"S-Sorry. For some reason, my mind just tripped out for a moment... Where am I, what time is it, and who am I?"
"What are you saying...? This is the classroom for Class 2-6, and we just finished cleaning up after the school festival."
"...Eh, we're still there?"
"Uhm, am I talking to Urashima Taro or something...?"
She looked at me with an exasperated face.
In my internal clock, it felt like several months had passed. Why did I trip out that hard...?
As I tilted my head, the girl in front of me was checking things off on her fingers. "'Where am I' is fine, and I answered 'what time is it.' That leaves 'who am I'..."
Then she turned back toward me.
"Uhm, you are Onu..."
She started to say, then cleared her throat with a "kofun."
"Takuto-kun, right?"
...Ah, that was the cause. Thank you, world. Goodbye, world.
"Wait a minute!?"
Slender arms grabbed my shoulders and yanked me back just as I was about to ascend to heaven again.
This is bad, really bad.
Being called by my first name with "-kun" by that Ichikawa Amane made me intensely realize that, well, our relationship had changed. As a result, I had been ascending for what felt like months. Looking at the clock on the wall, it seemed only two minutes or so had actually passed.
"Ah, sorry, Ichikawa..."
"...Ichikawa?"
She looked up at me with a half-lidded gaze, raising one eyebrow.
"...Sorry, ah, Amane?"
When I corrected myself, she gave an angelic smile.
"...Yeah!"
Then, right at that moment.
"Uuuuhm... you two?"
""Y-Yes!?""
A voice that was usually sweet echoed through the classroom, now laced with a sigh.
"The After-Festival Party is starting in the gym. Aren't you going to watch?"
Leaning against the classroom door, Erina-san let out a weary breath.
"E-Erina-chan, why...?"
"What do you mean 'why'? Erina is also in Class 6... As the class representative, I have to make sure everyone has left the room."
"Eh!? Then, s-since when were you there...?"
Ichikawa was visibly flustered.
"Well, I went to the gym, but the teacher told me to come back, so just now."
Erina-san gave a mischievous grin.
"Were you doing something you shouldn't be doing if Erina was around?" she asked.
"N-Nothing like that! Let's go to the After-Festival Party! Yeah, I was just thinking of going! Right, Konuma-kun!"
"Y-Yeah, that's right!"
"I didn't know there was such a high-energy 'that's right' voice... Well, I'm going to lock up, so grab your things and get out, okay?"
Erina-san shook her head as if tired of us, then smiled as if she had an idea.
"...Or should I just lock you both inside?"
""No, we're fine!""
The three of us headed toward the gymnasium together.
Behind Erina-san, who was humming as she walked ahead, I whispered a question to Ichikawa.
"Hey Ichikawa, what's an 'After-Festival Party'?"
"Ah, 'Ichikawa' again...! Hmmm, well, whatever. Let's talk about that later..."
The angel sighed as if giving up.
"Uhm, you see, the After-Festival Party is a live event held in the gym for current students after the school festival ends. They have really professional sound and lighting, and there are dance and band performances."
"Eh? I didn't watch that last year..."
"Well, participation is optional. Though about 90% of the students show up."
"I see..."
So I was part of the remaining 10%. Well, yeah, that makes sense. I'm aware of my position. But to think I didn't even know it existed.
"By the way, there are band performances too? Don't we have to perform?"
"Basically, the third-years perform at the After-Festival Party. They've retired from their clubs to study for exams, but many of them play one last time here."
"Is that so..."
I see. So seniors—people who had practically no connection to my world until now—were finally going to appear.
When we reached the gym...
"Ah, Amane, Konuma! Over here, over here!"
"What were you two doing?"
"Now, now, Hasu-senpai! It's about to start!"
Azuma, Sako, and Taira-chan welcomed us.
All the chairs that had been set out for the Instrumental Club performance were gone. Is the After-Festival Party standing room only? An "all-standing" event, I suppose. (I just used the English term for it.)
"Sorry, sorry!"
Ichikawa scurried over to join the three of them, and I stood beside them a moment later.
Feeling a strange sense of bashfulness, I was scratching my cheek when the lights—except for those on the stage—went out.
"""Waaaaaaah!!!"""
A roar of cheers enveloped the gym, just like before a professional concert. Oh, wow...!
The floor went dark, and as I looked up at the curtained stage, my right arm was punched lightly with a fist.
I looked over to see Azuma smiling like an older sister.
"So, how did the operation go?"
She asked in strangely formal language, her large eyes shining even in the dark.
"...Thanks to you."
"Fufu, I see."
Azuma bit her lower lip and laughed at my answer.
"Well then... I wish you happiness."
"...Thanks."
As I scratched my cheek again out of embarrassment, Ichikawa, to my left front, looked over at me, opened her mouth like she was saying "Aaaah," and then puffed out her cheeks slightly.
"Konuma, you're nice... I just took a snapshot of amane-sama's top-tier sulky face with my eye's shutter and saved it perfectly onto my brain's hard drive. I'll use my heart's Photoshop to turn up the brightness later..."
"That's kind of scary..."
While I was talking to the 'believer,' the stage curtains opened.
The first performance was by third-year alumni from the Rock Club.
I didn't know them well, but after two and a half years, their reputation within the school must be high. The venue got heated. The vibe felt somewhat similar to a Cherry Boys concert.
A little while ago, I would have made fun of it and avoided this kind of energy. Since I didn't know the band, I couldn't fully get into it, but I felt like I could understand the excitement of the people around me now.
Also, the sound and lighting were incredibly solid. Ichikawa had said 'professionals come to do it,' and as expected, pros are amazing. Honestly, if I get a chance next year, I want to stand on that stage.
I listened while nodding with my arms crossed, and after a series of two songs each for dances and bands, the final band came up.
The third-year MC shouted at the top of his lungs.
"The one you've been waiting for! The grand finale is the three members of 'Butter'!"
The venue exploded with the biggest cheer of the day.
"It's Maika-buchou's band...!"
Azuma let out a soft cry of excitement.
"Maika-buchou?"
When I asked, she nodded repeatedly with excitement.
"Kamino Maika-senpai. She was the president of the Instrumental Club before me. Look, the one on the drums."
Looking where she pointed, three women emerged from the wings of the stage amidst the cheers. The one heading for the drums was a woman with bright brown hair in a ponytail and slightly upturned eyes. A snaggletooth peeked out from the edge of her fearless smile.
"Wow, Eriguchi-senpai and Shaku-senpai are there too...!"
This time, Ichikawa let out a small cheer.
Good grief. Three people I don't know suddenly appeared. I can't keep up...!
In times like this, I look to my junior, the 'School Wikipedia-chan,' for commentary.
"Who are those cool senpais...!?" she was saying.
What, isn't this the part where Taira-chan explains everything...? Or so I thought for a fleeting moment.
The moment Kamino-san struck the snare drum once—*Wham!*—goosebumps erupted all over my skin.
What was that...?
Immediately after, the guitar player with long, straight black hair began playing a phrase, and a melodic bass joined in.
Upon hearing that sound, my thoughts ground to a halt. My ears and heart were completely stolen away.
"...!"
The music captivated the entire venue.
The genre was blues.
It wasn't a genre typically favored by high schoolers; it was the kind of music often described as 'refined' or 'boring.'
But even so.
The voltage in the room reached its peak.
"This is insane..."
My vocabulary vanished, and only that generic thought escaped my mouth.
On stage, the sounds of the three responded to one another, sharpening each other, and with every step, the music was sublimated into a higher dimension.
Without a doubt, this music was being formed right here, right now.
As I watched the performance, my body...
Felt a shock I had experienced once before.
All three of them were god-like, but the drums were especially incredible.
The drumming was so precise, yet so human. It felt as if my body and soul were being pulled into it.
From then on, it felt like an instant.
The first song ended, the second song ended, and before I knew it, the encore was over too.
Even though the lights in the venue had come back on, I remained dazed, staring up at the stage.
"Wait, Konuma-kun?"
Ichikawa's voice brought me back to reality.
"A-Ah. The performance is over, huh..."
"Yeah, the performance is over... but wasn't it amazing?"
"No, 'amazing' doesn't cover it... What was that? It was like..."
I spoke while still in a daze.
"That's what 'real music' is..."
"Hey, Konuma-kun."
In a feverish yet quiet voice, Ichikawa murmured.
"...Konuma-kun, you have a face I've never seen before right now."
"...Eh?"
Startled by something I hadn't even considered, I let out a dumb-sounding voice.
I finally looked away from the stage and shifted my gaze to the girl in front of me. She was tilting her head with a sigh.
"Honestly..."
Then, Ichikawa curled the corners of her mouth into a grin.
"I just became your girlfriend, but you're not going to let me relax, are you? The person I fell in love with."
She wore a defiant, confident smile.