Chapter 48: Screening Event (Conclusion)
On the screen, it starts from the scene where Aoi, who had fainted, wakes up, and to intimidate and stop the bullying, everyone has prepared disguises and tools for intimidation.
Illuminated by two lanterns, they're wearing all-black robes and glowing fluorescent masks like a Halloween set, but each person has a subtitle showing who brought what, with commentary explaining it.
Kousuke has a bat.
Tanaka-kun has a hammer.
The guy who transferred away has an umbrella as a self-defense tool.
Saho 'My baseball gear overlaps with Kousuke-kun's, lol.'
Saying that, Saho pulled out a menacing-looking spiked bat from a bat case.
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While watching
Ise 'That spiked bat is insane, lol.'
Tachibana 'There's no way a spiked bat would pass a police check.'
Aoi 'I was waking up around this time, and it was super scary!'
Saho looks embarrassed, but why is he embarrassed?
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On the screen, everyone is changing clothes while Tachibana is talking.
It's about her internal conflict before the fight.
It's about Kashii-san being hurt and troubled by the class teasing and bullying, even crying over it.
It's about how I'm sorry for being selfish, but I wanted to talk properly and not leave any bad blood or hatred behind.
There's a memory of when Acchan and I went to catch stag beetles; I couldn't catch any, but Aoi caught a ton of stag beetles and gave me a male one.
That's the story she's telling.
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While watching
Kashii 'You talk about stag beetles a lot, huh?'
Tachibana 'I set up an acrylic case with soil bought from a home center, propped a piece of wood diagonally, prepared jelly, and went to catch them full of excitement. But coming back empty-handed feels so empty. Just one! Having just one makes looking at the case so much fun!'
Aoi 'I get it! A female just won't do! Whether it's a stag beetle or a rhinoceros beetle, you need a male! A pair is fine, though.'
Tachibana 'That's why I thought Aoi must understand people's feelings, right?'
The girls looked exasperated at the two passionately discussing stag beetles.
Kashii 'You believed he wasn't a bad guy just because he gave you a stag beetle?'
Aoi (Maybe that stag beetle saved me.)
Thinking about it up to this point, isn't there nothing more to see?
Kousuke said,
'Isn't it from here on out?'
Is there anything worth watching after this?
Obata-san and the others are still talking about the spiked bat.
Obata 'Isn't a spiked bat a bit dangerous?'
Saho 'It's not dangerous if you don't hit anyone with it.'
Obata 'Isn't that true for any weapon?'
Tachibana (It's not the weapon, it's the madness.)
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On the screen, two girls arrive at the scene.
The two descending to the riverside park are shown in close-up.
Even in close-up, they're in black robes with fluorescent masks.
With a "pop" sound, their names and face photos are displayed on the side, but the photo is from the middle school entrance ceremony, and Obata-san's smile is too unlike her usual self, giving a different vibe.
Obata-san descends to the riverside park holding a huge triangular ruler.
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While watching
Obata 'Kousuke-kun, delete this photo right now!'
Kousuke 'It's on the school's website, so it can be downloaded infinitely, though?'
Obata 'This is what they call a digital tattoo!'
Ise 'Obata-chan, a huge triangular ruler? Really? Where do you even buy something like that?'
Obata 'My dad is an elementary school teacher!'
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Now, on the screen, Kashii-san is clearly pumped up with a "huff!" even from a distance...
A huge industrial hand mixer? One of those bulky ones with three heads attached?
It's hard to tell, but as ordered, it was definitely intimidating.
Kashii-san's photo is just plain cute. Huh? I want that photo.
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While watching
Tanaka 'All of Kashii-san's photos were beautiful, as expected.'
Kashii 'Oh, no way!'
Obata 'When your photo doesn't turn out well, it really gets you down...'
Ise 'I get that too much.'
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Kashii-san kept her spot next to Tachibana even as everyone's seats shifted around.
Kashii 'The injury from back then has completely healed, huh?'
Tachibana 'Well, that was last fall, and now it's already summer, right?'
A sudden chill ran through me. In summer?
Kashii 'Right? It's been that long already, huh?'
Kashii-san was holding a grudge about the distance I'd kept.
She makes cheesecake and keeps smiling next to me, but there's no doubt she's holding a grudge.