Chapter 24: The Science Girl Who Researches Quantum Mechanics
Yotsuya Miko stood dumbfounded by the side.
Listening to Futaba Rio...
Joining the club was negotiable?
This really gave Miko a little Supernatural Shock.
At the same time, a suspicion arose in her heart.
When Yoru came up with this club name, she had found it strange.
If it were just called the "Supernatural Investigation Club," although the name would still be a bit odd, it would fit the club's theme.
After all, both she and Yoru were spirit mediums with the "Sight" who could see evil spirits and ghosts.
But why add "Quantum Mechanics" out of nowhere?
Looking at the situation now...
Did Yoru already plan to use the words "Quantum Mechanics" to attract Futaba Rio when he established the club?
The more Miko thought about it, the less she understood the reasoning behind it.
So, she simply put it out of her mind.
"Benefits? Of course there are."
Facing Futaba Rio's inquiry, Yoru pulled a key directly from his pocket and placed it gently on the table.
"This is...?"
"This is the key to the clubroom."
Yoru looked straight into Rio's eyes behind her glasses and smiled.
"Aside from when I need to discuss things with you, Miko and I usually won't stay in this clubroom. As long as you agree to join the club and provide us with assistance within your capabilities, this clubroom is yours to use. You can decorate it however you like and do whatever you want inside."
The condition Yoru threw out hit Futaba Rio right in her soft spot.
Futaba Rio was a girl who didn't fit in with the crowd; one could even say she was rejected by the atmosphere.
The reason she came here today was because the club name included "Quantum Mechanics," and she held a sliver of hope that she might find like-minded people.
Now it seemed she wouldn't find like-minded people.
But having a clubroom of her own was still a very good outcome.
For a student who is ostracized and isolated by the group, which period is the hardest to adapt to?
It isn't class time.
It is the break times and lunch hours, when freedom is highest and everyone can move around as they please.
Precisely because everyone could move freely, during breaks and lunch, Futaba Rio felt like a fish on a cutting board—stared at by everyone, struggling desperately, yet unable to breathe. It was truly unbearable.
For her, a clubroom where she could avoid the gazes of her classmates and be quietly alone was like an oasis in the desert.
This condition was indeed too tempting.
However, Rio didn't agree immediately. Instead, she pushed up her glasses, sat opposite Yoru, and asked in a flat tone.
"Then, what exactly does this so-called 'providing assistance' entail?"
"It's a bit complicated to explain. It might be easier to understand if you read it yourself."
Yoru took out a white notebook from his jacket—identical in style to the one he had shown Miko before, just a different color—and handed it to Rio.
"Eh, is this!?"
Miko's expression changed. Is this the diary where Yoru records his daily life?
If it were anyone else, having a diary read by others would at most be embarrassing and lead to being teased for a while.
But for Yoru, it was completely different.
That's not a diary.
It's clearly an Exorcism Manual.
Will it be okay to show this to Futaba Rio?
"It's fine."
Yoru looked calm.
Of course, he wasn't stupid enough to give the original records to Rio, an ordinary person.
Setting aside whether she could accept the existence of evil spirits and ghosts...
Most importantly, what he needed was a Futaba Rio who could stand from an outsider's perspective, analyze various information rationally, and draw conclusions.
As the saying goes, Those involved are confused, while bystanders see clearly.
To achieve this, Yoru had changed the way he referred to and described everything related to evil spirits, his own abilities, and the "Doors" in Kyoto.
"This..."
Rio opened the notebook. As she read the content, a complex look appeared in her eyes behind the thick lenses.
After a long while, she looked up, stared at Yoru with a subtle expression, and asked tentatively.
"Are you... by any chance... suffering from Chunibyo (Eighth-Grader Syndrome)?"
Rio was indeed shocked by the content of the notebook.
However, it wasn't the kind of shock Miko imagined—learning the truth of the world.
It was the kind of shock that came from second-hand embarrassment.
After Yoru's "embellishment," the various terms in the notebook had turned into fantasy words overflowing with the Chunibyo aura of an adolescent boy.
For example, he referred to evil spirits and ghosts as: "Envoys of the Demon King lurking in the shadows, capable of destroying the human world."
And the "Doors" in various corners of Kyoto were called: "Supply Points for the Demon King's Envoys, capable of enhancing their power and influencing the real world."
With all these embellishments, although the meaning hadn't changed and it wouldn't affect Rio's analysis...
The notebook was overflowing with the scent of Chunibyo.
Given the level of detail in the settings, if a certain Chunibyo girl were to pick this up, she would definitely worship it as a sacred text.
"What Chunibyo? Don't talk nonsense."
Yoru stood up abruptly. In his deep black eyes, it seemed as if the fires of hell were burning. His clothes fluttered without any wind as he spoke slowly in an extremely deep tone.
"I am the Chosen One, selected by the Heavens, the only hope to save this world on the brink of collapse, possessing unbridled talent!"
Futaba Rio remained silent.
As expected.
This guy is definitely a Chunibyo!!!
However, just playing along with his delusions could earn her a clubroom all to herself...
This deal was actually quite cost-effective.
Moreover, deep down, Futaba Rio had a thought she herself didn't want to admit.
Although the content of this notebook is Chunibyo...
It's actually kinda interesting?
"Sigh. Then let me state a few conclusions I've personally drawn after reading this. First..."
"Wait a moment."
Before Rio could speak, Yoru raised his hand to stop her. He looked at Miko and smiled.
"Miko-san, could you please go buy me a bottle of cola?"
"Pepsi?"
"Don't be disgusting."
"Room temperature?"
"Are you done being disgusting yet?"
Miko felt satisfied that she had finally managed to annoy Yoru for once. She nodded and left contentedly.
She wasn't stupid; she understood perfectly well that Yoru was deliberately sending her away. But she didn't care.
Anyway, she couldn't really understand the weird conversation between those two.
After Miko left, Yoru looked back at Rio.
"Continue."
"Alright."
Rio nodded slightly, then spoke thoughtfully.
"If I treat everything in this notebook as events that truly happened, then the most important thing at this stage..."
"Is for the two 'Protagonists' to achieve at least a balance between the speed at which they eliminate the Demon King's Envoy Supply Points and the regeneration speed of those Supply Points."
"Otherwise, we will enter a bad ending. Or in gaming terms, a BAD END."