After lunch break, Rojin lazily collapsed on his desk.
"I get so sleepy after eating."
He yawned long and hard, eyes half-dead.
Sakamoto, packing his bag, glanced at Rojin thoughtfully.
"You seem really tired lately."
Rojin repeated the same excuse as always.
"My workplace had overtime last night."
"I should've gotten off early, but there was a really troublesome customer."
"I see."
Sakamoto nodded, seeming to believe him.
The thing was, Rojin's excuse worked once or twice, but after a while anyone would get suspicious.
Especially someone like Sakamoto, who wasn't exactly oblivious.
But Sakamoto had never questioned him.
As long as Rojin used that excuse, Sakamoto accepted it.
As for the so-called part-time job, Sakamoto had long formed his own guesses.
Though years had passed, he still occasionally remembered that crimson figure.
The memory was blurry, but that back-facing silhouette was burned into his mind.
He didn't know what Rojin's real job was, or where he disappeared for two years.
But did it matter?
Adjusting his glasses, Sakamoto turned the page of his book.
If anyone glanced at it, they would be shocked to find it wasn't a high-school textbook.
It was a specialized book.
He was working hard in his own way.
"Good afternoon, everyone."
Hiratsuka walked in wearing her white coat, lesson plan under her arm.
She scanned the classroom and began roll call.
"Hayama Hayato."
"Here."
"Miura Yumiko."
"Here."
"Oreki Houtarou."
"…Here."
Much quieter than before, but Hiratsuka didn't care and continued calling names.
To be honest, Rojin didn't understand the point of roll call at all.
If this were college, sure—seats weren't fixed.
But this was high school.
You could tell who was absent at a glance.
"Rojin."
"Here."
Rojin raised his hand in response and then continued to rest his head on the desk.
The Research Institute had already gathered some information on the Occult Research Club.
From what they knew so far, the club had no ties to any organization.
It was far more likely that they had accidentally obtained a contained object or documented something related to one.
"Sakamoto—"
As Hiratsuka called Sakamoto, the screeching sound of a chair being dragged abruptly cut through her voice.
"Here."
Sakamoto calmly raised his hand.
For a moment, many of the girls in the class shot him angry looks.
Almost everyone who knew Sakamoto was curious about his full name.
But no matter how hard they tried, the last two or three characters of his name remained a mystery.
Sakamoto's real name was quickly becoming one of the top ten unexplained phenomena at the school.
The previous nine were: Hanako of the restroom, the staircase that could never be ascended, a piano playing itself at midnight, students in the abandoned old building, the singer in the music room, shadows in the cafeteria kitchen, thieves in the girls' dorm, moving mannequins, flying snow globes, and the mirror at midnight.
You ask why the top nine has ten items?
It's like the Four Heavenly Kings having five members.
Before this semester, these phenomena were quite popular, with many claiming to have seen them.
The most talked-about were Hanako of the restroom and the singer in the music room.
Some scoffed at these tales.
Take the abandoned old building, for example—what abandoned building even exists at Sobu High?
Yet surprisingly, starting this semester, most of the phenomena hadn't been reported again.
Hanako of the restroom and the music room singer were the most frequently sighted before.
Witnesses described Hanako as a cute boy.
The singer in the music room didn't seem human; it had a pair of butterfly wings.
Many had previously heard the singer perform incomprehensible songs at night.
But now, no one had heard anything.
Rojin simply smiled without a word.
"All right, let's start the lesson."
Shutting the attendance book, Hiratsuka patted the podium, suppressing the classroom's restlessness.
She picked up a piece of chalk and began the lecture.
As always, Rojin, the least diligent student, went through the motions perfunctorily.
It didn't accomplish anything, but that was how he did it.
Time passed slowly under Hiratsuka's voice.
Soon, the class bell rang.
"Class dismissed."
Slamming the lesson plan shut, Hiratsuka left the classroom briskly.
She had to check on the problematic club.
Recently, the student council's complaints about the Service Club had been growing.
If they didn't act quickly, the club would soon be disbanded.
Though the student council at Sobu High didn't hold the absolute power of an elite academy, disbanding a club wasn't difficult.
Especially under the current president, Sengoku Kakeru.
He seemed easygoing, but was actually very stubborn.
Getting him to compromise on such matters was practically impossible.
After Hiratsuka left, Rojin stayed in the classroom for a short while before standing and leaving.
He had already learned the location of the Occult Research Club and just needed to go there directly.
"Ready?"
"Ready!"
As Rojin arrived at the clubroom door, he overheard this exchange.
Through the window, the classroom inside was dimly lit.
The curtains were drawn tightly.
A single white candle burned quietly in the center of the room.
"Are we really going to play the spirit-summoning game?"
A girl standing near the corner and watching the camera spoke weakly.
She and her friend had joined the club just to slack off safely.
How did they get dragged into this occult game?
Normally, she didn't believe in these things.
But the president seemed to be serious…?
"It's fine. You just watch."
Kindo Yamato, the president, waved impatiently.
He had been preparing for this game for days.
If it worked, the ritual should work too.
Thinking this, a hint of fanaticism appeared in his eyes.