1.
The early morning was flowing as it always did for the Game Development Department—leisurely and peacefully.
As befits the Game Development Department, comprised solely of game enthusiasts, they had happily wrapped up their day well into the night with all things game-related. They were so nocturnal that it was almost as if the word “night owl” had been coined just for them, as they tended to look rather weak in the mornings.
Thus, the mornings of the Game Development Department usually began with the sluggish movements of three girls emerging from under their blankets, groggily stretching their limbs.
“Ghh… I’m so tired…”
“Big sister… Can I have some water…?”
This was also true for ‘Hanaoaka Yuzu’, the programmer and leader of the Game Development Department, who was also the department’s top output provider.
Though she suffered from a timid personality and social anxiety, Yuzu was genuinely passionate about games in general. In every game she played, she would secure a ranker’s position, making her very familiar with all-nighters.
“…Ah.”
But even Yuzu was startled at the sunlight streaming into the room through the windows. Even though she was used to staying up all night, her aversion to sunlight, a symbol of the day, was an entirely different story.
She instinctively got up and moved to the corner of the room to avoid the light.
In fact, Yuzu was the most fitting person in this club to deserve the title of “nocturnal.”
Despite being accustomed to staying up late, exposure to sunlight was far from comforting for her.
“Hurry up, big sister! We’ll be late!”
“Hey, wait! My shoelace, Midori, could you help me?”
“Ah, really… Come here!”
As Yuzu moved to the corner, she watched her members hurriedly getting ready to go out. Checking the calendar, they seemed to have some kind of schedule, and were making quick preparations.
In contrast to Yuzu, who preferred to stay holed up in the clubroom, these cheerful girls led normal, everyday lives. It was both admirable and, in a way, made Yuzu feel small in comparison. Moving her feet toward the cabinet that gave her comfort and ease, Yuzu finally found solace.
“Hoooh…”
The narrow space, the dim view, the overwhelming sense of security.
The narrow confines of the cabinet, which had long since ceased to suffocate her and now offered her comfort and tranquility, had almost become a healing totem for Yuzu. In gaming terms, it was akin to a healer’s AoE buff to counteract mental damage.
Yuzu sighed in relief, watching the twins get ready to leave through the only slit of light in the cabinet.
They must have been used to this, as they began waving at her inside the cabinet.
“See you later, Yuzu!”
“See you again, Yuzu-chen.”
“Uh, uh… come back safely, both of you…”
Yuzu replied quietly, but instead of replying or mocking her, they simply smiled warmly and continued to wave at her before leaving the clubroom.
As a result, Yuzu felt a small measure of happiness and gratitude, along with a comforting sense of solitude in the quiet that followed their departure.
Though she felt guilty about it, happiness with close friends and happiness alone were indeed different kinds. Even if it would confuse the sociable duo, the distinction was clear.
Alone in the clubroom, Yuzu crawled out of the cabinet and sat in front of the game console, starting the game. Despite there being game development work to do, as the name of the club implied, she decided to indulge in this happiness for now.
“Haha…”
Without realizing it, Yuzu started the game with a joyful chuckle, enjoying her own pleasure with the controller for over an hour when…
—.
“…?”
Step-
“…?!”
Yuzu’s keen ears, focused on the game, suddenly picked up an unfamiliar sound approaching from outside the clubroom.
Her body froze. The nimble hands that were just moving rapidly stopped, and her head turned stiffly.
It wasn’t the first time she’d heard sounds from outside the room, but for some reason, this step-like sound seemed to be heading directly toward the Game Development Department clubroom.
Step-
Step-
“Eep!”
It wasn’t a mistake! The sound was getting louder!
And it wasn’t the familiar sound of footsteps she knew!
Someone unfamiliar, someone she didn’t recognize, was approaching.
Step-
Je, buck-
Even more strangely, the footsteps were irregular.
Normally, walking makes a consistent sound, but this sound was irregular. Sometimes light, sometimes heavy.
At times, it was as if no one was there at all.
Step-
Step…
This was actually because Hiiro was practicing a technique to dampen his footsteps through “kei” but Yuzu had no way of knowing this.
She only had more questions.
Can this really be the sound of a person walking?
If it’s not a person, then what could it be?
“Hhhheeeuuuuugh…!!”
As she thought about it, Yuzu’s face began to pale.
In a panic, she quickly unplugged the game console and hastily erased any signs of her presence.
Similar to someone possessed by a horror game protagonist, her movements in a crisis situation became faster, muffling the sound as much as possible as she erased every trace in an instant.
She shoved the drink she was drinking back into the fridge,
Replaced the cushion she was sitting on with something around her,
And used her phenomenal memory to restore the game console to its previous untouched state.
All this happened in less than 10 seconds.
Step-
The footsteps were getting closer, now within a distance of less than 10 meters.
‘Uuuh, please. Pleasepleaseplease!!’
Yuzu swallowed her breath and practically dove into the cabinet.
She clamped her hand over her mouth and tried to suppress her breathing.
She felt as if she was right inside a horror game, fighting to hold back the tears that were about to flow.
‘Why, why, why is it coming here…!’
Who was coming, and why?
Though Yuzu’s head was full of questions, her growing fear dragged her deeper and deeper into panic.
Step-
Step-
—snap!
The footsteps stopped exactly in front of the club room.
Yuzu stopped breathing as well.
And then…
Squeak…
The door opened, and the presence of someone filled the space outside the cabinet.
Through the slits of the cabinet, Yuzu could see.
Someone with snow-white hair stepped into the room.
A figure emitting a non-human aura.
Sharp eyes that were scanning the room, presumably looking for someone.
‘Wh, what is it… Why are the eyes…’
Eyes glowing blue as if possessed by burning embers.
Even a casual glance at these menacing eyes made Yuzu’s trembling worse.
Yuzu couldn’t help but think that the current situation was reminiscent of a moment in a horror game.
In such a situation, the protagonist could only hold their breath and pray that the monster would leave the room.
‘It’s s-so s-scary…’
Was it human? Or something else?
She didn’t know. Trembling from head to toe out of fear, Yuzu silently prayed to a god she didn’t believe in.
But then she realized something horrifying: the gods were dead.
Knock knock knock─.
Because the unknown entity—whether monster or human—had started knocking on the cabinet door she was hiding in!!
‘Hiiiiiiiieeeeeek………..!!!’
Yuzu bit her lip tightly, suppressing her inner scream as much as possible, wishing desperately that the presence outside the door would vanish.
But then…
“Hey, is anyone there?”
“Is there nobody here?”
Now that the presence outside the door had started speaking directly to her, Yuzu’s fear of death intensified.
The innocent voice was tempting her to open the cabinet door.
If she opened it, what would happen to her? Would the monster reveal its true nature and devour her? Would she be taken over by a ghost and used in some strange ritual?
With these thoughts, regret began flooding Yuzu’s mind, terrified that she might transform into a monster herself or meet death in some form.
“Hmm… This is strange…”
Perhaps this was a cliché, but if not… she might end up becoming a monster.
Momo and Midori… I’m sorry… and thank you… for playing games with someone like me… I won’t be able to play with you anymore…”
Yuzu mentally uttered her last words, trembling uncontrollably as she did so.
Right at that moment, the presence behind the door spoke again.
“You’re listening, aren’t you?”
At the weighty voice that made her instinctively hold her breath, Yuzu opened her tightly shut eyes and had no choice but to see.
Through the slits of the cabinet, she could see the two glowing blue eyes staring clearly at her position.
A mocking smile, as if the person knew her location from the start.
The beautiful face that seemed all the more non-human for its beauty was now smiling seductively at her.
Under normal circumstances, Yuzu might have thought, “She’s beautiful,” but now her mind was filled only with fear.
“……!”
Instinctively overtaken by fear, Yuzu turned her head to escape, but how could she? She was in a narrow cabinet.
Before she could react, Yuzu banged her head forcefully against the cabinet wall, momentarily losing consciousness.
Through her fading senses, all she could hear was the bewildered voice of someone saying,
“…Eh?”
2.
“…Uh.”
Yuzu came to several minutes later. Despite being unconscious the entire time, her expression hadn’t been pleasant, as if haunted by nightmares. As her consciousness gradually returned, her furrowed brows relaxed, and a twitch around her eyes became apparent.
Looking down at Yuzu, who was emitting faint groans on her knees, I couldn’t help but ponder how to greet her. After all, it was the first time we were meeting.
“…Hmm, I didn’t expect her to faint.”
I certainly didn’t want the first impression to go any worse, so I was trying to avoid further disaster.
After about a minute of waiting anxiously for Yuzu to fully regain consciousness, her eyes suddenly shot open.
Caught off guard, I greeted her with a somewhat awkward tone.
“Uh, hello…?”
“…”
No response came back.
Had she fainted again?
Looking at a confused Yuzu, whose eyes blinked while intensely examining my face, it was clear she was trying to confirm something.
“Uh, excuse me…”
“S, is… is this person…?”
“Oh. Ah, sorry. It was a joke…”
“…”
“Sorry…”
Apparently, she was checking whether I was human or not.
Since I had scared her regardless, I had no choice but to apologize while making a sorry face.
As I frowned, Yuzu panicked, stood up, and started frantically waving her hands.
But such a reaction only made my heart ache more.
“U-Uh-Uh-HH-Hh… I-It’s okay… I-I-I-I-I was scared just by hearing the footsteps, so it’s partly my fault…”
“No, but… it was still my fault for scaring you…”
“But, but…”
“No, it’s still my fault…”
“…”
“…”
…To anyone watching, it’d probably seem like we were asking each other what the heck we were doing.
We were engaged in what could be called the ultimate awkward exchange, each trying to take the blame rather than pushing it to the other.
“J-Je…”
“NO! I’m more sorry…”
Already, we had created an odd tableau, sitting cross-legged and bowing our heads to each other in mutual apology.
Yuzu, true to her reclusive nature, responded defensively, hoping to quickly defuse the increasingly awkward situation. Meanwhile, I, knowing about her timid nature and feeling responsible for scaring her, sincerely apologized.
“Really, it’s fine…”
“NO! It’s not fine for me…”
“B-But it’s imposing…”
“But still… let me make it up to you. I can’t keep my peace of mind if I don’t…”
“B-Bbut…”
However, Yuzu realized something as we continued this peculiar exchange.
Each overlapping conversation, the growing sense of intimacy and willingness with every exchanged word, the simultaneous awkwardness and urge to escape—all of it allowed her a window into his nature.
“…They must’ve come here for Momo and Midori.”
Recalling the only sociable duo willing to interact with her, she thought,
Ah. The person in front of her wasn’t an outcast like herself but clearly an extrovert.
Despite not having much experience conversing with such types, her accumulated data on extroverts, gathered from her exposure to various communities, led her to firmly believe this.
It became clear that it would be difficult for Yuzu to quickly diffuse the situation as she wished.
Then what should she do?
‘How am I supposed to know…!’
There was no way the introverted girl could figure that out.
All she could think of was that she wanted to escape this situation as soon as possible and be left alone.
After all, an introvert’s stamina depletes just by talking to extroverts.
Yuzu’s HP was dropping in real-time.
Though Yuzu desperately wanted to end the conversation, Hiiro, who seemed to lack the social awareness to notice, continued to approach her like a stubborn retriever.
Ah. She couldn’t handle it anymore.
Yuzu’s overloaded mind eventually crashed, inputting some bizarre conclusions.
In simpler terms…
“G, game! Let’s settle this with a game…!”
This kind of abrupt acceleration was typical of an introvert.
While Yuzu belatedly realized that she had made a strange suggestion and blushed, there was one fortunate aspect to the situation.
“Game? What kind?”
“…??”
And that was the fact that Hiiro’s way of thinking was by no means ordinary either.
While a regular person might think, “Why suddenly?” Most students from [Blue Archive], including Hiiro, were enthusiastic about the idea.
So all he did was show interest in Yuzu’s peculiar suggestion and ask this simple question.
“If I win… actually, you don’t have to do anything…”
“Then if I win, you’ll give me anything as compensation!”
“Y-yes, alright…”
‘…Isn’t that usually the opposite…?’
Though Yuzu silently wondered about this, she realized that since she had made the suggestion, backing out was no longer an option.
With a sigh, Yuzu sat in front of the game console.
‘What kind of situation is this…?’
An extrovert had stormed in and scared her unconscious, they apologized, and now they were suddenly playing a game?
Certainly, a bewildering situation, and Yuzu couldn’t help but despair.
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