I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Qinglai clicked on it out of curiosity.

"Whoa—!"

She suddenly sat up in bed, clutching the blanket.

The photo shows Kiyori asleep and Kasumigaoka lying next to her. The key point is that although the blankets cover their lower bodies, their bare arms and shoulders, as well as the extremely close proximity, make it look like they've just finished having sex. Kasumigaoka's face is against Kiyori's forehead, while Kiyori is nestled against her neck like a submissive wife. Kasumigaoka's gaze at the camera and her mischievous smile make it clear that she's behind this!

"Kasumigaoka Utaha!"

At that moment, another message came through LINE:

"What do you think would happen if I sent this photo to Sawamura?"

"Yamete—!"

……………………………………………………………

Since returning from Kyoto, Kiyori has been preparing for her entrance exams. With her grades, getting into Kitauji would be a piece of cake, even more than enough.

After much deliberation, she still chose Kitauji, even though she would have to meet that person. Kiyoyori wanted to fulfill her promise to Asuka, a promise that had been overdue for who knows how long and was now only available for one last time.

Kiyoyori should perhaps thank Taki, for it was only when he came to Kitauji that the Kitauji brass band was able to be transformed, and only when the brass band successfully transformed would she have the opportunity to stand in that hall and perform with Asuka.

When she entered high school, Asuka would be a third-year student, and Kiyoshi had never hated the gap between them so much.

……………………………………………………………

"Little Qinglai, wake up."

A pair of hands were shaking Qinglai's body, and Qinglai couldn't stand it, so he pulled the blanket over his head.

Yesterday, she actually helped Eriri draw a manga based on herself and Utaha-senpai until the early hours of the morning. What's wrong with this world...?

It wasn't that Eriri was particularly tough, but rather a threat from someone else—that's right, a threat from Kasumigaoka Utaha—Kasumigaoka Utako herself, and using that same photo from before.

The pitiful Kiyoshi had no choice but to shamelessly ask Eriri for help, which resulted in Eriri staring at her for a long time.

"Sleep a little longer..."

"No way!" The person seemed a little angry. "Today is the day the results are released! And if you don't get up now, I'll be late!"

"brush--"

The blanket was pulled back with a snap, and blinding sunlight streamed in through the opened window.

Kiyoshi groaned in pain and buried his face in the pillow.

"Let me go..."

The person rudely grabbed Qinglai's clothes and started unbuttoning them. Qinglai, who was in a daze, was forced to change her clothes and was shoved into the bathroom to wash up. Then she was led downstairs and made to eat breakfast at the table.

With his eyes glazed over, Kiyora nearly shoved tamagoyaki up his nostrils.

Good morning, Asuka.

Yuanzi glanced helplessly at Qinglai, who was mechanically eating breakfast at the table, and said, "I'm sorry to trouble you again today."

"It's alright, Auntie."

Asuka took the bento from Touko's hands. "I should be thanking Aunt Touko for preparing this bento for me."

“Although I’m not worried about Kiyori,,” Touko smiled gently at Asuka, “if Kiyori successfully gets into Soubu High School, I’d still like to ask Asuka to take care of her a little more.”

The two of them simultaneously turned their gaze to Kiyoshi, who had finished breakfast and was sitting obediently at the table awaiting further instructions.

"Leave it to me!" Asuka stepped forward, grabbed Kiyori's arm, and led him towards the entrance. "Then let's go out."

"Have a safe trip." Yuanzi waved to the two of them from the doorway.

Since the school wasn't far away, only a ten-minute walk, Asuka took Kiyoshi's hand to school, just like when they were little. In fact, if she hadn't taken Kiyoshi's hand, that sleep-deprived guy might have fallen into the river while walking.

"It's been so long since I've gone to school with Kiyora..."

"That's true, it must have been when I was in elementary school." Kiyoyori yawned gently.

The early spring wind still carried a hint of chill. Kiyoshi looked at the familiar yet reassuring figure in front of him, and then at their clasped hands.

"The weather is nice today..."

Asuka glanced at the cloud-covered sky with a puzzled look. "It's a cloudy day today, it might even rain."

"Really? I think it's pretty good."

Kiyoshi shrugged indifferently, then curled the corners of his mouth where Asuka couldn't see.

Look, my sun is walking right in front of me.

"arrive."

At the school gate, groups of students wearing various school uniforms walked in, but most of them were wearing the school's own uniform, which was a dark suit just like Asuka's. The rest were candidates who had come to see their exam results, just like her.

Huh? Kitauji's school uniform is a suit, isn't it?

Before Kiyotomi's rusty brain could even process anything, Asuka dragged her all the way to the notice board.

Most of the people around were nervously searching for their names on the notice board, while Kiyoshi looked around indifferently. Asuka, on the other hand, was also caught up in the tense atmosphere and kept staring at the notice board.

The notice board wasn't ranked by grades, but by the first letter of the names, so it took Asuka quite a while to find Tachibana Kiyori, whose name started with T.

"Chiang Rai! Chiy Rai!"

Kiyoyori was brought back to his senses by Asuka's call.

The moment he turned around, Asuka hugged him. "Not bad, Kiyora! You passed the exam!"

"Well, it's just a simple entrance exam, not some prestigious school..."

As soon as Qinglai said that, he immediately attracted a lot of attention from those around him.

"Ha!" Asuka vigorously rubbed Kiyora's head. "What are you saying? Soubu High School has the highest deviation score in Chiba City. Students are fighting tooth and nail to get into this school. Your words have really made us hate them to the max."

"Huh?" Kiyoyori instantly snapped out of his daze and pulled himself out of Asuka's arms. "Sobu High? Chiba?! Isn't it Kitauji?"

"Huh? Kitauji?" Asuka looked confused as well. "Is Kiyori still asleep? We're in the Kanto region, you know."

"Ah, no, Asuka...aren't you studying in Kitauji?"

Kiyoshi suddenly felt that there seemed to be something wrong with his language system.

"Are you really still half asleep? I've been studying at Soubu High School the whole time," Asuka said, pressing the back of her hand against Kiyori's forehead. "Alright, I have to go to class now. Kiyori, go home by yourself. Don't wander off on the way, okay? Hurry up and go home."

Kiyoshi slapped her hand away, "I'm not a child anymore!"

Asuka didn't mind, withdrew her hand and walked into the teaching building, blowing Kiyoshi a kiss along the way.

Qinglai turned his head away in disgust, then glanced at the notice board as if he had remembered something.

Sure enough, Reina Kousaka's name was also on it.

What's going on...? Am I dreaming?

Suddenly, a gasp erupted from the crowd, "That's the unattainable beauty of Soubu High School!"

Kiyoshi glanced curiously in the direction of the crowd. A slender girl with waist-length hair walked through the crowd without looking to the side. The wind blew through her hair, and Kiyoshi, standing outside the crowd, could almost smell the fragrance in the wind.

"It's Yukino Yukinoshita-senpai!"

A girl shouted excitedly, and the name seemed to resonate with many people in the crowd, making the already bustling notice board even more agitated.

Kiyoshi stared blankly in the direction the girl had left.

Yukinoshita... Yukino...?

Chapter 01 Welcome to Soubu High School!

April is the season when cherry blossoms bloom, the season for new students to enroll, the season for a new life to begin, and—

"I've gotten into the habit of waking up early..."

Qinglai glanced at the time on his phone; it was 6:30.

what……

Kiyoshi stood in front of the full-length mirror. In the mirror, he was wearing a brand-new high school uniform. The plaid skirt reached just above his knees, revealing his slender calves. The dark suit jacket was gathered at the waist, and the shirt buttons were neatly fastened to the top.

Although he is a high school student, he looks no different from when he was in junior high school.

General Military High.

Qinglai stroked the school badge on his chest.

Since returning home that day, she has discovered that her entire world has changed. Kiyoyori's school changed from Kitauji to Sobu High School, and they moved from Uji to Chiba. She was the only one who felt that something was wrong, as if she were the most abnormal person in the world.

Even more terrifying is that some of her memories seem to be being replaced by some kind of force.

Yukinoshita Yukino.

Kiyoshiro still remembers the flutter in his chest when he heard this name a month ago, the same surname as Yukinoshita Haruno.

what is the problem?

who are you?

............................................................

Kiyoshi had asked Asuka to go to school with him, but she refused.

"I need to go to the club to prepare for the orientation first, so Qinglai can come to school at his own pace."

That's what the person said.

After retiring in her third year last year, Asuka was elected as the vice president and is currently active in the club. It is said that they have been planning the recruitment of new students since before the start of the school year.

In her words, it's called the Newborn Capture Project.

Are newborn insects...?

I deliberately stayed at home until most students went to school before leaving. This was one of the few times in all these years that Qinglai went to school without his oboe. His hands felt empty, and he was not used to it.

On the way from home to school, there is a path lined with cherry blossom trees. The gentle spring breeze blows the cherry blossom petals down, like a cherry blossom rain. Kiyotaka stands quietly under the tree, enjoying the touch of the petals on her face. Even though it is the first time she has walked this path, she feels a strange sense of familiarity.

Leaving the deserted cherry blossom path and walking to the busy roadside, the number of students suddenly increased.

Soubu Takamitsu's grade cannot be determined from his school uniform, so the person walking next to him could be a classmate or a senior, but this does not affect Kiyoyori who walks alone.

"Sabre!"