I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Kasumigaoka didn't press her any further. "Although I really wanted to do this, I regret to say that I'm not here alone today. Like you, I'm here today just for club activities."

"That game that Tomoya-senpai planned?"

"Well, Sawamura wanted to film here, so he brought Kato along. I also wanted to come and gather some material."

"How's the script coming along, Shiyu-senpai?"

Kasumigaoka looked troubled. "I finished the first version, but Aki rejected it. I also think it could be more dramatic, so I'm thinking about a second version."

Kiyoshi had an "I see" expression on his face.

"I know you're very busy, but could you come and participate in activities on weekends sometimes? Aki-kun can be quite unpredictable sometimes, and Sawamura-kun seems to need your help too."

"Hey! Kasumigaoka Utaha, what are you saying behind people's backs?!"

A familiar voice came from behind Kasumigaoka; it was Eriri, whom I had met not long ago.

Unlike Kasumigaoka, who wore an elegant black yukata, Eriri's golden yukata had a flamboyant style. Although she had a European face, it suited her cute little tiger teeth quite well. Standing next to her was Kato Megumi, who wore a pink yukata. Even though she was wearing a brightly colored yukata, it couldn't hide her invisibility.

"Kiyoshi? What are you doing here?"

Eriri knew that her cousin disliked coming to these kinds of events, especially after that incident, she almost never attended festivals or fireworks displays again.

"Change your mood?"

Qinglai shrugged, the warmth in his palms gradually being taken away by the ice water.

“Now that you’re here, things are much easier!” Eriri immediately put aside all other thoughts. “Let’s find a place, and you and Kato can work together. I just had an idea.”

As things seemed to be getting more and more complicated, Kiyoshi was troubled about how to get out of this situation.

"Actually, there's someone else waiting for me..."

"Someone?"

Eriri and Kasumigaoka both narrowed their eyes at the same time, while Kiyorai took a step back helplessly.

"Shimizu-kun, you didn't buy this bottle of water just for 'someone' too, did you?"

Kasumigaoka leaned forward slightly, his narrowed eyes piercingly revealing his all-knowing gaze.

"Uh……"

Although rationally Kiyori should tell Kasumigaoka that someone was indeed waiting, and out of courtesy she couldn't keep the person waiting too long, especially since that person was directionally challenged and might get lost...

However, Kiyoyori's will to survive was growing wildly in front of him, under the gaze that seemed to say, "If you admit it, I'll kill you."

"Actually, it's because I just..." I just drank her water.

This doesn't seem like a life-saving answer.

"It's my fault—"

All the ambient sounds around him suddenly seemed to be filtered out by some kind of noise reduction device. All he could hear was the sound of leaves rustling in the wind overhead. At this moment, Qinglai was no longer on the bustling street. All he could see was the lake reflecting the lights and the bright moon, and the unbearable stinging pain between his toes.

The pain and the cool breeze calmed Kiyotaka's mind.

Once again, she suddenly swapped bodies with Yukinoshita.

Oh no! So, Yukinoshita-senpai should be—

Kiyoshi abruptly stood up and walked toward the vending machine, but was stopped by the pain between his toes. The not-so-soft rope rubbed against his toes, and Kiyoshi, who was not used to this kind of pain, showed a complicated expression.

But she couldn't stay here any longer. She had to get to Yukinoshita's side as soon as possible. Right now, Yukinoshita was facing Kasumigaoka, who was full of observation and cunning and was on the verge of getting angry, and Eriri, her older sister who had grown up with her since childhood. If she wasn't careful, she might expose her identity.

Kiyoshi endured the pain and took his biggest steps forward, as if torturing himself by intensifying the pain before adapting to it.

There it is!

"What do you owe, Shimizu-kun?"

Kiyoyori's stammering and abrupt ending clearly annoyed Kasumigaoka even more, and the bewildered expression on his face only fueled her anger. Putting aside the fact that she had been given a flimsy excuse, he was now starting to drift off in the middle of their conversation.

However, Yukinoshita, who was enjoying the cool evening breeze by the river just a second ago, was suddenly brought here to face a girl she didn't know, but who was clearly angry.

Shimizu-kun? Are you talking about Tachibana-kun?

Given Yukino's quick reflexes, she could easily guess that she had switched bodies with Tachibana again, but she didn't quite understand why she had to deal with Tachibana's social circle every time she switched bodies with someone. She didn't even know who the other person was.

Unsure of how the conversation was going, Yukinoshita hesitated to answer. Not only the black-haired girl, but also the blonde girl next to her, whose face was very similar to Tachibana's, was looking at her with a scrutinizing gaze.

She knew that it was Sawamura, Tachibana's cousin, whom she had met briefly not long ago.

I have never felt so lost before.

"Tachibana-san."

P.S.: Friends looking for the group, remember to check the announcement board. I got up really early this morning to read, but I ended up just staring blankly at the book all morning... What am I going to do...?

Chapter 59: Under the Snow, Things Remain the Same

"It seems like Yuihama is looking for us."

The most important thing now is to get Yukinoshita, who is completely unaware of the situation, away from this terrible development. The less she says, the less mistakes she will make. But whether Yukinoshita speaks or remains silent, it will arouse the suspicion of the other two. Therefore, Kiyoshiro's best course of action is to take her away as soon as possible.

“Then let’s go find them first,” Yukinoshita immediately understood Kiyori’s intention and smiled apologetically at the two girls in front of her. “Sorry, I’ll have to go first.”

She still wasn't quite used to playing Tachibana Kiyori, and Yukinoshita smoothed out her slightly twitching lips.

Compared to Kasumigaoka, Eriri was more familiar with the Service Club, having at least met a few of them once. Aside from being surprised that her cousin would come to the festival with others, she was mostly pleased.

At least Kiyoshi no longer locked himself in that small world.

"Okay, don't stay out too late."

She was simply giving her sister this reminder.

"Wait a minute," Kasumigaoka glanced at Eriri, who seemed to have no objection, before turning her gaze to Yukinoshita, "May I ask who you are?"

Shouldn't you state your name before asking someone for something?

Perhaps it was the image beneath the snow that gave Kiyoyori the courage to speak like that; out of admiration and guilt towards Kasumigaoka, she had never spoken to him in such a tone.

Kasumigaoka glanced lightly at Yukinoshita, who remained silent, unaware of what was going on.

"Kasumigaoka Utaha, third-year student at Toyonosaki Academy."

"Yukino Yukinoshita, a second-year student at Soubu High School."

Introducing her to him personally was rather delicate, and Kiyoyori didn't look at Yukinoshita's expression.

"Yukikinoshita Yukino?"

Kasumigaoka, who had been furious, immediately withdrew his angry gaze and turned to confusion.

She seemed to have some recollection of the name.

[...a first-year student whose name contains the character "雪" (snow)...]

I remember now, her name...

In the blurry scene, a voice seemed to be saying something. Kasumigaoka couldn't see the other person's face or hear what they were saying, but he felt a deep sadness.

Is this her memory? But she has no clearer impression of it. It's like a dream. When she wakes up, she can only remember fragmented pieces, and those fragments are filled with endless sadness.

Yukinoshita clearly had some recollection of the name Kasumigaoka. If she remembered correctly, it was the author of the bestselling light novel she had seen in Kiyoyori's room earlier. In other words, their relationship was closer than that of an ordinary author and reader.

Although she had no intention of prying into Kiyoshi's privacy, she felt a strange soreness in her chest for some reason.

Kiyoyori was unsure of Kasumigaoka's attitude, so she took advantage of the other's distraction and quickly fled with Yukino. However, in her nervousness, she obviously forgot about another person present.

Kato Megumi watched the two figures flee in panic, a puzzled expression on her face.

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

It's no exaggeration to say they fled in panic. Kiyotori pulled Yukinoshita along and walked in the opposite direction until the crowd behind them completely buried their figures. Only then did Kiyotori stop. At this moment, the pain between her toes belatedly crept up her nerves. Even though she had only walked a short distance, Kiyotori felt as if she had run a marathon, breathing in the air filled with the smell of fireworks.

“Senior…” Kiyotaka took a moment to catch his breath, “Your body really needs to be exercised.”

He learns everything very quickly, but his physical strength is extremely poor.

Still feeling a bit dizzy, Kiyoshi grabbed Yukinoshita's arm. Even though it was her own body, she still couldn't get used to seeing herself from this angle.

"Was that Kasumigaoka just now Kasumigaoka Utako?"

Perhaps thanks to Kiyoyori's diligent exercise, this was the first time Yukinoshita had felt so refreshed.

"Yes."

Yukinoshita nodded without saying anything more, but took out Kiyoyori's phone and glanced at the new message on the screen.

"It seems you were right, Yuihama-san is indeed looking for us."

"So, should we meet them in our current state?"

After a moment's thought, Yukinoshita, with Kiyoyori's tacit approval, opened her phone and replied:

"We have already left due to Yukinoshita-senpai's health condition. We didn't have time to send her a message just now, sorry."

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

To avoid any further complications, the two decided to say goodbye and go home—of course, to each other's homes. Rather than continuing to wander around outside and getting caught by other people, it was better to go home and patiently wait for the body swap to end.

Kiyoyori left the tram. There weren't many pedestrians on the platform at this time. The sound of his wooden clogs hitting the ground echoed on the empty platform. A notification sounded from inside the tram behind him, and the doors slowly closed.

"Yukinoshita-kun".

Kiyoshi didn't react in time.

"Yukinoshita-kun".

The voice called out again, and then a hand gently touched Qinglai's shoulder.

As if startled, Kiyoyori's body trembled violently.

"Middle Ages, senior...?"

By the way, it seems that Yukinoshita-senpai has some connection with some of the third-year students in the brass band.

"I'm sorry, did I scare you?" Nakashiko immediately withdrew his hand and smiled apologetically. "I saw you when I got off the tram, but you didn't seem to hear me."

"terribly sorry."