Monday night. The lights of the shopping district went out, one by one. In front of Yomigaeridou, the used bookstore facing Kakenuke Street, Momo and the other five gathered around the map they'd received from the old man Kuramae, going over their final strategy. The night wind made the old signboard creak and groan. "[serious] Alright, let's move." They still weren't used to their own deep, husky voice. They cleared their throat with a cough. Their father's broad-shouldered school uniform flapped and billowed in the night wind. "…Ah." Okarun let out a small sound. Momo turned around. Someone else was standing there. Black hair that reached their shoulders. So sleek and composed it seemed to melt into the darkness of the night. Narrow, sharp eyes. Pale skin. A beautiful girl. But that expressionless face — Momo knew it better than anyone. "Shiratori…?" "[cold] …Yeah." Shiratori Shota. One of their classmates. The type who was always reading a book alone — Momo had never really talked to them much. But it seemed this curse had turned Shiratori into a girl, too. "[surprised] Huh? Why the hell are you so calm about this!? Aren't you freaked out!?" Jiji — the blonde twin-tail gyaru with a former delinquent inside — shouted with wide eyes. Their girls' uniform was stretched taut to bursting. Shiratori gently ran their fingers through their long black hair. "[cold] …I don't really mind it." That voice was just a little softer than usual. An awkward pause fell over everyone. "[sad] 'Don't mind it,' they said…" Aira, now in the form of a handsome young man, furrowed their brow in concern. Originally the school's idol, they were now a tall, striking beauty. Their mannerisms were still completely feminine, creating a strange sense of imbalance. "…What do you think they mean?" Okarun leaned close to Momo's ear and whispered. Their smooth black hair brushed against Momo's arm. Okarun's small lips — now that of a girl — were right there. Their breath tickled Momo's ear. *Thump.* The center of Momo's chest grew hot. "[angry] Sh-shut up! How should I know!" Momo brusquely pushed Okarun away. They felt their arm brush against something soft, but decided not to think about it. "[laughing] …Oh my." Aira smiled with their handsome face. "[serious] Whatever. Shiratori, you coming too? We're heading to Garbage Wasteland." Momo pulled themselves together and looked at Shiratori. Shiratori gave a small nod. "[cold] …Finally, my outside matches my inside." At those words, everyone froze. Jiji, their twin-tails swaying, muttered quietly. "[whispers] …I don't really get it, but if you're good with it, then it's all good, right?" Shiratori said nothing more. They just gazed silently in the direction of Garbage Wasteland. … The flashlight beams were all they had to rely on. The entrance to Garbage Wasteland looked completely different from how it did in the daytime. Discarded refrigerators and washing machines cast bizarrely shaped shadows in the darkness. Every time the wind blew, broken doll parts clattered and rattled. "[serious] Watch your step. It's nothing but junk underfoot." Momo, now in a male body, took the lead, pushing aside scrap as they advanced. With their increased strength, this was nothing. *—Crunch.* "Eek!" A small shriek rose from behind. Momo turned to see Okarun's skirt caught on a tall pile of scrap. With a girl's body, their center of gravity had shifted — they couldn't move the way they wanted to. Momo silently reached out a hand. Okarun stared intently at that hand. Momo's hand, now larger. Long fingers, knobby and rough. "…Thank you." Okarun spoke in a small voice and took that hand. They tried to say something more, but no voice came out. Because Momo's hand was so warm. "Shut up and just grab on already." Momo spoke brusquely and pulled Okarun up. But they were just a little slow to let go of their hand. Meanwhile. "[angry] Dammit, this gyaru-ass body is seriously impossible to walk in!" Jiji stumbled, catching their heel on a pile of junk. Their flashy necklace reflected the flashlight beams, scattering glittering light all around. "[cold] …You stand out too much." Shiratori muttered quietly from behind. "[angry] Shut up! I didn't ask for this body either! …Well, I do think it's kinda cute, though." Jiji raised their voice, then added the last part in a whisper. "[surprised] Huh? What did you just say?" Aira, the handsome one, asked with a bright, refreshing smile. Jiji's face went bright red. "[angry] I-I didn't say anything!" … It was while they were making their noisy, chaotic way forward like that. *—Rustle.* The pile of scrap at their feet made a sound. "…Stop." Momo held up a hand. They peered through the darkness with eyes imbued with spiritual power. The ground was undulating. A swarm of small black masses was surging in from all directions. "Garbage Bugs…!" Okarun shouted. Small, black beetle-type aberrations. Over two hundred of them, surrounding the six like a tidal wave. The sound of countless jaws clicking echoed through the darkness. "[angry] Tch!" Momo used their spiritual power to blast away several in front of them. Pale blue light flashed, scattering the bugs. But there were too many. Even as some vanished, more kept surging in from behind. "[scared] I'll fight too!" Jiji yelled, swinging a scrap pipe. But in a gyaru's body, they couldn't put any real strength behind it. The pipe just sliced through empty air. "[serious] Okarun! Use your speed!" "[scared] I-I know—!" Okarun tried to accelerate using Turbo Granny's power. In that instant. They lost their balance. The center of gravity in a girl's body didn't match their own mental image. Their foot, stepping forward, missed the pile of scrap. "Ah—" Their body tilted. They tumbled down the slope of the junk pile. Their vision spun. And then they slammed into the bottom. "Ngh…!" The pain stole their breath. They lifted their face. Countless red eyes were staring down at them. The swarm of Garbage Bugs surged toward Okarun, jaws clicking. *(I'm done for—)* The moment they thought that. "OKARUN!!!" A roar like thunder shook Garbage Wasteland. —Before they could think, their body was already moving. Momo's body, now male, sprang like a coiled spring. "WOAAAAAAAH!!!" Their spiritual power exploded. Dozens of pieces of surrounding scrap were enveloped in pale blue light and lifted into the air all at once. Broken televisions, bent bicycle wheels, countless plastic dolls. They slammed into the swarm of Garbage Bugs like bullets. *CRASH! CRUNCH!* The sound of beetle carapaces shattering. Momo was like a storm. Blasting scrap aside, they dove into the center of the swarm. —There. A small shadow, about to be swallowed by the horde. "…Got you." With just their left arm, they scooped up Okarun's body. So light. Had they always been this light? Okarun's body was trembling. "—GET BLASTED!!!" Momo thrust out their right hand. *FWOOOOOSH!!!* A shockwave of spiritual power expanded in a sphere. The swarm of Garbage Bugs was blown away in an instant. The black wave reversed its flow. Along with the surrounding scrap, the entire area was cleared as if it were vacant land. Silence returned. Momo, breathing heavily with their shoulders, stared straight ahead. Even they were surprised. *(Did I… really just unleash that much power?)* Their hands were trembling slightly. But more than that. *(I protected Okarun.)* That fact had become a hot mass inside their chest. A feeling they couldn't quite identify — something like pride, something like embarrassment. In their arms, Okarun slowly opened their eyes. Large eyes taking in the surroundings. Scrap dancing in the air. Aberrations blown away. And at the center of it all, the broad back holding them close. *(That's… Momo-chan's back.)* Okarun thought. Terrifyingly reliable. Protecting them. That fact triggered a sensation of heat spreading from inside their body. Their chest felt tight. "[serious] Are you hurt?" Momo asked in a low voice. "…No." That was all Okarun could say. Momo gently set Okarun down on top of a flat, discarded refrigerator. After that, the two of them couldn't look each other in the eye properly. "[excited] Hey, this is no time for you two to be flirting!" Jiji shouted from a distance. "[angry] We're not flirting!!!" Momo's face went bright red as they denied it with all their might. Only Aira watched the scene in silence. *(The look on Momo-chan's face, protecting Okarun-kun…)* Something complicated was piling up inside the handsome Aira's chest. … After the commotion had settled. Shiratori was calmly comparing the map to the actual location. "[cold] …There." Shiratori pointed. In that direction was an area where the Garbage Bugs were abnormally dense compared to the rest. The flashlight beams scattered chaotically, making only that spot flicker with an eerie light. "[serious] The abandoned refrigerator is in the center of that light. Pretty Marine is sleeping there." The story they'd heard from Kuramae flashed through everyone's minds. "[angry] Alright, we're charging in right now!" Momo took a step forward. "[serious] …Wait." It was Okarun's voice. A girl's voice, but clear and firm. "Not tonight. We need more of a plan." "[angry] But—!" "[serious] Momo-chan." Okarun looked straight at Momo. Momo's figure was reflected in those large eyes. Being told that by a girl's face made it strangely hard to get angry. "…Ngh." Momo swallowed their words. "[cold] Fire and strong light are their weaknesses. If we figure out a way to use those, a path will open." Shiratori added matter-of-factly. Momo bit their lip, grinding their teeth. Frustrating. But Okarun and Shiratori were right. What just happened was just a lucky fluke. They didn't have the focus right now to pull that off again against two hundred of them. "[serious] …We're pulling back." They forced the words out. The six of them left the nighttime Garbage Wasteland behind. As they retraced their steps, no one spoke. The time limit was five days. But Momo's heart had been pounding loudly ever since. The fact that they'd protected Okarun — and every time they remembered the small warmth in their arms — the center of their chest throbbed and pulsed. "[whispers] …Dammit." Momo muttered quietly, so no one could hear. They glanced at Okarun's profile, walking beside them. Okarun was also looking down, desperately pressing a hand to their own heart. *(That just now… Momo-chan's back—)* Just remembering it made their face burn. It wasn't just happiness at being protected. It was an indescribable fluttering that scrambled their brain into a mess. Between the two of them, something they couldn't put into words had definitely been born. The veil of night deepened. A single small star above Kamigoe Town peeked out from a break in the clouds. Tomorrow was Tuesday. Reworking their tactics — that was the next challenge standing before the six of them.