Midnight. A smartphone buzzed on the pillow. *"Wake up. We're heading to Trash Mountain now."* The sender was Momo. "[sad]...Now?" Gripping the phone with a little girl's hand, Okarun rubbed their eyes. They checked the clock. Three minutes past midnight. Less than two days left until the time limit. "[serious]...Got it." At the same time. Beneath a set of blonde twintails, Jiji's phone buzzed violently. "[angry]The hell... at this hour..." Rubbing their sleepy eyes with a gyaru's face, they looked at the screen. The next instant— "[scared]You're kidding!?" They shot out of bed. Their twintails had exploded. Bedhead sent blonde hair flying in every direction, like an angry dandelion. "[crying]Dammit... don't scream with a cute face like that, me..." Aira stared at their phone with drowsy eyes, still wearing a handsome face. "[whispers]...Now, is it?" In the darkness of night, their long lashes trembled. Only they hadn't noticed how waking up had amplified their allure. Shiratori had already finished changing into their uniform. "[cold]...Let's go." They murmured just that one word, and quietly left the house. At the entrance to Kakenuke Street, where even the shopping district's streetlights had gone dark. The five of them gathered. Okarun, wobbling unsteadily with a little girl's face, was the first to speak. "[serious]...I understand Momo-chan's judgment that we should settle this tonight." "[excited]Right!?" Momo's gruff voice echoed through the late-night shopping district—or so they thought, before their voice cracked. "...Ahem." A flustered cough. Even though they were in a man's body, their throat still couldn't keep up when they got too fired up. "[laughing]Pfft..." "[angry]Don't laugh!" Jiji, twintails swaying, glared with half-lidded eyes. "[sarcastic]Dragging us out at this hour... if we can't break the curse, you'd better be ready for what's coming." Even while complaining, Jiji's feet were already moving, second only to Momo's in speed. "[serious]Alright, let's go." The six of them began walking the path to Trash Mountain, relying only on starlight. A lukewarm night breeze, just before midsummer, brushed their cheeks. Momo was at the front. Okarun watched their back from behind—a back with broader shoulders now that they were in a man's body. —*Crunch.* Okarun's foot caught on a pebble at the roadside. In an instant, Momo's hand reached out. Without a word, they pulled them up firmly. "...Thank you." "[angry]Whatever." Momo muttered, still facing forward. (*Why am I in such a rush?*) Inside their chest, a feeling like they were lashing out at someone. Just last night, it was Okarun who'd said they needed a plan. And yet now, the one who'd woken everyone in the dead of night and forced this march was none other than themselves. They were impatient. They could feel it—their own hand, the one that had gripped Okarun's, was stiff. Okarun had noticed that stiffness. (*I'm holding them back.*) In a girl's body, they couldn't move the way they wanted. Momo's hand was always there to help. But tonight, that hand felt like it was trembling, just a little. Aira watched the two of them with a handsome profile. (*Momo-chan is trying to protect Okarun-kun.*) The sight of Momo's profile, trying so hard to protect, wouldn't leave Aira's mind. Their feelings for Okarun, and the feelings stirred by that profile—they swirled together in a tangled mess. Shiratori noticed Aira's complicated expression. But they said nothing. They just kept walking, looking straight ahead. When they reached the entrance to Trash Mountain, Jiji spoke up. "[serious]What's the plan?" Momo answered without looking back. "[serious]We'll use what we learned last time. I'll clear a path with my spiritual power. We push straight through to the deepest part in one go." At those words, Okarun drew a small breath. "[serious]...If that's all we do, we'll just get surrounded by the swarm again." "[angry]I know that. But we don't have time." "[serious]If someone gets isolated like last time, we won't be able to save them this time." Okarun's voice was quiet. But every single word stabbed into Momo's chest. "[angry]Trust my judgment!" Momo turned around and glared at Okarun. Okarun stared straight back into those eyes. "[serious]...It's not that I don't trust you." "[angry]Then what!?" "[serious]I'm worried... that Momo-chan is pushing themself too hard trying to get used to a man's body." In that instant, something snapped inside Momo. They didn't want to be worried about. They didn't want to be seen as weak. They wanted to protect Okarun. Those feelings transformed into the exact opposite words and flew out of their throat. "[angry]You're the one who can't keep up in a girl's body—don't make me worry! I'll protect everything, so just shut up and follow me!" The gruff roar was swallowed by the darkness of Trash Mountain. Under the moonlight, Okarun's face slowly twisted. A hurt expression. Then—quietly, they opened their mouth. "[cold]...I don't need Momo-chan to protect me." "[surprised]...Huh?" "[serious]Even in this body, I've been finding more things I can do on my own. If you think I'm dead weight—" "[angry]Who said anything about dead weight—" "[cold]You can just go alone." At those words, Momo's body froze. They'd tried so hard to protect them. They'd yelled, with every intention of protecting them—and it had all backfired completely. "[angry]...Fine, I will! I don't care about you anymore!" Momo spat the words out and turned their back. They spun around and stepped into Trash Mountain alone. (*No. That's not it.*) They were screaming it inside their heart, but their lips stayed pressed tightly together. Okarun stared at that retreating back. (*I went too far.*) They thought it, but their feet wouldn't move. "[scared]You two—!" Aira tried to call out, stepping forward. In that instant. *Rumble, rumble, rumble...* The ground let out a low groan. "[surprised]Wh-what is it!?" The mountain of junk—was moving. Abandoned refrigerators, broken televisions, countless plastic dolls—they began piling up with a clatter. As if they were living creatures with a will of their own, walls—maze walls—rose one after another toward the sky. A trap set by the Shemale Collector. It had been waiting for the exact moment the group's coordination completely collapsed. "[angry]Dammit, we're surrounded!" A wall of scrap surged up between Jiji and Aira. "[scared]Jiji-kun!" Aira's cry was in vain as the partition closed, separating the two of them. Shiratori was quietly swallowed into a different passage. "[cold]............" Without any sign of resistance, they vanished into the darkness. And then— A wall also rose between Momo and Okarun. "[scared]Okarun!" Momo shouted, reaching out their hand. They tried to smash the wall with spiritual power. A pale blue light flashed. But—the scrap was replenished endlessly, refusing to crumble. "[crying]Momo-chan—!" Okarun's small hand touched Momo's fingertips. Just as they thought they'd made contact— *CRASH!!* The wall slammed shut, tearing the two of them apart. The warmth of those fingertips vanished. "[angry]Okarun!! Where are you, Okarun!!" Momo pounded the wall with their fist. A dull thud. Their male fist was cut on the sharp edge of the scrap, and blood seeped out. But they didn't feel any pain. More than that— (*I don't care about you anymore.*) The words they'd hurled echoed in their ears. The inside of their body rapidly went cold. "[crying]...That's not true." In the darkness, they murmured, forcing the words out. "[sad]That's not true... I... you—" The final words never became a voice. Darkness surrounded by junk. Momo stood alone, frozen, their hand still outstretched. Around them, multiple passages gaped open. They had no idea which one led where. Less than forty hours remained until the time limit. The labyrinth's structure was unknown. All their companions were scattered. Not even a single clue for escape—was in sight. Somewhere in the labyrinth, Okarun was also standing still, one hand against a wall. The sensation of Momo's hand still lingered on their fingertips. "[crying]...I went too far, too." *You can just go alone*—saying something like that. They didn't really feel that way at all. They wanted to be protected. But they didn't want to be a burden. Those two feelings tangled together like a maze with no exit—churning into a mess inside Okarun's chest. They thought they heard someone's voice from beyond the wall. Maybe it was just their imagination. But Okarun strained their ears. Faintly echoing from within the darkness. Momo was calling their name—or so it felt.