In a near-future Tokyo where everyone lives part of their lives in the metaverse, the popular sport 'Hollow Clearer' allows players to battle as fantastical avatars. The scene is split between idol-type and Vtuber-type competitors. Asuka Mahiro is a high school student who fights as the most hated villain avatar in Japan: 'Blackwall Orcus.' Only his teacher, Kozue Ritsuko, knows his true identity.
Meanwhile, the brilliant and elegant young lady Asogi Miu is secretly celebrated in the underworld
Persona Non Grata - Resonating solitude, obstructed truth
The afternoon classroom. The air was stagnant, and outside the window, thin clouds veiled the sun.
Mahiro was slumped over his desk. His eyes were open. Unfocused. Just staring at nowhere in particular.
"…Those guys are so damn loud."
Mahiro himself was startled by the voice that slipped from his own lips. He certainly had found the surrounding clamor irritating. But he hadn't meant to say it aloud.
The back of his head throbbed with a dull heat.
These past few days, this sensation had been coming frequently. As if his own outline was fading, and something else was pushing out from within.
"Asuka."
From the back of the classroom, a low, quiet voice cut through.
Ritsuko was standing there. Her eyes behind her black-rimmed glasses fixed directly on Mahiro. He hadn't even sensed her arrival.
"…Sensei."
Mahiro straightened up. The back of his neck felt heavy.
"Come to the faculty office after school. I need to talk to you about your report."
"…Understood."
Having said only that, Ritsuko quietly left the classroom.
Mahiro let out a small breath.
(Again, huh.)
The frequency with which Ritsuko summoned him was increasing.
This wasn't just about assignments. Mahiro knew that too.
The faculty office at dusk.
Ritsuko closed the screen on her terminal and turned to face Mahiro.
"I read yesterday's report."
"…That was, well, I didn't have time—"
"This isn't a matter of time."
Ritsuko held out a single sheet of paper. It was the report Mahiro had submitted.
"Your handwriting is a mess. Until last month, it wasn't like this."
Mahiro said nothing.
Ritsuko removed her glasses and slowly placed them on the desk.
"Asuka-kun. Have you been sleeping lately?"
"…Well, more or less."
"That's a lie."
An immediate response.
Mahiro averted his gaze. Outside the window, the cherry blossoms in the schoolyard swayed in the wind.
"During class, you've been muttering to yourself repeatedly. And the way you look out the window—it's hollow somehow. There are times when you don't seem to be here at all."
Ritsuko's voice was quiet and gentle.
But Mahiro knew that beneath it lurked a coldness like a blade.
"…Are you worried about me?"
"Yes. As your teacher. And—"
Ritsuko paused for a moment.
"…As one of the few people who understands you."
Mahiro let out a small laugh.
"Do you really understand, Sensei?"
"I don't. But I'm trying to."
Silence.
In the faculty office, only the sound of the wall clock echoed.
Ritsuko touched the thin bracelet on her left wrist. The biometric sensor recorded the disturbance in her heartbeat.
(If I'm going to report him, now is the time.)
In Ritsuko's mind, the management company's terminal surfaced.
Suspected Dissociation Syndrome. The progression was clearly advancing.
The reporting deadline had already passed.
(But—)
Ritsuko looked at Mahiro's face.
Hunched posture, tendency to look down, a quiet voice.
But recently, he had changed, just a little.
After school, he was in contact with someone. Occasionally, he showed a soft expression.
That was something the old Mahiro never had.
"…You've been meeting someone lately, haven't you."
Mahiro's shoulders twitched.
"…Why do you say that?"
"Because your expression is softer than before. You have the face of someone who's connected to another person."
Mahiro didn't answer.
Ritsuko let out a small sigh.
"…For now, I'll keep this under observation."
"Huh?"
"But if something else happens, I won't hesitate. To protect you, I won't be picky about my methods."
Ritsuko's eyes pierced straight through Mahiro.
"…Understood."
Mahiro stood up.
"Take care of yourself, Asuka-kun."
Ritsuko's voice stabbed into his back.
Without looking back, Mahiro left the faculty office.
Late night.
Miyu stood before the server room in the Information Science Building of Private Hermitage Academy.
The corridor was deserted. Only the red light of the emergency lamps illuminated her pale skin.
Miyu quietly opened the door and stepped inside.
The low hum of the servers droned.
She booted up a terminal and placed her fingertips on the keyboard.
(Today, for sure.)
Miyu's fingers began to move as if dancing.
Her activities as Shroud. Access to the back layers.
Orcus's registration information.
For the past few weeks, she had been using every information channel at her disposal to close in on Orcus's true identity.
"…Here, like this."
Countless lines of code streamed across the screen.
Miyu's eyes reflected the light with an amber gleam.
She attacked multiple information routes in the back layers simultaneously.
The Night Bazaar's information broker, the Signal Lounge's hacker, the backdoor in the competitor registration database.
She wove them all together into a single thread.
"Just a little more…"
That was when it happened.
The screen flickered white for an instant.
"Huh?"
Access severed.
No—that wasn't it.
It hadn't been severed.
All of her access routes had been replaced with falsified information.
"…No way."
Miyu's fingers stopped.
A warning appeared on the screen.
『You are being traced.』
She immediately cut the connection.
Her heart pounded like a frantic bell.
Her breathing grew shallow.
(Someone was following my trail.)
Miyu gripped the terminal.
That level of concealment—so robust.
This wasn't the work of an individual.
Something organized.
Behind Orcus, there was an unknown administrator, or an organization.
She was certain of it now.
(Mahiro-kun has nothing to do with this…)
Miyu murmured in her heart.
(Mahiro-kun is just a high school student. Kind, fond of philosophy.)
But somewhere in her mind, another voice spoke.
(Really?)
Miyu opened her investigation files.
Orcus's combat records.
His taunts. His verbal attacks. His ideology.
And then—Mahiro's words.
(They're similar.)
Miyu closed the files.
(Stop it.)
She powered down the terminal.
In the dark room, Miyu sat alone, hugging her knees.
"…Mahiro-kun."
That voice reached no one.
After school.
Mahiro stepped out through the school gate, mobile terminal in hand.
A message from Miyu had arrived.
『I wasn't feeling well today… I left school early.』
Mahiro immediately typed a reply.
『Are you okay? Are you home?』
『Yes. But being alone… I feel a little anxious.』
Mahiro looked up at the sky.
Thin clouds covered the western sky.
『I'm coming over. Tell me where.』
Sector Central, on a hill in the harbor area.
Mahiro stood before the Asougi residence.
White walls. A tall gate.
This was Miyu's home.
Mahiro pressed the intercom.
"…Mahiro-kun?"
Miyu's voice came through the speaker.
"Yeah. I'm here."
"I'll open up now."
The gate opened silently.
Miyu's room.
A spacious room of about twenty-five tatami mats.
Through the large window, the sea at dusk was visible.
Miyu sat on the bed, dressed in a white one-piece dress.
Her complexion was somewhat pale.
"…You really came."
"Of course I did."
Mahiro sat down beside Miyu.
"Any fever?"
"Normal temperature. I just felt a little dizzy."
"Don't push yourself."
"…Okay."
Miyu gave a small nod.
Silence filled the room.
Outside the window, the sea reflected the setting sun, glittering gold.
"…You know,"
Miyu spoke quietly, as if to herself.
"When I was eight, I lost my mother."
Mahiro listened in silence.
"After the funeral, my father went straight back to work. At home, there was only the housekeeper and the AI home system. In that huge house, I felt like I was the only one left behind."
Miyu's voice was calm.
"At night, the house was so big that even the sound of my own breathing seemed loud. I was so lonely, so lonely… but I couldn't tell anyone."
Her fingertips gripped the white sheets.
"…My father isn't a bad person. He just had no choice but to fill the grief of losing my mother with work. I was the same. I studied, honed my skills, wanted someone to acknowledge me."
Mahiro looked at Miyu's profile.
The sunset was reflected in her eyes.
"…Me too."
Mahiro began to speak, slowly.
"When I was ten, my old man walked out. I don't know why. I didn't want to know."
His voice was small and hoarse.
"My mom worked night shifts in nursing care, so she was almost never home. I was alone, in a quiet room, reading books. Philosophy, mostly. Because thinking was the only thing that saved me from the loneliness."
Mahiro looked at his own hands.
"…I wanted to be needed by someone, too. But I didn't know how."
Miyu gently placed her hand over Mahiro's.
Cold fingers.
But a certain warmth.
"…We're alike, aren't we."
"…Yeah."
Neither of them said anything more.
Only the warmth of their touching hands filled the room.
Night deepened quietly.
The two sat side by side on the bed, gazing at the night view outside the window.
"…Mahiro-kun."
"Hm?"
"Thank you for coming today."
"…It's nothing worth thanking me for."
"But I was happy. Because I felt like I wasn't alone."
Miyu gently leaned her head against Mahiro's shoulder.
Mahiro's heart leaped.
A sweet fragrance drifted from her hair.
"…Miyu."
Mahiro called her name.
Miyu looked up.
The distance between them was only a few centimeters.
Mahiro was reflected in her eyes.
Mahiro reached out his right hand and touched Miyu's hair.
Her black hair slipped smoothly between his fingers.
"…It's beautiful."
Mahiro's voice was hoarse.
Miyu's cheeks flushed faintly.
"…Mahiro-kun."
Her voice trembled.
Mahiro placed his hand against Miyu's cheek.
Her skin was soft and warm.
And then, slowly, he pressed his lips to her forehead.
A gentle kiss.
Miyu's body trembled slightly.
"…Ah."
Tears spilled from Miyu's eyes.
"…Sorry."
"…Don't apologize."
Miyu pressed herself against Mahiro's chest, as if clinging to him.
Mahiro gently wrapped his arms around her.
So slender.
Fragile, as if she might break.
"…I'm happy that you touched me, Mahiro-kun."
Miyu's voice was wet with tears.
Mahiro tightened his embrace.
That was when it happened.
A voice sounded in the depths of his mind.
—That warmth of yours makes me stronger.
Mahiro's body went rigid.
—Love her. More deeply. Then I can become even stronger.
"…Shut up."
Mahiro muttered aloud.
"…Mahiro-kun?"
Miyu looked up at him anxiously.
"…It's nothing."
Still holding Miyu, Mahiro closed his eyes.
Her warmth.
Her scent.
Her presence.
All of it filled Mahiro's heart, deeply, deeply.
(I don't want to lose this girl.)
(But the Orcus inside me is trying to devour her.)
Mahiro was torn between the love that wanted to protect Miyu and the fear of losing her.
After Mahiro left.
Miyu sat on the floor of her room, hugging her knees.
Mahiro's warmth still lingered on her body.
The feel of his lips against her forehead.
The strength of his arms.
The sound of his heartbeat.
(Mahiro-kun.)
Miyu repeated that name over and over in her heart.
And then she picked up her terminal.
To resume her investigation as Shroud.
(I have to uncover Orcus's true identity.)
Miyu placed her fingers on the keyboard.
But—
Her fingers wouldn't move.
(Mahiro-kun's misreading of kanji.)
(Orcus's mistakes in past broadcasts.)
(Mahiro-kun's quiet way of speaking.)
(Orcus's low voice.)
(Mahiro-kun's hunched posture.)
(Orcus's shadow-like stance.)
They overlapped in her mind.
"…No."
Miyu shook her head.
"…It's not him. Mahiro-kun is different."
She closed the terminal.
Tears overflowed uncontrollably.
"…Why."
Miyu cried, stifling her voice.
The guilt of doubting Mahiro.
The righteous mission of pursuing Orcus.
Two emotions tore her heart clean in two.
(If Mahiro-kun is Orcus—)
(I have to stop him.)
Miyu raised her tear-streaked face.
(But before that—)
(Just once more, I want to go on a normal date with him.)
She picked up her mobile terminal.
And began typing a message to Mahiro.
『Mahiro-kun. Would you like to go to Hollow Street in Harajuku together sometime?』
Late night.
Ritsuko walked through the residential district of
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