The bell announcing the start of free talk echoed through Crescent Hall with a clear ring, then faded. Tanaka Shouta settled into his seat at the round table he'd been assigned to, taking a quiet breath. Free talk. Three minutes × five rotations. The rules were simple enough. Gotou the manager had spelled it out in the announcement. In normal matchmaking party terms, it was a merry-go-round style seat rotation. Men and women face each other, talk for three minutes, then when the bell rings, you move. That's it. Tanaka was already half-doubting himself for believing in that "that's it." The atmosphere in the venue had been off from the moment he arrived. Wine hung suspended in mid-air. Eyes glowed gold. Someone read the contents of his wallet. Everyone—every single person—naturally possessed some kind of skill. The Great Return—that phenomenon five years ago when people were sent back to modern Japan overnight from Elda Vestia—had brought back skills. Forty reincarnated returnees with skills had gathered in this venue. And this place was a designated exception space by Lynx Circle—the mutual aid network for reincarnated returnees. The only place where skill usage was permitted. His first partner sat down across from him. A woman who looked to be in her late twenties. A composed atmosphere. Her eyes had a faint golden tint—that person he'd seen from a distance earlier. Tanaka started to greet her. "Nice to meet you, I'm Tanaka—" "[cold]Next, you will say, 'Nice to meet you, I'm Tanaka Shouta. My hobby is watching movies.'" Tanaka's mouth stopped. ...That's exactly what I was about to say. "[surprised]Uh, ah... yes, that's right" "[cold]Next, you will ask, 'What kind of movies do you like?'" I was about to ask that!! Tanaka screamed internally with all his might, but it didn't show on his face. His habit of keeping his expression still came in handy sometimes. (This... conversation isn't going to work.) A precognition skill, he thought. The kind of ability that lets you see events a few minutes ahead. Whether it was appropriate to use it full-force at a matchmaking event was beside the point—the skill's precision was high. She was reading ahead what he'd say and speaking first. Tanaka thought for a moment and decided to try something. He'd stay silent. Say nothing, just look across at her. Three seconds of silence passed. "[cold]Next you will say, 'Why are you staying silent?'" I didn't say anything!! Tanaka gave an internal retort. Even the action of "staying silent" had been read ahead. Which meant whatever he did next— "[cold]Next, you will make a face like you've given up" He did. (My expression of resignation was read ahead...!! She's reading even my facial expressions...!!) For the remaining two minutes, Tanaka barely said anything. Since Kotone was saying everything first, he literally had no opportunity to speak. It wasn't a game of catch with conversation—it was like she was catching all the balls by herself. A one-way street taken to its extreme. The three-minute bell rang. "[cold]That was fun" How was it fun!! Tanaka thought, but of course he didn't say it. Because— "[cold]I see you were thinking, 'How was that fun'" Kotone smiled quietly and stood up. Tanaka looked up at the chandelier on the ceiling—the crescent-moon-shaped one—in silence. Well, there were still four more rotations. --- The second rotation's partner was a man in his early thirties. The type who normally gave off a quiet impression, but the moment he sat down at the table, he put his hand in his jacket pocket and opened his mouth without a smile. "[cold]Two ten-thousand yen bills in your wallet and 387 yen in coins. Eleven point cards" Tanaka's movements froze. ...How do you know that? "[surprised]Um, uh... how do you know that?" "[cold]X-ray vision" That was all he said before the man seemed satisfied and brought his coffee to his lips. X-ray vision—the ability to see through objects to what's beyond. He'd literally "seen through" the contents of Tanaka's wallet. But Tanaka was bothered by something else. "[serious]Eleven point cards... you didn't really need to mention that, did you?" "[cold]It's a fact" It was certainly a fact. But did you mention it at a matchmaking event? If you had x-ray vision, was that really the information you should be using on someone you just met? What context made the strategy of exposing someone's wallet contents instead of introducing yourself effective at a matchmaking party—Tanaka spent the remaining two and a half minutes quietly pondering that question. He never found an answer. --- Third rotation. The moment Tanaka sat down, the man across from him reached his finger toward a napkin. His movement stopped just before touching it. The napkin floated. White linen lifted into the air, spread gently, and then slowly began to fold itself. Not a single finger touching it. Telekinesis—the ability to manipulate objects without contact. He'd heard they could move up to about five kilograms. The man said with a proud expression: "[excited]My hobby is origami" The skill name and hobby direction seemed completely different. While Tanaka was thinking that internally, the napkin continued to change shape. Corners folded, a head formed, wings spread—a beautiful origami crane completed itself in mid-air. Folded with meticulous care down to the finest details. In terms of the skill's precision, honestly, it was impressive. Then the crane dove straight into the wine. Splash!! Red wine splattered, and a man at the next table got a generous amount on his shirt. "[angry]Hey!! What are you doing!!" "[scared]I-I'm so sorry!! I lost control!!" "[angry]Can't you use your skill to wipe it off!!" "[scared]The napkin's soaked in wine right now, I can't use it!!" As the commotion rippled outward, Tanaka muttered one thing in his mind. (You're using your skill like that... at a matchmaking event...?) The third rotation ended. Tanaka's shirt had fortunately escaped the red wine, but the venue's atmosphere had definitely taken a chaotic turn. Gotou the manager was running around in the distance handing out handkerchiefs. Tanaka let out a small sigh. Well, just because you have a skill doesn't mean you can use it well at matchmaking. Ability and personal charm are different things. Actually, someone like him who could have a normal conversation was probably— The bell for the fourth rotation rang just as he was thinking that. --- The seat rotation began. Tanaka looked up to check his next partner. That's when he noticed movement at the edge of his vision. A woman was standing near the reception counter. The person who'd been handling reception the whole time—the woman who'd been checking the participant list on an intercom when Tanaka first entered the venue. She closed the list and left the counter. Her gait was different. Not the movements of a reception staff member, but the straight-line walk of someone heading toward a destination. Perfect posture. Her spine was straight as a line, her gaze unwavering. Silver hair caught the light of the chandelier and glimmered. (Ah... the reception person is coming as a participant?) Tanaka understood. She'd been at the venue from the start as reception staff, but maybe she was joining the game in the later rounds. But more than that— (I thought she was beautiful, but it was only for a moment) The world stopped. Just a moment. By the time he realized it, it had already happened. The man who'd been laughing loudly at the next table was frozen mid-laugh. The wine victim's hand, which had been wiping the stain with a napkin, hung suspended in mid-air. Kotone, at another table, had her mouth open mid-sentence, unmoving. A drop of wine that had been spilling from a glass hung in the air. Sound had vanished. Only Tanaka could move. (What... what... what's happening?) His mind reeled with confusion. But his body moved. Looking around, nearly forty participants were all frozen like they were trapped in a still frame. "[cold]You're not using a skill" A voice spoke. She was standing in front of him. Silver-long hair flowed to her chest, pale blue eyes looking straight at Tanaka. A gaze that revealed no emotion. Her right hand's index and middle fingers were lightly aligned and extended, slowly lowering. Time stop—this was her skill. Tanaka organized the information in his mind. Within a 12-meter radius, she could freeze the subjective time of targets for up to eight seconds. The activation required a flicking motion with her right hand's two fingers, and each use had a 30-minute cooldown. He'd heard that information somewhere. Actually, he definitely had. It had spread as a rumor in the returnee community. And right now, it was working perfectly on him. He answered her question honestly. "[serious]I'm not using one because... I don't have any flashy skills like that" A brief silence. Her eyes opened, just for an instant. That was all. That was the only readable change in her expression before it returned to its usual blankness. But Tanaka didn't miss it. That moment, less than a second. (That was... surprise) Logic optimization—Tanaka didn't know the name of it, but the ability he'd somehow acquired in the other world quietly activated. The skill to infer psychological states from minute behavioral cues—a skill with absolutely no flashiness. In this moment, her eyes had opened 0.3 seconds wider than normal. That was a reflex of astonishment. Why was she surprised? Tanaka didn't know. But she must have understood something. "[whispers]...Interesting" She said it quietly, then lowered her gaze. Eight seconds passed. The world burst back into motion. Laughter returned. Wine fell from the glass. Kotone's dialogue resumed from where it had been cut off. Everyone started moving again from the moment before the freeze, as if nothing had happened. Something pounded fiercely in Tanaka's chest. (That was terrifying...) Eight seconds alone with her in a frozen world. That wasn't normal. No matter how he thought about it, it wasn't normal. His heart still hadn't settled. But... (She was really beautiful...) No, wait!! Tanaka gave himself a full internal retort, and his face warmed slightly. He tried to hide it by looking down at his glass. He took a sip of water. The woman across from him had already returned to her usual expression. She was introducing herself in polite, businesslike language. "[cold]I'm Mizuki. I'm participating as a contestant today" "[serious]I'm Tanaka. You were at reception until..." "[cold]Yes" That was all. For the remaining three minutes, she barely spoke. Tanaka couldn't find the right words either. What had just happened kept spinning in his head, and his thoughts wouldn't organize themselves. But he noticed one thing. She kept looking at him. Her gaze never wavered. No special reactions, barely any words. But those pale blue eyes never left him. The three-minute bell rang. Mizuki Ayane stood and moved to the next seat. Tanaka followed her back for just a second with his eyes. (I hope the next round is with someone normal...) --- Fifth rotation. When Tanaka sat down for the final seat, the telekinesis man was across from him. The one who'd spilled the wine. "[scared]Ah... I'm really sorry about earlier. The wine..." "[serious]Oh, it didn't hit me, so it's fine. Did you manage to clean it up?" "[sad]Somehow. If you want to make up, I could make another crane—" "[surprised]No thank you!!" Tanaka was a bit surprised at how loud his own voice came out, given that he usually spoke politely. But he really couldn't handle another telekinesis crane. "[serious]Your origami technique is impressive, really. But in terms of how to use it at a matchmaking event... you might want to reconsider your strategy a bit" "[sad]...You're right" He'd meant it as honest advice, but he felt like he'd hurt him a little. Meanwhile, at the