The sky was a vast, aimless blue. The April sunlight gently warmed the asphalt. Ellie paused for a moment in front of the main gate of Seigetsukan Private High School. In her hands were the transfer procedure documents. Her mother had left for work early in the morning, without even a word of farewell. (*This is the third time.*) Ellie thought absently. A new town, a new school. She had already grown accustomed to the smell of unpacking moving boxes. She wouldn't make any friends anyway. Hoping for it only made her tired. Deep in her chest, a thin film of heaviness clung to her. But that was already routine. She lightly adjusted the hem of her uniform skirt and stepped through the school gate. The school building was far larger than she had expected. The reinforced concrete main building was four stories tall, with a large clock mounted on the front. A connecting corridor extended from it, and a short distance away, an old wooden single-story school building was visible. The gymnasium, the pool, the special classroom wing—buildings were scattered about, and the shadows of hedges and clubroom blocks created countless blind spots. No one was there. To be precise, there were students around. Groups passed by, laughing. But all of them seemed to exist on the other side of a transparent wall, separate from Ellie. She walked toward the staff room, her gaze mostly downcast. When she entered the classroom, a rustling atmosphere touched her skin. Before homeroom began, the homeroom teacher briefly introduced Ellie, and she stood in front of the blackboard. "...Um, I'm Kurosaki Ellie." Her voice wouldn't come out properly. The stares of so many people pierced her like needles. (*It'll be the same again, anyway.*) She muttered in her heart. In a few weeks, she would melt into the scenery of the class and remain in no one's memory. That was the pattern that had repeated itself over and over. But at that moment— "[excited]Oh my, a transfer student!" A voice that was both buoyant and somehow captivating echoed through the classroom. When Ellie looked up, a female student was standing. She had long, honey-colored hair tied up high in a ponytail. With every slight movement, that hair swayed softly. Her cat-like, narrow golden eyes were fixed directly on Ellie. It was a perfect smile. "[gentle]I'm Mio. Kurosaki Mio. Nice to meet you." Mio. Just by speaking, she changed the air in the classroom. The gazes that had been a mix of curiosity and indifference until moments ago all focused on Mio at once. Even the teacher watched her words with a smile. (*What an amazing person.*) Ellie thought honestly. She possessed a kind of charisma that drew people in. Someone who lived in a completely different world from herself. During lunch break, Ellie sat alone on a bench in the courtyard. She brought the bread she had just bought to her mouth without much appetite. Just then, a honey-colored ponytail swayed at the edge of her vision. "[gentle]Ellie-san, do you have a moment?" Mio was standing right behind her. The backlight cast her face slightly in shadow. Even so, her golden eyes shone clearly. "[excited]Are you free after school today? I was thinking of holding a welcome party." "A welcome party..." "[excited]That's right! A little secret gathering, just for our class. You're anxious since you just transferred, right? It's a chance to get along with everyone." Mio's smile was very warm. There was no reason to refuse anywhere. "[whispers]You'll come, won't you?" The voice brought close to her ear was sweet, yet carried a tone that brooked no argument. Ellie gave a small nod. (*At times like this, it's better to accept.*) Her experience of repeated transfers had taught her that. There was just a faint sense of wrongness. But she didn't have enough conviction to put it into words. Mio smiled happily, and for just an instant, exchanged glances with the female students standing across the hallway. That gaze was cold and thoroughly calculated. But Ellie didn't notice. After school. Five female students surrounded Ellie, who had remained in the classroom. At their center was a tall, expressionless girl. Her bob cut, reaching her shoulders, had a natural perm, and her upturned gray eyes were striking. "Follow me." She—Sakuraba Rina—said only that. Her voice was flat. Her face, from which no emotion could be read, was like a doll's. Ellie tried to say something, but before she knew it, she was naturally surrounded by the formation of five and made to walk down the hallway. Front, back, left, right—there was no escape route. She looked for a chance to turn back, but Rina's long legs moved at a steady rhythm, making it impossible to even stop. Their destination was the gymnasium storage shed. The heavy iron door opened, and air mixed with the smells of damp mold, sweat, and old rubber flowed out. It was dim inside, with volleyball carts and worn-out gym mats piled haphazardly. Overhead, a broken fluorescent light flickered irregularly, on and off. *Clank.* Behind her, she heard the sound of a key locking. "[cold]Welcome, Ellie. So glad you could make it." At the back of the storage shed, Mio was seated on top of a vaulting box. She had her legs crossed and was looking down at Ellie with cold, beautiful eyes, as if watching a play. There wasn't a trace of the warm smile from the daytime left. "[scared]Wh-what..." Before Ellie could finish, her body was pushed from behind. She lost her balance and fell onto the gym mats. Someone grabbed her wrists and pinned her to the floor. "[cold]Don't move." Rina's voice fell coldly. Her gray eyes simply observed Ellie's confusion and fear with detachment. "[scared]Stop...!" Another female student's hand covered Ellie's mouth as she tried to resist. Her blazer was roughly removed, and the buttons of her blouse were torn off. (*This is a lie. This can't be.*) Her mind went blank. Multiple hands crawled over Ellie's thin, delicate body. Her skirt was flipped up, exposing a blue bruise remaining on her thigh. Someone's finger traced it. "[whispers]So, on your third transfer, you've already given up on making friends?" Mio's voice came from atop the vaulting box. "[cold]And your mother is so busy, she barely even contacts you. How lonely. But it's okay. We'll play with you." At those words, a chill ran down Ellie's spine. How did she even know that? (*These people, from the very beginning—*) Before her thoughts could catch up, one of the female students straddled Ellie's face. Black underwear was right before her eyes. "[cold]The welcome party starts now." Simultaneously with Mio's cold declaration, Ellie's head was pressed against the female student's crotch. An exposed genital organ was forced into her mouth. A lukewarm sensation, and a faint taste of salt. She couldn't breathe. Ellie struggled, but her head was firmly grabbed from behind, sealing her movement. The female student began to move her hips up and down, rubbing her wet private parts against Ellie's mouth. A muffled moan leaked from the back of her own throat. "[serious]Angle it more from above. The light's hitting it." An emotionless voice came from the corner of the room. She couldn't turn her face, but Kuga Mizuki—a small-framed girl from the art club with a neat bun—was holding up a smartphone camera. Beneath her deeply swept, diagonal bangs, large, dark blue eyes captured Ellie through the lens. Contrary to her shy appearance, at that moment, she continued her commentary in a tone filled with artistic cruelty. "[serious]Good, those tears. That pained face is beautiful." When the first female student withdrew, another immediately came forward. This time, they flipped Ellie's body onto her back. Both wrists remained pinned by Rina. Another female student buried her face in Ellie's chest and rolled her nipple with her tongue. Simultaneously, fingers groping her lower body intruded without hesitation. "[scared]No...!" Her hips bucked at the foreign sensation of being stirred inside her vagina. But multiple hands sewed her thin body to the mat. With each thrust of the fingers, a squelching, wet sound echoed unnaturally loud in the quiet storage shed. "[cold]How is it? Are you starting to feel a little good?" Mio's voice echoed gently, like a lullaby. But her golden eyes were those of a predator appraising its prey. Within her tear-blurred vision, Ellie's gaze crossed with hers for an instant. Like a frog glared at by a snake, her body froze. This wasn't mere fear. It was something deeper—a bottomless malice that sought to uproot her very existence... The rotation of female students continued mechanically. Ellie's mouth was used as a tool to service genitals, one after another. Each time her hair was grabbed and her head was shaken back and forth, saliva spilled from the corners of her mouth, staining the mat. Meanwhile, another female student toyed with her vagina below, and yet another kneaded her breasts at her chest. Her entire body was made to function for their pleasure. (*I'm not a thing.*) Even if she screamed in her heart, it wouldn't become words. The strength to raise her voice had already been taken from her. "[serious]Next, I want a composition from behind. Okay, Rina, put her on all fours." Kuga Mizuki gave instructions dispassionately while aiming the camera. Her voice was as if she were talking about sketching a still life. Rina silently flipped Ellie's body over and made her raise her hips high. Someone grabbed her hips from behind, a sensation of something being rubbed against her. And then, a foreign object invaded her vagina again. This time deeper, thrust in all the way. "[crying]Ugh, ahh..." The only thing that leaked out was a voice she could no longer tell was a moan or a sob. Each time the piston-like movement began, the gym mat creaked and groaned. (*I can't take this anymore.*) Ellie's consciousness gradually faded. A dissociative feeling, as if her body was no longer her own. The pain, the humiliation, all felt slowly distant. The light vanished from her eyes, and her deep brown eyes stared vacantly at the broken fluorescent light on the ceiling. How much time had passed? When the act was over, the female students began to straighten their disheveled uniforms. There wasn't a shred of remorse in them. It was like a routine moment, as if a PE class had just ended. "[serious]Good work. Here, this is the data." Mizuki operated her smartphone. Her small hands quickly swiped the LCD screen. "[cold]I hope you can come to school tomorrow." Rina looked down just once at Ellie, lying on the soiled mat. Her gray eyes were expressionless as always, but for an instant, a probing color flickered in them—and then immediately vanished. She turned on her heel and left the storage shed. Finally, Mio jumped down from the vaulting box. The sound of leather shoes approached, *clack, clack*. She crouched down right beside Ellie and placed her fingers on her chin, soiled with bodily fluids. "[whispers]Today was fun. See you tomorrow, Ellie." Saying that, she wore a perfect smile. As if bidding farewell to a close friend. The door closed, and she heard the sound of the key locking. Ellie was left alone in the storage shed. She lay collapsed on her back, unable to move. Semen clung stickily to her thighs, and a bitter taste remained in her mouth. But more than anything, the sensation of a hole gaping open deep in her chest was the harshest. The fluorescent light on the ceiling pulsed, *flicker, flicker*. (*I have to tell someone.*) She would call her mother. She took her smartphone out of her uniform pocket. She turned on the screen. Missed calls: zero. There were no messages from her mother either. (*Ah, I see.*) Ellie stopped trying to make the call. No one would believe her. No one would come to save her. And above all, the moment she spoke of this event, she would truly fall to a point