Chapter 65

### Caution: The perspective shifts frequently.

"…Phew. There’s just too much going on…"

I flopped onto the living room sofa and let out a light sigh.

The room was very quiet. It was soundproof, and being on a high floor, it was far from the hustle and bustle.

The room, enveloped in the soft darkness between dusk and night, was faintly illuminated by the lights of the still-awake city.

When I got home, Rin wasn’t there.

She was on a two-day business trip.

I knew this, but I still felt a bit lonely.

I had been living alone for years and was used to it, but in just a little over a week, I had grown accustomed to the warmth of another person.

"Rin…"

I felt lonely. The moment I thought that, I naturally called out her name.

I shifted my position, sinking into the soft sofa.

I’ll try to sleep. If I do, it will be "tomorrow" when Rin comes back.

I must have been more tired than I thought, because I fell asleep without much effort.

☆

"Can’t get in touch with Nana?"

"Yes, that’s right!"

I frowned at the noisy voice of Touko, who had called me early in the morning after I had spent the night in the car.

The event had run long, and I had ended up staying for the after-party, turning a planned one-night stay into a three-day trip.

That wasn’t a problem in itself, but it was quite exhausting for someone like me who doesn’t have a lot of stamina.

Still, the content of Touko’s early morning call wasn’t something I could ignore.

"What’s the current situation?"

"Didn’t you know that Nana and Toka went to Feas together the day before yesterday and streamed until around 7 PM?"

"Yes, I saw it in between."

While I was busy at the event venue, I knew that Nana and Toka had safely arrived in Feas.

Since they had come this far, I was excited to finally be able to play WLO with Nana.

"According to the round table friend, they said they wanted to invite Sukuna as promised a few days ago, and reluctantly tried to contact Nana, but couldn’t get through."

"How many times did you call?"

"About 20 times? I sent a message just in case, but it seems she hasn’t logged into WLO either."

"I see…"

Summarizing the information from Touko, it seems that Nana has been unreachable from the night before yesterday to yesterday and even this morning.

If she had been working all year round, it might have been understandable, but for her to be unreachable for that long now is indeed unusual.

"Touko, did you notice anything strange about Nana?"

"Nana is always wonderful. But during the stream, she seemed to space out a couple of times. It wasn’t that her gameplay was sloppy, but more like her mind was elsewhere."

"I see… I understand. You don’t need to worry too much. At least, nothing will happen to her by force."

"I’m not worried about that… but when I think about the tears from that day, I’m afraid she might disappear again."

I understand why Touko is worried about Nana.

And that worry might not be entirely unfounded.

"Well, she probably just turned off her phone and forgot about it. If anything comes up, I’ll let you know, so you should get some sleep. You haven’t been sleeping, have you?"

"Ugh… How did you know…?"

Why would she think I wouldn’t know?

Her voice quality had changed so much from fatigue that it was obvious even over the phone.

"I can tell from your voice. Really, if you were that worried, you should have called me sooner."

"Rin… I’m sorry."

"It’s okay. Just leave it to me. It’s definitely nothing serious."

"Thank you. I’ll go to sleep then… Goodnight."

"Sure, goodnight."

As I put my smartphone back in my bag, I thought about what had happened.

I told Touko that, but if I were asked if I was 100% sure there was nothing to worry about, I would have to say no.

The worry wasn’t about Nana getting hurt or sick, but about the very reason I invited her to WLO.

It’s not just that I want to play games with her.

I invited Nana to WLO with a definite purpose in mind.

☆

Ah, this is a dream.

Looking at the Nana in front of me, I vaguely thought that.

When I tried to touch her, my hand went right through.

So, I thought this must be a dream. I couldn’t even imagine why I was having such a dream.

The Nana in front of me was crouching and crying quietly.

She looked like a middle school student, probably from when I was in middle school. It’s been about 7 years since then. Toka and Rin mentioned it a while ago, but yeah, my appearance hasn’t really changed much.

Why is this girl crying?

When was the last time I cried?

Ah, right. It must have been when my parents died in an accident.

It was a very sad event, and I still remember it well. It was a turning point in my life, and the world seemed to change, including the fact that I had to distance myself from Rin for the first time.

But… was that really the reason I was crying?

The moment I thought that, I could feel the dream fading away.

The scenery seemed to blur and disappear, as if refusing to let me remember.

Just before it vanished, I made eye contact with the crying Nana.

Her eyes were hollow, as if they reflected nothing.

But they were filled with a burning, intense passion that made it hard to breathe.

☆

When I returned home from the event, I was greeted by an empty house.

Sighing, I made my way to the living room, where I found Nana sleeping on the sofa, completely oblivious to her surroundings.

"Ha… I knew it."

Seeing Nana, who had dropped her glowing smartphone on the floor and was sleeping, I sighed again.

From the looks of it, she had been sleeping since the night before.

The fact that she had simply been sleeping and not answering the phone was a result that mocked the worried Touko, which is why I sighed for the second time.

"Nana, it’s morning."

I shook her shoulder gently, and her body twitched. She sniffed for a moment, and then, realizing it was me by the smell, her tense body relaxed.

Seeing her lack of intention to wake up, I sighed for the third time and sat down next to her on the sofa.

The limousine my father arranged for me is equipped like a VIP room, but spending a whole night in it is tiring.

Especially since I had just spent two days at the event and wanted to get back as soon as possible for Nana, who might be feeling lonely.

It’s a bit unfair that this girl can sleep soundly without a word of comfort, isn’t it?

Thinking that, I was about to give her a light tap on the head when I noticed the tear stains on her face.

"…So, it’s really like that, huh."

My anger dissipated, and I unclenched my hand.

I had a feeling, but it seems that life in WLO is giving Nana more stimulation than I imagined.

The fact that "the current" Nana is crying is a shock that only I can understand.

This is a sign. It’s proof that the tightly closed lid on Nana’s memories is definitely loosening.

I don’t think the lid will open immediately, but we’re really at the point where it’s just a matter of pulling the trigger.

"To be honest, I also think it would be better if she could just forget."

The memory that Nana has forgotten… no, sealed away, is extremely limited. It’s a very small memory, not even a full day.

However, that tiny memory was so traumatic that Nana had to lose it to protect herself.

So, she sealed it away out of self-defense.

And because of losing that memory, Nana grew into the bright person she is now.

"Feh… Rin…?"

"That’s right, sleepyhead."

"Early, huh? I thought you’d come back at night."

Nana, who had woken up for some reason, spoke in a fluffy tone that showed no sign of her mind being awake.

She shook her head to clear the sleep, looking like an animal, but because she was so deeply sunk into the sofa, she looked even more adorable as she seemed to be losing the battle against sleep.

"I actually came back quite late."

"Huh?"

"It’s not that I came back early, Nana. You’ve been sleeping for over a day."

When I said that, Nana looked at the home screen of her smartphone on the floor and widened her eyes slightly.

But she didn’t seem too shocked, and she collapsed back onto the sofa, using my knee as a pillow.

"Well, if you slept, there’s nothing to be done about it…"

"Yeah, that’s true."

"So, I’ll go back to sleep… zzz."

She must have been very tired, because she fell asleep again instantly.

The fact that Nana is seeking sleep means that there’s something she needs to recover from.

It’s unlikely to be a physical issue, so it’s probably something affecting her mentally.

I’ll send a message to Touko to let her know Nana is safe, and then I’ll let myself succumb to sleep.

Unlike Nana, who is a physical powerhouse, I’m more of an indoor person. I’m also tired from being woken up early by Touko, and I’m feeling sleepy from watching Nana sleep so contently.

There are things to worry about, but for now, everything is going smoothly.

With hope for the slowly opening door to Nana’s memories, I let myself drift off to sleep.