5 Chapter 8.5: Epilogue (5)

After changing into my uniform I went to the front gate as promised and just as she said she would, the girl was waiting for me.

"You said you had something to tell me.....?".

"Follow me".

"Follow, where exactly.....".

"A special building".

That too, turned out to be quite the bizarre place.

The girl, without offering me a detailed explanation, started walking off and so we reached the 3rd floor of the special building.

This floor is one of the few places in the school where there are no surveillance cameras installed.

"---What exactly---".

When I tried to ask her, the girl told me to wait and then walked off alone.

She then went over to a corner in the corridor and quietly whispered.

"Can I go back already?".

"Yes. You did well, Masumi-san. I'll be counting on you again".

".....sure".

The girl named Masumi quietly nodded and left.

The person behind the voice slowly revealed herself.

Carrying a cane in one hand, she looked at me with a cold smile.

1st year. Class A. Sakayanagi.

"You called me?".

I asked Sakayanagi but she did not reply.

Then for a brief while, Sakayanagi and I ended up staring at one another.

In a school building at dusk, the lone girl stood before my eyes with a cane in her hand.

"That last relay drew quite a bit of attention, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka-kun".

Just when I had thought she'd finally opened her mouth, it ended up being merely that.

"Yeah sorry but can I send a mail first? I've got someone waiting".

"Please go ahead".

Sakayanagi did not react with displeasure but rather, she smiled at me.

I sent what I had prepared.

"So.....may I assume that it's you? The one who called me out here, that is".

"Yes".

An immediate reply, eh?.

"So what's the matter? If at all possible I'd like to wrap this up quickly".

"After seeing you run, I remembered something. I called you here so I can share with you the shock I felt at that moment. It's almost like this is the lead up to a confession, don't you think so?".

"I have no idea what you're talking about......".

Clonk. Clonk. Propping herself up with a cane, Sakayanagi stood right next to me.

"It's been a long time, Ayanokouji-kun. Approximately 8 years and 243 days".

"You're kidding, right? I don't know you".

"Fufu. I suppose so. After all, our acquaintance isn't a mutual one".

Clonk.

Clonk.

The tapping receded bit by bit.

What exactly is this about?

I decided to wrap things up and started to walk in the opposite direction.

"White Room".

When those words pierced through my ears and reached my brain I unconsciously stopped walking.

It chipped away at my rationality and I started questioning 'why' and 'how'.

"It's unpleasant, isn't it? To be swept about by information that only the enemy possesses".

"...you...".

"This is a nostalgic reunion and so I thought I just had to greet you".

Reunion?

I looked back at Sakayanagi while still keeping my back turned on her. I definitely haven't seen her before, she truly is a girl who doesn't have a place in my memories.

I haven't lost any memories in the past either.

I met this girl, Sakayanagi, at this school.

There's no mistaking that fact.

"Understandable. Because you don't know me after all. But I do know you. This must be a strange twist of fate. To be reunited with you in a place like this. To be honest, I never thought I'd see you again. But with this, all mysteries have been solved. The uninhabited island, the cruise and Class D's brush with expulsion. I just couldn't bring myself to believe all of those were Horikita Suzune's strategies. So you were pulling the strings behind the scenes during all that".

"Whatever do you mean by that? We have quite a few strategists, you know".

First of all, analysis. I need to stay composed without panicking. I can afford to think about it later.

"By strategist, would you happen to mean Horikita Suzune-san? Or perhaps you meant Hirata Yousuke-kun? Either way, now that your existence has come to light, it doesn't matter who it is anymore".

.....she's not lying. Apparently she really knows me.

"Please relax. First of all, I have no intention of telling anyone else about you".

"Wouldn't it be easier if you did?".

"I don't want to be interrupted. I'm the only one worthy of burying the false genius".

Clonk. The thin cane tapped on the floor.

"I've found some slight enjoyment in this boring school life".

"Can I ask you one thing?".

"I'm honored to be questioned by you. Please ask away. If you'd like to know why I know you then I don't mind giving you an answer, you know?".

"No, I'm not interested in that. I just want to know one thing".

Sakayanagi and I make eye contact.

"Can you bury me?".

Was what I asked.

".....fufu".

Sakayanagi laughed a bit and then laughed yet again.

"Fufufu. I apologize for laughing. But I did not intend on insulting the statement you made. I know very well just how awe-inspiring a person you are. I've just begun to enjoy this. Beacuse I will be fulfilling my life's wish by destroying the greatest masterpiece your father has made".

I'd like to wish for that.

My defeat would mean that man's defeat too after all.

I thought from the bottom of my heart that I wanted this sad contradiction I carry to be destroyed.