Waking up from a bench, I open my eyes and sit up.

"Where... Am I?"

And what happened?

Operation rooms... This must be a hospital.

Is... Anyone here?

I observe my surroundings. There are shadows that take the shape of nurses.

Is this a boundary? No... There isn't any water.

"I heard..." I hear a voice.

"WHO'S THERE?" I jerk my head and scream.

"The poor thing..."

"How young... How sad..."

The shadows... are talking.

How terrifying-!

In shock and fear, I dash towards a random direction. If I can find one person-

"Isn't anyone here?! Shijima-san! (Y/N)-chan! Tsukasa-kun! I don't care who!"

...

"Shijima-san!"

After running around aimlessly, I see a tall figure stands before a doorway.

"Wh-What a relief! Where in the world..." I stop at her serious silence. "Shijima-san?"

I look towards what she's looking at.

"Who is she?" I say as if speaking instead of her.

-----------------------

"Really...

...

I was just starting to fall asleep when another Shijima Mei entered the room.

I stay in place, pretending to be alseep.

"Shijima-san... What are you-"

" 'What'? Granting my wish, naturally."

"I have but one wish."

Her voice seems closer and closer.

Twitching my hand, I get ready to pull out a ribbon. If I can-

"WH- NO! STOP IT!"

The young Shijima twitches. Oh dear... They have woken her up.

Shaking her more, I bring her back to consciousness.

The two on the floor continue fighting.

How hopeless...

At my signal, Mei clicks the 'call' button on her bedside.

"Did you call?"

"What's wrong, dear?"

"How are you feeling?"

I grab little Mei's hand, pulling her to safety, but she stops me.

Instead of coming with me, she grabs Yashiro's hand.

"Here, this way."

-----------------------

"Ah... That scared me..."

"Well, a somewhat suspicious person did enter the room. Without thinking I pressed the nurse call button... Are you okay?"

"Mhm... I'm fine now... But... Why are you here?" Yashiro Nene points at me, currently in my apparition form.

"Hey, Yashiro! I was just hanging out with the one and only, Shijima Mei!" I grin, offering my hand.

"Huh? Shijima-san?" Yashiro whispers, but then shakes her head.

She carefully takes my hand, shaking it steadily.

"Um, what are you doing down there?"

"30... 35... Are these just normal ankles? What an amazing amount of thickness... Perhaps you're related to elephants?!"

"Wh-What are you talking about-?!"

"Hey, let me observe your ankles too! I've been curious about them ever since I've met you." I join in, kneeling down to her legs.

She pushes us off, embarrassed, letting out a few negative comments.

"Say, are you Shijima-san back when she was alive?"

...

"Yes, that's right, I'm Shijima-san!"

Yashiro looks at her in shock.

"By the way, what are you doing here?" I decide to start up another conversation.

"To be frank... I have no idea."

"Oh, are you lost? We can show you the way out." Shijima offers.

"You'll help me?!" Her eyes light up.

"Yes.. but...

-----------------------

"My drawing... Once I'm done and it's been submitted...

Would you come and look at it then?"

"Impossible..."

"Truly, impossible..."

"Oh, how terrible. That girl, she's still drawing."

"But it's such a severe illness..."

"Recently, all she does is sleep..."

"She seldom even eats any of her food."

"

I frown, looking at my pancake.

We don't have time for this. I need to get her to safety quickly, and do something about that Yashiro Nene, too.

"Mei-chan..."

"Really, it's all just so stupid, right?

There's no point in rumors. After all...

...

I sigh.

They're both so clueless.

In this world, it's not about what you intend on or not.

How pointless...

"M-Mei-chan!"

Mystery No. 4 enters the scene, swinging her knife at her past self.

My ribbon rips through the air, tying itself around past-Shijima Mei and pulling her close to me.

Stop trying to take everything away from me...!

"She has the same face as me..." She whispers as I release her. "Who are you...?"

"I'm..." No. 4 answers, walking towards us, "A piece of fiction, a dream, and a supernatural...

I've always wanted to apologise to you.

I'm sorry, Shijima Mei." She grabs her hand. "I was unable to fulfill my task. Even though I was born in order to protect you."

"Huh...?" Shijima replies, confused.

"I... I'm the 'ideal' which 'you' drew. Just a single piece of paper. To live on, you gave life to me. But the fake cannot change reality. I was unable to save you...

And then... Your death gave birth to all kinds of rumors.

I won't forgive them. All of this... my wish was- my wish was just to protect you."

Mei gets pushed onto the bed. She's pinned down with a knife at her throat.

"I was unable to save you. That's why...

Even if I am just fake, I will not allow these rumors to cause you any harm.

I will... protect your reality."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."

My ribbons snatches away the knife, making it fly across the room.

My face shows clear disappointment.

Trying to follow my lead, Yashiro Nene tries to battle against her. Of course, she gets overpowered and then pushed away.

"Both of you... please stop getting in the way. You don't even understand any of this. You're just running your mouth. This is beyond your comprehension anyway, especially the living girl. Supernaturals and living beings will never come to understand each other."

I stare darkly at the School Mystery. I have to agree with her, but this time I cannot.

"I must... Protect this girl."

"And so do I." I look at her in the eye. "Mura-Joudai."

As Mura-Joudai covers her vision, I take Yashiro and Shijima's hands. But Shijima stops to say something to No. 4.

"You... Must really like me, huh?" She says, letting out a smile. I pull her softly, indicating we should leave. With a nod, we exit the room.

"Goodbye, No. 4." I bluntly reply, not caring whether she hears me or not.

"J-Jistatsu-san, where are we going?"

"Well, Mei-chan here should know where the exit to this hospital is. Right, Mei-chan?" I smile, patting Mei's head.

"You bet!"

"The exit! So you really did know..."

"This world is in my imagination, which means if I open my eyes and wake up, you'll surely be able to go back where you came from!"

I stop both of them from running any further.

"Oh. The floor is falling apart..." Shijima says, as if this were a normal daily obstacle.

"Yeah, no shit."

"What do we do...?"

"Leave it to me! Since we're here, we can basically do anything!"

Shijima picks up Yashiro and jumps over the gap with ease. I simply float to the other side.

"E-EEH-" The daikon girl wears a look of terror.

"But, I have been dreaming far too long today. I have to wake up soon."

A light comes from an exit door. Opening the knob, it leads to a rooftop.

The only thing odd about this rooftop is that there were floating stairs towards the sky. It's so long I can't seem to find the end. The stairs only get smaller and smaller.

"So this is the exit..."

"Yup. Just at the top of these stairs."

"I see. Thanks for your help, Mei-chan!" I tell her. She bashfully reveals a cute smile and starts to climb the stairs.

"Let's go!" I follow her, stepping on the first, then second step. She seems to be more nervous than usual...

"Daikon-chan, something the matter?"

Usually, she would snap back at me for calling her that, but she didn't. That's a bad sign.

Silently, she steps on the first step-

Actually, no. She slides right through it as if it doesn't exist.

"WH-WHY CAN'T I CLIMB?! IS-IS IT BECAUSE MY ANKLES ARE TOO FAT?!" She screams the second part rather reluctantly.

"Oh my." I laugh, carrying Nene back to the solid floor.

"It's because from here on out is my reality. Surely, Nene-chan, your destination is different from mine. And Jisatsu-san is an apparition, so that's a different story."

"This is where we part ways, Nene-chan. Jisatsu-san."

"From here on out, it's your reality..." Yashiro repeats, squeezing the artist's hand. "Are... are you really gonna go? I mean, Mei-chan, you'll..."

She must have realised that Mei's reality only waits for death.

"Aren't you scared...?" Nene manages to ask. Mei pats her head heartfully in reply.

"Just where... did you come from, I wonder... Perhaps the future?" Shijima says, "If that's the case..."

"D-Don't go... Please... Don't go!" School Mystery No. 4 bursts through the door in tears.

"I-I don't want to stay as the useless piece of fiction that harms you... That's the opposite of what I want..."

...

"Fiction isn't worthless. You aren't worthless.

Reality is sometimes cruel. I close my eyes and dream, so I can wake up tomorrow and live.

You're my drawing, my dream...

Because of you, I'm here today with my eyes open."

Shijima Mei screams out to the apparition with the most thankful grin.

"

...

"By the way, isn't it fine being a supernatural? Like, y'know, the rumors about the school stairs..." The girl suddenly pats her imaginary-self's back. "It's cool!

...

Staring blankly at her back, Shijima-san of the art room says nothing and looks onwards.

-----------------------

"Wake up, radish. Oh, you're awake. Hey, Daikon-senpai woke up!"

"D-Don't call her that!" Kou protectively screams at Mitsuba.

"Call her what? Daikon-chan?" I peep my head in front of him.

"I said don't call her that!"

"M-Mitsuba... Kou-kun... Jisatsu-san..."

"Good morning, senpai!"

"How did you sleep, sleeping beauty?"

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Kou interrupts me.

"I'm okay! But how did you..."

"It's a long story."

"Ah, I see... And Jisatsu-san..! Do you perhaps know where Hanako-kun is?

"A-AH!" Mitsuba thankfully cries, "Before you do anything, take a gander at that!"

She points at No. 4 tied up with ribbons from the ceiling.

"This is my handiwork!" I proudly inform her. Yashiro sweat-drops.

"The second I got back... They threw me around and tied me up ever so rudely..."

I grin widely, releasing her from my trap. It's an act of kindness.

"What are you going to do from here on out?" Shijima looks at Yashiro with a smile. "After all, you're going to die soon."

"I'm... I...

What I should do... I may not be able to choose like Mei-chan did... But...

I'm going to go see Hanako-kun! I've found... something I want to tell him!" She looks at us with determination.

I sigh.

"Nice thought, but bad plan."

"J-Jisatsu-san?"

"You really are such a foolish girl..." Shijima backs me up.

Ah... Mei's angry. That's not good.

"That's right. What can you do anyway? You'll meet, and you'll talk... And then? Anyways, come up with a better plan. I'll help because honestly I feel like I did nothing special the last few chapters."

" 'Chapters'?" Everyone else says in unison.

"Nevermind, nevermind. Come up with something!"

"I-I'll make sure that I'll convince him for sure this time! And then we can go back to our world... I'm sure if we talk it out... Hanako-kun will come to understand how I feel-!"

"Listen, Daikon-chan. That's not how everything works. I know Amane well... and even an outsider could tell that's not going to work out."

Mei leans on a wall. "If you take your time without a plan like that, this world will finish and you won't be able to go home, you know?" Convincing him can come later. Leaving this world is priority right now."

"But even if you tell me to convince him... How should I do it...?"

"Ah, I know!" Kou shouts happily, looking at me. I wave back awkwardly. "You've known Hanako for the longest out of all of us here, right?!"

"Well, yes. From birth to be exact. Where are you going with this, Minamoto?"

"Then you should be able to convince him as someone close to him!"

I sigh. Even Teru could do better than this.

"But... No. 4, can't you at least stop this world from finishing? You're in charge of those things, right?" Mitsuba asks. "Don't you intend on helping all of us? And Emo-Ribbon girl too. Aren't you an all-powerful apparition?"

Finally, a decent idea. It won't work, but at least he has a functioning brain.

"Well, I do intend to help you guys out." Shijima replies as I nod in agreement. "But I am unable to slow the process of this drawing. It's also impossible for me to allow you all to leave this world. I'm unable to, at least."

"How come?" Yashiro asks.

"All of us mysteries have rules that exist even in our boundaries." I explain, "We are unable to disconnect ourselves from rumors. It's similar to how No. 5's 4PM bookstacks cannot change the future written in the books."

"I can't stop drawing my pictures. I am also not able to simply let you go, because there are some more rules set in place."

"Rules set in place... You mean killing both Mitsuba-kun and Hanako-kun?"

Mitsuba loses her sanity at that statement. "D-Daikon-senpai-"

"But I can't just do that..."

"I see. Well, if that's the case, why not get No. 3 and No. 8 to make an explosion and blow up the Honorable No. 7?"

"No way!" Mitsuba and I both shout at the same time.

"It'd be better to just be all happy and live here together!" Mitsuba exclaims.

I would have to agree with that, but things seem to be falling apart right now.

"Huh? That's-

BRUSH-CHAN!"

"So you were alive!"

"That brush followed you earlier, senpai." Kou explains.

"It was broken into two, so we fixed it with the help of Jisatsu. Then we led it to where you were resting basically. Aren't we kind?" Mitsuba laughs while I scoff.

"Kou and I were the ones who fixed it. You just went on about talking."

"Says you..."

...

"THAT'S IT!" Yashiro screams all hyped up.

"Wait, there's one of those...?" Kou stares at the brush.

"I-I don't have to explode, right?" Mitsuba stammers.

"Mei, where's this door the brush is talking about?"

"W-Well... that's not something I'm allowed to talk about... But I guess it can't be helped..." Shijima sweat drops at her brush. "Yes, there is an exit that you are looking for."

"Ah, the exit! I knew something was off with the sky." I put my fist on my hand. I figured it out.

"Huh?"

"Pay attention to the sky. Think of what Amane likes!"

"...The moon..."

"Exactly, Yashiro. We need to figure out how to get to the moon."

-------------------------------------

"Please watch your step to make sure you don't fall!"

I walk besides the supernaturals at the front of the group. Mitsuba, Shijima and I talk about our favourite foods, despite this situation. They're fun to talk with.

"Oh, really?! You like donuts?" Shijima asks, surprised.

"Sure do! I love them more than anything!" I grin.

"That's odd... I thought you would be more of a sweets than a pastries person-"

She gets interrupted by Kou and Nene's cheers.

"WOOHOO!"

"WE GOT THIS!"

"You're loud..." Mitsuba whispers at them.

"Say, we've walked pretty far. Are we there yet?" I whine like a 6 year old.

"Almost there, almost there." Shijima comforts me and pats my head. I pout as Yashiro caches up to me.

"Jisatsu-san... This sounds kind of embarrassing, but... What kind of person is Hanako- I mean, Amane-kun?"

I look at her in the eye. She seems curious. No bad intentions.