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Chapter 52 - Chapter 52: Remember That Name

After handing the cookies to Yuigahama, Yoru left Shuchiin's campus.

On the way, he pulled out his phone and messaged Gabriel, setting a time and meeting place.

He exited the school gate.

It was Friday after school, and since the weekend was coming, the commercial street near the school was mostly empty—much quieter than usual.

Students passed through here all the time during the week, so they wouldn't linger after classes ended on a Friday.

Walking through the quiet street, Yoru reached the train station at the end, ready to take a ride to meet Gabriel.

He queued up and tapped his card to enter.

Standing ahead of him was a girl with long silver-gray hair.

"That's weird… is my card not working?" Sakurajima Mai tapped her transit card against the reader again.

One second… two seconds… three seconds.

No response.

Sensing someone behind her in line, she quickly tried again.

Still nothing. The reader didn't react at all to her card.

"Maybe this gate's broken. Try another one," Yoru said helpfully as he stepped back, noticing her struggling.

He switched to the next gate and tapped his own card.

Ding— A beep confirmed his successful entry.

He walked through the gate past Mai, glancing at her as he passed.

Huh?

It's her?

Silver-gray hair…

Looking at her side profile, Yoru recognized her from the time they bumped into each other at the bakery.

But he also had the strange feeling that he'd seen her somewhere else before that.

"Do I know her…?" Yoru slowed down, frowning as he tried to recall.

Mai, noticing him pass through, also switched to the gate he used and tapped her card.

Still no response.

"What the heck? Is my card broken?"

Mai didn't often use public transit, but she kept her card in good condition. It shouldn't be out of balance either.

Besides, the system would only prompt for low balance on exit, not entry.

The station wasn't crowded, so she tried another gate.

"It's really not working… I'll just buy a ticket," she sighed, revealing her delicate, pretty face.

Her looks were on par with Utaha, though her figure wasn't quite as… provocative.

"It's you, huh?"

Recognizing Yoru, Mai spoke up. His plump figure had left a lasting impression.

"Yeah, it's me… um…"

"Besides the bakery… I feel like I've seen you somewhere else," Yoru replied, staying put.

"Ah, you figured it out?"

The next second, Mai smiled without surprise and said something that left Yoru confused.

Then, before he could even react to her words, Yoru saw Mai pull out a signed photo from her personal backpack and hand it to him.

Yoru: "???"

What was this about?

He hadn't even voiced his confusion yet.

"Here, take it. My autograph~"

Mai waved the signed photo.

It was a photo of her in costume from a drama.

Yoru instinctively took it, glanced at the signature, then looked at Mai, his expression turning odd.

Mai assumed he was simply too excited to see her and felt a small wave of satisfaction.

"Um... excuse me, but who are you?"

Yoru suddenly spoke up, shattering her sense of triumph.

"...What?"

Mai froze. Shocked, annoyed, and slightly embarrassed all at once.

You're not even a fan?!

"Sakurajima Mai?"

Yoru looked at her reaction, glanced at the autograph, and muttered the name written on it.

"Yes, I'm Sakurajima Mai!"

She really lived up to her reputation as a childhood actress. Despite the surprise, she quickly regained her composure.

Yoru strained to remember. His eyes widened bit by bit. "I remember now. I've seen some of your work. So you're a celebrity?"

"Hmph."

Mai gave a little snort. At least she'd regained her dignity. She turned and headed toward the ticket machine.

"Thanks."

Yoru thanked her and mentally noted her name.

So she's a celebrity?

No wonder she looked familiar. He must've seen her in a drama.

Still... wasn't she kind of washed up?

There wasn't much buzz about her at school or online. Not exactly famous.

Yoru smiled and carefully put away the autographed photo before heading to the platform.

Meanwhile, Mai inserted a bill into the ticket machine—only for it to be swallowed without giving a ticket.

"What the...?"

She was stunned. She slapped the machine and pressed all the buttons frantically.

This machine couldn't be broken—someone had just used it right before her.

"No... no way..."

She kept pressing the refresh and reset buttons, her expression turning irritated.

She tried everything she could think of, but the machine remained unresponsive.

Frustrated, Mai turned away, dejected, and went to find a station staff member.

This whole month had been a streak of bad luck—small annoyances kept piling up, leaving her mentally frayed.

In a foul mood, she reached the service desk and found a staff member.

"Hi, the ticket machine swallowed my money."

She spoke calmly.

No response.

"Hello? The machine ate my money!" she raised her voice, clearly upset now.

The staff member continued staring at his screen, didn't even look up.

"This is your idea of customer service? I'm filing a complaint!"

Mai stomped lightly on the floor with her shoe to express her anger.

Tap tap tap~

The staff member kept typing on the keyboard.

Mai suddenly doubted her own existence—was she invisible?

Angrily and reluctantly, she reached through the small window and poked the staff member's wrist with her finger.

As soon as they made contact, the staff member jumped like he'd seen a ghost.

"Not again..."

Seeing his expression, Mai frowned deeply.

Meanwhile—

It was around 6:30 PM.

Yoru hadn't gone home. Instead, he took a train to a shopping mall in the harbor district to meet Gabriel.

"I'm not late, am I, Gabriel?" Yoru asked.

"No, let's grab dinner first, then do a little shopping," Gabriel replied, unhurried.

She patted her backpack—inside was her savings, enough to buy a decent computer.

Dinner. Shopping. Buying a PC.

By the time they returned to the apartment, it was already past 9 PM.

Yoru turned on the bathroom heater. After dinner, he played with San-san a little, then began his usual workout.

Friday night passed rather pleasantly.

The only odd thing was spotting Kaguya, Chika, and a white-haired girl who looked like a middle-schooler—someone Yoru had never seen before—shopping together. She was quite pretty, though.

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