"You two must be twins, right? You both have such beautiful eyes.
And you, Aqua—there's something familiar about you. Have we perhaps met somewhere before?"
Hearing Seiya's question, Hoshino Aqua lowered his head, unable to meet Seiya's gaze.
When he finally managed to compose himself and looked up again, his expression was calm and unreadable as he replied, "I think that must be your imagination. This is actually my first time meeting you in person, Seiya."
Kana interjected, "You're probably just remembering one of Aqua's old movies. This guy's been practically off the grid for years—how could you two have met?"
Back then, in order to study how to surpass Aqua's acting, Kana had watched his performances over and over. And since Seiya and Kana had spent so much time together as childhood friends, it made sense to her that Seiya might just be recognizing Aqua from that.
Seiya smiled lightly. "I see. So that's probably it, then. I must've been imagining things."
Glancing once more at Aqua's seemingly composed face, Seiya accepted Kana's explanation with a gentle smile.
But in truth—Seiya had already recognized him.
The boy standing before him was the very same survivor from that tragedy more than a decade ago.
In Seiya's current world, his "brother" had died saving that boy.
And from Aqua's reaction, Seiya could tell—the other had recognized him too.
As for why Aqua chose to hide it, Seiya couldn't say.
There was no doubt about it: the incident more than ten years ago was something Aqua would never forget for the rest of his life.
He had watched with his own eyes as the idol of his previous life—and his mother in this one—Hoshino Ai, was murdered right in front of him.
Aqua hated his own helplessness that day, and at the same time, he deeply admired another child who had been there—one who was the same age as him back then.
Because although Aqua now looked like a seventeen-year-old high schooler, his soul was that of a man in his thirties—a doctor named Amamiya Gorou.
It sounded absurd, but the idol Hoshino Ai had once been his oshi in his previous life. He'd even been the obstetrician who delivered her twins.
Yet by some cruel twist of fate, he'd been reincarnated as one of the children of the idol he'd adored.
Even his sister, Hoshino Ruby, was a reincarnator like him.
He didn't know her exact identity, but after years together, he could tell she hadn't been very old when she'd died.
Being reborn as the child of his beloved idol should have been something to celebrate.
But then, ten years ago, tragedy struck.
A crazed fan of Hoshino Ai, upon discovering that his idol had secretly married and given birth, found her home—and murdered her in cold blood.
The truly disturbing part was that very few people had even known where she lived. So how did that fan find her address? How did he know she had children?
Over the years, Aqua had pursued the truth tirelessly. After years of effort, he finally managed to decrypt one of Ai's private phones—and inside, he found a mysterious contact list.
That was when he realized it. The incident that took Ai's life had not been some random outburst.
It wasn't an accident at all.
That deranged fan was likely just a pawn—a sacrificial piece. The real mastermind was still out there, free.
Of everyone connected to that day, Aqua had secretly investigated them all—Wenren Ako, Seiya, and even Seiya's late brother.
After cross-referencing all the connections, he had ruled Seiya and his family out as suspects early on.
As for Wenren Seiya himself—Aqua remembered him vividly.
Back then, although Aqua had also been five years old, his soul had been that of an adult. Yet despite that, he'd been frozen by terror, unable to move a muscle.
Meanwhile, that small boy named Seiya—his peer in both age and size—had risked his life to save one of the victims.
Aqua could never forget that courage.
If only I had that same bravery back then… maybe Ai wouldn't have died.
Every time Aqua saw Seiya, those memories flooded back—along with a sharp stab of guilt.
He'd even considered reaching out to Seiya before, to work together in uncovering the truth.
After all, Seiya's brother had also been one of the victims that day.
If there was still a hidden hand behind the tragedy, then that person was Seiya's enemy too.
But in the end, the thought that Seiya's brother had died because of him—that he'd been saved while another perished—made Aqua feel like a monster.
So he had chosen to carry the burden alone.
Still, Aqua had kept tabs on Seiya over the years, whether intentionally or not.
And really, how could he not know him?
Just as Ruby had said—Wenren Seiya was now one of the most popular young actors in Japan.
Youtou High School was divided into two main programs: the General Course and the Performing Arts Course.
The General Course was just like any ordinary high school track, but the Performing Arts Course had lower academic requirements—because many of its students were already active professionals in the entertainment industry.
Some of them, despite being students, earned more than most adults.
The two courses even had separate campuses.
Although the school officially claimed not to discriminate between them, the facilities and environment of the Performing Arts campus were clearly superior.
Even the General Course students quietly accepted this fact.
It wasn't hard to see why—the Performing Arts students not only paid higher tuition fees, but were also required to be signed to an agency or to have professional experience in the entertainment world.
Otherwise, if just anyone could join—especially fans trying to get close to their idols—the whole point of the course would be lost.
Kana assumed that all three of them—Seiya, Ruby, and Aqua—were in the Performing Arts Course, so she led them toward that campus.
But midway there, Aqua revealed that he had actually enrolled in the General Course, and thus the two paths diverged.
"It seems fate really likes to play with us," Seiya said with a light smile. "Who would've thought we'd end up in the same class?"
After Kana left, Seiya and Ruby found themselves standing at the door of Class 1-F—their new homeroom.
When they entered the classroom together, several students froze in shock.
"No way… That's Seiya?! Wenren Seiya? The top-tier actor is in our class?!"
"Oh my god—he looks even more handsome in person than on TV!"
"I have to post this on LINE right now! One of my agency seniors is literally Seiya's biggest fan!"
(End of Chapter)