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What kind of rhythm is this?
Is it that classic scene where he turns around and a girl kisses him? Or the gentle kind where she hugs him from behind?
But either way, it's too sudden! He wasn't mentally prepared!
Kiyono swallowed unconsciously and slowly stood up. At this distance, he could already feel the refreshing aura of the blue-haired girl behind him—the scent of summer.
Then—
"Hey!"
Yanami's lips curved into a sly smile. She reached out and gave his back a light push.
Caught off guard, Kiyono stumbled two steps forward and—with a splash—fell into the swimming pool, sending water flying. Since there was still a thin layer of water on the bottom, it didn't feel like a full dunk.
"Gotcha, my imaginative little senior," the girl giggled.
Feet in the water, Kiyono turned and shot Yanami a cold look from below.
By now, the sun had slipped lower; the ultramarine evening blurred the blue-haired girl's expression.
"Let's set off fireworks," she said suddenly.
"Where would we get fireworks?" Kiyono rolled his eyes.
Humming triumphantly, Yanami untied her ponytail and, like a magician, pulled a sparkler and a lighter from her uniform pocket, tossing them down toward the pool.
"There's water here, you idiot! Has your brain gotten waterlogged too?!"
Kiyono hurried to catch them, but the sparkler still fell and got wet.
"Can this still be lit?"
He tried—and failed.
Splash.
The blue-haired girl hopped down playfully.
Then she came to his side.
"Don't move." Her usual mischievous voice brushed his ear. She took his left hand, placed something in it—a sparkler already burning—its silver sparks lighting his face.
"Now it can be lit."
Kiyono turned. Under the gentle, reluctant night, amid the crackle of sparks, a wide smile bloomed on Yanami's face.
"Shall we watch them together next year too?"
Her voice flickered with the tiny fireworks.
"The year after next, and the year after that… until the summer night when Kiyono forgets his house keys and has to stay over at my place."
—
Crackle—sparklers burned brilliantly.
Chirp, chirp—the cicadas joined in.
Early evening wrapped the world in darkness; only the firelight illuminated Yanami's beautiful face, soft with a gentle smile.
Thump.
Heartbeats and groans echoed in his mind. What was with this Yanami! She was too much!
He opened his mouth to say something, but a sudden shout from behind cut him off.
"Ah! You two are secretly playing here and didn't call us—how cunning!"
Splash—water fanned up as the athletic girl jumped straight into the pool, laughing and patting both their arms. Yanami only blinked and casually made space.
"Where were you two when it was time to work?" Kiyono glanced at Lemon, then at Komari peeking from above the pool.
"N-no, no can do—summer vacation starts tomorrow, the club has a lot to sort out!"
Lemon scratched her head apologetically, then fixed on the sparkler in Kiyono's hand, her eyes shining.
"I want to play with fireworks too!"
"Hehe, I bought a lot more!" Yanami flashed a triumphant smile, back to her usual slightly silly, comedic self.
The two girls who'd skipped out on work walked to the pool's edge; Kiyono followed behind.
Yanami hadn't lied—at the bottom of the plastic bag was a whole pile of sparklers. Lemon lit one from a candle and happily played alongside the other two girls. Even Komari quietly crouched down, watching the sparks bloom in her hand while sneaking glances at Kiyono, her expression gentle.
After-school summer, a swimming pool, girls, fireworks.
This should be the last scene of youth he'd see, he thought.
"And so many snacks! It feels just like a fireworks festival." After finishing a sparkler, the athletic girl and Yanami tore open snacks, her tone bright.
"There's a big difference…" Yanami thought privately.
Lemon, however, didn't think that deeply. For some reason, she looked at Kiyono with playful ambiguity. "Speaking of summer vacation and fireworks, shouldn't there be some classic events?"
"L-like… feeding and love triangles?" Komari, well-versed in light novels, offered calmly.
"Exactly, exactly—ah, un—"
Lemon giggled, pulled out a chocolate bar, and lifted it to Kiyono's mouth.
"I am a master of the pure love genre."
Kiyono proudly sidestepped. Just then, Yanami popped up and bit off the tip of the chocolate bar. "I'll eat it!"
"Well done."
They high-fived.
Fireworks are fleeting.
Amid the cheerful clamor, the firelight faded.
Sensing a subtle shift in the atmosphere, Lemon crouched and twirled the burnt-out sparkler.
"It'll be third year of high school in half a year… Has everyone decided on a university?"
Talk of future paths, entrance exams, and inevitable goodbyes made the girls a bit sentimental—but not sad. After all, they would meet again someday.
"You'll be surprised to hear this, but I want to challenge myself and become the beautiful campus belle of Waseda University!" Yanami said with a playful smile.
"Really?! That's a super prestigious school!" Lemon looked shocked.
Then all three girls turned to Kiyono—well, Lemon had been watching him since the question started.
"I'm still considering…"
Kiyono didn't answer directly. Honestly, at first he only wanted a degree from a top-tier university, but step by step, his pursuit of perfection pushed him higher—since he was taking the entrance exam anyway, he might as well aim for the best.
And in Tokyo, there was clearly only one "best."
Unfortunately, he wasn't yet a traditional literary master whose name could be etched in the literary world—no special recruitment by Tokyo University just for being a light novel author. Even if prestigious universities granted privileges, academics still had to meet a standard.
It made him sigh. A person's energy is truly limited. Even with innate talent, he couldn't balance studying, light novels, and a literary career perfectly. To hit his ideal of perfection, he needed more talent traits—and time.
"M-me… it doesn't matter if I go to university or not. A-anyway, I've decided to write novels for the rest of my life…" Komari's voice was faint.
Of course, she wanted a good school if she could, but her focus was novels. Royalties could support her and ensure a livelihood.
"That's great—everyone has a goal now."
Lemon's smile sparkled like stars.
"To be sure we have no regrets, let's work toward our goals together."
The athletic girl thrust out her hand, clearly hoping to recreate a passionate anime scene.
Yanami eagerly placed her hand on top, as if she'd wanted to do this for ages.
Next came Komari's trembling little hand. She thought, I never expected such a youthful moment in my rotten life. The little person in her heart was almost moved to tears.
Kiyono silently turned to flee. Then Yanami grabbed his hand and planted it on the stack.
Under the ultramarine night, their hands layered like intertwined dreams.
"Ah, there are only three left. How do we split these?" Lemon set the sparklers on the ground, troubled.
"You guys play. I'm a mature adult now; I don't play childish games," Kiyono declared loftily.
"Then let the three of us share them!" Yanami chirped, reaching out.
At the same time, Lemon and Komari reached for the same sparkler Kiyono had just touched. In the next moment, both held it, their fingers accidentally brushing.
They looked up; surprise flickered in both girls' eyes.
Lemon studied her thoughtfully. After a brief pause, she blinked, then casually let go and smiled.
"I didn't expect us to have the same preference."
To be honest, her relationship with Komari was pretty ordinary. That had a lot to do with the gloomy girl's personality—though she'd always been kind to her…
"Uh, oh…" The gloomy girl hesitated; her response was as soft as ever.
"You like this, right? Then work hard and get it!" Lemon picked up the last sparkler, gaze steady, her voice carrying the sunshine and passion unique to an athlete.
"Mm, mm…"
A certain figure flashed through her mind. Komari lit the sparkler from the candle, letting her inner self bloom with the sparks.
The last three sparklers fell.
The seventeen-year-old summer vacation began.
If they could relive their youth, what would they choose to do?
In this singular July of their lives, the boys and girls pondered—and each took action.
Under the scorching summer sun, the athletic girl still ran until she dripped with sweat, accompanied only by dust and asphalt. But after practice each day, she sat at her desk and diligently studied her textbooks.
In a small room, the old air conditioner buzzed. Komari sat at her computer, fingers tapping steadily. Her younger siblings slept on the tatami nearby. She tilted her head to glance at them and unconsciously softened her movements.
Meanwhile, Kiyono—also enjoying the AC—lay on the sofa scrolling his phone. The screen showed anime news: "Officially airing next July."
"Next year, I'll just about reach volume seven. With the adaptation's promotion, sales will surge again—that should unlock the 'Light Novel Master' achievement."
He calculated silently. As of this year, he'd landed both the "This Light Novel Is Amazing" and "Hall of Fame" annual rankings. One more step and he'd have them all.
The Pure Love Warrior was satisfied with the simulation's results. Though continuous serialization and the anime adaptation devoured time and delayed his progress toward becoming a great literary author, it would be far easier in reality—or in the next simulation.
"Reality, huh."
A strange unreality washed over Kiyono. He set down his phone, sat up, and walked to the window.
It truly felt like he'd lived another life.
He looked out, his gaze seeming to pierce space.
"After I return to reality, Yanami and the others probably won't remember any of this."
At the window, at the end of his line of sight, the blue-haired girl bowed her head slightly, profile calm and serious as she wrote and sketched in her homework book.
She was reviewing.
Before long, Yanami unconsciously stopped, leaned back in her chair, and a small, transparent soul seemed to slip from her lips.
"So tired… snacks, I need snacks!"
Her brain had burned too much energy; her mind filled uncontrollably with all her favorite treats, each glowing temptingly, luring her to eat.
"N-never mind, I'll just eat some chocolate—it replenishes energy quickly."
Yanami wiped the glistening droplet that had formed at the corner of her lips and picked up a piece of bittersweet dark chocolate with less sugar from the table, taking a bite. From now on, she would study hard all day long. If she kept snacking every day, she'd get fat!
"But my foundation is so poor…"
The blue-haired girl sighed, frustrated. Her high school wasn't a high-deviation-value powerhouse; her grades were average in an ordinary environment. But the opponents she was about to face were excellent students from all over the country. She was starting late; unless she pushed herself to the limit, she truly had no chance.
To gain something, one must pay a price. Only through hard work could she raise her grades—then close the gap between herself and that person.