"Uncle Sousuke…"

"Yeah?"

"Why does the piece Dad gave you twenty years ago look exactly like the one I got two days ago?"

"I have no idea."

Sousuke picked up Rinji's fragment and compared it to his own.

Aside from some minor wear due to age, they were identical.

If it were just similar shape, fine—but with the exact same hole in the same spot? That was too much of a coincidence.

"Where did you get this fragment, Rinji?"

"From a mall. A clerk named Miyamizu gave it to me. She's a resident of Itomori, where the meteorite hit. She made it into a pendant from what she picked up."

"..."

"Well, maybe the meteorite just happened to have two identical fragments. The real question is how Dad got one twenty years ago," Rinji said with a laugh. "Maybe he flew into space and broke off a piece himself."

"That… I really don't know."

It wasn't a big deal anyway. Rinji pocketed the fragment again.

He'd originally picked it as a gift because of the strange feeling he got when he touched it. Plus, it seemed decent enough as a Christmas present.

But in the end, he felt it was too plain, so he gave Hayasaka something else and kept the fragment for himself.

Knock knock.

While Rinji was chatting casually with Sousuke, a knock sounded at the door.

"Looks like Kaname and Hina are back."

"Hm? Aunt Kana and Hina went out? I thought they were just inside."

"We just finished the adoption procedures and still had other things to take care of."

Sousuke said this as he went to open the door.

When he opened it, he didn't see Kaname. Standing at the door was only Hina.

"Eh? Rinji, so you were here?" Hina said in surprise. "I thought you were at home."

"I came to visit Uncle Sousuke for a bit. I'll be heading back soon," Rinji replied with a smile. "By the way, what's with that school uniform you're wearing?"

Hina was dressed in a white one-piece school uniform, the standard outfit for middle school students at Shuchiin Academy.

"Oh, Aunt Kaname brought me to Shuchiin today to handle the enrollment paperwork. They gave me the uniform right away."

As she spoke, she spun around in front of Rinji, then blushed and asked, "Does it... look okay?"

"It suits you quite well," Rinji said with a smile. "Right, Uncle Sousuke?"

Sousuke said, "Mm... it looks good, if you ignore the lack of protection."

"I wasn't used to it either when I first came to Japan, but thinking about it, I guess it's not necessary."

"True."

Rinji's thoughts aligned surprisingly well with Sousuke's, which was something Kaname had always found exasperating.

"So starting next semester, you'll be my kouhai."

"Yep, Rinji-senpai," Hina replied with a smile.

After enduring years of hardship, she could finally attend school like a normal student.

"But... I'm still a little nervous."

What she worried about was whether she could fit in with the school environment.

After all, Shuchiin was a prestigious school known throughout Japan. Hina feared that, as an adopted child, she might be looked down upon or discriminated against.

"You don't have to worry too much about that," Rinji said.

"Shuchiin's overall school culture is pretty decent. Most of the students are second-generation rich kids, but they've also received proper education and act just like regular students."

The discrimination between "pure" and "impure" classes only existed in the high school division. And those who once pushed this bloodline nonsense during the student council elections had already been cheerfully sent away by Rinji. Overall, the atmosphere at school had improved a lot.

"Besides, Kei is also in the middle school student council. If anything happens, you can try asking her for help."

"I see... That's a relief."

After the Amano siblings were adopted, Hina decided to enroll in Shuchiin. As for Nagi, he apparently couldn't let go of his elementary school friends and chose to stay at his old school.

But he didn't need to take the train every day; they now had a driver to pick them up and drop them off.

Seeing the Amano siblings gradually settle into normal life, Rinji finally felt a weight lifted off his chest.

'Now I can finally visit Uncle Amano's grave with a clear conscience.'

"Come to think of it, didn't Aunt Kana come back with you?" Rinji suddenly realized someone was missing.

Logically, since Kaname and Hina went out together, they should have returned together as well.

"Ah, Aunt Kaname said she wanted to stop by your place first," Hina replied, a bit puzzled.

She glanced toward the neighboring door and noticed that Kaname hadn't shown up.

"That's odd. Since you're here, she should've come straight back... There's no one home at your place, right?"

"No... Hayasaka is there."

---

"..."

"..."

"Mrs. Sagara."

"Don't say anything yet. My mind's a mess."

Inside Rinji's home, Kaname sat in front of Hayasaka, holding her forehead like she had just suffered a mental blow.

"You're... Rinji's girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"Hayasaka-san, I know you've broken school rules quite a bit, but... I didn't expect you to lose your mind like this."

Kaname took a sip of tea to calm herself.

"I remember Rinji's girlfriend had black hair and black sclera..."

"That's Karura. She's also Rinji's girlfriend."

"..."

Taking a deep breath, Kaname fell into silence.

After a long while, she finally spoke again.

"Hayasaka-san, may I ask you a few questions?"

"Please go ahead, ma'am."

"Let's say you're walking down the street and two thugs try to rob you. What do you do?"

"Run away and call the police."

"Okay. Now let's say you're a disciplinary committee member and you find someone at school blatantly violating the rules, refusing to listen, and acting arrogantly. What would you do?"

"Warn them three times, make them write a reflection, and if they still don't change, report them to the disciplinary office."

"..."

Kaname covered her mouth, her eyes on the verge of tears.

Seeing her expression, Hayasaka grew concerned.

"Mrs. Sagara..."

"Thank goodness..." Kaname exclaimed excitedly. "You're a normal person."

Hayasaka: "..."