Vol. 1 Chapter 18 – Blood Will Tell

“Leave the narrator to me.”

It was about an hour ago that I’d confidently declared that to Nagisa just before she left.

Nagisa had gone home before noon to concentrate on adjusting the script.

In the first place, the plan was to ask a first-year from the Voice Acting Course to be the narrator, so as long as they had a certain level of skill in reading a script, that would be sufficient.

A narrator who wouldn’t be fazed by a large audience and could speak clearly and articulately. I’d known of such a person for a while. From the very first time I heard her voice, I thought it carried well in a venue, a voice so clear it seemed to enhance her intelligent appearance.

It had been an hour of hesitation on the screen just before making the call, wondering whether to phone the contact information I’d exchanged by chance a few days ago. An hour of staring at her father displayed on her profile screen.

Calling Aida-san, a female classmate whose contact info I’d just exchanged for the first time, required courage. I never called girls in the first place. Mom was an exception, and if I needed to talk to my childhood friend Akari, I didn’t need to call; I could just walk a few steps from my house and talk to her.

“…Alright!” (Yuuto)

There was no point thinking about it anyway. If I tried to confirm via message and my intention wasn’t conveyed properly, it would be troublesome, and even more so if I didn’t get a reply. If I couldn’t ask Aida-san, I’d have to tell Nagisa quickly too. Pushing the reason for my action onto Nagisa, I somehow broke through the final confirmation before making the call, and at the same time, the ringing tone echoed in my ear.

One ring… two rings… three rings…

With each ring, my resolve weakened. If I hung up now, could I just pass it off as a wrong number? Even if it was urgent, was a sudden call a nuisance? Such thoughts were severed along with the click that signaled the other party had picked up the phone.

“…Hello?” (Yume)

“Ah, sorry to call on your day off. It’s Aoi.” (Yuuto)

“I knew that from the caller ID. What do you want?” (Yume)

Her seemingly displeased response made me shrink back a little.

“Sorry, if you’re busy, should I call back? This was sudden, wasn’t it, really.” (Yuuto)

“No, I don’t have any particular plans, so it’s fine… What’s the matter? An invitation to hang out or something?” (Yume)

Her unexpected words left me momentarily bewildered, and the next words wouldn’t come out.

“…No, that’s not it…” (Yuuto)

“Oh, really? I’m sorry. I’ve never talked to a friend on the phone before, so I didn’t know what it would be like and was a little nervous…” (Yume)

“No, I’m the one who should be sorry for some reason…” (Yuuto)

“Don’t apologize. It makes me feel embarrassed for getting a little excited.” (Yume)

So this person did possess the emotion of embarrassment. She acted as if she didn’t care what others thought of her…

“So, if it’s not about hanging out, what’s the matter?” (Yume)

“Ah, well…” (Yuuto)

That Nagisa and I would be participating in the exam together. That only Nagisa and I would be in that exam. That due to script revisions, a narrator was needed. That I wanted to ask Aida-san to do it.

I conveyed all that and waited for her reply.

“I don’t mind at all.” (Yume)

Without even needing to wait, the reply came back in an instant.

“Huh? Are you sure? It’s a pretty unusual format, Nagisa will be there, and it might draw a lot of attention…” (Yuuto)

“It’s fine. It’s a friend’s request, and Minase-san and I stood on the same stage at the entrance ceremony, you know.” (Yume)

She agreed so readily. I was a little surprised by her tone, as if agreeing to a friend’s request was a matter of course. This person really seemed like she would do anything if a friend asked.

“Also, this is unrelated, but…” (Yume)

Unlike before, she lowered her voice, speaking somewhat apologetically.

“Could you possibly get Hokujou Yuuya’s autograph for me?” (Yume)

“Ah… You did say you were a fan.” (Yuuto)

I remembered how she’d approached me at the shoe lockers the other day, saying she was excited about the news of Hokujou Yuuya’s visit.

“You want Aida-san to meet him directly and get it?” (Yuuto)

“No, no, that’s not it. I’m the type who likes to admire those things from afar, so I want Aoi-kun to get it for me. Oh, but if it’s impossible, that’s fine too, really. I’ll do the narrator role regardless, and besides, narrating sounds fun, so I want to try it.” (Yume)

It would be rude not to do anything for Aida-san, who was going out of her way to be the narrator. If this would be a way to repay her kindness, I wanted to do so. It would probably work out if I asked. …Probably.

“No, I’ll give it a try, at least. Nagisa seems to have co-starred with him before, so I think I can probably get it.” (Yuuto)

“Really!?” (Yume)

Aida-san’s voice, usually cool in the classroom, bounced girlishly. Perhaps realizing she’d gotten a little too excited herself, she cleared her throat lightly and then said, “Well then, I’m counting on you,” before hanging up the phone as if to escape.

After staring at the darkened phone screen making a tuu-tuu sound for a few seconds, I collapsed onto the bed.

“…Narrator secured, at least…” (Yuuto)

Phew… I let out a breath and picked up the phone I’d tossed on the bed to contact Nagisa about it. At the same time, I realized.

“…I don’t have Nagisa’s contact info…” (Yuuto)

“What’s wrong? Did you start missing me already, even though we just parted ways?” (Nagisa)

Nagisa, who came out immediately after I rang the doorbell, said something like that jokingly.

“That’s not it.” (Yuuto)

Of course, I denied it instantly.

“…Can’t you even take a joke? There’s a thing called ‘playing along,’ you know, ‘playing along.'” (Nagisa)

“What do you mean, ‘playing along’?” (Yuuto)

“You should have said something more like, ‘I started missing you.’ That’s why you have so few friends, you know.” (Nagisa)

“That’s not playing along well, that’s just being a flippant guy. Do you like guys like that, Nagisa?” (Yuuto)

“Well, I dislike them.” (Nagisa)

“What’s with that…” (Yuuto)

As I said that with exasperation, Nagisa opened her front door wide.

“I don’t know what you want, but want to come in?” (Nagisa)

Inviting a guy into her apartment when she lived alone seemed a little too defenseless.

“No, I won’t be talking for long, so it’s fine. Just that the narrator’s been decided.” (Yuuto)

“…That’s it?” (Nagisa)

“That’s it.” (Yuuto)

“You came all this way just to say that?” (Nagisa)

“…Is that bad?” (Yuuto)

I thought it was a reasonably urgent matter, but was it a bit too trivial a reason to visit a girl’s room? As I felt a little uneasy about that, the corners of Nagisa’s mouth turned up slightly, and she started to grin.

“Doesn’t that mean you wanted to see me after all~? Making up some random excuse~? Wanting to talk in person in this internet age.” (Nagisa)

“No, it’s because I didn’t have your contact info.” (Yuuto)

When I said that, the grin that had been on her face moments before vanished.

“Right~… That was it, wasn’t it~…” (Nagisa)

“Well, it’s inconvenient, so if you’re okay with it, Nagisa, want to exchange contacts?” (Yuuto)

As I said that, color returned to her expression once more.

“Eh~? If you insist, I guess I have no choice~. I’ll exchange with you!” (Nagisa)

Had she always been someone whose expression changed this much? The way her emotions showed on her face so amusingly was almost suspicious, making me wonder if they were genuine. As Nagisa operated her phone to exchange contacts, she continued talking.

“Oh, by the way, who’s the narrator?” (Nagisa)

“Aida Yume-san from our class. You know her, right?” (Yuuto)

They should have met at the entrance ceremony. According to Aida-san, they’d apparently even had a conversation.

“Ah~… That slightly peculiar girl, right?” (Nagisa)

She deliberately avoided the word “weird” to describe Aida-san. Indeed, the calm and pure impression one got from her appearance would likely crumble the moment one spoke to her.

“More importantly, how did you get her permission?” (Nagisa)

“I just called her normally, though?” (Yuuto)

Nagisa’s hand, which was about to scan the QR code I displayed on my screen, stopped.

“…On your phone?” (Nagisa)

“Yeah, why?” (Yuuto)

“…You have her contact info.” (Nagisa)

“Yeah, by chance.” (Yuuto)

“Heeh~ Hmm, I see~ So I’m second, huh~ You never once suggested exchanging contacts with me, though~” (Nagisa)

Grumbling like that, she operated her phone, and the characters “Nagisa” were added to my contact list. Her profile picture was a teddy bear placed on a bed.

“There, exchanged. Well then, bye-bye.” (Nagisa)

Saying that, the door slammed shut forcefully. As I recalled her clearly displeased demeanor, my heart danced a little looking at the distinctly girly girl’s contact info registered on my phone. At that moment, a message arrived from Nagisa, with whom I’d just parted ways.

{I’ll bring the script over when it’s done.} {Roger that.}

I replied, adding a random sticker of a bear saluting, and returned to my own home next door.

That evening, as I looked over the script that had been finished and delivered at lightning speed, I was trembling.

It wasn’t that I was surprised by a lack of quality. It was a well-crafted script that didn’t stray from a classic storyline and utilized the unique setting of a knight with a fox mask. What surprised me was something else.

I had seen every program my father, Hokujou Yuuya, had appeared in. Mom had shown me most of them, but there were some I’d watched on my own initiative. One of them was a documentary that followed Dad closely. In that program, a certain film director had said this:

“What’s amazing about Hokujou-kun is his ability to ad-lib. He can memorize any script in less than a day, simulate it in his mind, and show us an interpretation that surpasses the script. I believe that’s his charm.”

Remembering the distinguished film director with a white beard stroking it as he spoke, I looked over the script once more.

I closed the script and recited it in my mind. The lines, the positioning, even the expressions that Nagisa and I would likely make at that time—everything came to mind vividly.

My memory wasn’t particularly good. For studying, I had always relied on sheer repetition to etch things into my brain. That’s how I’d always done it.

I had intended to do the same with this script. But to think that…

“In one go…?” (Yuuto)

A dry laugh, a mix of surprise and disbelief at myself, echoed in the quiet room.