Chapter 20: Everyone’s Already a Walking Radio Tower…

I’d been thinking about it since yesterday.

What Futaba-san said—that Rio-chan’s brain had turned into some floaty-sugar-syphilis mess.

What even is “floaty-sugar-syphilis”?

What exactly is happening to Rio-chan?

Was it related to her telling me she liked me? Or was I just being self-absorbed?

…No way to know unless I talk to her in person.

Still feeling weird about it, and kind of sleep-deprived, I dragged myself to school the next morning, rubbing my droopy eyes as I walked in.

And what greeted me was—

“Good morning, Tsubasa-chan♪”

A strangely cheerful Rio-chan, smiling from ear to ear.

…Yeah. She’s cute.

“Morning, Rio.”

“Hehe, today’s gonna be a great day.”

“Right…”

She was very chipper.

It wasn’t her usual calm aura—her excitement practically radiated off her.

But despite what Futaba-san said, there was no sign of her being dangerously out of it. Not even a hint.

…It was probably just another case of Futaba-san blowing things out of proportion. She made it sound so serious, I ended up getting worried for no reason.

“After school. Same place as always.”

“Yep, got it, Tsubasa-chan!”

She looked so happy, I couldn’t help but feel relieved. …Thanks to that, the awkwardness I’d been feeling all by myself just melted away.

If she’s acting like nothing’s wrong, then yeah—guess I really was just overthinking everything.

…Good. I’m glad I didn’t jump to conclusions and do anything weird.

---

And so, after school.

I honestly believed that our usual time together would begin, just like always.

“I’m here, Tsubasa-chan!”

“…???”

But the Rio-chan who showed up on the rooftop was clearly not okay.

In each hand, she held giant fans—one read “Tsubasa-chan LOVE!” and the other “I ♥ YOU, TSUBASA!”

Across her forehead, she wore a headband that said “TSUBASA FOR LIFE!”

There stood Rio-chan—confusing “mysterious” with “mistaken”—right in front of me.

Goodbye, normal days.

Hello, nightmare made real.

『Kishine’s snapped.』

It was only now that Futaba-san’s words from yesterday finally made sense.

Rio-chan… she’s lost her mind!!

—

“Rio, what… is that…?”

“Oh, you noticed, Tsubasa-chan?”

She fanned herself with a grin like this was totally normal.

She shoved it in my face so blatantly, there was no way not to notice. Not that I wanted to. I would’ve preferred to never notice, ever.

“…What even is that?”

Seriously, what?

What happened to you, Rio-chan?

Did you slam your head into a utility pole and go poof?

“I’m glad you asked, Tsubasa-chan!”

You left me no choice, Rio-chan.

If I didn’t ask, my brain was going to short-circuit next.

“These fans and the headband, right? They’re part of my Tsubasa-chan Ultra-Stan Gear Collection! Like, super limited edition!”

Ultra-stan… gear?

“And with this, I can cheer on Tsubasa-chan for all her hard work every day!”

Rio-chan continued spouting nonsense, beaming with a radiant smile like it was the most natural thing in the world.

It felt like meeting a friend for the first time in a day only to find out she’d joined some shady cult.

A cult where I’m the guru, apparently. I genuinely have no idea what happened in her head. For the first time, I understand why important people try to ban idol worship.

“Why…?”

The reality she slammed into me was more extreme than anything I could’ve imagined, and it nearly broke my brain. Still, I scraped together the last of my willpower to get an answer.

Rio-chan, what the hell happened to you?

And then—with an oddly sharp, serious look on her face—Rio-chan declared:

“──I realized that Tsubasa-chan is my oshi, and she’s the cutest girl in the whole world.”

She said it proudly, like she’d uncovered the truth of the universe, completely unaware she’d just confirmed that she’d lost her damn mind.

Cool and mysterious, or beautiful—I could’ve handled that. But cute?

The Rio-chan I thought was kind of amazing that day.

The friend who said something wonderful to me in the sunset.

That person was now saying things like this—things that didn’t make sense anymore.

What… am I even supposed to do?

“Rio, you’re… weird…”

“Huh? Tsubasa-chan?”

I couldn’t bear to look at her—Rio-chan, who’d totally lost it and started idolizing me like I was some celebrity. I turned and ran off the rooftop in a half-sprint. I could hear her calling after me, but for now, I ignored everything.

Because my head was about to explode!

I never wanted to see Rio-chan like this!!

---

“…Futaba. We need to talk.”

“Knew you’d come sooner or later.”

After fleeing the rooftop, I headed straight for the library.

Because the only friend I could count on was Futaba-san.

I also figured she probably knew something about what was going on.

“Rio’s… weird. What is that?”

When I tried to say Rio-chan’s totally lost it, what the heck is going on with her?!, my mouth kindly simplified it for me.

And because I was so blunt, Futaba-san’s answer was equally concise.

“She’s got full-blown Floaty-Sugar Syphilis. Dumbass Kishine mode.”

That’s… wow. But honestly, kind of accurate. I wanted to forgive her, but this was the kind of Rio-chan that was just really hard to forgive.

“Why?”

Realizing that something was happening gave me the clarity to seek out the root of it. I just wanted Rio-chan to go back to normal as soon as possible.

Because if she stayed like that forever… I might really lose it myself.

“Then listen, Tsubasa.”

Futaba-san nodded with unusual gravity.

And she began to explain what happened yesterday.

Everything she saw from her perspective—about Rio-chan.

—

“Yesterday, Kishine was giddy. Said she liked you, then her brain short-circuited.”

“…”

Yeah… she did say that.

Rio-chan told me she liked me.

It made me happy, but also uneasy.

I wanted to take it seriously, but knew I couldn’t let myself.

That’s why my heart had been all twisted up—right up until I saw Rio-chan again just now.

…And then the Rio-chan I saw dropped all that straight into the garbage.

“She’s been in la-la land ever since. But—sometimes, I saw this look on her face. Like she was really weighed down.”

Hearing that made something click.

That look Rio-chan had on the rooftop sometimes.

She seemed lonely. Sad. Her eyes would drop a little.

I thought it was just how the light hit her in the sunset, but… maybe she really was struggling with something.

“Tsubasa, do you know why?”

I didn’t. I kept telling myself it was nothing.

If I’d been paying more attention to Rio-chan, maybe her screws wouldn’t have come loose. Maybe she wouldn’t have gone from mysterious to full-on signal tower mode, declaring me her oshi.

Maybe… I just missed the SOS my friend was sending me…

The more I thought about it, the more my mood sank.

I care about Rio-chan so much, and yet… I didn’t notice a thing.

“By the way, I know.”

“…Huh?”

That’s why her next words slipped cleanly into my ears.

“I know what caused Kishine to contract Sudden-Onset Fairyland Syphilis.”

It felt like a lifeline being tossed to me while I was drowning.

“…You know?”

“Yup. I do.”

Thanks to that, the crushing sadness I’d been falling into slowly began to clear.

There’s a huge difference between knowing nothing and maybe knowing something.

“Tell me, Futaba.”

“Sure.”

That’s why, from the bottom of my heart, I was truly grateful to Futaba-san.

It felt like a halo was shining behind her.

Like she was the savior I’d been waiting for—my heart was dangerously close to falling into a Rio-style cult devotion.

I realized, in a quiet way, this is what it feels like to be saved.

“But hey, Tsubasa.”

Futaba-san leaned in close to my ear.

“──Call me by my name.”

Her tone didn’t change. That flat, unobstructed voice cut clean through everything.

She wanted me to call her by name. To treat her more like a friend.

For a split second, I hesitated. A pang of guilt flitted through my chest, thinking of someone else.

Remembering that cold way she usually acted made something twist inside me.

But then—Futaba-san spoke again.

“Yesterday, I had burgers with Kishine. Just the two of us.”

Still expressionless, she threw out that one line—like she already knew exactly what I was hung up on, and was swatting it aside.

It made me feel awkward. Unsettled. And for some reason… it stung a little.

“…I see.”

I accepted it with a quiet nod.

She doesn’t casually hang out with me like that…

…But I guess I can’t blame her. I don’t talk much. I probably come off as boring.

With a mess of complicated feelings tangled in my chest, I finally said it—

“──Misao.”

“Mhm. Good job.”

I said it before I could really understand why.

Futaba-san was still expressionless—but she raised a finger to the corner of her lips.

“I’m happy. Thank you, Tsubasa.”

She gently pressed her cheek upward with her finger, forcing a smile for me.

…And I couldn’t help but feel warm inside, seeing that clumsy little smile.

No… I’m the one who should be thanking you—Misao-chan.

---

“Tsubasa, listen.”

“Mm.”

And just like that, we launched into an emergency strategy meeting to bring Rio-chan back to her senses. I asked about the cause, but Misao-chan said she wanted to explain the cure first.

“Kishine’s brain is currently malfunctioning.”

“Mm.”

Unfortunately, that was a cold, hard fact. Too cold, too hard.

Because Rio-chan right now is clearly not okay.

“To fix it, we need to give her a shock.”

“…A shock?”

“Yes. Kishine’s brain is like a Showa-era appliance—you need to hit it at a 45-degree angle to get it working again.”

…There was some obvious bias in that analogy, but Misao-chan was the only one I could rely on right now, so I stayed quiet and kept listening.

“That’s why—we destroy it.”

“Destroy what?”

“Kishine’s brain.”

???

“What… do you mean?”

“We destroy Kishine’s brain to purge the Fairyland Syphilis. Leave no room for excuses. Force her feelings out. From both of you.”

…Um, I don’t really get it.

Wouldn’t destroying a Showa-era appliance just break it beyond repair?

That thought made me kind of nervous.

But still… she seemed really confident.

Even with that blank expression, I could tell she was making a smug face.

She looked at me with those clear, steady eyes that seemed to say, Just trust me.