"Found. You!"
Tearing her eyes away from the record-breaking numbers on the display of the MOTH-customized treadmill, Yama wiped away sweat with a towel while glancing at the person who had just walked in.
"Why are you still working out during the banquet?"
"...Why?"
"What do you mean, 'why'?"
Yama pulled on her boxing gloves, adjusted her breathing, and began striking a heavy bag. From initial slow jabs to later heavy, rapid punches, the gym was filled with nothing but the loud whistle of wind and the dull thud of impacts.
"Why do I have to go?"
BAM!
Yama forgot to hold back. By the time she snapped out of it, the heavy bag had a hole in it, and sand was pouring out.
She fell silent for a long moment, took off her gloves and tossed them aside. She reached for her discarded jacket to get some candy, but before her hand could touch it, another hand snatched the jacket away.
Looking up, she saw a beaming face dangling the jacket.
"What do you want?"
"Let's have a match—just us girls. If I win, you come to the banquet with me."
Yama didn't say a word. She silently raised her arms, assuming a standard combat stance.
The other woman set the jacket down, kicked off the high heels she had specifically worn for today, and tied her long hair back with a band.
They clashed silently. Their fists were not as soft as their appearances suggested; instead, they were incredibly swift, knuckle clashing against knuckle.
This was Yama first time fighting her. She had heard of the woman's brilliant track record—before Yama broke the shooting and long-distance running records, this woman had held first place—but in this initial bout, her grappling skills were even more formidable than imagined.
Both took a step back, evenly matched. Fine beads of sweat broke out on their foreheads, but the other woman's playful expression stood in stark contrast to Yama coldness.
Yama lowered her fists, suddenly leaning forward to shift her center of gravity. She kicked off with one foot, briefly becoming airborne to deliver a Superman Punch.
At this distance, it wasn't an effective boxing range, so the opponent's attention had drifted to her legs. The unconventional Superman Punch should have been an unexpected strike.
But the opponent's unchanging smile flashed before her eyes. The world in Yama vision flipped upside down; in an instant, she was caught in a headlock by an elbow and pinned to the floor.
"..."
It was so quiet that only their breathing could be heard. The smiling face appeared before her eyes.
"Hee-hee, how cute."
Before Yama could react, a fleeting softness brushed against her lips.
"Just lips touching lips doesn't count as a first kiss~ And girls' kisses don't count either!"
The other woman fled like the wind before Yama could explode, her remaining words floating in the air.
"Remember to come to the banquet!"
Yama stood up without a word. She sighed and picked up her jacket, feeling her pocket...
"..." She stared stiffly at the empty, open gym door.
The lollipop had been swiped.
"You really can sleep through anything."
Lin was woken by the cold night wind. With a shiver, he snapped out of his deep sleep, seeing silver hair dancing in the faint starlight.
"Time is almost up."
Yama remained staring at the clock towering above them. The hour and minute hands were about to overlap at the zenith once more, meaning the next twenty-four-hour cycle was arriving.
Lin took a breath of cold air and leaned against the wall to stand. His tongue still throbbed with a searing pain; even having it in his mouth was a form of torture. Not even Lin could fully adapt to this pain; while its intensity was nothing compared to what he had suffered before, it was uniquely unbearable.
"Will it be a hundred years or a thousand years next time? Though I suppose it doesn't make much difference." Her eyes shifted to the right, landing on the face of the rising Lin. "What do you think?"
"..."
"..."
"...Last time, you didn't make a wish, did you?"
The low night wind blew from the distant horizon. Lin gazed at Yama back as her long hair fluttered. He knew she answered almost everything, but how much she told and whether it was the truth depended entirely on her.
Lin carefully reviewed her reaction after the wish "failed" back at the house. There was a familiar feeling; he had found similar parts in his memory—that was the look and expression Mobius would occasionally show.
Shame turning into anger. The resentment of having a lie exposed.
But at that time, no one had discovered she was lying; she had realized it herself. She couldn't bring herself to wish for those two to disappear. Even later, when he stopped her, she could have easily snapped their necks instantly before dealing with him, yet she set them down.
So... she was angry with herself.
"So what? I can indeed only bring myself to be ruthless toward you." She was actually quite calm. She turned around, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "If you think it's unfair, I don't care. That's who I am, and that's how I treat you."
"No... my point is, why don't you try wishing for the people of this world to... come back?"
"...Why? Their extinction is a destined conclusion."
"If you truly believed the future couldn't be changed, you wouldn't be hunting me."
"..."
Yama fists clenched. Her eyelids lowered, her gaze fixed like a nail on the upward-looking Lin.
"It's not that it can't be changed, it's just that only by killing you—"
"Then you could just wish for me to disappear."
"Why the hell do you believe that nonsensical Monkey's Paw can grant what you want!" Yama pointed at Lin, looking as if she might charge at any second. "Can a wish be fulfilled by irrational belief alone? Hasn't your wish already proven it's a mistake?"
"...It has."
Lin met Yama gaze calmly. He looked into her unclouded black pupils and breathed softly: "It proved my mistake, my selfishness. Just as you said, I don't follow my principles as strictly as I claim. I want the people I've lost to return, I want to go back to the past, I want... a completely different future."
"As long as you know." Yama turned back around, no longer meeting his eyes. His gaze was too clear.
"So it also proves you aren't as indifferent as you claim. Are you willing to give up without even trying?"
"I have tried countless times," Yama suppressed a shout in her throat.
"Then try one more time."
"It's meaningless."
"You said I was special." Lin took a step forward. "Is that meaningless too?"
"I've already seen the future of another 'Special Lin'." Yama breathing was erratic. "Who else am I supposed to believe?"
"Believe in yourself. Believe in... hope."
Someone's voice echoed in his mind, along with her flawless smile: "One day, I will prove it to you."
...
"Fine. I'll believe you one more time."
Finally, the emotion in her eyes stabilized. She took the section of the Monkey's Paw from her coat. After time had pushed forward, the paw had returned to her hand; it seemed it wouldn't rest until it granted a wish.
"If it doesn't come true..." She shot Lin a furious, sidelong glance. "I'm biting your tongue off."
Ding-dong.
The bell rang. Another cycle began.