During the long break, Kisaragi Akira usually stayed in his classroom.
But today was different.
Earlier that morning, he had gone to see Hiratsuka-sensei and submitted a request to establish a new club—the Unconventional Research Club.
As the name suggested, it was a club dedicated to researching unconventional phenomena.
Supernatural incidents.Paranormal events.Things that weren't supposed to exist.
Akira's intention was simple.
If strange events began occurring at school, people would naturally come to him under the pretense of requesting help from the club. That way, he could resolve the issues discreetly, earn Doomsday Points, and—most importantly—prevent anomalies from spreading further.
The club had only just been approved.
The room was completely bare, containing nothing but a large table and a few stools.
That afternoon, Akira planned to recruit members. At least five people were required to formally establish a club.
He had just picked up a broom to clean the floor when a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in?"
The door opened.
Standing there was Hiratsuka Shizuka.
And behind her—
Yukino Yukinoshita.
Hiratsuka-sensei scanned the room before her gaze settled on Akira.
This student gave her a constant headache.
Perfect scores.First place in every exam.Flawless athletic performance.
And on top of that—handsome.
Short, neatly trimmed black hair.Well-defined, clean facial features.Golden heterochromatic eyes.Fair skin with a faintly warm tone.
He looked energetic, confident, and unmistakably outstanding.
And now, this exemplary student suddenly wanted to establish a club to study paranormal phenomena.
What she understood even less—
Was why Yukino Yukinoshita, third-ranked in the grade, was standing behind her… clearly intending to join.
Had the world finally gone insane?
"Kisaragi," Hiratsuka-sensei said tiredly, rubbing her temples. "Yukinoshita would like to join your… Unconventional Research Club."
"Oh?"
Akira looked at Yukino in mild surprise.
Feeling the weight of his golden gaze, Yukino instinctively pressed her skirt down and averted her eyes.
"…That's fine," Akira replied calmly. "I do need members."
"Good. Then I'll leave you two to it."
Hiratsuka-sensei glanced at them one last time, sighed deeply, and exited the room, closing the door behind her.
Silence followed.
Yukino sat down on one of the stools without saying a word.
Akira couldn't see the turmoil churning inside her.
Half-jokingly, he spoke.
"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone about what happened yesterday."
Yukino immediately lost her composure.
"It's completely normal to have a physiological reaction when you experience something that terrifying! Please don't say such ridiculous things, Kisaragi!"
No matter how hard she tried to explain herself, her bright red ears and tightly clenched fists betrayed her.
Being seen in that state was unbearably embarrassing.
Akira found her reaction… unexpectedly cute.
Far better than her usual cold, distant demeanor.
She noticed his curious gaze.
Yukino felt both mortified and irritated—but she couldn't do anything about it.
Taking a deep breath, she finally asked the question that truly mattered to her.
Her expression turned serious, conflicted.
"…Can you tell me what that female… monster was?"
Akira glanced at her.
Sometimes, ignorance really was a blessing.
Those who couldn't see evil spirits were fortunate.
Yukino was intelligent. She understood what he meant immediately.
Her teeth clenched.
Her fists tightened.
She didn't want to give up.
"But I want to know."
Akira waved his hand dismissively.
"I'm not going to tell you. I have my reasons."
It wasn't just to protect Yukino.
It was also because of apocalyptic cognition.
"But I—"
She was about to argue—
When strange words suddenly appeared before her eyes.
Do you wish to understand the meaning of life?[YES / NO]
"…!"
An unfamiliar voice echoed behind her.
"Did you see it?"
Because the words were floating directly in front of her, Yukino was staring straight ahead.
"You saw it too, didn't you? What is that?" she asked urgently.
Akira shook his head.
"I don't know either. It didn't give me the option to refuse last time, so I just picked randomly and waited to see what happened."
Knowing how deeply apocalypse-related elements were embedded in this world, he didn't believe it was a joke.
YES was selected.
The next moment—
A sensation of weightlessness washed over them.
When Akira opened his eyes again, he found himself inside a dilapidated classroom.
Before he could even observe his surroundings, another notification appeared.
Welcome to the Doomsday Game.Congratulations on being selected as one of the five players for the first round.
[Player Mission]: Survive for seven days.[Failure Penalty]: The game transitions into reality.
At the same time, a notification arrived from the Doomsday Chat Group.
You have come into contact with an Abnormal Doomsday Factor.Rewards have been converted into Doomsday Points.
"…."
The sudden barrage of messages left Kisaragi Akira completely stunned.