Gradual Growth

"Knock, knock, knock."

An ill-timed knock at the door interrupted the three of them.

"Who is it?"

Bai Yuze turned around, gripping the cleaver as he stared toward the door.

Yukino went to the Male Corpse and pulled the scalpel from his neck, holding it in her hand.

"It's me, Yamauchi Haruki. I'm done."

Creak.

Yamauchi Haruki pushed open the wooden door and stood awkwardly in the doorway. When he saw the gleaming cleaver in Bai Yuze's hand and the bloodstained scalpel in Yukino's, he froze.

Then he noticed the corpse in the room. It looked like it had gone cold.

"You... you guys! You killed someone?!"

Yamauchi was so frightened that his voice trembled, and his legs wouldn't stop shaking.

"Help... help!"

Yamauchi let out a scream and bolted from the scene. His feet felt as if they were sinking into cotton, but his instinct to survive drove him to run.

Yamauchi Haruki's running form was wild. Even actors who specialized in playing zombies would have called it "professional." If a zombie had shown up, it would probably have shouted, "Zombie!"

"Uh, should we go after him?"

"It's a little late for that. I don't recommend taking the risk."

"But what if he runs into something strange?"

The three fell silent.

The saying "good for nothing but making a mess" had taken physical form.

"You two wait here. I'll go find him."

Bai Yuze sighed helplessly and pushed open the door to leave, but someone grabbed his hand.

"I'm coming with you."

The determined look in Yukino's eyes made Bai Yuze swallow the words he'd been about to say.

"Mm-hmm! I'm coming too! We're a team, after all!"

Yuigahama Yui chimed in with plenty of enthusiasm. Her words seemed to bring Yukino back to her senses. She quickly let go of Bai Yuze's hand, clasped her left hand over her right, and turned her head away, stubbornly insisting, "D-don't get the wrong idea... I... I only suggested coming with you because I'm worried something might happen to you! Don't get any funny ideas!"

With that, Yukino turned away and ignored Bai Yuze.

"Huh? Xiaoxue, why is your face so red? Do you have a fever?"

"I... I'm fine. There's no need to worry about me, Yuigahama."

"But it really is red! Even your ears are red. Xiaozé, come take a look—is Xiaoxue sick?"

Yuigahama Yui called out to Bai Yuze, but the more attention she drew to it, the redder Yukino's face became.

"No need. She's fine. Maybe it's just too hot."

The boy understood what the girl was feeling. Sometimes, there was no need to spell things out. It was enough to let things stay balanced.

Bai Yuze walked out of Room 102, gripping the cleaver and staying on his guard.

"Huh? Is it really that hot?"

Yukino followed Bai Yuze out, leaving Yuigahama Yui alone in the room, checking the temperature.

"Come on, Yuigahama."

"Oh? Right!"

At Yukino's reminder, Tuanzi hurried after them. But maybe she'd imagined it—she thought she'd seen the Male Corpse move.

"Where do you think Yamauchi went? Should we search the rooms one by one?"

Tuanzi looked around and made a show of gazing into the distance, as if to demonstrate how hard she was searching.

"No need. After Yamauchi ran off, I heard a series of thuds. He probably made it to the stairwell."

Bai Yuze tapped Tuanzi on the head, earning an indignant look from her. He couldn't explain why he liked tapping her on the head so much. He just did.

"Mm, exactly. And the stairs on the second floor are a little sticky underfoot. After a few steps, he'll calm down. Then he won't be able to go forward or back, and he'll just stay there, huddled up and crying."

Yukino offered her own answer, so the three of them decided to check the stairwell.

"By the way, Tuanzi, don't you have anything to say?"

Bai Yuze suddenly asked offhandedly.

"Huh? Tuanzi? Me? I don't have anything to say."

Yuigahama Yui looked confused. Wasn't it enough to let Yukino and Bai Yuze do the thinking? She could just be the team mascot.

"Don't you have any suggestions?"

"No. I'll listen to you two. You can do the thinking."

Tuanzi said exactly what she was thinking. In her eyes, simply not causing trouble was already something to be grateful for. How could she dare offer suggestions?

"Have you gotten addicted to being the mascot?"

Bai Yuze stopped and turned to look at Yuigahama Yui, his expression serious.

"Huh? Mascot?"

Tuanzi didn't know how to respond. She only knew that playing dumb would get her out of this.

"How long are you going to keep pretending? Do you really like catering to everyone so much? Are you going to spend your whole life following other people's 'orders'?"

Bai Yuze was irritated, and his voice rose despite himself. He knew he had no right to judge how other people lived.

But even Yukinoshita Yukino was growing. Yuigahama Yui could grow, too. She could change, yet she refused to take that first step, always trying to shut herself away.

She looked like a cheerful, sunny girl, but she kept her thoughts bottled up inside and spent every day doing what she thought others would like.

"B-but I'm scared I'll hold everyone back..."

Tuanzi's spirits sank. Her eyes were already growing red, with a faint shimmer of tears.

"More than being held back, I'm afraid my teammates will be soulless shells."

After saying that, Bai Yuze turned and walked away. They had more important things to do now, and he even regretted starting to lecture her for no reason.

Did having glimpsed part of someone's life from an all-knowing perspective give him the right to criticize them? How was that any different from casually judging someone else's life?

Bai Yuze felt regretful and confused. When had he become like this?

How was he any different from some useless drunk who beat his wife and kids?

But there was no taking back what he'd said. Tuanzi could hate him or resent him for all he cared.

He only hoped she would take that first step and become the real Yuigahama Yui, instead of just being Tuanzi.

Watching Bai Yuze's figure grow more distant, Tuanzi couldn't find the courage to follow him.

A sigh sounded beside her. It was Yukino.

"His words were a little harsh, but getting a human-like ape to say something kind is like asking for the impossible. Still, Yuigahama, you really should make some changes."

"I used to imagine that people could change the world. But under his influence, I slowly realized that I'd changed myself. It's... incredible."

Yukino rubbed Tuanzi's head to comfort her. She hadn't noticed that Bai Yuze had changed not only her personality but also her likes and dislikes, little by little.

This time, only one person had grown—but the ones who wanted to grow were all three of them.