Night had fallen. Outside the window, all was quiet, broken only by the occasional chirp of insects carried on the night breeze.
In one of the rooms in the girls' dormitory, a warm yellow light shone from the bathroom.
Steam billowed through the air, blurring the mirror with a hazy white mist and softening the girl's reflection into a gentle outline.
Karuizawa Kei stood alone beneath the shower, letting warm water pour over her from above.
Water trickled down her honey-colored hair, flowed along her slender neck and over her collarbones, then ran down her back before splashing onto the tiled floor.
The bathroom was filled with the light floral scent of her body wash. Mixed with the steam rising from the hot water, it enveloped the room in a warm haze.
She stood with her eyes closed beneath the stream, letting the hot water wash away the day's exhaustion and grime.
After a long while, she slowly opened her eyes and looked down at her flat stomach.
The skin there was smooth and pale, glowing with health beneath the warm yellow light. It was flawless.
But her fingers moved to touch it anyway, gliding gently across the center of her stomach. There was nothing there. It was as smooth as ever.
Yet in that instant, her body gave a slight, involuntary shudder.
A chill rose from the depths of her memory, piercing the warmth of the water and making her shiver.
Because she remembered it all too clearly—that knife.
The dagger that had glinted coldly in the dim alley. Its point had been pressed against her stomach. Through the thin fabric of her clothes, she had felt its icy touch, carrying the chill of death.
The gang leader's savage grin, his vulgar curses, the faint sound of the blade slowly piercing her clothes—if that person hadn't appeared out of nowhere, if those strong hands hadn't knocked the knife away—
That wound might have stayed on her stomach forever.
No.
It wasn't just the wound.
She closed her eyes, and a deeper fear surfaced in her mind. Even if the wound had healed, the scar would have remained forever, like a thorn reminding her of that dark past.
And worse than the scar was the shadow carved into her soul.
"So everyone's afraid when they're facing death..."
She murmured to herself, her voice seeming distant beneath the rush of water.
A bitter smile tugged at her lips. Back then, she had been so terrified that she couldn't move. She hadn't even been able to scream.
Her mind had gone blank, leaving only one thought echoing over and over: I'm going to die. I'm going to die. Someone, please save me...
And then, at that very moment, he appeared.
Mazumi Mami.
Like a god descending from the heavens, he had appeared in that dark, filthy alley—and in the world where she had been on the verge of breaking down.
He hadn't said a single unnecessary word. With just a few swift movements, the thugs who had looked so vicious moments earlier were sprawled on the ground, groaning.
She would never forget that scene for as long as she lived.
At the thought of it, a smile rose to Karuizawa Kei's lips.
It was a smile full of warmth, trust, and longing, entirely different from the bitter expression she had worn when speaking of death.
She thought back to the time when Mazumi Mami had been by her side.
It had been brief, yet it was like a ray of winter sunlight, illuminating her whole life.
That boy had been covered in injuries, yet he had still stood in front of her. He had needed to recover himself, yet he had still dealt with every last person who had bullied her.
Some of the people who had bullied her had knelt before her, weeping as they repented. Some had their misdeeds exposed, becoming pariahs whom everyone despised. And some—
She lowered her eyes slightly.
Some had simply never appeared in her life again.
They had vanished without a trace, unnoticed by anyone, as if they had never existed.
Given how badly injured Mazumi Mami had been when she first met him, Karuizawa Kei could guess that what had happened to those people had been far more than just "transferring schools" or "moving away."
They were probably somewhere in the depths of the ocean right now, keeping company with the fish and shrimp as they competed in an endless "diving contest."
An ordinary person might have found that frightening.
Karuizawa Kei didn't.
She even thought it was only right.
Those people had been malicious toward her and tried to ruin her life. Wasn't it only natural that they should pay for it?
She didn't have the power to get revenge. So what? She had Mami-sama.
Mami-sama's strength was her strength.
Mami-sama's will was her will.
No one could ever replace that bond.
She was a hornbill who had found her mate.
"Legend has it that when one mate dies, the other stops eating and drinking, and cries beside them until it starves to death..."
That was what she had read in a wildlife encyclopedia back then.
She thought that kind of bond was just right. She was a hornbill who revolved around Mazumi Mami. That was how she lived, and she didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
For his sake, she had even neglected her studies in her third year of middle school.
She had done it just to search for any trace of Mazumi Mami.
Of course, part of it had also been an attempt to escape her terrible family situation.
Back then, she had truly felt like ending her life. After all, there was nowhere in the world that felt like home anymore.
But her homeroom teacher had still reached out to her. After considering things from all angles, he suggested that Mazumi Mami might come from the upper nobility, and recommended that she attend Yingtai Advanced Nurturing High School.
A drowning person would grab at a lifeline without hesitation.
Even though she knew the chances were slim, Karuizawa Kei had still found a glimmer of hope. She had studied desperately, trying to get into that school.
But time she had wasted couldn't simply be recovered because she wanted it back.
To be honest, when she'd wandered into the exam hall, she had already given up. She didn't think she could pass.
If it hadn't rained that day, and the rainwater hadn't risen so high, she would have jumped into the river. She thought it would be too ugly to do it otherwise.
Thankfully, after it was all over, she received her acceptance letter.
She didn't know why she had been admitted, but to her, it was a good thing.
Thankfully, there was always a way forward. At last, she had found her home.
She swept her wet hair behind her ear and tilted her face up, letting the hot water run over it as if she could wash away the old memories and keep only the warmth.
A little while later, she turned off the shower. The sound of the water stopped abruptly, leaving only the drip of water onto the tiles.
She stepped out of the bathtub and onto the soft rug with bare feet. Moonlight slipped through the partly drawn curtains, spreading a silvery glow across the floor.
The girl stood in the moonlight, her wet hair hanging over her shoulders as water dripped from it.
Moonlight gave her skin a soft sheen. She stood quietly in the pale glow, her figure framed by the stillness of the room.
She went to the window, drew the curtain aside a little, and looked out at the peaceful night sky.
There were no stars, only a solitary crescent moon, cold and bright.
But her eyes shone brighter than the moonlight. In them were the peace of having found her home, the wild joy of getting back what she had lost, and a faith bordering on devotion.
"Mami-sama..."
She whispered, her voice as faint as a sigh, yet filled with unwavering conviction.
"You're my only light. You're my sun."
She gently placed a hand over her heart and felt its steady, powerful beat.
Her heart was still beating because she had to find him.
From the moment she met him, her life had no longer belonged to her.
Everything she had—her happiness, her hopes, the meaning of her life—was bound tightly to him.
"You're above everything else. You're my one and only..."
Her voice echoed softly through the silent room, carrying the solemn weight of a vow.
"So—I'll definitely become your maid. I'll stay by your side forever."
She clenched her fist. Moonlight reflected in her violet eyes, where a determined light shone.
"This time, I won't let you go again."
The night breeze stirred the curtains. Beneath the silvery moonlight, the girl stood still, as if proclaiming her resolve to the whole world.
No one could stop her.
No one would ever separate her from her sun again.
In a voice only she could hear, she made that vow in her heart—and she would spend her whole life keeping it.