"Let's go, Shoko," Ze Zenin said, looking at Shoko, who seemed a little saddened by the memories that had resurfaced.
"Okay." Shoko nodded dazedly.
"Such feelings might become memories, yet even then, I was already lost."
As if he had seen through Shoko's thoughts, Ze Zenin recited a poem in fluent Chinese.
"Huh?" Shoko recalled what Ze Zenin had just said, confusion covering her face. "Was that Chinese?"
"Yeah." Ze Zenin talked with Shoko as they walked.
"You even know Chinese?" Shoko looked at Ze Zenin's head. The more she learned about him, the more remarkable she found him.
"Maybe I should cut his brain open... see what's inside?" Shoko muttered, almost as if she meant for Ze Zenin to hear.
Ze Zenin: "..."
Seriously, is it really okay to covet my brain right in front of me?
Seeing the mischievous gleam in Shoko's eyes, he couldn't help laughing. "I never thought you'd tease me too, Shoko."
"Hehe~"
Apparently delighted that she had managed to scare Ze Zenin, Shoko felt wonderfully refreshed. "Who knows whether you were insulting me in Chinese?"
"If that's what you think, sure..." Ze Zenin glanced at Shoko, walked ahead of her, and spoke calmly.
"Idiot..." Shoko rolled her eyes at Ze Zenin, then followed him.
"Hey, could you teach me Chinese?"
"Of course, but why do you want to learn it?"
"Not telling..."
Even Shoko herself didn't realize it, but an inexplicable feeling was slowly budding in her heart.
The boy had helped her find her resolve and see the path she wanted to take in life. Without her noticing, the last trace of distance she felt toward Ze Zenin quietly disappeared.
It was different from what she felt toward Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto-another kind of feeling entirely...
The two made their way into