I could smell antiseptic.
A solution flowed down into my body through the tubes connected to it.
Am I alive? Am I being kept alive?
A completely white world. I was already feeling sleepy, and the steady rhythm I could hear lulled me into a deeper state of drowsiness.
Apparently humans can go crazy just from being confined in a white room.
If that’s true, I wonder if I’ve already gone crazy……
What was the “Bookmark of Demise” in the first place……?
It felt like something that had happened so far in the past that I could no longer remember the details, but a feeling of regret stabbed at my heart.
At any rate, there was no way anyone could be satisfied with that kind of answer.
It was so idiotic.
The steady rhythm I had been hearing began to echo.
Ah, I wonder if it’ll start again…….
＊
“E-ki! See ya!”
“See you tomorrow, E-ki!”
After school, while my classmates were in the midst of going to club activities, I did not head for home, but instead walked towards a place that was completely clear of people.
Every time I passed by a classmate in the halls, they would call out my name.
As I returned each and every one of their greetings, I headed for my destination.
A two-story, deteriorating wooden building. My destination was one of the rooms on the second floor.
—And so, “as usual,” I opened the door to the music room.
“Yo!”
—Apparently, for each person, there’s an answer that can score full marks in a self-analysis.
For me, E-ki, the answer to such a self-analysis would probably be “Energetic!”
Actually, even outside of a self-analysis, I was sure of that.
The energetic aura radiating from me was incredible.
In any case, I was a man with energy as his strong point!
“Oh, it’s E-ki~! Hey there!”
The one who called out my name while raising a hand in greeting was A-no.
Her skin was a little tanned, and she wore gymnastic shorts underneath her skirt to make moving around easier. Her short, trimmed hair also gave off a lively and refreshing impression.
In truth, she was a fan of retro games, or so I’d heard, but you wouldn’t be able to guess that at all from her appearance. Overall, she was a female student that gave off an impression of being a “speed type,” with her lightweight body that lacked any excess fat…. Especially around her chest area…. you know….?
“Die!”
“Uwah?!”
Suddenly, A-no aimed an incredibly sharp punch at my face.
No, seriously, I just barely dodged that one! What’s with her all of a sudden?!
“….Wh-What do you think you’re doing?!”
“You’re the one that was looking at my chest while sighing and muttering, ‘Lightweight…. haa…..’!”
“….Eh?! Are you psychic?!”
“So you admit it!! Lose one life and die!”
Another lethal punch was thrown at me, barely skimming my ear.
Wait, hold on, seriously! She’s not holding back at all!
Unlike that mustachioed man in the video game, I only have one life here….!
“…..U-Uh, um, err…. Please… d-don’t fight…..”
A small figure walked up between us.
It was B-ka, looking flustered and worried.
He was smaller than A-no, and his face even more feminine than hers, but though he was timid, his charm point was his snaggletooth that peeked out whenever he smiled. Despite being so feminine in all areas, his name included, he was a male student.
Saying that he’d grow into it before long, he wore a loose uniform that he’d bought a size too big, but it was obvious that his overly-long sleeves were just another moe point in the end.
“….As I thought, in terms of being girly, it’s A-no’s loss by a landslide—”
“Dieeeeee!!”
“Again?!”
This was no good; it looked like I’d accidentally said my thoughts out loud once again.
This time, A-no’s attack hit me right in the ribs.
The pain for this one was going to come little by little.
Anyway, what’s B-ka blushing for?! What are you, a girl?!
“….Noisy as usual, I see.”
The female student that was reading in the back of the classroom shut her book and looked over at us.
Her name was C-na. With glasses that made her look studious, and straight bangs, everything about her screamed “Committee President!” Or “Prodigy!” But in reality, her grades weren’t really that good, and she read geeky magazines profusely. In other words, she was an otaku-type girl.
She was even shorter than B-ka, and if she were to stand next to me, she’d look like a pretty petite girl.
Well, height-wise, she’s on the small side, but…. when it comes to her chest and the excess fat there, she actually… had quite… a bit of it? I would say….
“Die!! Die and don’t ever choose continue!”
“You’re terrible—!”
“Again?! You too?!”
A-no attacked me for the third time, and for some reason, B-ka was hitting me as well.
Wait, hold on, this isn’t normal!
There’s never been a “continue” in life in the first place….! This isn’t the sequel of some B-grade movie…!!
And as all this went on, C-na went back to reading her book.
“Ahaha~ E-ki, you’re so funny as always~ (crunch crunch)”
I heard a slow, drawling voice say from behind me.
D-suke laughed while munching noisily on a bag of snacks.
His long hair was tied back loosely, but even then, his bangs were still long enough to cover his eyes. Since you could never see what his entire face looked like, he always gave the impression that he was spacing out.
He was taller than me, stooped over when he walked, and was usually eating some kind of snack.
…..The introduction got a little long, but basically, the five of us always gathered in this music room.
We had all just started our second year of high school.
Although we met in the music room, we weren’t part of the Brass Band Club, or even the Light Music Club.
We were actually! The Film Club!
….That said, the club had actually been on the verge of being abolished, but since it seemed interesting, I dragged the others along. Since we had only just recently revived it, we had yet to do anything in terms of club activities.
“However, it must not stay that way!”
“….Hm? What was that, all of a sudden?”
“Well, since we’re in the Film Club, it’d make the most sense for us to film a movie! And anyway, doesn’t making our own movie sound like fun?!”
“….I only joined… because…. I wanted to make movies…. you know. (crunch crunch)”
“Right, you even own a video camera!”
“…I’m interested as long as it’s horror. Also, I can help out with editing using a computer.”
“I’d expect no less from you, C-na! Oh, by the way, that horror movie I borrowed from you the other day was really scary!”
“….Ah~ I borrowed it too, but I didn’t really get the ending.”
“To have to rely on a philosophical thought experiment like Schrodinger’s Cat, the writer had to have been a third- or second-rate screenwriter at best.”
As D-suke and C-na carried on with their own separate conversation, A-no piped up.
“As long as I can do a role that’s full of energy, I’m fine with anything. I think filmmaking sounds like a lot of fun!”
“How about you, B-ka?”
“….I-I, um, if… everyone else is doing it, I’ll… help out, too….”
Just as I had expected, everyone agreed on making the movie.
The elites that I had handpicked didn’t disappoint!
“So, this is what I’ve come up with! I’ll be the director, screenwriter, and producer! And the four of you will be the cast and staff for this project…! Let’s aim to get it done by this summer! So, how’s that sound for an initial plan, guys?”
I asked, and looked around at everyone.
“Well, that depends on what kind of movie it’ll be, but…. It sounds good so far.”
“….I’m really…. looking forward to it….”
“….I think that sounds fine.”
“Okay~”
Everyone reacted like they usually would, but I could tell that they were all really excited.
“…….Now then, the premise, which you’ve all been waiting for…”
I picked up a piece of chalk, and wrote out the long title on the blackboard in big letters.
“The movie will be about us creating a new urban legend…. And as for the title, I thought it’d be best to make it sound grandiose and dramatic, so this is what I came up with!”
In the classroom illuminated by the sunset, our long-awaited summer began…..
“—The title will be Bookmark of Demise.”
I could smell antiseptic.
A solution flowed down into my body through the tubes connected to it.
Am I alive? Am I being kept alive?
A completely white world. I was already feeling sleepy, and the steady rhythm I could hear lulled me into a deeper state of drowsiness.
Apparently humans can go crazy just from being confined in a white room.
If that’s true, I wonder if I’ve already gone crazy……
What was the “Bookmark of Demise” in the first place……?
It felt like something that had happened so far in the past that I could no longer remember the details, but a feeling of regret stabbed at my heart.
At any rate, there was no way anyone could be satisfied with that kind of answer.
It was so idiotic.
The steady rhythm I had been hearing began to echo.
Ah, I wonder if it’ll start again…….
＊
“E-ki! See ya!”
“See you tomorrow, E-ki!”
After school, while my classmates were in the midst of going to club activities, I did not head for home, but instead walked towards a place that was completely clear of people.
Every time I passed by a classmate in the halls, they would call out my name.
As I returned each and every one of their greetings, I headed for my destination.
A two-story, deteriorating wooden building. My destination was one of the rooms on the second floor.
—And so, “as usual,” I opened the door to the music room.
“Yo!”
—Apparently, for each person, there’s an answer that can score full marks in a self-analysis.
For me, E-ki, the answer to such a self-analysis would probably be “Energetic!”
Actually, even outside of a self-analysis, I was sure of that.
The energetic aura radiating from me was incredible.
In any case, I was a man with energy as his strong point!
“Oh, it’s E-ki~! Hey there!”
The one who called out my name while raising a hand in greeting was A-no.
Her skin was a little tanned, and she wore gymnastic shorts underneath her skirt to make moving around easier. Her short, trimmed hair also gave off a lively and refreshing impression.
In truth, she was a fan of retro games, or so I’d heard, but you wouldn’t be able to guess that at all from her appearance. Overall, she was a female student that gave off an impression of being a “speed type,” with her lightweight body that lacked any excess fat…. Especially around her chest area…. you know….?
“Die!”
“Uwah?!”
Suddenly, A-no aimed an incredibly sharp punch at my face.
No, seriously, I just barely dodged that one! What’s with her all of a sudden?!
“….Wh-What do you think you’re doing?!”
“You’re the one that was looking at my chest while sighing and muttering, ‘Lightweight…. haa…..’!”
“….Eh?! Are you psychic?!”
“So you admit it!! Lose one life and die!”
Another lethal punch was thrown at me, barely skimming my ear.
Wait, hold on, seriously! She’s not holding back at all!
Unlike that mustachioed man in the video game, I only have one life here….!
“…..U-Uh, um, err…. Please… d-don’t fight…..”
A small figure walked up between us.
It was B-ka, looking flustered and worried.
He was smaller than A-no, and his face even more feminine than hers, but though he was timid, his charm point was his snaggletooth that peeked out whenever he smiled. Despite being so feminine in all areas, his name included, he was a male student.
Saying that he’d grow into it before long, he wore a loose uniform that he’d bought a size too big, but it was obvious that his overly-long sleeves were just another moe point in the end.
“….As I thought, in terms of being girly, it’s A-no’s loss by a landslide—”
“Dieeeeee!!”
“Again?!”
This was no good; it looked like I’d accidentally said my thoughts out loud once again.
This time, A-no’s attack hit me right in the ribs.
The pain for this one was going to come little by little.
Anyway, what’s B-ka blushing for?! What are you, a girl?!
“….Noisy as usual, I see.”
The female student that was reading in the back of the classroom shut her book and looked over at us.
Her name was C-na. With glasses that made her look studious, and straight bangs, everything about her screamed “Committee President!” Or “Prodigy!” But in reality, her grades weren’t really that good, and she read geeky magazines profusely. In other words, she was an otaku-type girl.
She was even shorter than B-ka, and if she were to stand next to me, she’d look like a pretty petite girl.
Well, height-wise, she’s on the small side, but…. when it comes to her chest and the excess fat there, she actually… had quite… a bit of it? I would say….
“Die!! Die and don’t ever choose continue!”
“You’re terrible—!”
“Again?! You too?!”
A-no attacked me for the third time, and for some reason, B-ka was hitting me as well.
Wait, hold on, this isn’t normal!
There’s never been a “continue” in life in the first place….! This isn’t the sequel of some B-grade movie…!!
And as all this went on, C-na went back to reading her book.
“Ahaha~ E-ki, you’re so funny as always~ (crunch crunch)”
I heard a slow, drawling voice say from behind me.
D-suke laughed while munching noisily on a bag of snacks.
His long hair was tied back loosely, but even then, his bangs were still long enough to cover his eyes. Since you could never see what his entire face looked like, he always gave the impression that he was spacing out.
He was taller than me, stooped over when he walked, and was usually eating some kind of snack.
…..The introduction got a little long, but basically, the five of us always gathered in this music room.
We had all just started our second year of high school.
Although we met in the music room, we weren’t part of the Brass Band Club, or even the Light Music Club.
We were actually! The Film Club!
….That said, the club had actually been on the verge of being abolished, but since it seemed interesting, I dragged the others along. Since we had only just recently revived it, we had yet to do anything in terms of club activities.
“However, it must not stay that way!”
“….Hm? What was that, all of a sudden?”
“Well, since we’re in the Film Club, it’d make the most sense for us to film a movie! And anyway, doesn’t making our own movie sound like fun?!”
“….I only joined… because…. I wanted to make movies…. you know. (crunch crunch)”
“Right, you even own a video camera!”
“…I’m interested as long as it’s horror. Also, I can help out with editing using a computer.”
“I’d expect no less from you, C-na! Oh, by the way, that horror movie I borrowed from you the other day was really scary!”
“….Ah~ I borrowed it too, but I didn’t really get the ending.”
“To have to rely on a philosophical thought experiment like Schrodinger’s Cat, the writer had to have been a third- or second-rate screenwriter at best.”
As D-suke and C-na carried on with their own separate conversation, A-no piped up.
“As long as I can do a role that’s full of energy, I’m fine with anything. I think filmmaking sounds like a lot of fun!”
“How about you, B-ka?”
“….I-I, um, if… everyone else is doing it, I’ll… help out, too….”
Just as I had expected, everyone agreed on making the movie.
The elites that I had handpicked didn’t disappoint!
“So, this is what I’ve come up with! I’ll be the director, screenwriter, and producer! And the four of you will be the cast and staff for this project…! Let’s aim to get it done by this summer! So, how’s that sound for an initial plan, guys?”
I asked, and looked around at everyone.
“Well, that depends on what kind of movie it’ll be, but…. It sounds good so far.”
“….I’m really…. looking forward to it….”
“….I think that sounds fine.”
“Okay~”
Everyone reacted like they usually would, but I could tell that they were all really excited.
“…….Now then, the premise, which you’ve all been waiting for…”
I picked up a piece of chalk, and wrote out the long title on the blackboard in big letters.
“The movie will be about us creating a new urban legend…. And as for the title, I thought it’d be best to make it sound grandiose and dramatic, so this is what I came up with!”
In the classroom illuminated by the sunset, our long-awaited summer began…..
“—The title will be Bookmark of Demise.”
