Ten minutes later.In the Student Council room, Kaguya Shinomiya casually picked up a shojo manga from Ishigami Yu's bag.
Naturally, it wasn't Sakurai Saki's—he would never bring such "otaku" material to school. Being constantly targeted by a certain Disciplinary Committee member made such things far too risky.
If Fujiwara Chika was a clingy puppy, then Iino Miko was more like a prideful kitten.Both were cute in their own ways—and both were fun to tease.
Hayasaka Ai probably shared that sentiment. Otherwise, she wouldn't have cornered Miko this morning.
Come to think of it, Hayasaka's personality could be pretty dark. She was the type who laughed maniacally while slaying enemies in games—the crazy, cackling kind of laugh. It was deeply unsettling.
She clearly needed a stress outlet.
"Shinomiya-senpai, how is it?" Ishigami Yu asked, closing his laptop.This manga was one of his personal favorites.
"Hmm?" Kaguya barely looked up, clearly absorbed.
"The character design's really strong," Ishigami continued enthusiastically. "The tsundere heiress and her sly butler—they're classic tropes, but the execution here is super refreshing. Their banter isn't cliché at all."
The more Kaguya read, however, the more her brow furrowed.Finally, she asked with a confused frown:
"Why hasn't this butler been executed yet?"
Everyone paused.
"He insults his mistress every single chapter. Why is he still alive? This is highly unrealistic."
Is this what love is supposed to look like?How can she smile like that after being teased so rudely? Is there something wrong with this girl's brain?
Silence blanketed the room.
"U-um, Kaguya-san," Fujiwara Chika piped up gently, "Shojo manga is... about falling in love. If the male lead dies, the story ends."
Ishigami let out a sigh.
Yeah. There was no way Shinomiya-senpai could understand the beauty of shojo manga.He'd overestimated her.
The later volumes were absolutely heartbreaking.Especially the part where the male lead charges into an enemy army to save the heroine——and the scene where she stands alone, clutching his ring, staring into the horizon...
Ishigami's eyes glistened with emotion.
"Shinomiya-senpai... you have no heart."
"Oh, I've read this one," Sakurai Saki chimed in, completely deadpan."The male lead dies pretty horribly later on."
"Sakurai-kun! No spoilers!" Fujiwara cried, instantly covering his mouth.
"Mmph? Mmm—" Sakurai looked utterly baffled.
Why was she upset? She didn't even plan to finish the manga...
Fujiwara finally let go.
"If you spoil it, Kaguya-san will stop reading it altogether!" she pouted.
"Actually, I think it's pretty interesting," Kaguya said coolly. "The second male lead is my favorite. He's sharp, calculating. His eyes are fierce. I like that."
Second male lead...?Wait, wasn't there only one male lead?
"Kaguya-san, the second male lead you mentioned—?"
"Andre. His schemes against the protagonist are clever. I think he might steal the heroine away later."
...Huh?
Ishigami's mind reeled.
Andre...? Isn't he the villain? The disposable antagonist who dies miserably to give the male lead his moment of triumph?
How was he supposed to tell Shinomiya-senpai she was rooting for a doomed, one-dimensional villain?
Even Fujiwara Chika went quiet.
Were they... reading the same manga?
Half an hour later, Kaguya tossed the manga aside and headed out with Fujiwara to catch the club welcome performances.
Ishigami Yu, having wrapped up his work, noticed Sakurai Saki examining a deck of cards.
"Sakurai-senpai, what's that?" he asked.
"Playing cards. A standard 54-card deck. Jokers included," Sakurai replied."Secretary Fujiwara brought them earlier."
He was deep in thought.Every day at 6 a.m., his superpower would manifest.But that didn't mean he knew everything about it right away.
Most abilities came with side effects or caveats. And sometimes, a newly awakened power would be so foreign that he had to investigate it like a puzzle.
Today's ability was one he'd never encountered before.
He gave it a tentative name:Superpower: Existence ErasureEffect: Erases the existence of a selected object.Once erased, the object becomes completely unobservable to others.Duration: Unknown.Control Mechanism: Not currently understood.Side Effects: Unknown.
It was terrifying. Far worse than something like the Death Note.
The Death Note required names, faces, and very specific rules.But this?
Existence Erasure could erase someone from the world... quietly, with no trace.No rituals. No names. No warnings.
Not even time constraints were clear. The effect might last for hours.Or years.
Until he figured it out—until he gained control—this power was a loaded gun with no safety.
And it was already in his hands.
Such a terrifying ability could be triggered with nothing more than a glance.Logically, the side effects had to be serious.
Sakurai Saki turned to Ishigami Yu.
"Ishigami, I'm going to perform a magic trick. Can you help me verify something? I need to make sure I don't make any mistakes."
"Huh? Sure, Sakurai-senpai!" Ishigami agreed readily.If he could help, he never hesitated.
"Then let's begin."
Sakurai picked up the King of Spades, holding it plainly in front of them both.
A faint buzz vibrated through the air.
Not a sound, exactly. Not even a feeling.Just a subtle, almost imperceptible energy shift—one that ordinary people wouldn't even register.
But Sakurai noticed.
And then...
"Sakurai-senpai, what magic trick are you doing with empty hands?" Ishigami asked, blinking.
Sakurai looked down.
His hands were empty.
…Empty?
He stared at them, confused.Hadn't he just been holding a card?
He let his fingers fall open.
Thump.The King of Spades fluttered down onto the table, as if it had been there all along—but no one had noticed it until now.
"Ishigami, is this deck missing a card?" Sakurai asked, quickly flipping through the stack.
Ishigami leaned in to help. "Looks like... yeah, just 53 here."
"Strange. Let's just try another one."Sakurai picked up the Queen of Spades this time, holding it clearly between his fingers.
Ishigami focused on it.
Several seconds passed.
"Sakurai-senpai... your hands are empty again. Or did you already finish the trick?"
Sakurai frowned.
He looked at the table.The cards were there—minus one.
Now that he was paying attention, something really didn't feel right.
A standard deck has 54 cards, including two jokers.This one… had only 52.
No jokers. No Queens. No Kings.It was slowly unraveling.
'Something's wrong with today's ability.'
Even in his own perception, the erased objects no longer existed.
He wasn't exempt. He was inside the effect too.
"Sakurai-senpai, this deck's missing both jokers!" Ishigami suddenly exclaimed."What kind of game was Fujiwara-senpai trying to play earlier? She wasn't going to cheat again, was she?"
Sakurai didn't answer.
He just sat there, eyes fixed on the table.
So… Existence Erasure didn't just hide objects from others—it erased them from reality itself, including his own awareness.
He hadn't simply turned the cards invisible. They no longer existed, even in his memory.
He wouldn't even realize he'd erased something unless someone else pointed it out.
A horrifying realization crept in.
What if the target wasn't an object?What if it was alive?
An animal? A human?
Would it simply vanish—gone from every mind, every record, every memory?
Would he forget them too?
Would the world reorganize itself to fill the hole they left behind?
He pushed the deck aside.
He didn't want to test it. Not today.
There was a reason the Death Note came with rules.At least it had limits.
But this?
Existence Erasure was silent.Borderless.Untraceable.
And far, far too easy to trigger.