Lunch break hit like a sigh of relief across the whole school.
But for Marc, the air felt heavier — like Aria's words from earlier were still hanging in the hallway.
"Her path starts today."
He didn't know what that meant yet…
but Aria clearly did.
Marc found Aria waiting beneath the same cherry blossom tree as yesterday, sitting with her back straight and her book unopened beside her.
She didn't look up when he approached.
"Sit."
Marc sat.
Aria finally turned toward him.
"Today begins the true route progression."
Marc raised a brow. "You said that, but what does it mean?"
Aria folded her hands in her lap.
"Hana's emotional parameters are opening," she said. "She's becoming receptive. Her heart is starting to move."
Marc frowned. "What… like a stat?"
"In a way," Aria said softly. "This world has hidden conditions. Emotional milestones. If Luca reaches them correctly, Hana will strengthen. If he fails… the system will force a reset."
Marc swallowed. "So this arc is where Luca can really mess up."
"Yes," Aria said. "And this is the arc where you can too."
Marc blinked. "Me? How?"
Aria looked at him calmly.
"Because your route begins today as well."
Marc's heart skipped.
"M-my route?"
Aria looked away, her voice quieter.
"When you protect someone in this world… the system takes notice."
Marc stared at her.
Aria rarely showed emotion — but right now he caught a small shift in her expression.
Vulnerability.
Fear.
Something she didn't want him to see.
"Aria…" Marc said slowly, "what are you scared of?"
Her eyes flickered.
"I'm not scared," she said — but her voice wasn't convincing.
Marc leaned forward. "Tell me."
Aria hesitated.
Then—
"Hana is not the only one whose heart can break."
The air felt colder for a moment.
Before Marc could ask, Aria rose to her feet.
"You should go to him now," she said. "Luca needs support today."
Marc stood too. "Are you gonna be okay?"
Aria turned away, her long hair shifting with the wind.
"I don't reset," she said softly. "So I don't get to make mistakes."
Marc felt that in his chest.
Hard.
Luca sat at a shaded bench behind the school, unwrapping his lunch box when Hana jogged over holding a juice box in each hand.
"Luca!" she called.
He looked up and almost forgot how to breathe.
Hana sat right beside him — close enough their shoulders brushed.
"I brought you this," she said, handing him the juice. "Don't thank me, just take it."
Luca smirked. "Why not thank you?"
"Because then I'll get flustered," she said honestly.
Luca blinked. "What— why would—"
"You're weird," she said, sipping her drink. "In a good way."
Luca tried to hide his smile.
Failed miserably.
Hana scooted a little closer.
"So… I like hanging out with you," she said.
"But yesterday, during the trust fall… when you held me—"
Luca felt his face burn.
"Y-yeah?"
"It felt like… I've known you longer than just a day."
Luca froze.
His heart dropped for half a second.
The system wasn't supposed to bleed like that.
"Hana…" he said slowly. "What do you mean by that?"
"I don't know," she said, tapping her fingers together.
"It feels stupid. Forget it."
"No," Luca said quickly. "I want to hear it."
Hana looked at him — really looked at him.
"Sometimes," she whispered, "I feel like I should trust you… even when I barely know you."
His chest tightened.
This was a MAJOR emotional flag.
One wrong word and—
"Luca!"
Marc appeared around the corner — slightly out of breath.
Hana blinked. "Marc? What's wrong?"
Marc walked up to them, judging the situation instantly.
He leaned down toward Luca and whispered:
"Bro. Careful. Aria said her route is open today. Don't rush anything."
Luca nodded.
He turned back to Hana and said gently:
"I'm glad you trust me… and I trust you too. But let's take our time. I don't want to mess up anything between us."
Hana stared at him.
Then her smile returned—softer this time.
"…Okay," she whispered.
FLAG SUCCESS.
While Luca and Hana talked, Aiden stood at the far end of the courtyard, hands in his pockets.
Watching.
He didn't remember the last loop.
But he felt something.
A pull.
A threat.
"…Luca," he muttered under his breath.
Ryo appeared at his side, silent as always.
"Aiden," Ryo said. "Your expression is different today."
Aiden didn't look away.
"That transfer kid… he's getting close to Hana."
Ryo observed calmly. "Does that bother you?"
Aiden exhaled slowly.
"…I don't know."
But his fists clenched.
Ryo adjusted his glasses. "Then we should gather information. There's something unusual about them."
"Unusual?" Aiden repeated.
"Yes," Ryo said. "Marc adapts to patterns too quickly. Luca builds emotional connections faster than average. Something isn't normal."
Aiden narrowed his eyes at Luca's group.
"…Then let's find out."
As Marc and Luca headed toward class, Ryo watched them from behind a column, his expression unreadable.
He pulled a small, worn notebook from his pocket — something no one ever saw him use.
He wrote quietly:
Luca:
— unusually high emotional sync
— rapid connection rate
— unpredictable pattern flow
Marc:
— adaptive behavior too consistent
— high observational awareness
— unusual memory retention?
(he put a question mark)
Ryo tapped his pen.
"Why…" he whispered, "do you two feel out of place in a world that resets perfectly?"
He flipped the page.
And wrote one more line:
Aria:
— anomaly.
Marc and Luca walked into class together.
No daps.
No fist bumps.
Just a look —
the kind that said:
"We're deep in it now."
Aria glanced back at Marc.
Hana smiled softly at Luca.
Aiden watched them with rising tension.
Ryo observed everything with silent calculation.
The routes had begun.
The emotions had started.
And the system was waiting.