On Sunday morning, Sora arrived at the bookstore before the shutters were even up, determined to be among the first to get his hands on the latest issue of Crimson Maple. He wasn't alone; a small crowd of readers with the same idea had already gathered near the entrance.
As the highest-selling light novel magazine in the Minamijo region, Crimson Maple enjoyed massive popularity. Thanks to the booming ACG industry in Japan, following a triweekly or monthly serial was as common as scrolling through social media.
For many, not having a volume or a magazine tucked under their arm felt like leaving the house without a phone.
Of course, Sora had an extra incentive to wake up early today. He knew that Shiori Takahashi, the author he'd been following since her debut in the secondary magazine Fleeting Blossoms, were officially debuting her new works in this very issue of the flagship magazine.
Normally, Sora didn't bother with smaller publications.
With limited free time, most readers couldn't possibly keep up with every magazine on the market. It was a lot like the major web novel platforms; thousands of stories updated daily, but the average reader only had eyes for the top tier like Crimson Maple.
However, because the light novel community was so vast, talented works in "B-tier" magazines like Fleeting Blossoms often gained traction through word of mouth. If a series was truly exceptional, its tankōbon sales would skyrocket, forcing the author's name into the spotlight.
That was exactly how Sora had discovered Blue Spring Ride. It was dominating the regional sales charts for a month straight and decided to give it a shot. Since then, he had fallen down the rabbit hole, developing an intense admiration for the author's ability to write delicate, emotional stories.
"An author who writes such moving, healing youth stories must be a kind, gentle person in real life," Sora mused, a flush of excitement warming his face. "I wonder what kind of story she's prepared for us this time."
When the doors finally opened, he rushed to the shelves. His eyes immediately locked onto the cover of Crimson Maple. Standing center stage were two beautiful anime-style girls: one with silver hair and a white dress, Menma, and the other with crimson hair and piercing eyes, the heroine of Shiori's new work and Star Sea.
"That will be 700 yen. Thank you for your purchase," the cashier said with a polite bow.
"Seriously, a top-tier magazine like Crimson Maple is worth every bit of 700 yen, while those secondary rags charge nearly 900 for half the quality. No wonder this one towers over the rest," Sora muttered to himself, glancing at the massive stacks of the magazine piled high in the prime real estate of the store.
Once home, he set the stage: a bag of chips, a pair of chopsticks to keep his fingers clean, and a cold bottle of Ramune. He was ready for his journey into Shiori's new story.
Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day.
The story opened in the quiet of midsummer. A peaceful house, a gentle breeze wafting through the veranda, and then...
"Hey, is that a Jynx?"
A silver-haired girl in a white dress suddenly spoke up, hovering next to a teenage boy who was deeply focused on a handheld game.
"No, it's not. Women really are clueless about these things..."
The boy, Jintan Yadomi, responded instinctively to the voice in his ear. But as he turned and saw the silver-haired girl, Menma, a figure that should have been impossible to see ever again. He froze. His mind raced. He concluded that he must be having a breakdown; he was seeing someone who shouldn't exist.
Suppressing his internal panic, he got up to cook some instant ramen. But the girl lunged forward, clinging to his shoulder and shouting in a cute, persistent voice.
"No fair! I want ramen too! Put an egg in it! I want the egg clouds!"
The story followed Jinta, a shut-in who spent his days gaming and skipping school, and Menma, the girl who had suddenly crashed back into his life on a random summer afternoon.
He ignored her plea for a bowl of noodles. He ignored her specific request for a soft-boiled egg, instead cranking up the heat until the egg was hard and rubbery. He remained indifferent to her pouting, but she quickly forgave him with an effortless smile.
Through these simple daily interactions, the author masterfully established the intimacy between them and the absolute trust the girl placed in the boy.
At first, Sora didn't notice anything strange, until the people around the protagonist began talking to him, completely oblivious to the girl standing right next to him.
The realization hit Sora like a physical weight.
"This girl... she's a ghost?"
The protagonist, a firm materialist, tried to convince himself that she was a hallucination. Menma had died years ago. He told himself his recent stress was just making him see things.
"Why... why show up now after all these years? And looking like a teenager, no less?" Jinta asked.
"I don't really know either!" Menma replied with a burst of energy, pumping her fist with unearned confidence. "But I think... I think I need you to grant a wish for me."
"A wish? What kind of wish?"
"Um... I don't know what my wish is either!"
The opening of the first chapter was intriguing enough, but as the pages turned, the plot settled into a quiet, slice-of-life rhythm. Menma, unable to bear seeing their childhood friend group fall apart after her death, kept nagging Jinta to find their old companions: Anaru, Yukiatsu, Tsuruko, and Poppo.
One by one, the childhood friends appeared.
They met Jinta's claims with cold scoffs and mockery.
To them, he was just a pathetic dropout who couldn't move on from a tragedy that happened years ago, someone who wasted his life rotting at home while shouting the name of a dead girl.
The narrative began to intersperse these encounters with flashes of childhood memories. The truth of Menma's death came to light: the group had been teasing her about liking Jinta. To hide his embarrassment, Jinta had blurted out a cruel lie.
"Who could ever like a weirdo like her?"
Sora's grip on the magazine tightened. This protagonist...
Even after hearing those words, Menma had given him a gentle, forgiving smile. But Jinta, overcome with shame, had run away. Menma had chased after him, only to lose her footing and drown in the river.
The entire first chapter served as a foundation, a tapestry of memories and introductions. It brought all the key players onto the stage while subtly revealing a heartbreaking truth through a single detail. If Menma were truly just a hallucination, she wouldn't be able to leave Jinta's sight. She wouldn't be able to wander back to her old home, talk to her parents and her younger brother, and say, in a voice heavy with loneliness while they remained unaware of her presence:
"Even I know... that I'm already dead."
Menma wasn't a hallucination. She was a real, lingering soul that only Jinta could see.
At that moment, Sora felt something soft inside him ache.
Chapter 1: End.
Sora took a long, shaky breath. How did he feel? It was hard to put into words. Was it "exciting"? Not exactly. There were no high-stakes battles or explosive plot twists.
It was the story of a boy haunted by the ghost of his childhood friend. At her urging, he reached out to the friends he hadn't spoken to in years, only to be met with ridicule and looks of pity, as if he were losing his mind. For a reader finishing only the first chapter, the experience was undeniably heavy and oppressive.
But just as there are readers for every niche, from dark tragedies to power fantasies, there is a place for stories like this.
Sora realized the story had hooked him.
It didn't matter if Jinta was frustrating or if the other friends seemed cold.
What mattered was that he already loved Menma.
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