It was a typical break period in Class 2-B, but today the atmosphere buzzed with anticipation as Haruto and Airi returned to their desks, loaded with their phones and grins wide enough to rival the Cheshire Cat. The class had grown used to their antics, but even the other grades were curious this time—students from Classes 3-B and 1-B were lingering in the back of the room, waiting to see what the Photography Club had cooked up.

Haruto cleared his throat dramatically. "Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between. I present to you:The Best Open Day Highlights!"

Airi leaned over and tapped her phone, the classroom projector flashing to life with a slideshow of their social media posts, sprinkled with screenshots of comments and glowing feedback.

Slide 1: A shot of the Augery Tree during Open DayThe image was taken from a low angle, with sunlight filtering through the leaves, highlighting the elaborate decorations and some of the students milling about. Animals lounged comfortably in the background, with Hoshizora clearly visible sitting under the tree in his costume.

executive_mama85:"Absolutely stunning. The students outdid themselves this year!"

ari_skyfall(Airi's photography account):"Captured the magic of the day, didn't we?"

"Is that agrinon Hoshizora-san's face?" Mei muttered, squinting at the photo.

"He denies it, but we all know the truth," Nakamura-kun(Haruto) quipped, flipping to the next slide.

Slide 2: The Photography Club's Main BoothA shot of their bustling booth near the main building, crowded with students and visitors examining prints of wildlife and nature photos, including candid moments from the Augery Tree.

Official Chiba Academy:"Kudos to the Photography Club for their exceptional work in showcasing Chiba's natural beauty!"

mystery_fan_haru(Haruto):"Exceptional, they said. Award-worthy, I say."

rui_3bcrown(Rui):"Exceptional… at stealing the spotlight."

"Rui, you wish you could," Haruto said, pointing at the comment.

A student(Hikaru) from Class 3-B in the back shouted, "Careful, Haruto! Rui's probably sharpening her knives!"

Slide 3: Class 1-B's Giant Dragon SculptureA close-up of Class 1-B's incredible paper-mâché dragon, flames painted in vivid reds and oranges curling around its mouth.

chika_sky_sculpt(Chika's account):"One fiery masterpiece. Class 1-B brought the heat to Open Day!"

yuki_arts(Yuki's account):"Best dragon you'll see this year, guaranteed."

fifty/fiftyfails (Hoshizora):"Does it breathe fire, though?"

chika_sky_sculpt:"Only in your nightmares, grim reaper."

"Hoshizora-san commented on this one!" Airi pointed out. "See? Even he acknowledged their work."

"Yeah, but his answer is peak cryptid energy," Haruto said. "It's like he doesn't know how to say anything normal."

Slide 4: A Cryptid MomentAn eerie, blurred image of glowing eyes peeking through the branches near the Augery Tree.

urbanlegends_live:"Spotted near the Augery Tree. Massive glowing eyes. Local legend or new urban myth?"

ari_skyfall(Airi):"Totally not the mythical guardians of Hoshizora-san. "

haruto_the_best(Haruto):"Definitely guardians. 100% real. Fight me."

fifty/fiftyfails (Hoshizora):"Keep dreaming."

Airi leaned closer to the class, smirking. "And here we have Haruto, stirring the pot for maximum chaos. We live for this energy."

Slide 5: Class 3-B's Open CaféA beautifully framed shot of the café's outdoor seating area, surrounded by fairy lights and students dressed in formal uniforms serving guests.

rui_3bcrown(Rui):"Class 3-B's café was a clear winner! Elegant, refined, and delicious. Thanks to everyone who stopped by!"

business_baron42:"The café was a highlight for me. Excellent service and atmosphere!"

mei_takesflight(Mei):"Sure, but where's the personality? Augery Tree beats your fancy café any day."

"Did youhaveto comment, Mei?" Sota's voice floated from the back.

"Yes," Mei replied without missing a beat.

Slide 6: Hoshizora in CostumeThe final slide was a candid shot of Hoshizora leaning against the Augery Tree in full costume, holding one of the dodecagonal coins between his fingers.

mystery_fan_haru(Haruto):"Grim reaper or tree spirit? You decide."

traditionalist_sakura22:"He really does look like a keeper of balance. There's an ancient aura about him."

fifty/fiftyfails (Hoshizora):"Keep inflating the myth. It's fine."

ari_skyfall(Airi):"Legendary. Literally."

"Wait, wait!" Haruto said, pausing the slideshow. "The best part isn't even the photos—it's thecomments. Let's read some parent reactions."

Slide 7: Parent Commentary

business_baron42:"That boy under the tree—Hoshizora, I believe? He's polite, but my goodness, he's a riddle wrapped in an enigma. Asked him a direct question, and he gave me an answer that made me question my own question."

traditionalist_sakura22:"There's an undeniable charm to the Augery Tree showcase. The boy who takes care of it… well, he's definitely unique. Reminds me of the old storytellers from my youth. Superstitious, but in a way that makes you listen."

executive_mama85:"My son mentioned 'glowing eyes' around the tree. The animals are well-trained, but there's an eerie aura to it all. Are we raising scholars or cryptid hunters?"

By the end of the presentation, the room was in uproar—half the students laughed at the comments, while the other half whispered theories about the mysterious eyes near the tree.

"That's our legacy now," Haruto said, closing the slideshow. "Cryptid energy, bad omens, and tree spirits. Open Day: conquered."

"You meanchaos," Mei muttered, shaking her head, but she couldn't hide her amused smile.

the room buzzed with lingering laughter from Haruto and Airi's Open Day slideshow presentation. Students from Class 2-B and even a few from neighboring classes were still clustered in corners, talking about the glowing eyes near the Augery Tree, Hoshizora's grim reaper vibes, and the cryptid-like comments circulating online.

Hoshizora, seated in his usual corner of the classroom, looked unusually relaxed, leaning back in his chair with his hands tucked behind his head. The mask he was given resting perched atop his head, revealing the faintest trace of a smirk.

"Man, your reputation's never coming back from this," Haruto teased, nudging Airi as the two stood near the projector.

Hoshizora, in a rare display of amusement, leaned forward and said, "If that rumor grows any bigger, I'm sticking near you for the rest of the length of my Slingshot effect."

The room froze.

Haruto's expression twisted into abject horror. "Wait,no. You can't just—Hoshizora-san, we're friends, but don't you think that's a bit much?"

Airi, Kaede, Kiba, Hikaru, and even the usually reserved Minako and Mei snickered under their breath. Kaede had to bite her sleeve to muffle her laughter, and Kiba slapped a hand over his mouth as he failed to hold back a snort. Some of the visitors from Class 3-B and 1-B doubled over in laughter, whispering amongst themselves.

"Why are you guys laughing?" Haruto turned to them, his voice rising in panic. "You're all involved in this too!"

The mood died instantly.

The snickers and giggles faded as realization dawned on the group. They exchanged uneasy glances. Even Airi, usually the first to crack a joke, suddenly looked as if she'd bitten into a particularly sour lemon.

Hoshizora tilted his head, watching them with an almost lazy expression. "Oh, you're just now realizing? Youdoknow that I have a 'mafia,' right? Captain and Lieutenant might enjoy some new chew toys."

Haruto paled further, his red hair doing nothing to disguise how much color drained from his face. "You can't be serious—"

Kaede interrupted, nervously waving her hands. "W-Wait, are you saying the animals—"

"I'm saying," Hoshizora cut her off smoothly, his tone calm but unmistakably teasing, "that you've all volunteered as tribute. Congratulations."

Mei rubbed her temples and muttered under her breath, "Why does he always have to escalate things?"

From the back, Rui from Class 3-B scoffed. "I knew it. He's more trouble than he's worth."

Hoshizora glanced at her, his eyes half-lidded and unreadable. "It's not trouble for me."

A long silence stretched through the room before Haruto groaned loudly and flopped onto the nearest desk. "We're doomed."

Airi patted him on the shoulder consolingly, though her grin suggested she wasn't entirely sincere. "Well, at least if the mafia animals go after us, you'll have front-row seats to your own destruction."

"Not helping," Haruto muttered, his voice muffled by the desk.

"Good to know you're all catching on," Hoshizora said, returning to his seat and pulling out a book. As he flipped it open, he added without looking up, "But don't worry. Captain and Lieutenant haven't actually attacked anyone recently. You'll probably be fine."

"Definerecently," Kiba said warily.

Hoshizora didn't answer, but the faintest smirk tugged at his lips.

The uneasy tension in the room only grew as the other students began to wonder just how serious he was—and whether sticking near Haruto or Airi was the safest idea anymore.

Initially, most of the class brushed off Hoshizora's ominous warning as one of his deadpan jokes. Even Mei, who had come to expect the unexpected from him, waved it away as his usual cryptic humor. "He's just messing with us," she said dismissively, earning nods of agreement from Kaede and Kiba.

Haruto, on the other hand, remained visibly uneasy. "I don't know... You've seen those animals. Captain and Lieutenant are real, and they'rehuge. What if he wasn't joking?"

Airi rolled her eyes and patted his shoulder. "Relax, Haruto. He's just trying to freak us out because of that stupid 'Slingshot Effect' thing. You'll be fine. We'll all be fine."

Two days later, none of them felt fine.

It started subtly enough. Kaede swore she saw a flash of golden eyes in the bushes while walking home but convinced herself it was just her imagination. Kiba thought he heard faint growling from a tree near the school gate but chalked it up to exhaustion. Haruto was the first to experience something more concrete—yellow eyes staring at him from a shadowed alley as he walked to the convenience store that evening.

By the next day, the sightings escalated.

Minako nearly tripped over a black cat with gleaming green eyes that appeared out of nowhere, and when she looked up, she swore she saw white eyes blinking at her from the treetops. Airi shrieked during lunch break when a crow with crimson eyes landed on her desk and stared her down, unblinking, before flying off. Hikaru confessed to seeing flashes of blue eyes trailing him through the school corridors.

The worst, however, was when Kiba found himself face-to-face with a massive shadow outside the school gates. Its yellow eyes gleamed in the dark, and he could hear its heavy breathing. Before he could scream, the shadow vanished, leaving him shaking and clutching his backpack like a lifeline.

By the end of the second day, the group had had enough.

The members of Class 2-B who had witnessed Hoshizora's initial threat—and dismissed it—gathered near the Augery Tree during lunch break. Their expressions ranged from exasperation to outright panic as they approached Hoshizora, who was sitting cross-legged on the grass, quietly reading.

"Hoshizora!" Haruto's voice cracked as he marched forward. "You need to call them off!"

Hoshizora slowly lowered his book and looked up, raising an eyebrow. "Call who off?"

"Don't play dumb!" Kiba snapped, his voice laced with frustration and a hint of fear. "Theeyes! The animals! Whatever you did, it's terrifying, man!"

Minako folded her arms, her face pale. "I can't even walk home without looking over my shoulder. Every time I turn around, there's something staring at me!"

"Yellow eyes, crimson eyes, green eyes, blue eyes," Airi rattled off, flailing her arms dramatically. "Evenwhite eyes! What are you doing, summoning the rainbow of doom to follow us?"

Kaede tugged at her hair, visibly frazzled. "I thought you were joking, but now I can't sleep because I keep dreaming about those eyes staring at me!"

Hoshizora watched them with an expression that could only be described as mild amusement. "You're all overreacting."

"Overreacting?" Hikaru nearly shouted. "There's a literalpackof glowing-eyed creatures stalking us! How are we supposed to take that?"

Even Mei, who had initially dismissed the whole thing, crossed her arms and gave him an unimpressed glare. "Okay, Hoshizora-san. I'll admit, it's creepy. You've made your point. Just... stop it, please."

Hoshizora tilted his head, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "You're assuming I sent them."

"Who else could it be?" Haruto exclaimed.

Hoshizora leaned back, resting his hands on the ground behind him, and said casually, "Captain and Lieutenant don't take orders from me. They do what they want."

"Then tell them tostop wantingto follow us!" Kaede groaned, throwing her hands up in frustration.

Hoshizora finally sighed and stood, brushing grass off his pants. "Fine. I'll see what I can do. But they're not stalking you for no reason. They're watching. Observing."

"Observingwhat?" Airi asked warily.

"Your judgment," Hoshizora replied cryptically, his voice low and serious.

The group exchanged nervous glances before Minako hesitated. "Wait, are we being tested?"

Hoshizora didn't answer directly. Instead, he smirked faintly and added, "At least they haven't attacked anyone. Yet."

"Yet?" Haruto echoed, his voice rising. "What do you mean,yet?!"

But Hoshizora had already turned back to the Augery Tree, the conversation clearly over.

Despite his nonchalant response, the group couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. As they dispersed back to their classes, Mei swore she caught a glimpse of yellow eyes in the bushes again. When she turned to look, they were gone.

The strange occurrences surrounding Class 2-B did not go unnoticed by the rest of the school. Other groups and classes—particularly 3-B and 1-B, as well as members of the Photography Club—began to pick up on the unease radiating from their peers. However, their reactions were as varied as the students themselves.

Rui, always competitive with Mei, couldn't help but smirk when she noticed the members of 2-B glancing over their shoulders nervously during lunch.

"Looks like your class has finally cracked under Hoshizora-san's weirdness," Rui teased Mei when they crossed paths. "What's the matter? Too many creepy crows hanging around?"

Mei shot her a glare. "It's not just the crows, Rui. You wouldn't understand."

Ayaka, standing beside Rui, raised an eyebrow. "Try us. You're not the only ones who've seen... things lately."

Sota leaned against a nearby locker, looking skeptical but intrigued. "You mean the glowing eyes, right? We've heard rumors. People are saying Hoshizora summoned them."

Mei groaned. "He didn't summon anything... probably. He just—ugh, never mind. You wouldn't believe me."

"Try us," Ayaka pressed, clearly curious.

Rui leaned closer, her brown eyes gleaming with mischief. "Better yet, let's see if we can figure it out ourselves. You know,get aheadof 2-B for once."

Mei didn't answer, but the competitive glint in Rui's eyes promised that Class 3-B wouldn't let the mystery rest.

The first-year students of Class 1-B approached the situation with a mix of curiosity and caution. Yuki, their representative, was the first to broach the subject with Airi and Haruto during lunch.

"So, what's the deal with your class and all the rumors about glowing eyes?" Yuki asked bluntly, her dark blue hair tied back in a neat ponytail.

Haruto, still jittery from his latest run-in with what he swore wasCaptain, stammered, "It's nothing. Just Hoshizora being... Hoshizora."

Akimitsu, tall and broad-shouldered, crossed his arms and frowned. "Doesn't sound like nothing. People are talking about shadowy figures and animals stalking the school."

Chika, ever curious, leaned in closer. "Is it true they have glowing eyes? I heard someone in 3-A saw them near the gym yesterday."

Airi sighed and shrugged. "Look, all I know is that Hoshizora warned us, and now we're seeing things. It's probably just a coincidence."

"Coincidence my foot," Yuki muttered. "We should investigate."

"Investigate what?" Akimitsu grunted. "You really want to mess with whatever creepy stuff is following them? Count me out."

Chika, undeterred, grinned. "Come on, Akimitsu, where's your sense of adventure?"

Yuki rolled her eyes. "Let's just say I'm keeping an eye on you guys. If Hoshizora-san is involved, it's bound to get weirder."

Masaki, the club president, was more amused than alarmed by the rumors swirling around the school. He had a knack for brushing off anything he couldn't explain, and this was no exception.

"So," Masaki said casually as he joined Haruto and Airi at their table, "are we gonna use this whole 'Hoshizora and his shadow mafia' thing to boost the club's visibility?"

Haruto groaned. "Masaki-senpai, this isn't a joke."

"It kind of is," Airi muttered. "Or at least, it was. Until the glowing eyes showed up."

Masaki shrugged, flipping through some of the photos he'd taken during Open Day. "Look, I think it's great. Hoshizora's already half a cryptid anyway. Why not lean into it? Imagine the headlines:'Chiba Academy's Phantom Protector'—Photography Club Exclusive!"

Haruto and Airi exchanged wary glances.

"Do youwantto end up on Captain's chew toy list?" Airi asked dryly.

Masaki grinned. "If it gets us more members? Worth it."

The Art Club found the rumors about glowing eyes and mysterious animals oddly inspiring. Several members sketched eerie interpretations of the sightings, their drawings featuring shadowy wolves with glowing eyes and spectral crows perched on branches.

The Science Club, meanwhile, tried to take a more logical approach. They dismissed the sightings as optical illusions or mass hysteria but couldn't deny the unease that seemed to hang in the air whenever Hoshizora walked by.

"Maybe it's pheromones," one member suggested during a meeting. "You know, like how animals react to predators."

"Or maybe he's just cursed," another said, earning a round of nervous laughter.

Even some of the parents, particularly those who attended Open Day, had caught wind of the rumors.

One parent commented during a PTA meeting: "I don't know what's stranger—the fact that these kids think Hoshizora-san is some kind of grim reaper, or the fact that they might be right."

Another chimed in: "He's definitely... unusual. My daughter says he's got some kind of mafia of animals following him around. Is that a new trend?"

A more superstitious parent frowned. "It's not just a trend. Animals like that are signs of bad luck. They should be careful, or they'll invite misfortune on themselves."

Not all parents were concerned, though. Haruto's mother, who had met Hoshizora briefly at Open Day, brushed off the rumors with a laugh. "He's just a quiet kid with a knack for animals. My son is probably just jealous of his cool costume."

Still, the rumors continued to spread, fueled by the students' escalating paranoia and Hoshizora's cryptic responses.

Rui was the first to suggest poking around the Augery Tree after overhearing Mei and the others whispering nervously in the hall. "We're not letting 2-B hog all the spotlight. If they can handle Hoshizora's mafia, so can we."

Ayaka hesitated. "I don't know. He gives me bad vibes sometimes. Like he's watching us even when he's not."

Sota, more pragmatic, shrugged. "It's probably just a trick with the animals. Nothing supernatural. Let's prove it."

That evening, the trio ventured closer to the Augery Tree after hours, armed with flashlights. Rui, ever competitive, pushed forward, calling out mockingly, "Hoshizora-san, you're not the only one who can handle glowing eyes! Show yourself!"

A soft rustle of leaves was their only response—until two bright golden eyes suddenly blinked open in the darkness above them.

"Wha—?" Rui started, but before she could finish, another pair of crimson eyes appeared, followed by a low, rumbling growl.

Ayaka screamed and dropped her flashlight. Sota, to his credit, managed to grab her arm and haul her back, but not before a massive shadow darted between the trees, making a sharp snapping sound near their feet.

"RUN!" Rui shouted, abandoning all bravado as they bolted for the main building.

The next day, they refused to talk about what they saw, though their pale faces and jittery behavior told the story. Rui, still shaken but trying to save face, muttered, "It was probably just a big dog. A really big dog."

Ayaka shot her a glare. "Big dogs don't haveredeyes."

The first-year students tackled the matter with a mix of naivety and overconfidence. Yuki, their representative, was particularly determined to prove that the rumors were just overblown.

"Come on," she told Chika and Akimitsu during lunch. "We'll just take a quick look. What's the worst that could happen?"

Chika grinned, her curiosity piqued. "I'm in. Maybe we'll get a photo of those glowing eyes."

Akimitsu, ever the skeptic, rolled his eyes. "This is a bad idea. But if you two are going, someone has to keep you out of trouble."

That evening, the trio approached the Augery Tree, armed with a camera and a flashlight. At first, everything seemed normal—quiet, even. But as they got closer, the animals watching them from the shadows began to feel unnervingly deliberate.

"Why do I feel like we're being followed?" Chika whispered, gripping Yuki's arm.

A sudden caw from a crow startled them, and then the flashlight flickered, plunging them into darkness.

"Who turned it off?" Akimitsu demanded, but before anyone could answer, a pair of green eyes blinked open right in front of them.

A guttural snarl followed, and a massive, shadowy form loomed in the dim light. Yuki screamed, dropping the camera as the trio stumbled backward. The camera flashed as it hit the ground, briefly illuminating the creature: a black wolf-like figure with glinting fangs.

When they looked back, it was gone, leaving only the sound of rustling leaves.

Back in the safety of their classroom the next day, Chika tried to laugh it off. "So, uh... turns out the rumors are true. Maybe we should leave 2-B to their weird mafia."

Yuki, still pale, nodded fervently. "Definitely."

Akimitsu, meanwhile, glared at Haruto and Airi during lunch. "Next time, warn usproperly."

Masaki, ever the thrill-seeker, decided to investigate the rumors with a mix of bravado and excitement.

"Come on, guys," he told Haruto and Airi. "We're the Photography Club. If anyone's going to get a shot of these mythical guardians, it's us."

Haruto and Airi exchanged nervous glances but reluctantly agreed.

Their first foray near the Augery Tree was uneventful—until they returned to their clubroom to find a crow perched on their windowsill, staring directly at Masaki.

"What's it doing here?" Airi whispered.

Masaki waved it off. "It's just a bird."

The crow cawed loudly, then flapped its wings, scattering a small pile of dodecagonal coins onto the windowsill.

"That's not normal," Haruto muttered, backing away.

The real "jumpscare" came later that evening when Masaki returned to the school to retrieve his forgotten camera. As he approached the Photography Club's booth, he noticed a shadow dart across the hallway.

"Hello?" he called out, his voice echoing.

A pair of blue eyes glowed faintly in the distance, followed by a soft, echoing bark.

Masaki froze, then bolted back to the dorms without retrieving his camera.

The next day, he told the club, "I think we've seen enough. Let's stick tonormalphotography from now on."

Even students uninvolved in the initial incidents found themselves targets of Hoshizora's "payback."

One unlucky member of the Science Club, who had loudly proclaimed during lunch that the glowing eyes were just "luminescent fungus," found himself cornered by three crows the next morning. They stared at him in eerie unison until he broke into a sprint.

The Art Club, while initially dismissive, began incorporating glowing eyes and shadowy figures into their sketches. "It's just inspiration," one member insisted—until they swore they saw a massive pair of white eyes watching them from a darkened classroom during cleanup.

The collective unease grew as more students shared their encounters. Even the most skeptical began to think twice before mocking 2-B or venturing too close to the Augery Tree uninvited.

Hoshizora, of course, remained as cryptic as ever, brushing off questions with a nonchalant shrug or a faint smirk. His only comment, delivered to a trembling Rui when she asked him to call off his "guardians," was:

"They're not mine to control. Next time consider this. You make them curious about you guys during Open Day, this is their way of testing boundaries, this is actually pretty tame by their standards."