Right now where are you?

"I will take a look at her." Mikami rolled up Akari's sleeves. "Tell me how you have treated her."

While those two dealt with Austin Akari, Kouta decided to have a look inside the tower. He quietly pushed a door open and crept inside; there was a long spiral staircase.

It looks like it will take quite a while to reach the top. He supposes he can investigate another time. Kouta exited the room and made his way outside. His gaze fell on the grey-colored skies and the red-colored moon.

'How did the world end up in such a terrible state?' Many people claim that Karashima Haruka caused this mess by seducing Lila. But how could he possibly blame those two? While Haruka-senpai did many bad things in the past, he calmed down once Lila came to Star town.

How could anybody mistake Haruka-senpai's love and devotion for pure seduction? The same goes for Lila. It was the first time seeing a couple who loved each other so deeply.

They fought a lot about petty things, but their feelings for one another grew stronger after each fight.

It is not like he did not feel bad for Kiryu-san initially; he promised he would watch over Lila for him. But, in the end, he also ended up supporting Haruka-senpai.

'I have many mixed feelings towards Karashima Haruka. I knew Yumeko liked him even before she did.' But at that time, he did not think anything would come out of it. His sister had a boyfriend at the time, and she genuinely seemed happy. The guy wasn't a bad person either.

Did things start to go wrong then?

The real identity of her sister's boyfriend back then is Tsueno Huan.

Mamoru-san supposedly came to Light town on a mission to do with Haruka-senpai.

The more he thought about it, the more puzzled he became. Is there something he is missing? Karashima Haruka, he must play some key role in all of this. Those rumors going on about him are biased, and nothing is supporting it- but he cannot dismiss the idea of Haruka's involvement.

It seems Lila understood that too. She has probably made up her mind regarding Haruka's memories. It won't surprise him if they receive news any day now that Haruka-san remembers everything.

'What Yumeko and Haruka-senpai were working on. I want to know why; how come they worked together on something of this magnitude despite being at odds?'

Kouta frowned. It is not like they made up; there was still an awkward vibe when he saw them together. But when he rummaged through his sister's stuff, there was no doubt that the two were secretly meeting up and investigating.

He took a small key out of his pocket. It looked like an ordinary key that had lost its color, but he figured it was important since it was inside Yumeko's journal.

'Yumeko, exactly what were you doing behind my back? I shielded her from harm for so long, so she would have nothing to do with all of this.'

When Yumeko was first born, there was a strange light around her. Their father invited an odd oracle, and that person made a strange prediction regarding Yumeko. But the words of the oracle frightened their father, and their mother left them because she could not handle it.

That day father invited him to his study and, with a pained smile, explained that his mother had left. 'I will be very busy; that is why Kouta, only you can protect Yumeko.'

He watched over his sister closely and made sure that nothing strange got near her. He did teach her about her powers, but he made up some strange tale. There was a time when she was obsessed with heroes because of that-

The first time he saw her truly smile was when Terashima Lila debuted. They watched TV together when a young Terashima Lila appeared on the stage.

During the performance, Yumeko held onto his sleeve tightly with a bright look in her eyes.

'I want to be exactly like her big brother, a sparkly and bright idol.'

After that, she wouldn't shut up about dreams and Lila.

He was already thinking of debuting by that time and wanted to surprise his family with the news. But their father was busy, and their mother, who remained in contact with him, only brushed him off coldly.

It was only Yumeko who congratulated him.

'That's amazing, brother!'

Three simple words, but it was enough to erase the doubt in his heart, and he debuted with a warm feeling in his heart.

"You wouldn't shut up about dreams and became a chatterbox. But now, where are you? Right now, I cannot hear your voice anywhere." Kouta clenched his fist that held the key.

According to that message from Iwa Kasumi, that Mikami passed on Kogami Yori sacrificed herself like that because the girl knew about Yumeko. Kogami realized that the enemy was trying to get to Yumeko, so she shielded her.

A part of him regrets it; if he told her the truth from the very start, then the situation would not have ended up this way. At the very least, she would have been informed.

His thoughts broke off when he felt something cold press against his cheek. It was a bottle of cold water, and the culprit was Mikami.

"Is Takehiro asleep?"

"He truly overexerted himself. I have never seen that guy so skinny. I gave him a shot with nutrients, so he ought to feel better soon."

"Right, thank you."

"Is that Yumeko's?" Mikami pointed to the key in his hand.

"Yeah."

Mikami glanced at it with a deep expression on his face. "It feels like I have seen something like this before."

"Is it important?"

"It was something I briefly heard when I was still in that company. Zane talked about an important item that will change the tide of this entire struggle." He trailed off. "Right, a lock and several keys."

"A lock and keys?"

"There are four keyholes in the lock, no five- but the four keys need to combine into one to create the main key."

"So, what exactly does this do?"

Mikami shook his head. "That is much as I know. The one with the answers will be your favorite Haruka-senpai."

At those words, Kouta sighed. "What favorite? When he regains his memories, the first thing I will do is punch him."

But if he punches him, Lila will most likely cry. "I can't do that." He mumbled, causing Mikami to laugh. Kouta blinked, hearing his laughter. Did he cheer up after seeing Takehiro?

Takehiro was always the mood maker in the group.