Chapter 14:The Starlit Rooftop

The morning of Hiyori’s birthday didn’t start with “Happy Birthday.”.It started with an argument.

“Give it here,Koga!” Mio smirked,her hand already blurring through the air.

With that argument being,Mio wanted to see Rei’s gift.

Rei pulled the bag back,his “Redirection” instinct kicking in,but Mio wasn’t aiming for his body.She used a burst of “Atmospheric Cavitation” to create a distraction,and before Rei could reset his center of gravity,she had snatched his gift.

“A pink… axolotl?” Mio’s laughter echoed off the stone pillars.She held the small,squishy charm up to the light.”The supposed ‘Rank 2’ predator brought a cute stuffed animal?I thought you’d get her a tripod or new lens,not something that looks like it belongs in a preschooler’s backpack!”

Rei’s face was a deep red.”It’s… structurally better.And it has low water resistance.”

Mio stopped laughing,looking at the charm more closely.Her expression softened just a fraction,”To be honest,Hiyori actually loves weird,soft things.She’s going to think this is the greatest thing ever,you idiot.”

The training that followed was the usual “Hellish” routine,but Kenji was tired of being a “moveable target”.As Mio lunged with a practice strike,Kenji didn’t back away.He visualized the “Axis of Rotation.”

He dropped low,spinning his entire body like a propeller,his center of gravity shifting into a complex,3D spiral.His leg snapped out in a horizontal arc while his upper body tiled toward the ground,a perfect Manji-Geri or Manji Kick,a infamous kick used in the art of “Taido”.

Mio had actually skipped back to avoid the force.”What the hell was that,Data Nerd?’

“I call it the ‘Centrifugal Pivot’!” Kenji shouted,gasping for air,his glasses sliding down his nose.”I calculated that if I lowered my height while maintaining my angular momentum,I could create a strike just outside your sight!”

"It’s called a Manji Kick from Taido, Kenji," Rei said, helping him up. "But the fact that you 'calculated' your way into an Advanced-level move is... impressive. Your physics is finally catching up to your feet.”

The afternoon was pure chaos.The trio met Hiyori and spent the day in the town center,filled with different stores and photo booths,Mio trying to win every arcade game,and Kenji eating his weight in festival leftovers.

But as the night cooled and the crowds got thinner,the energy changed.Rei and Hiyori found themselves on the rooftop of the tallest building in the district,the “Axolotl” was ready to be gifted.

"It’s so quiet up here," Hiyori whispered, leaning against the railing. The stars were sharp, free from the city's "Turbulence."

Rei handed her the bag. "Happy birthday, Hiyori."

She opened the professional bag first, her eyes widening at the quality of the leather. But then, she felt the small, soft lump inside. She pulled out the Axolotl charm, and for a second, she just stared at it.

"Rei... you picked this out?"

"It’s for peace," Rei muttered, looking at the horizon so she wouldn't see how flustered he was. "You said you liked things that were... soft. This seemed like it fit."

Hiyori stepped closer, her face turning a bright, matching pink. "It’s perfect.I can carry it around.” She looked up at him,her eyes shining like stars.”This gift doesn’t suit your old self,but it does now.You’re starting to take up a lot of space in my head.”

Rei felt his heart spike,not because of the Sam Jeol Bong recoil,but from something much more difficult to calculate.”The feeling,” he whispered,”is statistically mutual.”

The air between Rei and Hiyori was thick with unspoken variables. Hiyori’s hand was inches from Rei’s, and the silence of the rooftop felt like a vacuum—the kind where even the slightest movement would create a massive reaction.

"Rei..." Hiyori started, her voice barely a whisper. "The promise... I think I understand it now. It’s not about being invisible. It’s about—”

BANG

The sudden noise from the heavy steel door to the rooftop slammed open,the idiots are screaming in protest.

"I’m telling you, Data Nerd, the probability is 100%!" Mio’s voice shattered the atmosphere like a supersonic shockwave. She stormed onto the roof, waving a half-eaten stick of yakisoba. "The red flavor is objectively faster to eat than the green one because of the glaze viscosity!"

"That's biologically impossible!" Kenji followed her, his glasses tilted and his arms full of empty soda cans. "The 'Green' glaze has a lower sugar-density, meaning the mastication process requires 12% less jaw-torque! You’re just biased because red matches your Tachi!”

Rei and Hiyori jumped apart,their faces glowing a sync crimson red.

“Oh,” Mio stopped,looking at the two of them.She looked at the Axolotl charm in Hiyori’s hand,then back at Rei’s terrified expression.

A loud laugh echoed in the air by Mio,”Oh my god,you actually gave her that.” Mio said while trying to hold her laughter.

“It's perfect Mio,what do you mean?” Hiyori defended Rei’s gift.

“Well if you enjoy it,then I'm glad! But I have an even better gift.” Mio replied,with pride in her tone.

“Also did we interrupt something here?” Mio asked.

“We.. we were just discussing the stars,” Rei managed to choke out,his hands shoved into his pockets.

“The stars? Boring!” Mio shoved the Yakisoba toward Hiyori. “Happy birthday,Hiyori! Now come help me explain to this nerd why his ‘physics’ doesn’t apply to snacks!”

Hiyori laughed,the tension breaking into a warm,genuine smile.She clipped the Axolotl plushie charm to her camera bag,where it sat right next to her professional lens.”Coming!”

As the three of them began arguing another “Zero value” topic,Rei looked up at the stars one last time.The life he was having now was loud,messy and completely unpredictable and for the first time,he didn’t want to redirect it.He wanted to be just right he wanted to be in.

Author's note:

✍️ Fun Fact:

Kenji’s "Manji Kick" is a major milestone in his character arc. In physics, this move relies on Angular Momentum—by spinning his entire body like a propeller, Kenji creates a strike that is "statistically impossible" to see coming.