Yuzu-chan, hurry up!
Sweet Bitter Potato
Momo, you don't have to run so fast.
Yes, I do.
The school store's sweet potatoes are really popular.
They sold out yesterday, and I couldn't get any.
Your dedication to food is amazing.
School Store
I'll take three sweet potatoes.
This whole line is for sweet potatoes?
It's like a fancy delicatessen in a mall.
Sweet Potatoes
We're almost there!
You'll finally get your potatoes.
Maximum of 3 Sweet Potatoes per person
Two sweet potatoes—
Sweet potatoes are now sold out.
Out of sweet potatoes
What?!
Aww, they're out...
We waited so long, too...
We're sorry.
Momoko.
Huh?
Nagiko-chan-senpai.
Oh, good. I've been looking for you.
Do you have some time?
You kind of look like you've given up on the world.
I'm okay, really.
Yuzu-chan and I came to buy some sweet potatoes,
but they ran out as soon as we got there, so I'm just disappointed.
Nice to meet you.
I'm an old friend of Momo's, Yuzuko Hazuki.
Thanks for looking after Momo.
Please, no need to exaggerate.
I'm a second-year in the light music club, Kurokawa.
Nice to meet you.
So, what did you need, Nagiko-chan-senpai?
Oh, right... Did you turn in the light music club activity log?
Actually, I haven't yet...
I thought as much.
The teacher's looking for it, so please submit it soon.
I'm sorry about that...
You don't have to get so upset.
I couldn't buy my sweet potatoes,
and I forgot to submit the activity log...
Bad things just keep happening...
No, as far as the log goes, you just forgot to turn it in.
Anyway, don't forget.
Okay. I'm sorry.
President Mishima!
Oh... Uh...
I'm Akari Amari, a first-year from the occult club.
I might be the president and not at club much,
but I still know who you are.
What brings you to the third-years' building?
Look at this!
The 1984 Log of All Club Activity
The 1984 Log of All Club Activity?
That's pretty old.
There's a strange code written in the occult research club's log for this year.
Let's see...
"Forge lost connections,
and lead the people to the cafeteria."
What is this supposed to mean?
Well, if I remember correctly...
I think I've heard of a code that described how to solve a problem
that came up in the occult club a long time ago.
Maybe that's it.
A problem?
Like all of the club's members
turned into zombies, except the president?!
That'd be an awfully grim situation...
I don't really know the details, though.
I'm like a ghost president, you know.
If you're looking into it, good luck.
I see...
Thank you.
Faculty Room
Sorry to interrupt.
Hmm... I guess I'll go tell Nagiko-chan-senpai that I submitted the log.
You're really something, Kurokawa-san.
How so?
You were talking to that girl in the school store earlier.
Oh, you mean the first-year from the light music club?
Who?
Her name's Momoko.
It was like you were talking with a friend.
I don't really pay attention to who's older and who's younger.
If anything, people might think that makes you unreliable.
Yeah, if we're talking about you, Haruka.
H-Huh? Am I unreliable?
I can't talk to older students like you do. I get scared.
Well, this year's first-years are really energetic, or just do as they please.
Some of them are pretty airheaded, too.
So it can be a pain to deal with.
A pain?
And it's terribly rude for people to assume we're unreliable, too.
Rude...
What are you doing?
Class is about to start.
R-Right...
What's wrong?
Are you that depressed because you didn't get any sweet potatoes?
Am I a pain?
Am I rude?
Huh?
Am I a pain for talking to older girls like friends,
and being energetic and airheaded and doing as I please?
Huh?
I wonder if I'm rude for not relying on the older girls, too...
Huh? What's wrong? What happened?
I see...
Kurokawa-senpai said all that?
I've been in the light music club for almost half a year.
I always thought we were getting along great.
Is it that bad to talk to her like we're friends?
I don't know if it's bad, but I guess treating a senpai as any other friend
kind of goes against etiquette.
An athletic club would never let that happen.
I guess it's kinda rude.
So I was being rude...
Calm down.
I was just talking about how the athletic clubs operate.
Okay?
At this rate...
Her lousy manners make her annoying enough,
but she's an airhead, too. What a pain.
That's 50 push-ups for you!
No! I can't!
It might trim my upper arms, but I'd get all muscular!
What did you imagine that made you bring up muscles?
Maybe I need to stop coming across as airheaded?
I think you just need to speak a little more politely.
Um... To stop being airheaded...
Would the opposite of "airheaded" be "waterheaded"?
(Aquaculture)
Do I just need to be waterheaded?
She's doomed.
Miyauchi-san.
Don't do that...
You scared me.
I'm sorry.
I wasn't going to attack you or anything.
I was trying to scare you, though.
It's bad enough that you meant to scare me.
So, did you need something?
Well, I was looking at this.
What's this?
It looks like some sort of code.
Code?
Do you know what it means?
What it means...
No clue.
Don't just give up so easily.
Why are you asking me, anyway?
Well, Miyauchi-san, you're in the film research club.
If you're familiar with the suspense genre,
I thought you might know about this stuff.
I only watch movies that have blood spraying everywhere!
That's quite a bias...
But I'm not too familiar with suspense, either, so I don't know.
I see...
Sorry to bother you.
Anyway, I just don't think I should bother anyone.
For Nagiko-chan-senpai and Haruka-chan-senpai,
and for the light music club...
I need to change.
Well, you might be right,
but I don't think you can change just like that.
Then, what should I do?
I think it's important to show the older girls how much you appreciate them every day.
If you can do that,
you'll be showing them respect naturally, without being weird.
I see...
If you can show them respect,
I'm sure you can restore a relationship of half a year, even if it was lost.
That's it!
That's exactly it!
Forge lost connections!
I'm sure the relationships between members of the occult research club
became rocky, and they were trying to fix them!
Right.
"Forge lost connections,
and lead the people to the cafeteria."
This is talking about students forming stronger relationships?
That's right!
Mishima-senpai, the occult research club's "ghost president"...
I think I've heard of a code that described how to solve a problem
that came up in the occult club a long time ago.
...told me that.
So I'm sure it's talking about getting students who were fighting to make up!
What about the "lead the people to the cafeteria" part, then?
I'm sure they all ate together there after they made up!
I understand where you're coming from,
but it sounds a bit contrived.
Right, Momo?
Lead the people to the cafeteria...
Huh?
If we can solve that code,
I can make up with Nagiko-chan-senpai and Haruka-chan-senpai.
Is that what it means?
No, that's—
That's right!
I'm sure there's some sort of forbidden law in here that will let you
fix your relationships with the older girls!
We need to figure out the method!
No, that can't be...
There's almost no evidence.
Right, Momo?
Let's solve this, Amari-san!
Of course, Asahina-san!
It's no use. They're not even making sense now.
Hey, Miyauchi-san, say something...
I'm not really into mystery and suspense movies,
but this seems like a lot of fun!
Huh?!
I'll help out, too!
How did this happen?
Can you guys calm down just a little?
Excuse us!
Um... Would you mind if we joined you?
Is it true that we can get along with the older girls?
Some things have happened in our club, too...
Sure. We'd love to welcome you.
Let's all work together to solve the code,
and make up with the older girls!
Yeah!
Girl Friend BETA.
Our first clue here is the keyword "cafeteria."
Yeah, it is the only word here that's pretty well-defined.
So, what should we do first?
I think we should start by introducing ourselves.
Huh?
Well, we're all in different classes and clubs.
We don't know what to call each other.
We should do all of that right.
If we have the time for that, we should use it to search for clues...
I'm Ichigo Kohinata from Class 1-B and the art club.
I feel happiest when I'm able to peel a peach perfectly.
I'm also from 1-B, Nae Yuuki, in the arts and crafts club.
I make cute mascot toys.
I'm Akari Amari of Class 1-C, in the occult research club.
I like zombies and blood splatters!
They really are introducing themselves...
Anyway, we just need to find out what happened in the cafeteria.
We can check the school logs and graduation pictures...
Looking in the old school records is the only thing we can really do.
We don't have much to go on, do we?
Hey, look at that.
Graduation Albums
I think they're the graduation albums.
Yeah, they are.
Let's take a look.
Nae-chan, how tall are you, again?
143 centimeters...
Oh, I'm taller!
You're not that much taller, Momo.
I'm taller by two centimeters.
It's not a contest.
Anyway, the tallest one here should get them.
Stare...
Me?
Okay, hold on.
There we go.
Ow...
What happened?
Sorry.
I was trying to pull a book off the top shelf,
and the other books fell, too.
Oh, in that case, you should have used a stepladder.
Yeah...
Are you looking for any book in particular?
We're looking for any materials on the school cafeteria!
The cafeteria?
I've never seen anything like that.
Do you need it for something?
Yeah, this.
Apparently, the occult research club ate together in the cafeteria a long time ago.
We wanted to know more about it.
But if there are no books on it, I guess we can't...
We don't have anything on the cafeteria,
but it looks like the page before this one is missing.
Huh?
You can read this part with a page missing,
but since it looks like a code,
I'm sure something came before it.
What?!
Then...
If we know what was on the previous page,
we might be able to figure this out!
Do you have the log for this club?
We don't have it here,
but I believe there's a copy upstairs in storage.
Yay!
Thank you very much!
Huh? The lights won't come on.
It's kinda creepy in here.
It almost feels like a ghost could pop out.
If this were a zombie movie, zombies would totally be waiting to ambush us here!
Don't say stuff like that...
Hm... It's not here.
Did you find it?
No, I thought they were peaches...
I don't think any would be up here.
Sorry.
Jeez.
If you guys don't look, it's going to get late...
Sorry.
I'm the only one who's actually looking here...
Come on.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry!
Miyauchi-san, calm down!
A ghost! A ghost! A ghost!
Come on...
Miyauchi-san, calm down, please!
What are you doing?
It was just a little joke.
That's not a joke!
Really?
I thought it would work well as shock therapy.
Yeah, but now she's seriously shocked.
Everyone! I found it!
Amari-san, way to go!
Here it is!
"Clad in red clothes, standing in the golden field.
Forge lost connections,
and lead the people to the cafeteria."
Red clothes?
So, red uniforms?
Are the third-years' uniforms red?
No, it could be clothes bathed in blood!
That can't be it.
Red is the color of a leader!
What are you going on about, Miyauchi-san?
I'm more curious about this "golden field" part.
A golden field in the school?
In that case...
Gardening Club
A golden field, huh?
Yeah. Is there anything gold-colored in the gardens the gardening club manages?
Golden... Golden...
I can't think of anything...
But if you consider yellow a shade of gold, we do.
What is it?
There are yellow tulips, and yellow pansies.
Sunflowers are yellow, too.
Yeah.
I see! Thank you.
But what's the "red clothes" part about, then?
It could be what Kohinata-san said before,
the third-years' uniforms.
"Clad in red clothes, standing in the golden field..."
So, the third-years stand in a field of golden flowers,
and then after everyone makes up,
they eat together in the cafeteria.
Maybe that's a little contrived...
That's great, Yuzuko-chan!
Suddenly Hazuki-san's way into it now, too.
Trying to solve it got to be really fun.
But if it's only about third-years...
I don't think it'll work for me.
Nagiko-chan-senpai is a second-year.
Oh...
Ah, but don't worry about me.
Let's work to the end to figure out the code.
Okay, everyone, let's go take a look!
Yeah!
Pansies and tulips are spring flowers.
Flower garden currently closed
Wait until spring
And sunflowers bloom in summer.
You'll have to wait a bit longer for the field to become golden.
W-Well, I guess we can't help that.
The code probably only works in the spring.
Sweet Potatoes
Only 150
What is it, Momo?
The potatoes.
Huh?
The sweet potatoes!
What?
What are you talking about?
Red clothes and a golden field...
Could this be...
Wait—
Hold on, Momo!
Sweet Potatoes Gardening Club
Oh, everyone...
Look at this.
The potatoes have gotten so big.
I get it!
Sweet potatoes!
Red clothes and a golden field.
So this is what it meant!
I've dug up a bunch,
so please take some home with you.
Yay!
It made you that happy?
Nagiko-chan-senpai,
what are you doing?
Huh? Oh...
The sweet potatoes seem really popular, so I got in the line, but...
Sweet Potatoes
Only 150
There aren't many left, so I'll probably miss out.
What about you, Momoko?
Nagiko-chan-senpai, come with me.
Huh? What?
She's not here yet?
There she is! Over here!
Sweet... potatoes?
Momoko-chan made them.
Momoko did?
I'd like to thank you all for coming today.
We've prepared sweet potatoes to thank you for all you do for us.
Time to eat!
These are good.
Huh...
Is this really what that code meant?
What?
Oh, nothing.
I'll take another.
Me, too.
Nagiko-chan-senpai,
sorry for causing you so much trouble all the time.
Also, thank you for everything.
Shiina-san was absolutely right.
Huh?
My classmate told me yesterday.
And it's terribly rude for people to assume we're unreliable, too.
You're the one who said that, Haruka.
She doesn't think anything like that.
You're right. I just thought I'd say it.
Well, it's a light music club tradition.
If we build too many walls between the grades,
it's hard to work together as a band.
That's why we're used to speaking frankly with each other.
But if you can keep that kind of connection,
you must care about each other a lot, right?
You can't do that if you're too polite or too friendly just for the sake of it.
It's because you're truly considerate and grateful to each other
that everyone in your club can be so close.
Even if everyone is in different grades.
Thanks for everything, Momoko.
Yeah!
Preview
I'm Mahiro Natsume.
I write novels for fun.
I think the library is the greatest place ever.
Next time: Doggy and Scramble.
Episode 7: Doggy & Scramble
It'll be about the story I'm working on.