Ran moved out smoothly.

  This time, it wasn't just a temporary escape, she had no iion of returning.

  She couldn't accept Shinichi's secreor could she accept his "selfishness" toward her.

  Even though she wouldn't expose his secret, she couldn't bear to live uhe same roof as him.

  "Ran, feel free to piy room you like."

  "Okay… Thanks, Mom."

  "There's o thank me, sweetheart."

  As she spoke, Kisaki Eri pulled her daughter into a f embrace.

  "Don't think too much about that boy. He has nothing to do with you anymore, and you don't o take responsibility for him."

  "…He's not dead."

  Ran knew she couldn't say that out loud, though.

  Shinichi's situation was dangerous.

  She didn't obje moving into her home, but she also didn't want his preseo put her father at risk.

  If he had to hide, then he had to keep hiding.

  Just because she khe truth didn't mean they could stop being careful.

  In faow that she knew, she had to help keep his secret.

  Realizing this, Ran sighed inwardly.

  Her life wasn't going to be easy from now on.

  "I uand, Mom."

  She still had to go to school, but she couldn't bring herself to care today.

  Her childhood friend had deceived her, kept secrets from her, and held selfish thoughts toward her. Just thinking about it gave her a headache.

  And then, there was the diary.

  The diary she had received by ce…

  Her mind drifted to Amamiya Ren.

  Maybe she should talk to him.

  Maybe she could find out if her life was only now starting to iwih something bigger, now that Shinichi had moved in.

  After pg her belongings in her room, she listeo the sounds outside.

  "Ran, I'm heading to work."

  "Okay!"

  Hearing the door close, she flopped onto the bed.

  For a long moment, she just y there, staring at the ceiling.

  Then, finally, she sat up and quickly flipped through the diary in her hands.

  The records in the diary stretched back to the day before their visit to Tropical Land.

  There were eveails about what had happehere.

  She vividly remembered the people in mascot es handing out balloons and flyers.

  One of them had been that man.

  The followiries even included a video, ohat captured Shinichi, little by little, shrinking into a child.

  Even seeing it a sed time, the impact was overwhelming.

  "A drug that turn a high school student into a child…"

  "I never imagined something like that could actually exist."

  As an ordinary girl, her only notable skill being karate, Ran found it hard to prehend the existence of such a bizarre poison.

  A…

  "…Shinichi, you're so selfish."

  She let out a deep sigh.

  "If only you could be this selfish in normal situations."

  Now that she was alone, she couldn't help but voice her pints.

  The moment she learned Shinichi's life had been in danger, she had felt an overwhelming urge to punch the bespectacled boy who had tricked her.

  To make him uand that she wasn't that easy to fool.

  Of course, that was just a thought.

  She knew doing something like that would be too reckless, it would expose Shinichi's identity immediately.

  Still, now that she had time to reflect, she realized something.

  "Maybe… Sonoko was right all along."

  Love really does make people blind.

  Had she always been blinded by her feelings?

  Looking at the situation now, Shinichi had orchestrated his own disappearance, w together with Aunt Yukiko and Uncle Yusaku to erase his identity, just so he could remain by her side.

  Would he ever be able to return to his normal life?

  She had no expectations of that happening.

  For Shinichi to go as far as to erase himself, it meant that whatever he had gotten involved in was far too big.

  Something was lurking behind the ses, and it was far from simple.

  Even putting aside the anization targeting Shinichi, the mere existence of a drug capable of de-aging people was dangerous in itself.

  Ran shuddered at the thought.

  Even if no one were after Shinichi, just the fact that he had been turned into a child would be enough to turn him into a test subject.

  No matter how she looked at it…

  Shinichi wasn't ing back.

  "…Holy."

  "Why do you always rush straight into danger?"

  Ran sighed in frustration.

  If Shinichi had just minded his own business, maybe he wouldn't have gotten hit that night.

  Maybe he wouldn't have been poisoned.

  Shaking her head, she turned her attention to something else.

  "ht… There's still the lottery."

  A massive virtual roulette wheel appeared in front of her.

  Ran, intrigued, reached out and pced her hand on it.

  The wheel spun rapidly before slowing down.

  Eventually, it stopped, and the indicator poio a se.

  [How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift?]

  [Title Obtained: Imperial Sakura Fang]

  [Imperial Sakura Fang: By ing a rge amount of calories, you increase muscle density, enhanerve reflex speed, boost explosive strength, improve endurance, aend the duration of peak performance.]

  [his title ot be removed. Upon obtaining it, you will immediately gairaits 'Big Eater' and 'Digestion Monster.']

  "…Big Eater? Digestion Monster?"

  Ran stared at the description, momentarily stunned.

  "No way…"

  Gurgle~~~

  A loud rumble echoed from her stomach.

  "…So hungry."

  For the first time in her life, she experienced an overwhelming sense of hunger in the m.

  There was no doubt about it now.

  The lottery was real.

  And the traits—Big Eater and Digestion Monster—were definitely real.

  "…I'm really turning into a big eater, aren't I?"

  Even though she wao resist the idea, the gnawing hunger iomach was unbearable.

  She hurried to the kit.

  Opening the refrigerator, she was met with a strange sight.

  "…Mom, even if you're bad at cooking, why do you need so many seasonings?"

  Aside from a bit of lettuce, the fridge was almost entirely filled with ents.

  Ran shook her head.

  No time to pin.

  She had to eat first.

  She started cooking rid preparing the lettuce.

  In the end, she made some simple rice rolls.

  The entire process took about fifty minutes.

  But she devoured everything ihan fifteen.

  "Hm… About seventy pert full."

  Her stomach wasn't pletely satisfied, but it was at a fortable level.

  Seventy pert.

  Not stuffed, but y.

  She pced a hand on her abdomen.

  "…I ate so much, but my stomach doesn't even feel bloated."

  Then, she realized something.

  "…Wait."

  "What am I going to do about my food budget?"

  If her appetite had really increased this much…

  That meant her daily expenses were about to go .

  As someone who had always been mindful of money, Ran suddenly felt an impending sense of financial doom.

  Her pocket money might not be enough to keep up.