Chapter 7: A Walk
In the morning, Shijima started having a stomach ache while eating breakfast. She tells her still-asleep sister about it, and is advised to let the teacher know and take a day off. However, just ten minutes later, the pain in her stomach subsided. Not wanting to show up late, Shijima is permitted to skip class by her sister, though she couldn't help but feel that spending another day confined to the closet wouldn't be much different from the two years she spent hiding away from society.
Instead, Shijima decides to take a leisurely stroll around town, walking the opposite direction from school. She felt slightly excited as she ventured into unfamiliar areas. Shijima soon finds herself in a deserted neighborhood near the station, where the residents had already left for school or work. While initially enjoyable, she unintentionally wanders too far into the urban landscape and loses her way. Later on, she comes across a short person with long, white hair who is wearing a white robe and horned hat and poking the asphalt with a metal stick. Curious, Shijima asks about the person's activity, to which she explains that her metal stick has the ability to "fix all the wrong things." The person agrees to help Shijima in navigating through the "mess" and accompanies her to the station. Despite having the appearance of a fourth-grader, she exudes the demeanor of a mature woman. Wondering about the high school student's presence in town during a weekday afternoon, the robed girl asks if Shijima possesses a student identification card, causing Shijima to mistakenly perceive her as a police officer.
They eventually reach the station, after which the robed girl takes her leave. Shijima finds a taiyaki stand run by her blonde neighbor from earlier, and decides to buy an ajiyaki, a mackerel-shaped cake. Shijima sits down on a nearby bench to enjoy her snack, and the neighbor joins her, sparking a conversation. When asked if she gets tired from work, the blonde girl shares her unique way of livening herself up – chasing after a flock of pigeons. Intrigued by this idea and feeling weary of school herself, Shijima decides to give it a try. In her thoughts, she realizes that conforming to societal expectations can be exhausting, and embracing a little chaos might not be such a bad thing after all.
