♪"Ooh-gaga ooh-gaga! Ooh-gaga ooh-gaga! I want to rip off your sweatpants!"♪ The bizarre melody flowed through the headphone wires into Rikka Takarada's ears. On screen, Lady Gaga's made-up face emerged from an exaggerated bodysuit. A plastic dinosaur hood sat atop her head, while giant monster arms extended from her ears like a crucified Jesus. She dressed like a tokusatsu suit actor; it was a wonder she could still perform. Yet I Want to Rip Off Your Sweatpants was the hottest single, topping all charts. The Grammy was practically hers. As the song ended, a massive cocoon appeared on the screen, clinging to the Tokyo Tower like a giant tumor. A line of bold English text floated onto the screen. Even with Rikka's limited English, she understood the slogan's meaning at a glance: "STOP THE KILLING!" "Ah~ Lady Gaga is a 'Monster-First' advocate too, huh~" Rikka recalled. Just then, a line of small text scrolled across the bottom of the broadcast: "Tomorrow's weather in the Kanto region: Sunny, 0.05 microsieverts, suitable for outings..." Just then, Rikka's phone vibrated. "Rikka, big news!" The exaggerated voice of her best friend, Akane Shinjō, came from the other end of the line. "Utsumi from our class is about to confess to a girl!" "Huh?" Rikka grunted noncommittally. "Anyway, get down to the riverbank, fast! Right now!" "Yeah, yeah..." Rikka climbed out of bed listlessly. The Takarada family ran an electronics shop on the shopping street; hopping onto her bicycle, Rikka arrived at the riverbank twenty minutes later. The Arakawa River was as quiet as ever under the setting sun, with only Akane standing there all alone. "It's over," Akane said, spreading her hands sheepishly as she saw Rikka ride up. "The girl didn't show up at all, and Utsumi went home in a huff. Oh well, and here I thought I’d get to witness someone becoming a normie right before my eyes, haha..." "Honestly, you!" Rikka gave Akane's arm a light, annoyed shove. "What kind of girl stood him up? Someone from our school?" "Nope." Akane spun around in place, a look of inexplicable smugness on her face. "I heard it's a girl from the neighboring Fujiyoki High School. Her name is Yume Minami." "Huh? Her!" "Yeah. I heard she's pretty famous—or infamous. She constantly leads guys on and then stands them up. Utsumi really... picked 'Hell Mode' for his very first try~" Akane snickered. The next afternoon, Rikka went to Fujiyoki High and asked Yume Minami to meet her at the back gate. "Yume, I heard what happened," Rikka said, crossing her arms. "What about it?" the brown-haired girl asked, looking puzzled. "You asked Utsumi from my school out and then just ghosted him." "Yeah, he got really mad at me yesterday..." Yume whispered, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. "Honestly, you..." Rikka sighed softly. "Stories like this get around fast, you know." "Mm." "I don't want to keep lecturing you, but haven't you noticed you don't really fit in with the people around you?" "We go to different schools, Rikka, so you don't need to stress over it." "I'm only saying this because we go way back." "Thanks a lot, Mom!" Yume drawled, pretending to be impatient. "Oh, stop it!" Rikka replied, mimicking an old lady's voice, and both girls couldn't help but laugh. After the laughter died down, Rikka spoke again. "Seriously, Yume. Stop making promises you don't intend to keep." But Yume avoided her gaze. "Well? I'm waiting for an answer." Wordlessly, Yume walked over to Rikka, leaned against her shoulder, and held up her phone. "Hey, are you even listening to me?!" Rikka said helplessly. Yet, the moment Yume hit the shutter button, Rikka instinctively struck a pose, flashing a sweet smile for the camera. Behind them, a massive figure hundreds of meters tall, sporting dorsal fins and resembling a dinosaur, stood silently amidst the concrete jungle of Tokyo's skyscrapers. That pale blue silhouette hadn't moved a muscle in three years, as if it existed solely to serve as a background for photos.