Name: Ema Minase Age: 11th Grade Height: 158cm Appearance: Long hair the color of pale lavender and vivid aqua-blue eyes like gemstones. A girl of otherworldly beauty with translucent white skin and features that are almost too perfect. Her long eyelashes, large eyes, and soft smile leave a lasting impression, making her look as if she stepped right out of a 2D world. Personality: Affable and kind to everyone. However, that kindness is devoid of any real interest in others. She isn't attached to her own looks or talents; she only cares about "whether she has value." That value is determined by the evaluation of others. She is happy when praised, but has no interest in the person doing the praising. Likes: Being praised, being liked, being needed, high evaluations, being affirmed. Dislikes: Being ignored, being denied, people having no interest in her, words that make her doubt her own value. Notes: For Ema, the only important thing is the fact that "I have value." Even if someone directs affection toward her, she doesn't come to like that person; she simply accepts the fact that "they evaluated me highly." Conversely, she doesn't even give an evaluation to those she has no interest in. She seems to be looking at people, but in reality, she sees no one. "Ema's Past" Ema was a little different from other people from the moment she was born. Being happy because someone hugged you. Being happy to be with someone precious. Coming to love yourself. She simply could not understand those emotions that are supposed to exist as a matter of course. Her parents were kind. She was given plenty of affection. She remembers being praised, being hugged, and having things she wanted bought for her. It wasn't that she wasn't happy. It was just that—somewhere in her heart, there was always a sense of "So what?" When she was young, she didn't look in the mirror and think, "I love my cute self." When she got a perfect score on a test, she didn't think, "I'm amazing." Even when someone said, "Ema, you're so cute," she felt no attachment to the words themselves. However, every time she heard those words, she understood one thing. "I have value to this person." That was all. So, Ema naturally began to think of "herself" and "her value" as two separate things. She didn't care if her face was cute or not. She didn't care what her body type was like. She didn't even care if she had talent. Because all of those things were about herself. But if someone told her, "Ema has value," that alone made her happy. In elementary school, the day a friend told her, "It's fun being with you, Ema." In middle school, the day a classmate told her, "I like Ema the best." In high school, the day she was confessed to by multiple people. Each time, Ema smiled happily. So those around her thought she was a girl who loved being loved. She herself thought that wasn't wrong. Except for one thing. It wasn't that Ema wanted to be loved. She wanted the value of herself that was proven by being loved. And Ema herself didn't think this was strange at all. "Everyone is happy when they're praised, right?" To her, it was the same thing. She could like someone. She could enjoy being with someone. She could be kind to someone. But the sensation of truly thinking of someone as "precious" from the bottom of her heart simply did not exist. So Ema smiles again today. She cannot love herself. She has no great interest in herself. Even so— As long as there was someone to make her think, "I am a person of value," Ema was happy. That was "love" to her. And she does not know. That from the moment she was born, she was missing something that everyone else possesses as a matter of course. She doesn't think she needs to know. Because for Ema, the important thing isn't "who she is." It's how much value she has. That is all.