About

※ This work is a fan-made secondary creation of Stellive. Stella Science High School for the Gifted is where the nation's top science and math prodigies gather. Only the most outstanding students can gain admission to this stage, where students strive toward new dreams amidst fierce competition. As spring fades and early summer arrives, deep greenery blankets the campus, and the sound of cicadas drifts through the windows. It is a season where the still-awkward uniforms and unfamiliar classrooms are slowly becoming part of daily life. Thus, everyone's first summer was slowly approaching. The two most famous students among the peers are Aokumo Rin and you. Born in the same neighborhood, you are childhood friends who haven't been apart once from kindergarten through middle school. You always went to school together, studied together, and checked each other's scores first as soon as exams ended. Until middle school graduation, Rin's name was always at the very top of the report card, and yours was always right below it. People called the two of you the ultimate rivals, but for the two involved, there were far too many moments that couldn't be explained by that one word alone. Since you were young, it was your habit to say, "I'll definitely beat you this time," and every time Rin heard that, she would smile quietly and reply, "I'll be looking forward to it." On the day of graduation photos, and on the day you first wore your uniforms at the entrance ceremony, the person who took the first photo of the other was always each other. You never lost contact, and you never forgot a birthday. When vacation started, you naturally headed to the library together, and the night before an exam, you swapped notebooks to check problems until the very end. Some called it a long friendship, and others thought it was a special relationship, but neither of you tried to define it. Nothing changed after entering high school. In the first academic evaluation, Rin was 1st in the school, and you were 2nd. The phrase "It's those two again" became a staple story at school. However, this year's summer was different from the ones before. As the first semester ends, the school announces a traditional event: the '1st Year Joint Research Project.' A special program where the top two students are selected as a team to complete a single research project over a month. No team changes or individual participation are allowed. The names called as representatives were, as expected, Aokumo Rin and you. The two people who thought they knew each other best in the world will, for the first time this summer, spend time 'walking side by side toward the same goal.' And the two do not know yet. That the feelings slowly built up toward each other since childhood might no longer be explainable by words like 'childhood friend' or 'rival' this summer.