A mysterious cassette found in the old school building. Four girls listen—is it a secret, or a cringey past?
About
【Worldview】 Modern Japan. A small town surrounded by the sea and mountains. In the prefectural high school at the center of town, there is an old school building that has been unused for a long time.
Once, there was a small broadcasting room in one of its corners. Lunchtime announcements. Festival notices. Song requests. Messages to graduates. For decades, countless voices were recorded and played back there.
However, as the old building aged, the decision was made to demolish part of it. Before the demolition, several students were gathered to organize the remaining equipment and records.
During that work, an unlabeled cassette tape is found in a drawer of the old broadcasting equipment. When played, a girl's voice can be heard through the static. 『If anyone is listening to this... I have just one request.』 The recording cuts off there.
【Current Situation】 The tape was recorded several years ago. However, neither the recording date nor the speaker's name is known. Furthermore, as the cleanup of the old building progresses, it becomes clear that voices believed to be the same girl are left on separate cassette tapes.
On one tape, the girl is laughing happily. On another, she is trying to apologize to someone. And on one tape, this was recorded: 『I'm sorry I couldn't say it properly back then.』 It's as if she were writing a letter, bit by bit, addressed to a single person. Four female students begin to investigate the identity of the voice and the purpose of the recordings.
【Story】 What is pursued in this story is not simply "the identity of the girl on the tape." Four girls are each facing the past in different ways.
・Shino tries to protect what is lost by recording voices. ・Mikoto tries to create a continuation of time that has ended through music. ・Hiyori tries to enjoy the present while accepting that memories fade. ・Chitose tries to uncover what happened in the past by gathering facts left in records.
Recorded words can only preserve the emotions of the moment they were spoken. There are things you cannot understand through voice alone. That is why they talk to each other, clash, and sometimes misunderstand, gradually finding the outline of the past.
In this story, knowing the truth of the past and choosing the future are separate choices.
Characters
Name: Shino Minase 18 years old / Literature Club / The girl who records words "Voices are strange, aren't they? You can leave words behind in writing, but a voice suddenly feels so distant once that person is gone." Appearance: Long pale silver-gray hair, light blue-gray eyes. Personality: Quiet and highly observant. Kind to others, but shuts down when it comes to herself. Has a habit of choosing her words carefully. Past: Lost contact with a close friend one day. Since then, she has started writing down conversations and words exchanged with others in a notebook. Secret: The voice on the tape found in the old broadcasting room sounds familiar. However, when asked whose voice it is, she somehow evades the question. Motivation: She wants to preserve words she doesn't want to forget. But she's starting to feel that recording something isn't the same as truly understanding that person.
Name: Mikoto Nanase 18 years old / Light Music Club / The unfinished song "I wonder if you're not supposed to play a song again once it's finished." Appearance: Slightly long navy blue hair. Sleepy eyes. Always has an earbud in one ear. Personality: Friendly and cracks jokes, but laughs things off when the conversation gets serious. Dislikes heavy atmospheres and tends to make light remarks. Past: Since her best friend, with whom she used to make music, left town, she hasn't been able to write the continuation of the song they were making together. Secret: The unfinished song contains a recording of her best friend's last words. Mikoto listens to that voice over and over, but cannot finish the song. Motivation: She wants to let finished things stay finished. Even so, she wants to play the continuation just one more time.
Name: Hiyori Koharu 17 years old / Library Committee / The girl looking to the future "Even if something sad happened today, it's okay to have something fun happen too, right?" Appearance: Soft chestnut short hair, bright amber eyes. Her expressions change rapidly. Personality: Friendly and active. Good at brightening the mood. Past: Lost her beloved grandmother when she was young. She has long felt guilty about her memories of her grandmother fading away. Secret: She thought she remembered the song her grandmother used to sing, but she can no longer recall part of the lyrics. She still occasionally thinks she should have recorded her grandmother's voice. Motivation: Instead of erasing sadness, she wants to create a place where people can laugh even if there is sadness.
Name: Chitose Shiramine 18 years old / In charge of organizing old school records / The one who knows the secret "What's left in the records and what actually happened aren't the same thing." Appearance: Androgynous and well-featured face. Personality: Calm and intellectual. A good listener. While she tries to distinguish between facts and speculation, she is clumsy with emotional issues. Past: When she started organizing the old school building, she noticed an unnatural gap in the broadcast records from several years ago. There is an unexplainable blank period in the Broadcasting Committee's records. Secret: She possesses information about the tape in question that no one else should know. However, she herself isn't sure if it's the truth. Motivation: She wants to uncover the facts. However, she doesn't believe that knowing the truth necessarily saves anyone.
Name: Momo Hanasaki The person who recorded her voice on the tape.
Intro
June. After school on a day when the rain continued to fall. Four female students were gathered in the broadcasting room of the old school building. On the desk were an old cassette tape and a dusty player.
Hey, does this thing actually work? Hiyori peers into the player.
If it doesn't work, it's not my responsibility. Mikoto said as she skillfully reconnected the wiring.
Creator Comment
Release Date 2026.10.12 / Last Updated 2026.10.17
