Compensation θ ~ I might be late for reincarnation, but since I was born as the talented eldest son of a prestigious noble, I might be on the winning side.

In the blink of an eye, all four gates disappeared.

Gone.

After Kinesaka vanished, like a domino effect, three people dove into the gates.

With the source of light gone, the surroundings suddenly darkened, and now everything was enveloped in darkness.

Was this all about first come, first served? What about the remaining four people? If they couldn’t be reborn, does that mean they would be stuck here forever? Is that it?

“They’re reckless. Jumping in so quickly,”

“Yeah, it’s terrible. But ‘Early Bloomer’ sounds really weak. I hope they regret getting such a lousy class.”

“Exactly. Despite giving them useful information, they still recklessly pass through the gate.”

Said Tatsumi in exasperation.

In the dark, their expressions were not visible, and only their voices were heard.

But why did Inui forcefully push Kinesaka? Could it be that she knew that diving into the gate would give them the gate’s information? It was strange how composed Inui seemed, even though the gates had all disappeared.

Inui seemed to have valuable information about the gates.

[Gate of the Flying Swallow]

[Class] Early Bloomer

[Basic Abilities] ◎

[Advanced Abilities] ◯

[Skills] ◯

Bonus: Skill Manual

What can be understood from this is that the blue gate is called the ‘Gate of Flying Swallow’, the granted occupation is ‘Early Bloomer’, and it comes with a bonus of a skill manual book.

Taking it at face value, ‘Early Bloomer’ might imply rapid growth in the beginning. However, whether that’s a good or bad thing, unfortunately, I don’t know. The comments from the two girls however, seemed to suggest that it was a weak class. But there are symbols like ◎ and ◯ that may seems positive, making it difficult to judge. That’s what doesn’t make sense.

Hmm.

In this short time, how much information could they really get about the gates they dived into?

“Hey, let’s talk for a bit…”

“Yay! Here it comes! As expected!”

While trying to call out to the others, the surroundings suddenly brightened again.

“A red gate. The color is different from before.”

“Can we expect something good from this one?”

A new gate appeared. Two red gates glistened like the evening sun.

“Well, it looks like it’s not over.”

I breathed a sigh of relief and unintentionally spoke. If the gates keep coming like this, there’s no need to rush. What will the other three do?

Kinesaka, Yanagi, Osakabe, and Mikoshiba, the four of them, dove into the blue gate.

There are now four people left: Sakon, Inui, Tatsumi, and me.

On the other hand, there are only two gates remaining.

I’m curious about the name of the red gate and the class it provides. But most likely, the information won’t come out unless someone dives in.

Now, should I gamble on this or not?

“What should I do…? Just kidding!”

“Of course we’re going!”

Ah!

Almost at the same time, Inui and Sakon dashed into the gates. Man, they’re deciding way too quickly.

This time Inui rushed into the gate without getting the gate’s information beforehand. That’s strange. Well, I guess she can’t pull off the same thing as earlier, so she might be gambling on this one.

–[Gate of the Leaping Panther] Remaining: 0/2

[Class] Progressive Form

[Basic Abilities] ◯

[Advanced Abilities] △

[Skills] △

Bonus: Advanced Skill Manual

Information immediately flooded my mind. ‘Gate of the Leaping Panther”, and a ‘Progressive Form’ class. Does this mean it will progress steadily? The symbols changed from ◎ to ◯, and now to △. The bonus is different too. Before it was a skill manual book; now it’s an advanced skill manual book.

Is this a hit or a miss? Judging from the symbols alone, it might seem like a downgrade, but considering the name ‘Gate of the Leaping Panther’, I felt like it might make me stronger than the initial four gates.

I’m late again… Well, it’s okay. I can choose from the gate that appears next.

The lingering light faded, and the surroundings turned dark again. They say there’s luck in the leftovers, so I hope a more overpowered gate appears next.

“Hey, Sakura!”

Suddenly my name was called, I reflexively turned around. In that moment, my body floated in mid-air, and shortly after, a light impact followed as I was brought down to the ground.

“That hurts! Tatsumi, what the hell are you doing… can you let go?”

For some reason, Tatsumi had his well-built arm wrapped around my neck. This was probably the position for a chokehold. He truly practiced ancient martial arts… this is not the time!

“This isn’t the time to fool around. Let me go already.”

Even though I tried to free myself from the restraints, he didn’t budge. When I looked up at Tatsumi, he had an oddly calm expression and a faint smile on his face.

“No, this isn’t the time to fool around. But well, if more than one gate were to appear, I might consider releasing you.”

If more than one were to appear?

“What are you saying? I don’t understand.”

“Hahaha. You’re quite smart academically, but surprisingly lacking in common sense. It’s a simple calculation. When there were eight of us, there were four gates. When there were four of us, there were two gates. So, if there are two of us, how many gates do you think will appear?”

I see.

Now that it’s pointed out, the pattern becomes clear. Previously, four gates appeared when there were eight people, and two gates appeared when there were four people. Focusing solely on the number of gates, the new gates appearing are indeed reduced by half each time.

Currently, only two people are here: myself and Tatsumi. If there is a pattern where the number of gates halves each time they appear, then there should be only one gate that appears next. It’s frustrating, but I didn’t see that coming. However, even with that realization…

“If there’s only one gate, why not both of us go through it together?”

“What’s this? I thought you were oddly calm, Sakura. Didn’t you realize the most crucial point?”

What?

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Didn’t you find it strange? Apart from the simpletons like Yanagi and Osakabe, even the girls who usually hesitate and judge the situation before acting, eagerly leaped into those suspicious gates as if it was a competition. Why do you think that is?”

“…Because they were in a hurry?”

“Correct. So, why were they in a hurry?”

“Because, well, it’s such a strange and unusual situation…”

“Unfortunately, you’re way off. It’s the voice that flows through our minds. It said that for each Reincarnation Gate, only one person can use it.”

“Only one person?”

“That’s right. Those gates are for only for one person. You can’t have two people use them at the same time.”

The moment I understood Tatsumi’s words, the blood drained from my face.

Only one person can go through the gate. If the next gate is indeed just one, and if the rule of halving holds true, there’s no guarantee that more gates will appear.

If you can’t pass through the next gate… will you be left behind in this place?

“Hey, let go of me!”

“Don’t blame me. We’re best friends, right?”

“Would a friend do this kind of thing? Repaying kindness with betrayal.”

“Kindness, huh? Well, you did help me out quite a bit. Thanks to your kindness and friendship, my life was a lot easier.”

“Well, if that’s the case, don’t do this.”

Is this the result of all the times I’ve been considerate and helped out? Seriously, is this what it comes down to? ‘Oh, life was so easy thanks to your kindness.’ What a load of crap.

“Hey, a gate has appeared. Just as expected. Tough luck. There’s only one gate after all, so I’ll be going ahead. Hopefully, I’ll see you in the other world!’

“Cut it out! Stop it!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything harsh. I’m just going to ensure that I can enter that gate. Don’t hold a grudge. That gate was originally meant for me, after all.”

Damn it! He really started choking me. What do you mean “my gate”? You’re spouting nonsense. As my vision darkens, a white gate gleams like a blurry moon in the night sky.

What about that gate? I lost consciousness before I could see its true nature.