Akari clenches her fist. She decides she will no longer be passive. She will not let Jiro drift away out of pity for Shiori. Her goal is clear: by the time the next practical exam scores are posted, she wants Jiro to say "I love you" to her first.

: The series is approaching its conclusion as the "Marriage Practical" has officially ended, and the narrative is moving toward graduation and the final resolution of Jiro and Akari's relationship. Summary of Last Chapter (79)

A sudden panel transition takes us back three months earlier, to a rainy night in Tokyo when Mika receives a call from , her former coworker who had left the company under mysterious circumstances. The call is brief, but the tone is urgent: “Mika, I need to talk. It’s about the project we left unfinished.”