"Why are you telling him all this...?" she asks Hirata. "Because this isn't the usual Karuizawsan. You're not the type to try and fight violence with violence, Karuizawsan" Hirata replies to her. "But she's being bullied right? If you really are her boyfriend, then you have an obligation to save her" I tell Hirata. "Yes, I know that's the case. But I don't believe in that eye-for-an-eye talk. You know don't you?" Hirata replies to me.
The side of these two I don't yet know of, I felt different convictions intermingling there. "Let's think about it together then, how to get along with Manabe-san and her group!" Hirata declares. "That's impossible. I was onesidedly attacked by them. Please understand..." Karuizawa pleads with Hirata. "Onesided? Wasn't it because you bullied Morofuji-san first, Karuizawsan?" Hirata asks Karuizawa accusingly. By Morofuji, I'm sure Hirata meant the girl named Rika. He's also done his research on them I suppose, it's amazing in a way.
"But that's...I had no other choice...s.h.i.+noharsan and the others were watching me" Karuizawa said. "So basically because s.h.i.+nohara was there, you had no other choice, is that what you mean?" I asked. "You shut your mouth!". Once I voiced my question, Karuizawa immediately shouted at me to keep quiet. The shout echoed down through the corridor.
"I beg you, please save me...Hiratkun you'll protect me right?" Karuizawa begged Hirata. "Of course I intend to protect you, but I won't do anything to Manabe-san and the others as well. I'll try and find a way for you to talk with each other and get along together" Hirata told her. "I'm telling you that's impossible! If things were that easy I wouldn't even ask you to help me in the first place" Karuizawa said. It seems a bit extreme, but I can understand Karuizawa's feelings. The position she's in right now is far more dangerous than expected. I wouldn't be surprised if this escalated into a serious incidence of violence. The school has certain rules. Smoking for underaged students is one example, and of course, that is a rule that is present in any high school throughout the country. However, there are still students who manage to sneak in a smoke or two in secret.
In other words, there are things that rules cannot prevent all the time. Bullying is one of them. Hirata seemed to be worried about Karuizawa, but at the same time, he was also worried about Manabe. It seems Hirata is intent on resolving this by pacifying both sides peacefully.
In other words, Hirata did not seem to be thinking of her as a lover but just as another normal friend. "It does't matter what the reason is, I cannot do what you expect me to do. For me, Karuizawsan is indeed a precious cla.s.smate. If there's something troubling you I'll protect you. But whatever the reason, I won't hurt someone else either. Even if it's a student of Cla.s.s C" Hirata declared.
"You liar! You told me you'd protect me!" Karuizawa shouted at Hirata. "Liar? I told you from the start I would take this stance" Hirata replied to her. Hirata said those things that Cla.s.s D students would find hard to believe suddenly. "I told you from the start, didn't I? That we are not boyfriend and girlfriend. Not for real. I don't mind pretending to date you, but I won't help you like this and you won't be able to depend on me" Hirata declared to her. It seems the relations.h.i.+p n.o.body doubted at all between these two, was actually faked all along.
"...why are you telling me this now?" Karuizawa asked. Surely this is a complaint against that declaration I heard just now. And now I understand what Hirata's goal is, he used Karuizawa just now to reveal information as a tribute to Horikita. Something like that.
"I thought to save you, a new approach was required" Hirata said. It's not like he's completely abandoned Karuizawa, he is really trying to save her in his own way. He then approached Karuizawa, who seemed to have lost her composure, but he did not attempt to touch her fragile and delicate shoulder of hers. "Are you saying...I need to use violence myself?" Karuizawa asked.
"I didn't say that. I will do my best to save you. In the morning, I intend to have a chat with Manabe-san and the others. To ask her to stop bothering Karuizawsan. You might not like it, but I intend to tell them you wanted to apologize to them" Hirata said. "That's not what I want!" Karuizawa replied. Indeed, it seemed Karuizawa was asking Hirata to retaliate against Manabe and the others for bullying her. Taking that into consideration, this seems to be Karuizawa's real essence. Her real personality. More than anything, it seems Karuizawa has something she fears the most.
"I see. If that's the case then there's nothing I can do for you. Sorry about that" Hirata coolly told her that. Even in a situation like this, he is capable of keeping his cool. But even while maintaining his cool, Hirata gave Karuizawa, who could not do anything but depend on him, the death sentence. "Ayanokouji-kun, if you have any ideas please tell us" Hirata then asked me. He seemed to be trying to push this role onto me.
"No need! If you're not going to listen to my request, then I don't need someone like you!" Karuizawa shouted that while kicking a can of juice from the vending machine down the corridor. The juice inside was scattered all over the floor and the sound of the can resounded through the corridor. "Our relations.h.i.+p ends here today. It's over!" Karuizawa declared that towards Hirata. Rather than the truth of their relations.h.i.+p being revealed, Hirata seemed annoyed at himself for being unable to help her. Despite Karuizawa running away, Hirata did not show any signs of chasing after her. That means he's already decided she's not the one he needs to care about right now.
"Ayanokouji-kun, there are certain things that I cannot do. That is why you're here right now, I'd like you to understand that" Hirata tells me. I was trying to extract information about Karuizawa using Hirata, but it seems Hirata used the opportunity to thrust the role of saving Karuizawa from her troubles onto me instead. "You seem to want to be more than a bridge that connects everyone, that's quite selfish of you. You're everyone's ally right?" I asked Hirata. "Yes. I'm on Karuizawsan's side and I'm also on Ayanokouji-kun's side. But depending on who I'm talking to, I also end up changing my att.i.tude. You're far more capable than what everyone else think" Hirata told me.
"You're praising me too much" I replied. "Really, I'm quite confident in reading the feelings of other people. That's why I can tell" Hirata continues. I'd like to inquire further about that confidence of his, but I suppose talking about the solution to the problem comes first. "Firstly, I'd once again like to ask about your relations.h.i.+p with Karuizawa. It looks like your relations.h.i.+p with her is just a front, and not real" I asked him. "That turn of phrase, it seems Ayanokouji-kun already suspected this?" he asks me.
"It's been almost four months since you started going out with Karuizawa. But I haven't seen any signs of your relations.h.i.+p having progressed since then. Of course, you could consider the option that you are maintaining a pure and platonic relations.h.i.+p with her. But you've always been keeping your distance from her, and you're still calling each other by your last names" I said.
Even if their physical relations.h.i.+p has not progressed, if they had grown closer emotionally, naturally they would have changed their way of calling each other as well. But for better or for worse, Hirata and Karuizawa's relations.h.i.+p had shown no such signs of progress. In a relations.h.i.+p between a man and a woman, not showing any signs of progress or change is the strange thing. "That's right. We weren't really dating. We only went out with each other because we felt it was necessary. Do you understand the contradiction here?" Hirata asks me.
Despite not really dating each other, it was still necessary to do so. That means their objectives had aligned. And that would mean there is merit from going out with each other? Then who is the one requesting this and who is the one acquiescing to that request? That's obvious. Karuizawa was the one who asked Hirata to fake their relations.h.i.+p and Hirata simply answered her request. Knowing that, her actions that can be explained by this fact had increased.
"The rumors started roughly three weeks after the start of semester, and from that point onwards Karuizawa's popularity soared". This phenomenon can be observed in our group as well. By attaching herself to Machida, Karuizawa was able to a.s.sert herself more aggressively than before and her influence in the group also grew proportionately. In other words, that was how Karuizawa became the mistletoe for Hirata.
"So you pretended to be Karuizawa's boyfriend to help raise her status" I asked for the truth and Hirata simply smiled at me. I thought this is the full truth---for a moment but I realized the pieces did not fit in yet. Perhaps she used Hirata and Machida to stand at the top of the caste system of the school? No, that alone still doesn't explain the situation. If she wanted to dominate the cla.s.s all she needed was to ask Hirata to go out with her and Hirata would probably agree. Her request was now was too tall an order. Karuizawa's daily att.i.tude is a very strong one, and she sometimes plays the part of the aggressor in a bullying situation too. But why accept that without questioning her?
And...did Karuizawa really use Hirata and the others to increase her status in the cla.s.s. That's also a questionable matter. In this case, you can't say that she used Machida only to increase her influence in the group. If anything, she showed no interest in the group's proceedings and remained silent most of the time. If so, there was no need to use Machida from the start.
So what exactly---was the trigger that caused her to approach Machida?
Now I finally feel like I understand the girl named Karuizawa Kei. 'To protect herself' huh?. By process of elimination the only answer that's left is the truth. There's no mistaking it. "You understand now don't you? To be honest when I heard this answer from you, I had gooseb.u.mps" Hirata said. "I just heard it from Horikita that's all, that Karuizawa has her own reasons for using Hirata and the others" I replied.
I tried to deceive him that way, but Hirata's not such a simple man that he would fall for something like this. "Ayanokouji-kun if I had to tell you honestly...it might sound rude but I find you creepy. Like an ominous existence. If I've offended you I apologize" Hirata tells me. "Ominous? Why do you think that?" I asked. "I've been looking at you ever since the school year started. But Ayanokouji-kun then and the Ayanokouji-kun now are like different people. The presence you emit, and the words you use. Almost like you're a different person than usual" Hirata tells me.
Hirata has the ability to discern the actions and behaviours of the people around him and never overlook that. It couldn't be helped that he would notice the difference in me. "I already told you right? It's only thanks to Horikita's advice. I told Horikita everything about my group. And I just obey the orders she gives me that's all. The incident on the island test was the same too. Horikita made the right judgments and guided Cla.s.s D to victory. And the cla.s.s gained a lot of points as a direct result. In other words there's a merit in doing this for me too. She's terribly bad at communication as you know, so I just relay what you said to her and receive orders from her" I told Hirata.
I spend a lot of time with Horikita, and Hirata who knows me this well surely won't doubt those words I said. "If it's Horikitsan, she must have surely judged that saving Karuizawsan would lead to the cla.s.s gaining an advantage" he said. "Yes". "But I do think you're still amazing, Ayanokouji-kun. You're different from Ike-kun or Yamauchi-kun" Hirata admits to me. "I'm inferior to the both of them" I replied. "Even if you're only following Horikitsan's orders, it's still you who's talking to me right now. It's not like the conversation will include only the details of her order. To adapt to the flow of the conversation takes clear logic. It's not something you can simply think up overnight" Hirata said in response.
"...". It seems Hirata's better than I expected. Despite his desire to save her too, he is still able to maintain his normal high abilities. "It's something you said but, the reason I accepted Karuizawsan's request to be her boyfriend was to help her 'protect herself'. That's what she requested. That she wants me to save her. It might be hard for you to believe but, throughout her elementary and middle school years, for 9 whole years. She received a horrifying amount of bullying" Hirata tells me.
"I don't doubt you, but this story is real isn't it?" I asked to confirm.
It seems Karuizawa's hyperventilation earlier in the day was triggered by her past. Since I myself saw it, I cannot help but believe the trauma of her past.
"Of course I only met Karuizawsan after she entered this school, but I do understand. I know the look and smell and presence of a person who's been a victim of bullying. That's why I agreed to go out with her. By using her position as my girlfriend, Karuizawsan would be able to escape her past of being bullied. I think right now, the att.i.tude she has isn't the real Karuizawsan. She's desperately trying to act tough isn't she?" Hirata said to me.
I think normally, she's not able to control her feelings that well. Victims of bullying have personalities like a sakura flower usually. Plain, obedient and weak. Also on the flip side, people with a strong personality like Karuizawa are also p.r.o.ne to being bullied. But in short, Karuizawa's current personality is a fake. That's why she needs someone like Hirata or Machida at her back. Someone who can rule the field for her. In doing so, she was able to regain her influence that way. "I can understand that now more or less, but wait, what are the benefits of doing this for you?" I asked Hirata.
This may be a common saying, but love is a part of youth for students. Hirata is very popular amongst the girls. Then by pretending to date Karuizawa, he would be giving up on real love. "Benefit? That would be Karuizawsan living her high school life without being bullied. That's all" Hirata replied to me. He just said that. It's not hypocrisy nor love, and not for himself as well. "Won't you believe me? If that's my only reason" he asks. "It's not that I distrust you, but there's a deeper meaning behind that isn't there?" I asked him in return.
Hirata will not hesitate if it's to save a friend, but he also recognizes Manabe and the others as friends. The way he cares about others can almost be described as a disease.
Since he's told me this much about it, no doubt Hirata also feels it necessary to tell me about this. He buys some canned drinks from the vending machine and tosses me one. I gratefully accepted it. "Until my second year of middle school, if I have to honestly say I was an average guy who didn't stand out much" he tells me. "Hirata was...I can't really imagine that" I replied. The image was too different from the man who always showed excellent leaders.h.i.+p.
"I didn't stand out too much, but I also wasn't invisible. My friend was also like that. I was really normal. I had a friend I got along with really well ever since I was a kid named Sugimurkun. A boy. For six years in elementary school we were together in the same cla.s.s. And because we were neighbors as well we always went to and back from school together" Hirata said with a voice filled with nostalgia. And so Hirata recalls his past.
"When we entered middle school, for the first time, we were separated into different cla.s.ses. But even so, at first we still went to school and back home together. But the days we did that started declining gradually and I began playing with boys from my new cla.s.s. It's a normal story you could've heard anywhere" he continued. It's normal that in a new environment, one would inevitably make new friends. There was nothing unusual in that itself.
"But you see...even though I was busy playing with my friends. In the back, Sugimurkun was actually being bullied" Hirata continued to say while strongly gripping his can of juice. Even an outsider would know what's happening.
"Sugimurkun sent me an SOS many, many times. Many times he showed up with his face injured and injury marks all over him. But I instead prioritized playing with my new friends and never took him seriously. Sugimurkun, who originally had a headstrong personality, always was quick to pick a fight so I never deeply thought about his situation. But when we both became 2nd year students, we reunited with each other. And by that time, Sugimurkun's had become heartbroken. His bright, cheerful image was no longer there and marks left by punches and kicks only remained. He was not even allowed to go to the toilet and forced to leak in the middle of cla.s.s. That sort of thing became routine..." Hirata tells me.
"So you saw it and...".
"Yeah. I think you understand too. But I didn't do anything. I couldn't do anything. I was too afraid that I would become the new target. I was afraid that my enjoyable life then would be destroyed...and towards Sugimurkun who'd always been together with me, I continued to pretend to not see him. I believed that one day the bullies would get bored of him. That one day Sugimurkun will stop coming to school and the bullying would stop. Or that somebody else would step in and save him. I just kept on thinking self-serving things like that" he continued.
"And that Sugimura person...what happened to him in the end?" I asked Hirata.
"Even now the memory of that day is burned into my head. After morning soccer practice, I returned to my cla.s.sroom. And there, I saw Sugimurkun and decided to wait until going in. Honestly, at the time, I felt uncomfortable. Even though he was a friend I played together with since I was a child, at the time he almost felt like a stranger to me. I could not help but think cruel thoughts like I would be bullied along with him. Perhaps Sugimurkun also saw my ugly heart, but he didn't say anything. But almost like a plea for help...that day in the middle of cla.s.s, he jumped out the window" Hirata tells me.
"Jumped out? Is he dead?" I asked.
"It seems he was declared brain dead. But even now, his parents are still waiting for Sugimurkun's recovery and believe in it. But whether he's still alive or dead now, I don't know. The events of that day were still so surreal, I still wonder if it was merely a dream or a hallucination. It was that unbelievable. Because the moment Sugimurkun jumped, I became acutely aware. By treasuring myself, I pushed my precious friend to his death" he said. And so that was the birth of the man named Hirata Yousuke.
"I don't think this will result in Sugimurkun's salvation, but, at the very least, I want to repent. And to do that, I thought the only way was to save someone else like him" Hirata continued.
"It's not like I don't know how you feel but, the world isn't that simple is it? Even right now, someone somewhere is getting bullied. And like that Sugimura you talked about, they're trying to take their own lives. You cannot stop those people can you?" I told Hirata. "Of course I understand that. I'm not a hero of justice. But, I'd like to save the people in front of me. I have to save them. That is the responsibility of the me who bears the sin" Hirata said.
"Then how will you decide on this case? You want to save both Karuizawa and Manabe. But that is an impossible task" I told him. "I know it's a contradictory task, that's why you're here right now" he said. I see, it seems he himself notices his own abnormality. In any case, it seems he cannot help but want to save people he knows. "I never expected the day would come that I'd tell this story to someone else. n.o.body knows about this, that is part of why I chose this school" he continued. Then after finis.h.i.+ng the juice, he threw it into the trashbin. "Can I entrust this to Horikitsan?" he asks at last.
"If you can promise not to talk halfway, I'm sure Horikita will do something about this" I replied to him. "Then I will choose to believe in the two of you. Because that is also my ideal" Hirata told me.
It seems for now Hirata won't be partic.i.p.ating in the matter of Karuizawa. And most likely from now on, whenever Hirata is in trouble, he'll probably rely on me. But that would also mean I have succeeded in securing Hirata's cooperation. That would be a major power I've gained on my side. It's natural that he got his own reward too.
"Hirata. Since you have a large social network I'd like to ask you for a favour. Can you hear me out?" I asked. And with that said, I handed Hirata a piece of paper. And after reading it, Hirata accepted my request without so much as making an unpleasant face.
"And also Ayanokouji-kun. Ever since the exam began, there is still one thing I've been hiding from you. I know who's the last "target" amongst the Cla.s.s D students..." he said.
5
On the day of the exam's interval, I chose to take a certain course of action but I was unexpectedly called by Sakura and so I instead decided to hear her out.
"It seems the (Cow) group's exam ended" I said.
"Yeah..."
I checked the mail on my phone that was sent to Sakura too along with all the other students by the school side. It simply said
"The test for the (Cow) group has ended. Members of the (Cow) group are no longer required to partic.i.p.ate in the exam. Please make sure to not disturb the other students".
It was the same sort of text sent after the (Monkey) group's exam ended. Sakura looked at me with uneasy eyes. "Have I...done something wrong?" she asks.
"No that's not it. It just means that someone in the (Cow) group reported the "target" to the school" I told her. Leaving aside the case that occurred thanks to Kouenji's rampage, perhaps betrayal is becoming more prevalent in this exam.
Either it was 'betrayal with certainty' or 'betrayal from being in a rush'.
"By the way, Sakura, were you the "target" of your group or was it someone else?" I asked her. When I asked her, Sakura shook her head from side to side to deny it. "N-no. I'm not the "target". But, I'm not sure about Sudo-kun and the others..." she replied.
For Sakura, who'd been a part of the (Cow) group for only two days, it seems like she has no idea what to make of the situation.
"Don't overthink it, even I still don't know's the "target" of my group after all" I said to her.
"Yeah...thank you Ayanokouji-kun. I'm happy you told me that".
"How was the situation with Cla.s.s A? From the rumors it seems like they didn't partic.i.p.ate in the discussions" I asked her.
"That's...yeah. Just like the others have been saying. They didn't talk at all" she replied to me.
It seems Katsuragi's been thoroughly carrying out his strategy in all the groups. That would mean the party that caused this event would have to be Cla.s.s C. But in that case a question would arise. Ryuuen had foregone the rules set by the school. But since the school does not actively announce the details of the exam it is impossible to ascertain whether I'm correct or not at the moment. That is precisely why it's difficult to figure out rule behind this exam.
If I misread it, I would just end up self-destructing and receiving ma.s.sive damage that way.
Other than the (Cow) group, the fact that the other groups have not yet ended their exams must mean that even Ryuuen has not figured out the answer yet too.
After the end of a mysterious exam like this, no doubt many students are also feeling lost.
"If there's anything else, feel free to consult me anytime" I told Sakura.
"Thank you, Ayanokouji-kun. See you"
Having bid farewell to Sakura who left while swinging her little hands cutely from side to side, I now headed down towards the bas.e.m.e.nt. Then I descended into the lower levels of the s.h.i.+p where people don't usually go. Although the area was prohibited for students, it was still unlocked to allow the crew access to it. The area where the switchboard room is located, although easy to access, is not a popular spot for people to be in at all.
Although if one shouts with a loud voice, echoes will form, since this place is practically automated no one will normally come to such a place.
There are only two entrances and exits to this place including the regular one. The other one is a door that leads to the emergency staircase and even the crew usually do not use it. From the dust that had acc.u.mulated on that door I could tell that much. That means I can monitor the situation just by keeping an eye on the one access that's normally used.
Furthermore, more conveniently for me it seems that phones do not have reception down here. Occasionally there is sometimes reception down here but most of the time it is extremely difficult to send a mail or chat from down here much less make a call. "All the pieces are in place" I murmured.
All that's left is to execute the plan step by step so I won't make a mistake.
First I'll have to contact Hirata, then have him call Karuizawa to this place. To make sure there's enough time for everything, I'd have to call Karuizawa here at least an hour early. For that I ascended back up to the upper floors to make the call.
I'm sure she'll be cautious after the events of last night's conversation, but if Hirata calls her out again to speak alone with her Karuizawa will surely respond to that. She did say she would break up with Hirata, but if she really does break up with him, she's the only one who will suffer from that. As long as Manabe and her group are targeting her, for Karuizawa, the existence of Hirata is necessary for her to continue her life in school.
"I've already asked Karuizawsan to be there at 4PM. I'll send you Manabe-san's address to you now". I received such a mail from Hirata. As expected, he's listened to my request excellently and has succeeded in calling her out here. As a bonus, Hirata even knew the contact address of Manabe from another cla.s.s. If he didn't, I would have had to run the risk of asking Kus.h.i.+da so it saves me the trouble.
"But I cannot help you any more than this. Don't make Karuizawsan sad please" Hirata added that as a postscript in the mail.
So he doesn't want her to be sad, huh? If he knew what I'm really about to do to Karuizawa, I'm sure Hirata would be furious with me. But as long as I don't run into a problem now that's fine. As such, even if she breaks here now, as long as he doesn't notice after the event there would be no problem. To use an extreme example even if you commit murder, as long as there's insufficient evidence, you're a free man.
I then quickly skip through the text I wrote earlier and sent it. The contents were "Hey, do you have a moment?". A brief sentence just like that.
As a general rule, the chat application I'm using only allows one account per phone. But there is a slight loophole in that rule, by creating a new major SNS account you can create another account for yourself. Of course, normally there are no students who divide themselves between a main and a sub account. Because there's not much merit in switching between these accounts. But by doing so, I can contact a third party without having my own ident.i.ty be revealed as well.
I have to proceed delicately from here on. As long as I don't make a mistake in the process it should go perfectly.
Despite the message having come from an anonymous sender, Manabe quickly replied to it. "Who are you?". Manabe, naturally not knowing the sender, replied with that question. "Is ther anyone around you right now?" I replied. "No. I'm alone...who are you?" she asked again.
"Don't show this chat to anyone. This is for your sake" I told her. "Like I said, who are you?" she asked.
"I'm the same as you. We hate the same person. Let's just leave it at that" I told Manabe. Although the 'read' sign appeared immediately, Manabe took her time to reply. Perhaps she still doesn't understand the implication of that sentence. "Have you mistaken me for someone?" she finally replies. "I'm not making a mistake, Manabe-san. I'm contacting you to inform you about the Karuizawsan you hate so much. I thought I could consult you on the situation, Manabe-san" I mailed that to her.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Please stop sending me messages" she quickly replied. It seems she's on guard, not knowing whether I'm an enemy or not. A natural reaction. I need to resolve this misunderstanding firstly.
"The truth is, as her fellow cla.s.smate, I've been harboring a grudge against Karuizawsan for a while now. That's why I thought we could cooperate and have our revenge on her. Since I'm her cla.s.smate it's hard for me to exact my vengeance on Karuizawsan directly, but that's why I would like to cooperate with you" I said to Manabe.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm going to ignore you then" she replied.
Even though she was wary of me, the fact that she still hasn't cut off contact with me is a testament to how much she hates Karuizawa it seems. It surely stems from her desire to avenge her friend Rika and her own hate towards Karuizawa. I could easily deduce that from the fact that Manabe used force to bring Karuizawa into the emergency staircase.
"Rikchan is still scared of Karuizawsan. Don't you want to help her as a friend? Your face has revenge written all over it you know? But the truth is, you can't do it even if you want to. Since after yesterday's events, Karuizawsan is on her guard. I'm sure she won't leave Hiratkun or Machidkun's side for a while. And she'll always be together with her female friends so she won't be alone either" I told Manabe.
"I don't need your help. I just need to bring Rika into contact with Karuizawsan. The truth will be out then" she said.
"I wonder if it'll be that easy. I don't think she would easily admit to her wrongdoing. On the contrary, it would just trouble Rikchan. If Karuizawsan uses heartless words she'll only just end up wounding Rikchan further. No, that's not all. If she harbors a grudge, she might even bully Rikchan further" I replied to Manabe.
"...then what should I do? Are you saying ther's a way?" she asks. Manabe's desire to settle this with the next confrontation becomes clear. "There is. You and me. We can cooperate to make sure we can exact our revenge on her in a secure location" I told her. "And the guarantee? It looks like you're just planning on selling me out to the school. This smells like a sub account anyways" Manabe replied to me.
"If I am indeed selling you out, please feel free to show this chat log to the teachers, Manabe-san. This account has been registered with the school's phone. In other words, I'm risking my ident.i.ty to take revenge on Karuizawsan. That way, I'm the one bearing the most responsibility. Isn't that right?" I told her.
I'm sure Manabe also understands this well. Even if this is a sub account, once you a.n.a.lyze it thoroughly, the ident.i.ty of the person behind it can be revealed. If it comes to that, I, as the one who masterminded this plan for revenge, would bear the most responsibility and undoubtedly be punished harshly. "Then if I show this chat to the school now what would you do, it's over for you" Manabe asks me.
"Because I believe Manabe-san is not the type of person to do that. I must trust in order to be trusted after all" I told her. "I understand what you're trying to say, more or less. I'll hear you out at least" she finally said.
After that I repeat a similar story to her multiple times over. About how much I hated Karuizawa. About how I wanted revenge on her yet couldn't as someone in a weaker position. And about how I overheard how Manabe and her friends were quarreling with Karuizawa. I thoroughly made sure to play the victim.
"Once we return to land, contact with Karuizawa would surely become difficult. Since the school dorms are littered with surveillance cameras, even if you tried to bring her into a private area, there would be eyes watching you. This place, a battlefield with no escape, would be the perfect place for you." I told Manabe. This would make sure Manabe and the others realize this place, only on this s.h.i.+p, can they get their revenge. "So...what are you proposing you can do?" she finally asks me.
Manabe, who seems to have finally caught up with my plan, finally starts asking questions.
"I can call Karuizawsan. After that, you can take your time talking with her and settling the problem" I told Manabe.
And with that, through the chat, I sent her a map of the lower levels of the s.h.i.+p.
"Since phones don't get reception down there. She can't call for help either. And no one normally goes down there anyways" I said. "I see...so you can call Karuizawsan down there as a cla.s.smate?" Manabe asks. "I would like you to decide now whether to cooperate with my plan or not. After I call her, you can decide whether or not you'd like to have your revenge. There would be no problems that way, no?" I asked her.
After that, for the longest time, despite the 'read' sign having appeared. No reply came from Manabe. Then. Once the reply came, I became sure I would succeed. IF my plan to convince her via chat failed, I had another plan prepared where I would have to appear before Manabe myself via direct contact. Of course that was dangerous. Since I had taken several pictures of her threatening Karuizawa in the emergency staircase, I could have blackmailed her into following my plan. But the risk is also ma.s.sive, since I would like to avoid my existence standing out.
"Now. Let me see what you can do, Manabe".
6
At times, a deep resounding noise echoes on the dark floor. Perhaps that happens whenever the s.h.i.+p changes course, or perhaps it's because the s.h.i.+p had hit something. But despite that, in a place where only the sound of machines can be heard, the girl came alone. "What is this? I can't get through on the phone" she mutters.
There's still ten minutes left before the promised time. Perhaps she came early so she can calm herself down before meeting Hirata.
After realizing that the phone would be useless, Karuizawa pocketed it again with a bored expression and leaned against the wall.
And with time, what conclusion did she draw from this? But whatever it is, unfortunately, Hirata would never hear it. As the time reached 4PM, the only door that's used on the floor opened with a loud thud. The ones who appeared were the three girl group of Cla.s.s C. The girls led by Manabe. And one more. A girl whose aura resembled Sakura's. Probably the girl called Rika.
It's all right. Manabe called out as she set foot into the room. And soon, she found the figure of Karuizawa. Naturally, Karuizawa had also noticed them. "W-w-why are you here?" Karuizawa trembled at the unexpected appearance of these people. But in a narrow s.p.a.ce with only no escape route, escaping is also difficult. "I just saw you entering this place. Yeah, this is a good time so I want to introduce you. This girl is Rika. Karuizawsan, do you remember her?" Manabe asks.
She then pulls Rika, who was hiding behind her, to the front. And had the two of them come face-to-face. Karuizawa averted her gaze and pretended not to know, but from her behaviour, it's obvious she does remember her. "Hey Rika, the one who pushed you before. It's Karuizawsan, right?" Manabe asks Rika. "Yes...it's this person" she replied. Having heard the answer, Manabe smiled a happy smile from the bottom of her heart. On the other hand, Karuizawa, having realized the danger of the situation, became anxious and confused. All I need to do now is to watch the miserable events that would soon unfold here.
Even if Karuizawa encounters a more severe torment than expected here, I have absolutely no intention of saving her halfway here.
"Apologize to Rika".
"Huh? Who would apologize? I've done nothing wrong" Karuizawa retorted.
"To act tough even in this situation, that's pretty impressive. But I think I more or less understand" Manabe replied to her.
"...what do you understand?".
"That odd and terrified att.i.tude. Karuizawsan, you were a victim of bullying weren't you?" Manabe asks her.
"....".
The fact that she was so desperately trying to hide was figured out by a person she did not even know well.
"I'm spot on, aren't I? I knew it, I had that sort of feeling about you. From the start" Manabe continued.
"T-that's not true..."
It was a terrible denial, but even for a good actor, they would not be able to convince her. It's not like Manabe had a good eye for observing such things. But because I had already told Manabe all about it beforehand. That Karuizawa had been bullied horribly since childhood. That she carried a severe trauma from it. It's pointless to deny it to someone who already knows the truth.
"If you kneel and beg now, I might forgive you. That's what you're good at right? Kneeling" Manabe tells Karuizawa.
"I-I w-won't do it. Besides, I've never done it before" Karuizawa replies.
She tried to pa.s.s by Manabe as if to escape, but Manabe simply grabbed her long hair and pushed her back towards the wall, slamming her into it.
Having been put at ease by a place for revenge having been prepared for her, controlling Manabe would surely no longer work. What we agreed on in our chat was for her to simply 'meet' with Karuizawa.
She should have been hesitant to use violence as a means for revenge. But upon meeting face-to-face, all the stress she must have been holding up inside her, along with the expectation of her friends around her to get back at Karuizawa, it made sure Manabe would not be satisfied unless she made Karuizawa suffer.
That is precisely what I had been aiming for.
There was an experiment in the 1960s known as the Milgram experiment. Also known as the Eichmann experiment, it involved conducting tests involving a 'teacher' role and a 'student' role in isolated facilities. The 'teacher's role is to administer a low electric shock to the subject to the point that fear and pain of the shock would be remembered by them. Then, the person a.s.signed the 'student' role would be separated from the 'teacher' via a gla.s.s with a device that allows the shock to flow to the 'student' being installed. The switch would then be entrusted to the subject a.s.signed the 'teacher' role. This completes the preparations for the experiment.
Then the experimenter gives the 'student' a series of questions to answer to the 'teacher'. For every time the 'student' answers wrong, the 'teacher' is to continue administering the electric shocks. And with each mistake, to raise the voltage of the shocks as well. Finally, the switch can go up to 450 volts which is powerful enough to be fatal to humans. On the flip side, the weakest was 45 volts and amounted only to a mild itching. However, contrary to the 'teacher's knowledge, the device was only a fake and the 'students' were made to act out in pain through screaming that would be heard on the other side.
Even if the current flows to the subject there would not be much reaction initially, although each time the voltage is increased, the pain would increase from screaming, to moaning and finally silence. Subjects who were a.s.signed the 'teacher' role were not threatened by this and continued to raise the voltage despite understanding the other party was suffering in pain. Nearly 66% of the subjects raised the voltage to the point where human beings would have been killed. The experiment clearly shows that 'depending on the circ.u.mstances, any person is capable of showing cruelty'.
"It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! Let go of me!". Karuizawa screams in pain from having her hair pulled, but Manabe only laughs comfortably. Right now, the closed environment is this lower level of the s.h.i.+p. The 'teacher' role has been a.s.signed to Manabe and the 'student' role to Karuizawa as per the experiment. I've prepared a stage as similar to that of the Milgram experiment as I could. Normally, even with these conditions, it would be insufficient but, given the history between the two of them the results of the experiment should still hold true here.
The suffering and pain of Karuizawa, who had been acting tough only a while ago, would feel very good to them right now.
"Haah".
"Uwa~ s.h.i.+ho, you're using your knee to kick her too much you know"
Manabe continues to use her knee to attack the area around Karuizawa's stomach. Naturally, Manabe, who's not used to kicking like this, has slow and sluggish movements and her kicks should not hurt that much. But for Manabe, the pain in Karuizawa's voice is the greatest reward.
It seemed she's having the time of her life and whispered to Rika, who had been taking her distance from them until now.
"Come Rika, you should try it too".
"I-I'm fine...".
"We're doing this for you, you know? It's ok, no one's looking anyways".
Rika seemed to be rejecting taking revenge directly, but this closed environment won't let her. 'You're also my friend aren't you?'. If something like that were to be uttered here, it would difficult for her to continue rejecting it. If that anger were to be directed at her, she would be the victim tomorrow. She can't deny that she might be met with the same eyes from Manabe later.
"Uuunn...I'll try doing it".
Pechi. With a dry and light sound like that, Rika slaps Karuizawa with a slap that would cause no pain.
"L-like this?".
"That won't do. You need to make it stronger, like this".
Pan! A high sound like that resounded as Manabe strikes Karuizawa's cheek like that. In response to that, Karuizawa suffered. And as instructed, Rika slowly repeats her slap.
Slowly, the force of her slaps increased steadily.
"S-s-s-stop...".
"Haha...this is fun...haha".
It seems rather than Manabe. She would have been a more appropriate person for the Milgram experiment. Karuizawa, who had been putting up a strong front until now, began to show pain.
"Please, forgive me already...".
She then begs for forgiveness. Seeing that figure must have been unbearably comfortable and pleasant I suspect.
Almost as if she had never been that afraid in the first place, Rika began to punch and kick strongly. Furthermore, the interesting thing is, places that they had initially not touched, such as beneath her uniform and beneath her hair, places that normally couldn't be seen. They started targeting those places as well.
Karuizawa, who had already collapsed in fear, simply shed tears while hiding her face. And as to not be noticed, I who had been observing the scene, moved without making a sound. Then quietly opened the door to the emergency staircase to not alert Manabe and the others. For a while longer, Manabe's distraction will surely continue. It doesn't matter whatever happens. Once something has been thoroughly destroyed, it saves you trouble while rebuilding it.
I quietly and slowly closed the door behind me as Karuizawa's screams were blocked by the door and soon could no longer be heard.
7
After I made sure Manabe's gang has left, I re-entered the room. Karuizawa probably heard the door opening, but she continued to squat on the floor and cried. Perhaps her overwhelming sense of fear had prevented her from noticing me.
So this is the true face of the egotistic and unyielding cla.s.s' girls' leader?
Thanks to the suggest I gave to Manabe, Karuizawa's uniform and exposed skins were more or less intact. If her uniform was ripped or someone cut her hair, it would be difficult to fool others. While bullying is common, this school's uniqueness makes bullying much harder to contain.
If one has to find something to be concerned of, it'd be that her face was a bit reddened due to the physical abuse; By tomorrow it should subside.
"Karuizawa"
I called her name. She lifted her head and finally noticed me.
"Wh, how...?!"
The man she never thought of seeing here, had seen the thing she does not want anyone to see. She started to panic.
But the experience was too traumatic for her to stop crying at once and pretend everything is fine.
I will eventually stop crying. I will eventually calm down. As long as he leaves before that- this small and futile wish of her will not come to pa.s.s. I silently waited.
After a while, Karuizawa sobbing gradually turned to quiet subdues.
if you put 2 people alone in this dark and isolated environment, they can't help but mentally feel closer. This works even if the 2 people normally hated each others. This is what humans do.
"Calmed down yet?"
"...More or less..."
Karuizawa used her sleeves to wiped her swollen eyes. She is still paralyzed and couldn't get back up. I reached out my hand to help her up, but she didn't take it.
"Where is Hirata..."
"Even though you two were supposed to meet here, but I believe the teacher called him. I was with him then, so I came in place of him."
This explanation should be sufficient in explaining how everything ended like this.
For now I don't need to let know know the truth. First item on the to do list is to make her let her guard down and fill the cracks in her psychic.
"So, why are you crying?"
"It's Manabe and her gang...I will not let them get away with this."
Looks like she is remembering what just happened to her. Karuizawa's body started to shook. Even if she doesn't want to show me this humiliating side of her, but the fear that tainted her body is not so easily removed.
"Do not tell anyone that I cried. If you do I will not forgive you."
Karuizawa's weakness is that she cannot report what happened to her to the school. If Manabe and co's physical a.s.sault on Karuizawa is known, then the school would want to find out the reason behind it. To protect her social status, she cannot let this happen. Which is why she is now planning to use Hirata to get back at the girls.
"You know, to get back at them, even someone like you can do it. They are just girls after all."
"What an unreasonable request."
"Are you afraid that they will payback? And you claim that you are a man..."
"It is apparent from Sudou's incident that a simple 'payback' is not going to solve anything. An eye for an eye would only escalate the conflict. It would also brings the school in and start an investigation. This is not what you wish, yes?"
"So you are telling to suck it up?"
I know how to answer her, but I choose to remain silent.
"Like, they would, no, for sure they would continue to do all kinds of things to me..."
Karuizawa's body continued to shake. True, there is no guarantee that Manabe would stop at this. There are more escape points once we return to the school campus, but Karuizawa can not continue to play hide and seek for the rest of her time here. At the same time, our cla.s.smates would start to notice Karuizawa's changes. As both sides close in, Karuizawa will have nowhere to run to.
Karuizawa realizes this and is now extremely anxious at stopping this. And this anxiety is what I have been aiming for all along.
"It would be a shame if things returned back to how they were before. I can empathize with you on this."
"Ah...? What did you say? What do you mean?"
Karuizawa is trying to see judge how much I know. I saw that Manabe's gang was bullying her, but I shouldn't know of her past. If I truly don't know, then her past is something that she must hide from me.
"What do I mean? Exactly what the sentence meant. Against all odds you escaped to this isolated ward, and even claimed the throne of the D cla.s.s leader. But the fact that you are a victim of bullying has not changed."
"Who, who did you say is a victim of bullying!"
"I mean you, Karuizawa!"
I grabbed Karuizawa's wrist and dragged her up.
"Wait, what are you doing!"
I pinned Karuizawa onto the wall and forced her face towards me.
"You were being tormented by Manabe, weren't you? They dragged your hair. They slapped your face. They kicked your b.r.e.a.s.t.s, you waist, and your stomach. And that's how you ended up on the ground, miserable, humiliated, pitifully sobbing."
"!?"
Even though she did not want to face to face with me, but she cannot get away.
As if we are getting suck into them, we stared at each other's eyes. There's no romance involved- what we shared here is darkness itself.
"Ever since you were little you were a victim. Grade school middle school the bullying was non-stop. Isn't this why you want to put a stop to it?"
"Did you hear...from Hirata?
"I don't know if I should tell you this or not. Hirata fancies himself as everyone's trusted companion. He will help you, and he will help others. Even if you did secure your place in D cla.s.s by pretending to be his girlfriend, he will not be much use to you in situations like this. In other word, as a parasite, he is not a good host."
Karuizawa is much smarter than her appearance. She understands that Hirata's neutral alignment, so initially she didn't do anything stupid in the Usagi group. Too bad for her, to show her social status, she picked a fight with Rika and by extension her gang. This leds to her download.
She couldn't possibly show this weak side of her to the rest of D cla.s.s girls.
"Why you...What gives you the right to pretentiously lecture me!"
"My right? You haven't realize it yet? You should know your place. Do you know who is in front of you? It's not Hirata. It's me. I know your checkered past. I know about the fake relations.h.i.+p between you and Hirata. I know that Manabe just physically a.s.sailed you and all you could do was haplessly cried. I know all these."
Everything Karuizawa Kei doesn't want others to know. I, an outsider, now knows all of them.
"In other word? If you become too much of a handful, I can at any time release these information."
How terrifying would it be? Karuizawa should know it very well.
"Don't, don't joke around! Who do you think you are!"
"Someone who knows the truth. That's all there is to it. Isn't this all you care about?"
As I closed in on her, Karuizawa turned her face away to avoid looking at me. I grabbed her cheeks and forced her face back towards me. She desperately wants to avoid my gaze, but a man's stength is too strong for her to resist. She closed her eyes in a furtile attempt to escape.
"What! What do you want from me! Are you aiming for my body?"
"Your body huh. That might not be a bad idea."
My finger tips slides across Karuizawa's thighs. The softness I feel is almost inhuman. The smoothness of her skins is very different from what I know and what I have.
"No!!"
She desperately tried to get away from me. I strengthened my hold on her cheeks and made her look into my eyes.
"Do not resist. If you do then I will release everything about to the school."
This line, like a curse, had cursed her body into a constrained stiffness.
Anger, horrified, fear, despair. Yes, how much emotion has Karuizawa been carrying?
She should notice that right now I am completely different from the persona I projected in everyday lives.
"Spread your legs."
I ordered. Karuizawa's tears began to dropped as she slowly spread them.
Even if she knows she will be violated here, she will wants to protect the place she has right now.
The pain from her bullying has taken control, and this is the proof.
I placed my hand on my belt and intentionally played with the metal buckle. Even then, Karuizawa did not run away.
She is trying desperately to accept this new reality. She looked at me with hollowed eyes, and muttered to herself.
I stand correct. Karuizawa Kei is a usable tool.
My goal is not her body. I am threatening her to see how far she would go to protect what she has.
It is a risky gamble for me to reveal my true nature. If Karuizawa runs away and reports on me, then our positions would be completely reverse. But this girl can not do it.
She is afraid of her past more than anything else. Afraid that she will lose the place she has. To protect this she is even willing to use her body. That is how much this place means to her.
"I will not bow down to you...I am not being bullied by you...You merely got hold of my weakness and used me! You a.s.shole just do whatever you want and violate me!"
Karuizawa howled, as if she is exposing her raw anger to the world.
"But it's fine. This is not the first time I've succ.u.mbed to forces..."
She mockingly laughed. Karuizawa turned and looked at me in the eyes.
"Ho ho...Hey, do you know? When a immutable truth is presented, how do humans react...?"
She shook and hugged herself. With a hollowed and dulled smile, she gave me a faraway stare.
"I give up. Yes, I was preyed on and devoured. I was reduced to mechanically reacting to stimulus. I couldn't even muster the courage to resist. I couldn't do anything else. All I can do is receive them."
As she finally comes to term with this decision, Karuizawa herself lifted her skirt, and placed her hands on her panties.
I grasped her wrists and hold her against the s.h.i.+p's wall.
"What did you received. Where were the pains that tormented you?"
"What...Of course everything I had. My shoes were tacks put in. My table drawer was filled with dead animal carca.s.ses. When I go to washrooms I get splashed on with dirty water. My uniforms were written with words like 'prost.i.tue'. My hair was dragged on. Punches and kicks were so numerous they were not worth mentioning. Any kind of bullying that you can imagine, I've experienced it. What I said was just a selected sampling. They were so relatively 'gentle' I could laugh. So why don't you start laughing? Laugh at me who was continuously spit on and bullied?"
After experiencing all this, it is impressive she can still muster up her courage and throw herself into battle again.
Her 'core' is strong, and this is why she can still stand up and enter this high school.
So this is what's going on.
But...This is not enough to explain some of the things I noticed.
"Are these the only torments that you experienced?
"What..."
"What you said, were they the whole truth?"
I feel feel there is still something critical that shattered her heart.
That abnormal way of showing her terrors couldn't help but make me think that there's something else behind it.
Karuizawa is hiding something that is worth as much as giving up her body.
"What, are you hiding?"
"Wha, nothin..."
In an instance, Karuizawa turned her head and her gaze to her left waist.
I noticed that, and reached my hand to touch it.
"St, stop!"
Her shout were rudely contained by the surrounding walls, and echoed in the empty hallway.
But, my suspicion was confirmed by her yelling. I grabbed her uniform and pulled it up. On her beautiful skin laid an ugly scar. A scar that can only be caused by a sharp blade slicing deeply though it.
"Is this your darkness?"
"Fu, hu, huhu.....!"
This scar is not a product of mere kids tormenting each other.
A scar this deep must have gravely endangered her life.
Even if her past carries such baggage, she still chooses to stand up.
In the last few days I have been observing this woman called Karuizawa Kei. This person, to protect herself, forcefully dragged surrounding people into her camps. Even if she receives disdains from her action, she still want to protect her status.
"Despair comes in many shapes and forms; But what you have experienced was, indisputably, despair."
Karuizawa's darkness. Her pupils. They overlapped with him.
Those who choose to carries their darkness with them are attracted. And then, devoured upon by one another.
And finally, those who carries darkness, will envelope the other's darkness with themselves.
"Wh, what....You...!"
If this person is being restrained by her past, then all I need to do is forcibly release her from its binds.
Even if I do not know her deeply, but I can feel the darkness she has.
Yes...This world has much more things that Karuizawa has not experienced. In deeper places, even more vile darkness has taken root.
"I can promise you one thing, and that is from now on I will protect you from intimidation. I am much more reliable than Hirata and Machida."
"You mean you can stop Manabe and her gang...?"
"What you should do now is to decide how trustworthy my words are. A tiny kinder is easy to blown out, but a larger flame would have the opposite effect. At the end, the fire will evolve to something that no gust or wind can extinguish. You will act on my behalf. I will act on your behalf. Your emotion does not and should not come into play here. Do you agree with this relations.h.i.+p?"
"First let's get rid of your worries."
I said, and held my phone out.
"I have a way to stop Manabe's actions."
And then, I turned on my screen.
On my phone was a photo of Karuizawa being a.s.saulted by Manabe's gang.
"This is..."
"If I send this to them, they should reconsider doing any more things to you. If they still decide to pursue you by spreading rumors, this would give me good ammunition to intervene."
As for Manabe and co, this particular incident should sooth their anger. Needlessly going further would only put them into unfavorable positions.
I let go of her cheeks, then with an emotionless tone I told her-
"I am only seeking someone to a.s.sist me. I hope that in the future, you will be my aid when needs arise."
"What, my aid? What do you want me to do..."
"If the current situation continues, D cla.s.s will never overtake A cla.s.s. While D cla.s.s's members' individual abilities are pa.s.sable, but we are severely lacking in cohesion. We are like beach sand. However, if you can control the girls for me, this situation will gradually turn for the better.
And that makes you, a more valuable being than Horikita, who only knows how to fight alone.
"You, what are you doing..."
She must have thought that I am just a normal everyday person, so seeing me in this state must have creep her out. But I won't explain myself. The less words, the more terrifying, and the lesser she resists.
"The first step of our cooperation shall be to lead our group to victory for this exam."
"Victory? But how do-"
"Because you are-, isn't that right?"
When she heard the key word, Karuizawa widened her eyes and looked at me.
As if the truth is reverberating inside the pupils, and mind, her eyes. I presented the truth to her.
Karuizawa looked slightly puzzled, but that might just as well.
Because a parasite can only live by attaching itself to a host.
And now that Karuizawa has attached to me, a new host. Her life now has no way to move forward but with me.
