Board Game (3)

“The bullying had been going on before this. Sera was always getting picked on by those girls. Miel and I tried to look out for her as her friends…”

“And then it all blew up last week?”

“Yes… I never imagined something like that would happen while I was away…”

Claire’s eyes glistened with tears as she explained the background, her voice heavy with pain.

‘So it really was Claire’s friends…’

This was clearly one of the ghost story events.

Getting involved would drag me straight into it.

But even if I tried to stay out of it, Claire was already caught up.

“All right. I’ll help.”

“Huh? You will, Ares…?”

I spoke to her as if answering ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the thought I’d just heard.

“I’m a guy. I’ll go talk to them. Tell them to stop messing with you guys.”

“……”

Claire stared at me blankly after hearing my words.

I’d expected her to say she was sorry or thank me, but instead there was only silence.

“……”

“……”

Feeling a bit awkward, I scratched my head and looked away.

Then her inner voice reached me.

‘That’s not really it…’

She seemed to have misunderstood my intentions a little.

From her perspective, someone she’d only known for a week was willingly stepping into a messy situation for her friends.

“……”

“……”

Swish.

Following those inner thoughts, Claire, who had been sitting beside me, gently leaned against me. Our shoulders touched, and I felt the soft warmth of her body.

“Then… would it be all right if I caused you a little trouble…?”

“I’m sorry. I’ll definitely repay you later… Please help me. Me and my friends…”

“……”

“…Ares?”

“Ah, no, yeah…”

This girl.

She really was beyond saving.

How did she end up like this…

Ah. I was the one who made her this way.

“Popopo, it’s been a while, little friend. Was your volunteer work rewarding?”

“Yeah, I made a friend too. It was nice.”

“Popo, I see.”

After lunch, once classes ended, I headed to Teacher Rapori’s prep room with Ellie’s diary for the first time in a while.

I’d quickly stopped by the dorm during lunch to grab it.

“Come, have a seat. It’s good to see you again, little friend.”

“……”

Teacher Rapori naturally guided me onto her lap as I entered the prep room.

“Then, if you’ll excuse me…”

It had been almost a week since I last sat on her lap.

For some reason, I felt a little nervous.

Swish.

Squish…

‘Uoooh… This feeling really can only be experienced here…’

Resting my head against her large chest after climbing onto her lap, a blissful softness enveloped my entire body.

Teacher Rapori gently stroked my head and thighs with her fingers, as if petting a cute puppy.

“Now then… What shall I cast magic on for you today?”

After that, my hair was messed up in a complete disaster for the first time in a while.

“U-ugh…”

“Oh my, you look more exhausted than usual. Are you all right?”

“Yeah… It’s been a while, so… the stimulation was stronger…”

“Popopo… Then let’s rest here for a little while before you go, little friend.”

With my face buried in Teacher Rapori’s chest and only my eyes peeking out, I let out soft breaths.

Every time I exhaled, her body twitched slightly, as if it tickled.

‘Still, I can’t afford to waste time like this…’

Part of me wanted to just fall asleep right there, but…

“I should get going.”

“Are you sure it’s all right to leave already?”

“Yes, I have something to take care of. Thank you!”

I had work to do.

Something I needed to finish today if possible.

‘Let’s see… The diary entries… Nothing special.’

There was nothing noteworthy written in the diary.

Of course, part of it was what NightRat had said—since I hadn’t fully gotten involved in the event yet.

At least heading over to those girls didn’t trigger a dead end in the diary.

Feeling relieved, I made my way toward them.

“Huh? Who?”

“Claire’s friend.”

“Kyahaha! That girl told you about it? Who the hell are you? Her boyfriend?”

“Hey, hey, he said they’re friends… Probably just a one-sided crush.”

“Wow… Claire acts all pure and refined, but behind the scenes she’s been stringing guys along?”

The girls were in the shopping district.

In an alleyway.

I’d already confirmed with Claire that they’d be here at this time, so finding them was easy.

Apparently, they often called Sera out to this spot when they wanted to bully her.

“You guys smoke too?”

“Ha, why? You gonna lecture us or something? Who do you think you are? A teacher?”

“This is hilarious.”

“Hey, instead of that, you’re kinda cute… Wanna hang out with us instead of a bitch like Claire?”

Smoke curled through the narrow alley.

Facing me, the girls showed no fear at all. Instead, they started flirting with me.

One of them approached and lightly adjusted my necktie.

‘I’d rather this end peacefully if possible.’

Honestly, I was tense right now.

After all, these girls… were ghosts, for starters.

And they were tied to a bullying-themed ghost story on top of that.

I really hoped this could be resolved simply.

And to make that happen…

Seizing the initiative was crucial.

—Grab!

“Kyaa!”

I seized the hand of the girl who had been touching my necktie.

The once-confident girl grimaced and let out a small groan.

Regardless, I looked down at her with a cold expression and spoke quietly.

“Try touching Claire or her friends again.”

“…Ha, wh-what if we do? What are you gonna do about it?”

“……”

It was a familiar reaction.

The reason they weren’t scared.

Because normally, guys didn’t hit girls.

And violence between students wasn’t common.

Knowing that, these cowardly girls could act so boldly while tormenting others.

So I aimed right at that weakness.

“I hit girls too.”

“Hiiik…”

At my cold mutter, the girl finally showed fear on her face.

The other two girls beside her also looked at me with much more serious expressions than before.

Then one of the girls who had been staring at me intently seemed to remember something and spoke to the girl next to her.

“Hey… Isn’t that guy… him…?”

“What? What do you mean?”

“The one who went on the volunteer trip…!”

“Th-that delinquent?”

“……”

Suddenly, the topic of the volunteer trip came up out of nowhere.

Apparently, the rumor had spread quite a bit.

Well, it made sense—the student with the most demerit points in the entire grade had gone.

“That bastard barely avoided expulsion and went on the volunteer trip…!”

“What…?!”

“He got a huge warning for sexually harassing a female student…!”

“Hiiiik!”

“……”

One of the girls started spouting rumors about me.

The other two girls’ faces darkened as they listened.

…Honestly, this was unfair.

Sexual harassment? What the hell?

The girls in my class were the ones who seduced me.

‘But… this is an opportunity.’

It was unfair, but there was nothing I could do.

Taking advantage of the chance that had come my way was the smart move.

“You know it well, huh? Want me to sexually harass you too?”

“W-wait a second…!”

I gently stroked the arm of the girl whose hand I was holding and smirked.

“They say this feels just like a girl’s breasts, right…?”

I squeezed her forearm.

It was soft.

It really did have a similar texture to breasts.

The captured girl’s face turned deathly pale.

“A-all right! We won’t do it anymore, okay?! We won’t! Those two are holed up in the dorms anyway, so we can’t do anything! W-we won’t touch Claire either!!”

“Hmm…”

She gave up easily.

I felt a little disappointed.

If only she had resisted a bit more.

Well, the goal was achieved anyway.

“Consider that a warning. You got it?”

“……”

“……”

“……”

I left the girls behind and walked out of the alley.

‘The volunteer trip event ended up helping me out.’

I guess even a bad reputation counts as fame in its own way.

Thanks to that, the threat actually worked.

…It was unfair being mistaken for a perverted delinquent, though.

“Now… the diary…”

After leaving the alley and heading toward the cathedral, I checked the diary.

In the end, there were no problems.

Ellie’s six-day future was peaceful.

There were some obsessive-sounding entries here and there, but nothing that indicated she’d gotten involved in a ghost story yet.

It seemed I still couldn’t afford to relax.

I’d have to keep checking the diary regularly for a while.

“Thank you for taking care of me all week.”

“Come visit often, Ares. You’re always welcome here.”

“M-me too…”

“We’ll miss you… You’ll come on Sunday, right?”

“Why not convert to Catholicism while you’re at it…”

After packing up the rest of my things at the cathedral, I said my goodbyes to the nuns.

Of course, it wasn’t a real farewell since I’d see them whenever I visited Claire.

After greeting them, I met with Claire separately.

If the other nuns found out about the bullying incident, it would cause trouble for Claire.

Knock knock knock.

I knocked on her door, and a moment later—

[Please wait just a moment…!]

After hearing a hurried voice from inside, Claire opened the door and came out.

“Ah, it was you, Ares…”

“What were you doing?”

“Ah, well…”

Claire, now changed into her nun’s habit, was lightly sweating.

And when the door opened, a strangely warm and sweet scent wafted out…

“I was exercising!”

“I thought it would be good to build up my stamina these days…”

“……”

She was masturbating.

‘How long has it been since she got back from school…’

Her sex drive was on the level of a middle-school boy in puberty.

People say late-blooming passion is scary, but apparently late-blooming lust is pretty terrifying too.

“Um… About what we talked about at lunch.”

“Ah, yes.”

“I went and talked to them properly. They said they won’t bully you or your friends anymore.”

“…Really?”

At my words, Claire’s eyes widened in surprise and she smiled.

Then she grabbed my hand and expressed her gratitude.

“Thank you…! Ares…! Thank you so much…!”

“Nah, it’s nothing…”

“Ah, I-I’m sorry…! My hands…! Let me wipe them…”

Claire was startled by the fact that she’d grabbed my hand and hurriedly wiped it on her clothes.

…Now that I thought about it, her fingers had felt a bit damp.

“Anyway, you should be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fine now.”

“…Thank you so much, Ares. I’ll definitely repay you for this.”

“Uh, yeah. Repayment, huh.”

“Yes… I’ll repay you…”

Claire and I both blushed slightly and looked away.

After telling her I’d see her tomorrow, I left the cathedral and headed back to the dorm.

‘Repayment… Repayment, huh…’

Since I’d heard her thoughts at lunch, I had a pretty good idea what kind of repayment she was talking about.

Because of that, my heart was pounding.

Yeah, it was just looking, after all.

‘When is she gonna do it… that repayment.’

Right after returning to the dorm.

After taking a shower, I lay down comfortably on my bed in my room for the first time in a while.

The diary entries were still fine.

Today had been a day full of good deeds in many ways.

I’d saved Claire from danger.

I’d lectured some bad girls.

And I’d thrown a steamy romance movie to the bored gallery members.

‘A day of good deeds means a comfortable bed.’

With that thought, I fell asleep in a good mood.

In a good mood.

…Or so I thought.

“……”

Dawn.

I opened my eyes.

Creak, creak.

The window was shaking.

It was the familiar night of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠this place.

Strange gazes coming from outside.

The air had turned cold and heavy.

It was the time when the ghosts were active.

“……”

My body wouldn’t move.

With only my eyes open, I stared into the air.

I was having sleep paralysis.

Of course, I’d experienced sleep paralysis here before.

But.

This time was a little different.

“I killed them… I killed them… They killed me… I killed them… I killed them…”

“……”

Someone was standing on top of my body.

Creak, creak.

Biting their nails.

Standing on my lying body, they slowly stomped on me as if stepping on laundry.

“They killed me, they did, those things, me, me, me, killed me…”

“……”

It was a girl.

I couldn’t see her face.

It was hidden behind long hair.

‘Shit… This can’t be the start of the ghost story, can it…?’

I tried with all my might to move.

But my body wouldn’t budge easily.

It felt like my body didn’t exist and only my mind was lying on the bed.

‘Move…! Move…!’

Still, I couldn’t just stay still like this, so I did my best to try and move my body.

And at some point—

Twitch…

My pinky finger bent slightly.

“Huuuuurgh!!”

I sat up, and my body could move again.

“……”

Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock.

Inside my room at dawn.

The girl who had been standing on my body was gone.

“What the hell is this bullshit…”

I’d clearly done good deeds, but I was going through this crap.

“Whatever…”

Muttering in frustration, I lay back down on the bed.

Turning onto my side, I tried to sleep.

“They killed me.”

“……”

At that moment, hair fell into my field of view.

A face appeared upside down from the ceiling, looking at me.

“──Aaaaaaaaagh!!!”

I screamed and sat up.

And then—

—Chirp, chirp chirp.

“……”

When I opened my eyes, it was morning.

“What kind of fucked-up dream was that…”

I lightly touched my body.

There was nothing wrong with it.

“No problems…?”

An event had definitely occurred.

Was it just sleep paralysis and that was it…?

“No way…”

I hurriedly got up and checked the diary.

And then—

“……”

—I confirmed that the diary’s contents had changed.

“What is this… What does this mean…”

An incomprehensible entry.

Those bad kids… Did she mean those girls…?

Me tormenting them?

‘Why would I…?’

I had no intention of doing that, and I didn’t want to.

“The later entries…”

Just as I was about to check the other dates in the diary—

──Kyaaaaaaaaaah!!!

A scream echoed from far away.

“……”

It came from the direction of the girls’ dorm.

Something had happened.

I quickly read the entry for today’s date in Ellie’s diary.

“Hanged…”

After confirming the diary entry, my mind went blank for a moment.

Before I knew it, I had changed clothes and was running out of the dorm.

My direction: the girls’ dorm.

At that moment, a familiar inner voice reached my ears.

It was Claire’s voice.

The closer I got to the girls’ dorm, the louder her inner voice became.

Claire was at the girls’ dorm.

And soon after, I found Claire sitting in front of the dorm, crying.

“Claire…”

“Ares…”

When I called her name, Claire looked up at me with tear-filled eyes.

“Ares… Sera… Sera…”

“……”

“She’s dead…”

She stood up unsteadily and walked toward me.

Then she threw herself into my arms and began to sob.

“……”

I didn’t say anything.

Was I in shock?

No, it wasn’t that.

Deaths like this weren’t particularly surprising in this world.

My mind was just blank.

I had been drawn here as if pulled by something, and after arriving, my head felt empty.

And then, suddenly—

Anger quietly began to rise.

‘They killed me.’

“…Those things killed her.”

“……Ares?”

I muttered the words I had heard somewhere directly from my own mouth.

“Those things killed her…”

“Ares…”

“Sera can’t rest in peace like this…”

“……”

“We have to pay them back the same way. Right, Claire?”

“……A-Ares.”

Claire looked at me with an uncomprehending gaze.

But unlike her, my mind was clear.

What I wanted to do was obvious.

For the sake of poor Sera, who had died unjustly—

I had to pay them back.