Aren't You Coming In? The Sun Has Set.
The sun had set, yet the lingering heat refused to fade. I tugged the hood of my hoodie down roughly and started walking.
———In the end, Daiki never showed up. Staring absently at the blackened sky where the sun had disappeared, I let out a small sigh. The thought of What if Daiki doesn't step up... never crossed my mind. If he wouldn't do it, then I would. That was obvious.
Step. Step. Deep in the dark mountain, I lowered my gaze and walked toward the faint light flickering within the thick shadows. I pulled my hood even lower, steeling my resolve. If Daiki refused to act, I would. That was why I was here. Besides, Yua was a precious heroine to me as well.
Ah... You really don't have to do this because of me.
"Katamura-kun is such an idiot…."
Yua muttered the words without thinking, then quickly shut her mouth. She clutched her strangely dizzy head.
...Huh?
The abandoned house was bright and noisy, nothing like its name suggested—at least until the boys and girls who called themselves Yua's friends began quietly disappearing one by one.
Yua sensed something was wrong and looked around. Her neck had no strength. Her vision was blurred.
Already? Did I really drink that much?
It wasn't something to brag about, but from experience Yua knew she held her liquor well. That was why she couldn't make sense of her current reaction. It felt less like alcohol and more like she'd been drugged with something else.
This is... strange...
Yua forced her staggering body upright. The urgent thought that she needed to escape this place flashed through her mind. She struggled to steady her wobbling legs and moved toward the door. Strength kept draining from her limbs, her knees buckling, but Yua stubbornly pushed forward. The instinctive certainty that she shouldn't stay here drove her on.
"Huh? Suzuki, where are you going?"
She collided with a solid wall.
"T-Takahiro-kun...?"
I have to pull myself together.
Yua knew all too well. Her larger-than-average breasts and hips, her well-developed figure—she took pride in them, but she also understood they could invite terrible danger. Men always looked at her with greedy eyes, scanning her body from head to toe, harboring filthy fantasies. Imagining pinning her down... violating her.
Even the people who called themselves her friends looked at her that way. The only ones who didn't were...
Katamura-kun...
And Natsumoto, whose thoughts she could never quite read.
Grip.
The moment Takahiro seized her arm, Yua snapped back to her senses and spoke in a trembling voice.
"My... my body isn't feeling well, so I'm going to head back..."
"Heee—that's too bad."
Chuckle, chuckle, chuckle. He's laughing...?
"Uh... yeah... so I'll... go first..."
The instant she saw Takahiro's smile and the grins of his friends, Yua's anxiety exploded tenfold. She fought to hide her fear, steadying her steps and her heart as she tried to leave the room.
"Ah!"
Thud!
"We can't have that."
When Yua stumbled into Azumane—one of Takahiro's friends blocking the door—and fell to the floor, the smiles on both their faces deepened.
"You guys keep watch."
"...Wh-what are you doing?"
"That's why I told you I was 'looking forward' to this enough to use drugs, Suzuki."
Takahiro locked eyes with the fallen Yua, the corners of his mouth curling up.
Drugs...?
The moment she heard his words, Yua's dizzy mind pieced it together. The intoxication hitting faster than usual, her heavy and languid body, the way Takahiro and his crew were smiling...
"Wh-what did you... do to my body...?"
Tap. Takahiro's index finger brushed the bridge of her nose. He stared down at her with pure delight, clearly enjoying how she couldn't even stand.
"I already told you. Drugs."
"Drugs...?"
"...Not like I owe you the full explanation."
Takahiro shrugged, laughing. Goosebumps prickled across Yua's skin. She wanted to run, but her body refused to obey. She was going to be raped. By force. Instinctively she curled into herself, but Takahiro only seemed to enjoy the sight even more.
"Hey, Az. Mind if I go first?"
"...Go ahead."
Azumane nodded without complaint. His eyes as he watched the two of them glittered with curiosity.
Their casual attitudes made Yua push desperately against the floor, trying to scramble away. Bottles and beer cans scattered across the ground, snacks bought for snacks toppling everywhere, but she couldn't spare them any attention.
Help... someone, please...!
Even as she prayed with all her heart, this was an abandoned house deep in the mountains. She had no idea why a building was even here, but it didn't matter. Now that same isolation had become her prison. It was hopeless. No one would come. Daiki could never find this place.
Yua was terrified.
The boys outside shouting, "Hurry up and finish so we can have our turn!" Takahiro approaching to violate her, Azumane watching with morbid interest—they all felt like complete strangers.
...I don't want this.
Her first time happening here, being drugged and taken by force, never getting to do it with someone she loved—every part of it was unbearable.
Please, help me...
Drip.
"Huh? Hahaha, are you crying, Suzuki?!"
Seeing the tears rolling down her cheeks, Takahiro burst into loud laughter. He strolled toward the terrified girl with leisurely confidence, humming a little tune.
"Cry all you want. No one's coming here anyway!"
Heh heh heh.
Ah.
Listening to Takahiro, Yua hung her head. Amid the swirling despair, terror, and rage, one person's face rose in her mind.
Natsumoto-kun.
The person who always looked at her with that calm, indifferent expression. Blunt, yet kind. Even Yua herself didn't understand why she was thinking of him now. But one thing was certain—he wouldn't come either.
There's no way he'd come...
After all, she was the kind of girl who looked easy. He might even assume she'd enjoy a situation like this. There was no way he would think that of her... and yet somehow the doubt had crept in anyway. Yua lowered her head in self-mockery. Tears fell in steady drops onto the floor.
I don't want any of this anymore...
"Huh? Finally giving up? How boring——."
Neither Takahiro's taunts nor the noise from outside reached her ears anymore. Yua simply wanted to surrender to everything. Her heart sank deeper and deeper, as if she were being dragged into a swamp, swallowed by darkness.
That was why she didn't notice the shadow approaching her.
I don't want this... I don't want this...!
"If you don't like it, say so clearly."
"Eh...?"
It wasn't Takahiro's voice.
"Huu..."
Letting out a long breath, the figure stood with his back to Yua and spoke.
"Well, if they're scum who have to drug a girl like this... anyone would hate them."
Natsumoto smirked as he stared them down.
Yua gazed at his sweat-drenched back with trembling eyes.
"N-Natsumoto-kun...?"
The question of how he had found this place never left her lips. That broad back—broader than most—was so incredibly reassuring that she could only struggle to hold back the fresh wave of tears. These tears carried an entirely different emotion than before.
"Don't worry. Nothing's going to happen."
He glanced at her and spoke. Yua didn't fully understand why, but she could tell he was furious. He was clearly trying to sound as gentle as possible with her, yet his voice was thick with rage.
When she stared blankly at his trembling fists, he seemed to misread her gaze. He let out another deep sigh and gently placed his large hand on her head.
Stroke. Stroke.
His big hand moved calmly through her hair. Even though he was boiling with anger, he soothed the frightened girl with gentle, tender care.
"I promise—you won't get hurt."
He didn't turn around. Still, somehow Yua could picture his usual calm, kind eyes. She gave a small nod.
"Yeah..."
"Huu... They actually waited. What a bunch of idiots."
Ryu regulated his breathing once more and muttered to himself. He'd vaguely assumed that, being the love-comedy antagonists they were, they might at least wait until he'd finished comforting Yua. Instead they stood completely still, glaring at him the entire time.
Maybe it was arrogance—they believed they could beat him. Or maybe they'd tasted his fist and were now too wary to move carelessly. Either way, it didn't matter. He clenched his fists.
Was this his first real fight since arriving in this world?
Fighting wasn't frightening or unfamiliar to Ryu. If anything, it felt familiar. The familiar rush of adrenaline. The familiar stares. The familiar situation. With his blood heating up, Ryu unconsciously curled his lips into a grin and said.
"Aren't you coming in?"
"You bastard!!"
With those words, the fight began.