Chapter 72: The Nightmare Returns
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 72: The Nightmare Returns
It felt like just yesterday that we had our midterm exams in May, but now June was already past its midpoint.
Seasonally, it was the very beginning of summer.
With a three-day, two-night summer camp in Chiba scheduled to start next Monday, the atmosphere in our class was buzzing with excitement.
The summer camp.
Ostensibly, it was held to promote students' health and improve academic performance, but in reality, it was no different from a summer field trip.
Camping in the mountains, making curry and barbecue, enjoying a test of courage and a campfire—it was a staple event that was never missing from a school rom-com.
Typically, for events like this, the class would be split into several groups.
To prevent cliques from forming and leaving some students out, the groups were usually decided by drawing lots.
Our class had a total of 26 students.
Dividing them into groups of six or seven would result in four neat groups.
The drawing for these groups was held under the supervision of our homeroom teacher, Matsuda, during the self-study periods on Wednesday, 5th and 6th period.
And the result was…
I ended up in Group D, the same group as the protagonist, Sakamoto Ryuji.
*
"Nice to be in a group with you, Kim-kun."
"…Yeah."
"We got lucky, ending up in a group with all our friends, huh?"
The drawing, which was supposed to be fair, resulted in a seven-person Group D consisting of me, the protagonist, Rika, Satoru, the Class President, Sasha, and Yaguchi.
Honestly, you could have told me the drawing was rigged and I would have believed you.
I just couldn't believe that a group so blatantly composed of the original story's heroines could be formed by chance.
The summer camp is a classic rom-com event, so perhaps this was due to some compelling force from the original plot?
In any case, what was done was done. There was no point in asking for a do-over. Besides, aside from being in the same group as the protagonist, Sakamoto Ryuji, and the true heroine, Yaguchi Maiya, everyone else was someone I was friendly with, so the lineup itself wasn't bad.
After the groups were decided, we had a temporary group meeting.
"Hey! We're in the same class, but we haven't really talked much, have we?"
"Ah, yeah. It's nice to meet you, Kishimoto-san."
Rika, a natural social butterfly, took the lead, striking up conversations with our new group members.
Currently, Group D was split into two main cliques.
One centered around me, Rika, and Sasha, and the other around Yaguchi and Sakamoto.
Satoru was the common link between both groups, if you had to place him, and the Class President was… well, the Class President.
The Class President, who had naturally taken on the role of group leader, pushed up her round glasses and asked, holding a notebook.
"First, we need to decide what we're going to make at the campsite. The standard is curry, but does anyone want to make something else?"
Surprisingly, the first person to raise their hand was Sasha.
"Instead of curry, can we make Beef Stroganoff?"
"…As long as the cooking process isn't too complicated, that's fine. The cooking facilities at the campsite are pretty basic."
"You need not worry about that. As long as we have the ingredients, the rest is very simple."
Right after she finished, the next person to raise their hand was Rika.
"Omurice! It's easy to make and the ingredients are simple!"
"Yeah, that's not a bad idea either. Any other opinions?"
Caught between the two, I cautiously raised my hand.
"How about a Chinese-style rice bowl? I can bring my wok."
"A Chinese rice bowl? …Isn't that a bit too difficult?"
Unlike with the first two suggestions, the Class President expressed a negative opinion at the mention of a Chinese rice bowl.
Tch, so it's a no-go.
I couldn't blame her for making that face; it was a pretty ambitious dish for a summer camp.
I was about to quickly give up and suggest we just make curry.
"I think that's a great idea. The Chinese rice bowl."
Sakamoto Ryuji, who had been listening quietly, suddenly spoke up.
As everyone's eyes focused on him, he seemed to feel a delayed sense of embarrassment, scratching the back of his head as he explained his thoughts.
"I mean, uh… we always make curry on these trips. Wouldn't it be nice to have something different for a change? If it turns out well, we could even trade some with the other groups for their curry."
The Class President thought for a moment after hearing his words, then nodded.
"That's a good point. What does everyone else think?"
"Oh, I'm all for it. Ryu-chan's cooking is amazing."
"I have no complaints."
"While we're at it, can we make chili shrimp too?"
"Um… like Ryuji said, maybe it would be okay for a change?"
After gathering everyone's opinions, the Class President put down her notebook and summarized.
"Then it's decided. For this summer camp, we'll be making Beef Stroganoff, Omurice, and a Chinese-style rice bowl, right?"
Hearing that, Satoru chuckled.
"Not a trace of curry left."
"Well, it's good to try different things sometimes."
I shrugged and said, then gave a slight nod to Sakamoto, who was sitting across from me, as a sign of thanks.
*
Two days after all the commotion about the summer camp.
After school, at the gym, I finally got the answer I'd been waiting for from Fuma-senpai.
"Come to this address tomorrow around 2 PM. I'll answer all of your questions then."
She handed me a small piece of paper.
I opened it and saw an address written inside.
"Where is this?"
"It's the cafe where I work part-time on weekends. I work at a convenience store on weekdays and the cafe on weekends."
A third-year student, who should have been busy preparing for the Center Exam, was working two part-time jobs a week. She was living a much more grueling school life than I had imagined.
"Aren't you pushing yourself too hard?"
School and club activities during the day, then the gym and a convenience store job at night.
A normal person would have a hard time keeping up physically.
As if reading my thoughts, Fuma-senpai let out a small chuckle and wiped her sweaty face with a towel.
"I know what you're worried about. But for a Fuma ninja who has trained for extreme situations, this is nothing. In fact, I've become even healthier since I started coming here with you."
"With me…?"
"Ah. No, that was a slip of the tongue. Forget I said that."
Fuma-senpai said hastily, then confessed with a slightly reddened face.
"At first, I was curious about the secret to your strength, so I followed you for a few days. Now that my curiosity is satisfied, I just come for my health."
She seemed to be talking about when she stalked me at the beginning of the semester.
I didn't know why she was following me back then, but now I understood the story behind it.
"Anyway, so I just need to go to the shop at this address tomorrow?"
"That's right. Most of the customers will be gone by 2 PM, so it should be quiet. I'll be able to make plenty of time to talk with you."
"Got it. I'll see you tomorrow, then."
I nodded and saw Fuma-senpai off as she headed home first.
*
June 24th (Saturday)
The summer camp was now just two days away.
We had decided to meet up tomorrow to buy all the ingredients at once, so today's schedule was relatively free.
Enjoying the precious day off, I was rolling around on the floor after breakfast when I remembered I hadn't looked up the address Fuma-senpai gave me yesterday.
I put down the manga I was reading, typed the address into a search engine, and the location of the cafe where she worked popped up.
"…Akihabara?"
What? Did I read that wrong?
Wondering if my eyesight was already failing at my age, I rubbed my eyes and looked at my smartphone screen again, but the address remained unchanged.
Akihabara was still the holy land for otaku worldwide, but a slight sense of resistance welled up inside me as I remembered the rough time I'd had there when I went to buy manga during Golden Week.
But to hear about the hidden side of this world, Fuma-senpai's cooperation was essential.
And for that, I had to venture back into that labyrinth.
"…Haaah."
I guess I have no choice.
I decided to stop avoiding reality and face it head-on.
It seemed unlikely that the same thing that happened last time would happen again, not once, but twice, especially right before the summer camp, which was sure to be a major episode in the original story.
And even if it did, I could just run for my life this time.
*
[Machi Asobi☆Maid Akihabara Main Branch]
Wait, this was the cafe Fuma-senpai worked at?
I stared at the building with a dumbfounded expression, comparing the address from the search results with the actual place.
In a way, a nightmare I wanted to avoid even more than my fight with Ivan was reawakening from my memories.
I decided on a strategic retreat and resolved to contact Fuma-senpai some other way.
Just as I was about to turn around.
"Kim Yoo-Sung? You're here. Why are you just loitering outside instead of coming in?"
Jingle! Jingle!
My body froze at the voice that came from the cafe entrance as the door suddenly opened.