[Maki: Ara! Why do you have to leave me? I thought we had something special, and yet I see you with another wench!!!
Bad Ending #1: Forever Lovers (Maki Adagaki)
You felt an excruciating pain deep within your abdomen! When your gaze fell upon your stomach, all that remained was a large gaping hole.
As your slow demise approached, Maki wielded a bloody knife. She swung her arm, and your vision grew dark.
Afraid of losing the one she believed to be her beloved, she was left with no choice but to kill.
Your head was severed, and she departed from your house carrying it in her arms, heading off to who knows where.
Status: Congratulations you've achieved the unoriginal end, the School Days inspired Bad End]
"Hello! Are you there, Mr. Transferee? You're spacing out!"
Maki waved her hands back and forth in front of his eyes, snapping Hikaru back to reality.
He found her standing within arm's reach.
"Arrrrghh! O-Oh, nothing! I'm sorry about that! I'll be on my way!!"
In shock, Hikaru's only response was to run.
And avoid her at all costs.
Holy shit! Holy shit!!! What the fuck is happening with my life!? Her face, her voice, and even that panel... Why does it look exactly like the game!?
"Hey! Watch where you're going!!!"
"Sorry about that!"
In his desperate pursuit of escaping Maki, he accidentally bumped into another student before continuing his escape without a care.
After a while, young Hikaru finally managed to find the gym.
Unfortunately, his fate had already been sealed.
He didn't even need to look.
The moment he sat down, he knew.
The same panel that displayed Maki's information now alerted him of her actions.
[System: The available heroine [Maki Adagaki] is glancing at the host!!!]
Calm down, Hikaru. Whether this is truly the reality I have to face, it's not the end of the world.
I only initiated our first encounter. It'll only get dangerous if I become part of her life.
That's it! I'll just ignore her.
...But even then, meeting her alone is already a death flag.
[(Past) Maki Adagaki: There was once a time when Maki Adagaki was a normal, kind, and caring maiden. That was until tragedy struck the fiancé who loved and cared for her from the earliest days of her life.
You, the 'Player,' seem to resemble her deceased lover and have become the target of her obsession.]
This stupid panel actually has some good uses?
I thought it could only display a heroine's description, but I was wrong.
This thing acts almost exactly like the game system. Since I don't have a keyboard, I think it operates through the will of my mind...
When the headmaster's speech concluded, Hikaru and his fellow students were finally dismissed to attend their classes.
Before he could take a single step, however, he heard a familiar voice calling out to him.
"Hey, transferee! Over here! Can I talk to you~?"
It was Maki.
The moment she came within a hair's breadth of reaching him, Hikaru disappeared.
Once the students dispersed, Maki quickly uncovered his location.
She called out to him again.
And again.
And again.
To no avail.
Hikaru dashed through the crowd like a burglar fleeing the scene of a crime.
There was no stopping his pursuit of a peaceful and prosperous school life.
[Heroine Tracker: The host will be alerted if there is a heroine closing in from a mile away! Since you've yet to unlock another heroine aside from [Maki Adagaki], the tracker will warn you of her distance.
Make sure to captivate your target in hopes of achieving a clear!]
"If you know yourself and your enemy, then you don't need to fear a hundred battles..."
Hikaru muttered under his breath.
"But I don't want to fight! I just want a normal life!"
"I'll avoid her until this whole thing blows over."
"With the system by my side, there's no way I'd get caught in her horrendous storyline."
From that day onward, Hikaru avoided any and all contact with Maki Adagaki.
No conversations.
No greetings.
No eye contact.
Nothing.
Thus, a month passed.
Before he knew it, the true face of his twisted reality finally revealed itself.
It happened so quickly that he couldn't even react.
He was frozen in horror.
This was the moment he learned his lesson.
And soon after, he began seriously considering following the plot.
---
One Month Later
[Supporting Character:
Kaoru Higaki
Age: 15
Sex: Male
Personality: Goofy
Strengths: Sports, haggling, connections, information broker
Weaknesses: Shy around girls, reckless, hot-headed, easily fooled, kind, ignorant]
"Hey, Hikaru. Can you stop hogging the girls?"
"What do you mean!?"
Hikaru responded with genuine confusion.
"Dude!! Do you think we're blind?"
"You've been sticking out like a sore thumb for a whole month."
"Like who the hell jumps from the second floor just to avoid a girl?"
"And that girl is Maki Adagaki! Class 1-A's queen bee!!!"
"So that's how everyone sees it?"
Hikaru rested his chin against his palm.
"Why would I run to the other side of the world if I wanted fame?"
"I don't know what you people see in her, but I'm seriously questioning your taste in women."
"Adagaki's bad news~"
Within that lonely rooftop terrace, in the middle of an otherwise peaceful afternoon, his life took a drastic turn.
"How cruel..."
A voice crept up behind him.
"Hikaru... Why are you avoiding me...?"
"Why did you make me choose this path?"
"I just wanted to talk to you, my dear beloved."
Maki stood behind him.
Her uniform was stained red.
At first glance, Hikaru thought it was paint.
Then he took a step back.
A faint splash echoed beneath his feet.
His gaze drifted downward.
And his blood ran cold.
Kaoru's body lay sprawled on the rooftop floor.
A pool of blood spread beneath him.
His screams died before they could leave his throat.
Because Maki's sobbing soon transformed into a twisted chuckle.
[System: Yandere meter has been filled!!!
Outcome: The heroine [Maki Adagaki's] bad ending shall commence! Prepare yourself for the worst.]
Maki's actions immediately reminded Hikaru of one of the most horrifying endings within the game.
A bad ending that should've required numerous conditions to trigger.
A bad ending that shouldn't have been possible.
After all, he'd never interacted with her.
He never accepted her confession.
Never spoke with her.
Never even looked her way.
So why was this happening?
Hikaru stood frozen for a brief second.
Then Maki stretched her arms out for an embrace.
His instincts took over.
He shoved her away.
"Why... Hikaru~"
Maki stumbled backward.
"I mean Makoto..."
Her expression twisted.
"I've been patient."
"I waited for you to return my affection."
"Why...?"
"Why?"
"Why?"
"Why?"
"Why!?"
Her voice rose with every repetition.
"WHY DO YOU KEEP PUSHING ME AWAY!?"
The rooftop suddenly became a battlefield.
Without another word, Hikaru turned and ran.
"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!"
His footsteps echoed throughout the corridor.
"Why the hell is this happening!?"
Focus, Hikaru!
That's not important right now!
I need to escape!
By the looks of the blood around Kaoru's body, there was still a chance his friend could be saved.
If Hikaru managed to get away.
If he could contact the authorities.
If he could survive.
"God damn it!!!"
"This wasn't supposed to happen!"
"Why did she become a psycho!?"
As he sprinted through the halls, he immediately noticed something wrong.
The path ahead had changed.
No.
Someone had changed it.
Scattered throughout the hallway were numerous traps.
Bear traps.
Marbles spread across the floor.
Puddles of oil.
Obstacles positioned with frightening precision.
This building was rarely visited by either students or faculty members.
It was one of Hikaru's preferred hiding places.
A place that now served as his coffin.
"Makoto!!!"
Maki's laughter echoed behind him.
"Ahahahahaha!!!"
"I'm just one step closer to the two of us reuniting!!!"
The distance between them slowly closed.
Every second mattered.
Every mistake meant death.
[System: [Death Trap] mini-game has been triggered!!!
The host will now assist you in better observing these traps.]
Blue indicators flashed before his eyes.
With the system's assistance and his own athleticism, Hikaru managed to avoid the majority of Maki's preparations.
A bear trap snapped shut behind him.
A marble field nearly sent him tumbling.
He slid across an oil-covered section and barely kept his balance.
Finally.
The exit appeared.
Hope returned to his eyes.
"I'm saved!"
He grabbed the handle.
Pulled.
Nothing.
Pulled harder.
Nothing.
The door wouldn't budge.
His heart sank.
The handle had already been broken.
"You have nowhere left to escape, Hikaru..."
Maki's voice sounded directly behind him.
"I know why you're trying so hard to help that random nobody."
"So how about this?"
"If I help you find a way out..."
She smiled.
"You'll give me your life in return."
"Doesn't that sound like a wonderful deal~?"
Then her expression suddenly shifted.
"W-Wait..."
"What are you doing!?"
Hikaru had already climbed onto the window ledge.
"I'll be taking my leave first!!!"
Without hesitation, he jumped.
It was a reckless gamble.
A suicidal gamble.
But it was better than remaining behind.
A nearby utility pole stood within reach.
If he could grab it.
If he could hold on.
If luck finally decided to side with him.
He could survive.
I can make it!
I'll force my way through!
His body plunged through the air.
The pole drew closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Then—
His fingers wrapped around it.
"YES!"
For a brief moment, hope returned.
Then reality struck.
The sweat that accumulated on his palms betrayed him.
The fatigue from running drained what little strength remained.
His grip weakened.
"No..."
His body slipped.
"No!!"
Even if it lasted only a second.
Even if it was only a moment.
Hikaru failed to grasp the final hope standing between himself and death.
Gravity reclaimed him.
His body plummeted.
The world spun.
The sky.
The school.
The ground.
Everything blurred together.
Then came the impact.
A few distant bystanders witnessed the scene.
His body crashed violently against the pavement below.
The cause of death was obvious.
The fall.
Yet strangely enough—
His head was nowhere to be found.
Elsewhere.
Far away from the crowd.
Maki gently hugged his severed head against her chest.
A smile of pure bliss spread across her face.
[System: You've died by your own doing!!! The host doesn't have a save file...?
Outcome: Because the requirement of a 'Save file' wasn't met, the system will return the host to the very beginning.]
The world shattered.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Just moments ago, Hikaru had been falling to his death.
Now—
He was alive.
The sensation of the wind.
The beating of his heart.
The warmth of his skin.
Everything felt real.
Confused, Hikaru looked around.
The gymnasium.
The students.
The ceremony.
The entrance speech.
He had returned to the first day.
The entrance ceremony.
The cheerful and hopeful athenm played as he reminisce of yesterday.
All his progress, time, and relations he build up now gone as he returns to where it all began.
Before he could sink into another one of his internal monologues, a security guard approached him with concern.
"Kid..."
The guard frowned.
"Are you alright?"
"You look like you're having a heart attack."
The sensation of touch.
The pounding of his chest.
The sounds around him.
No doubt remained.
Hikaru was alive.
Yet instead of relief.
His mind was consumed by madness.
Death wasn't an escape.
Death wasn't the end.
No matter how many times he died.
No matter how horrific his fate became.
He would return.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Forced to relive the nightmare.
Until he found a way to survive.
Or perhaps...
Until the game finally decided to let him go.