Chapter 37: Aki Tomoya? Good Riddance!
Two betrayals. Absolute betrayal. And so, their friendship was severed. Her relationship with Ren, however, remained good. I hated her, and I hated him!
So, he did something. He revealed Kashiwagi Eri's identity and secretly spread rumors that Eriri was a slut. From then on, everyone at school looked at her strangely. She was bullied by the whole school. She trembled, she was scared. He felt the pleasure of revenge. He thought she would return to his embrace.
But… damn Ren! Damn Ren! He stood in front of her again. Why? Why him again!!!! He…
Beep beep!! Beep beep!! Beep beep beep!!!!
The urgent honking of a truck horn. Bang!!!! The sound of a heavy object crashing.
What... happened to me? Am I... flying? It hurts... so much!
"Ah!!!" a woman's scream.
"Call an ambulance quickly!"
"So much blood! Save him!"
Confused commands echoed as his vision faded to black.
Looking at the commotion at the street corner ahead, Eriri asked timidly, "What's going on over there?"
"It looks like there was a car accident," Ren pinched his chin. "It's the person who was riding that bicycle just now."
"Huh?" Eriri's mouth hung open. She finally muttered, "Who told him to ride so fast." She unconsciously grabbed Ren's sleeve and leaned closer to him.
Ren saw that she was scared of such a scene. He simply put his right arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. His left hand gently covered her eyes.
The sudden darkness startled Eriri, but then she heard his soft voice. "Just follow me."
"Okay," she agreed in a soft, trusting voice. Although her eyes were covered, she felt unusually safe.
As they passed the street corner, Ren glanced over. "Oh? It's him?" he said, surprised. It was Aki Tomoya. He had wondered why that person seemed so familiar.
"Huh? Who is it? Not someone we know, is it?" Eriri asked anxiously from the darkness of his hand.
He didn't hide it. "It's Aki Tomoya."
The name silenced Eriri. Her body trembled slightly, as if she had heard the name of a demon. Aki Tomoya. The one who had caused her to be bullied by the entire school, who had made her want to commit suicide several times. He was a demon. She pressed even closer to Ren, hugging him tightly.
Ren gently patted her head. "It's okay. It's all in the past. Let's go."
"…Mm." She nodded lightly, like a startled little rabbit, unable to move away from him. On the road, a pair of blood-stained eyes stared wide at their retreating figures.
The next day, news spread that Aki Tomoya, hospitalized due to a car accident, had died after resuscitation efforts failed. When he was mentioned, everyone's first impression was that he was a crazy otaku. So, no one felt much pity.
Ren, however, said to himself, "Hmm, good riddance." What Eriri did as a child had hurt Aki, but what he did in junior high was truly beastly. It was a wound that could never be erased.
During the long break between classes, in the Supernatural Research Club, Yukino sat reading in the sunlight. Yui chatted idly with her. Both of them automatically ignored Kato Megumi, who was playing on her phone nearby.
"Yukino-chan, what exactly do we do in our club?" Yui asked.
"…" This intimate address made Yukino frown. She had reminded her many times but sighed in defeat. "Our activities involve accepting requests for supernatural incidents and conducting investigations."
"Then what kind of requests have you and Ren-kun completed?" This question made Megumi also look over.
"…" After a pause, she glanced at Ren, who was resting with his eyes closed. She answered truthfully, "Not a single one."
At this moment, Ren's thoughts were entirely on the Chat Group. Nami had woken up.
[Nami: @Ren, you scoundrel! You went too far!]
Cough, cough. As soon as she spoke, he knew what she was talking about.
[Ren: Didn't you provoke me first?]
[Nami: But didn't I beg for mercy later?! Why didn't you let me go?!]
[Ren: You say let go, and I let go? Wouldn't I lose face?]
[Ren: Nami, you didn't even last 30 minutes. That's super lame.]
[Nami: It-it's because you were too outrageous!]
[March 7th: Gasp! Are you two fighting?]
[Inorin Note:
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