Haruki Yamauchi is trash.
Of course, Haruki Yamauchi would never admit that he is trash.
He would never admit that his academic ability and physical strength provided him with absolutely no advantages.
At the beginning, armed with the promise of one million Private Points from Sae Chabashira and the prestige of being a student at the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, Yamauchi had looked down on the students of Sobu High with disdain.
He had a bad personality. He was selfish. He had poor mental fortitude and average physical strength.
Originally, the faculty and students of Sobu High had been wary of him due to the prestige of his school. They didn't dare to confront him too openly. After all, people who came from such a top-tier institution were usually qualified to be proud.
Although the representatives of Classes A, B, and C looked down on him and ignored the clown, Yamauchi felt good about himself.
He showed off in front of the Sobu High students all day long.
Partly because of Chabashira's mission.
But mostly because the feeling of being superior was intoxicating. He loved seeing the aggrieved expressions of those who despised him but dared not speak out.
That is, until a hateful woman stopped his evil deeds.
Yukino Yukinoshita.
She had looked at him coldly and said:
"Since you are a student from a top school, your arrogant status must be based on your academic excellence. Why don't we have an open competition? Let us see whether you are truly worthy of the status of such a prestigious institution."
Then…
Haruki Yamauchi was beaten back to his original form.
That's right.
He was originally a bottom-tier student in the defective Class D. He barely studied; he spent his days idling. How could he possibly surpass a top honor student like Yukino Yukinoshita in an academic contest?
Yamauchi became angry. Irritable.
He had been slapped in the face. He had made a fool of himself. His ego had been crushed by the very Sobu High students he had looked down upon.
It was a public execution. The tragic social death made Yamauchi hate Sobu High School. And more than anything, he hated Yukino Yukinoshita.
So, he sneaked out of the hotel room provided by the school.
He sneaked back into the Sobu High campus under the cover of night.
Sobu High was large. It covered a vast area with towering teaching buildings and a wide athletic field. Behind the main building lay a weed-covered backyard.
Damn Sobu High!
Damn Yukinoshita!
Yamauchi poked his head out of the bushes with a gloomy face. He had already scouted the spot. The wall of the backyard was lower than the front gate, making it easy to climb over.
His goal was simple: Vandalize Yukino Yukinoshita's desk. He would write filthy insults, throw away her books, and destroy her personal belongings.
It wasn't difficult to do. He just had to be quiet.
The only problem was the cold night wind. It was biting.
He looked up at the sky. The night made the school almost pitch black, but the neon city lights in the distance provided just enough illumination for Yamauchi to see.
A temple?
Yamauchi discovered something weird in the overgrown weeds.
There was a small, dilapidated shrine.
It wasn't a stone statue of a local deity being worshipped inside, but a…
"A copper pestle?"
He kicked the stone platform in annoyance.
"Hiss…!!"
Instead of dislodging the object, pain shot through his right foot.
Shit! What the hell!
In a fit of rage, he grabbed the copper pestle, intending to smash it against the wall.
However…
Buzz——————!
Instantly, Yamauchi felt a strange sensation, as if his body were being wrapped in a cold, slimy film of water. His pupils suddenly shrank, and his vision warped.
He saw a terrifying mass of flesh wriggling not far away.
There was a "human" figure with disheveled hair and an elongated, slender body.
And there was a twisted image of a snake biting its own tail—an Ouroboros of rot.
Suddenly, he retracted his hand as if he had been electrocuted. His scalp went numb with primal fear.
What… what the hell is that!?
He ran.
He scrambled over the backyard wall and fled the scene in a blind panic. He didn't feel safe until he was back in his hotel room, breathing heavily.
With a pounding heart, he tried to process what he had just seen.
What exactly were those ghost things… and that copper pestle…
But after the fear subsided, his eyes suddenly changed.
He forgot the panic. He forgot the horror of the monstrosities.
He suddenly felt that he was no longer trash. A thought bloomed in his mind, just like the protagonist of a Shonen manga awakening his powers.
Is it possible that I am…
The next day, he went to the backyard of Sobu High School again.
This time, he hesitated for a moment before grabbing the copper pestle.
Zap.
His field of vision changed again.
Evil spirits! There are evil spirits!
He let go, ready to run.
But… nothing happened?
Inexplicably, Haruki Yamauchi began to grow bolder. He grabbed the pestle again.
Under that weird, warped vision, a wanton smile appeared faintly at the corner of his mouth.
It's real… The copper pestle… No!
It's a Divine Weapon!
The Divine Weapon is real!
This time, he felt the changes in his body more carefully. When holding the copper pestle, he felt stronger. His range of vision widened.
God… A God-Tier Artifact…
He realized that as long as he didn't provoke them, those ghosts basically ignored him.
At this moment, a storm of greed erupted in Yamauchi's mind.
What is one million Private Points compared to this?
Who cares about grades? Who cares about being excellent?
His breathing became hot. His eyes burned with desire. His chest felt like it was going to explode with the pounding of his heart.
"Hehe… Hehehe… Hahahahahahaha!"
He felt that he was destined for greatness. He believed he was the protagonist of this world. Otherwise, how could he be the one to find the artifact that awakens the "Power"?
Mine!
It must be mine!!
He couldn't let go. His face twisted with extreme excitement.
He tried his best to pull the copper pestle free, but it seemed connected to the stone platform, fused by time and magic. It couldn't be taken by brute force alone.
This made Yamauchi anxious. He jumped up and down, sweating profusely, pulling and tugging, but the object didn't move.
Could it be… it doesn't belong to me?
No!!
An inexplicable fire burned in his eyes.
He would not allow anyone to take away the artifact he discovered first.
Even if his brain wasn't the best, he understood one thing clearly: If he got this artifact, he would live a superior life.
No one would dare look down on him or disobey him ever again.
For the first time in a long time, Haruki Yamauchi used his brain.
Don't be impatient. You can't take the magic weapon with your bare hands.
Get tools.
If it doesn't work, dig the whole stone platform out!
Reluctantly, he let go of the copper pestle.
He felt a frantic sense of urgency. Destiny was imminent. He would not give up.
Definitely not!
With a burning heart, Yamauchi climbed out of the school backyard again. Under the neon lights, his face loomed with a wanton, greedy smile.
He knew it. He knew that many people looked down on him.
It doesn't matter.
It really doesn't matter anymore…
He bought a shovel and a hammer from a hardware store that was still open, then tiptoed back into the hotel room.
He was sure that he had concealed his tracks well.
But…
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