Chapter 5: Training in Progress
Seeing the girl's face flicker through a storm of emotions—anger she couldn't voice—Takumi felt a pang of guilt twist in his chest. Sure, he wasn't the one who'd locked her up in the first place, but to gather more magical power… he had no choice but to keep going. And beneath that guilt was something else—an unspeakable thrill. The sensation of being freed from the chains of morality… no wonder people say crime is as addictive as drugs.
"…Why are you doing this…?"
"It's the only way."
"There has to be another way!"
The girl's pitiful, teary-eyed expression made Takumi's heart ache even more. Yet strangely, that same look only fueled the dark impulse growing inside him. He couldn't help stealing another glance.
Pale golden hair, a youthful yet flawlessly beautiful face, D-cup breasts, and those endlessly long, slender legs reminiscent of a certain tyrant little sister. The tiny skirt barely covered anything; he could clearly see the white panties underneath… and the delicate little crease visible through the thin fabric.
"Don't look at me like that!"
The girl cried out, flustered and humiliated, squeezing her thighs tightly together. The chains attached to the wall rattled loudly from how hard she was pulling—proof of her desperate strength. Takumi winced, worried she'd hurt her wrists.
"Okay, okay, I'll stop looking. Just… don't pull so hard. You'll injure yourself."
She seemed surprised to hear genuine concern in his voice and slowly stopped struggling. After a moment she whispered,
"…When can you let me go?"
"Sorry. I don't know."
This time Takumi was telling the truth. Even when he cleared this game back then, the beautiful girl never got released. And now that he'd entered this world himself, all he saw was this sealed room. What lay beyond it? He had no idea. It might not even exist. After all, this place only cost a tiny bit of mana to access.
"You… don't know? Why?!"
She sounded more upset now. Takumi turned his head and said casually,
"Because it all depends on you, Nao-chan."
"M-Me…? Then let me go right now! Right now!"
"That's impossible."
"Why?! Are you going back on your word?!"
"Sorry."
"I'm definitely getting out of here!"
"By the way… does my name ring any bells?"
Seeing how worked up she was getting, Takumi decided to change the subject. Of course there was no way she could calm down that easily.
"I don't care who you are! Just let me go!"
"I'll let you go once you remember my name."
"But… I really don't have any memory of it…"
Her voice trembled. After a long silence she tentatively asked,
"…Are you… a neighbor?"
"Mhm. Childhood friend, actually."
"How is that possible?! If you're a childhood friend, then why would you do something like this?!"
"It's the only way."
The repeated "it's the only way" finally pushed her over the edge.
"Let me out! This is a crime! You'll go to prison!"
Takumi was the type who melted for soft pleas but turned stone-cold against threats. Expression blank, he walked over and sat on the chair, staring at the cup ramen someone had left on the table.
Seeing him completely ignore her, the girl finally realized how powerless she was. Her voice dropped to a soft, desperate plea.
"If you just let me go… I swear I won't tell anyone. Not my parents, not my classmates, not the police… Please… let me go home…"
"Home? To your house?"
"Yes!"
"Sorry. That's impossible."
She tried a different angle.
"…Do you… like me?"
Takumi glanced at her captivating figure and couldn't help nodding. Guys were visual creatures after all. Liking a beautiful girl wasn't a crime—even if it was the first time meeting her.
Seeing him nod, the girl seemed to relax slightly and gently coaxed,
"Then… please stop doing weird things that'll make me hate you, okay?"
"Weird things? Did I do anything weird?"
Takumi looked utterly innocent. Honestly, all he'd done was chat with the pretty girl in front of him. The whole kidnapping-and-imprisonment part? Not his doing.
The girl stared at his shamelessly relaxed expression, completely baffled. Was it really not weird to abduct someone off the street and lock them up? Was this guy insane…?
"If you keep this up, the police will come looking! Japan has one of the best public safety records in the world!"
She tried threatening him. Takumi just chuckled.
"Police?"
"Yes! So hurry up and let me go home!"
"And how exactly would they get here?"
"Th-They're very capable! They'll definitely find this place. This is kidnapping—it's a serious crime, they'll—"
"Kidnapping usually involves demanding ransom. I'm not doing that."
"Th-Then it'll still make the news! People will notice!"
"Sorry to say, but Japan has over two hundred million people. Every year more than ten thousand people go permanently missing, and half of them are never found. One person vanishing every hour isn't even news."
The girl went completely silent. After a long moment she tried again, voice shaking.
"You're lying… My mom will definitely call the police!"
"You need solid proof someone is actually missing. They won't even accept a report until forty-eight hours have passed. Most cases like this get classified as 'runaway teenager.' The police will just think, 'Ahh, kids these days love causing trouble.'"
"This isn't some teenage runaway thing! This is a crime!"
"But they can't investigate. No one's seen my face. No one knows my name. And what's my motive supposed to be?"
Once again, she had nothing.
Takumi smiled and stepped closer. Seeing her shrink back in fear, he mentally grumbled to himself.
Do I seriously have villain protagonist talent? …No, wait. Maybe it's just talent for playing the evil husband role.
"D-Don't come any closer…"
"What did I do? Why are you so scared?"
She suddenly realized—he really hadn't touched her inappropriately. Even when he looked earlier, he'd looked embarrassed. A strange feeling welled up inside her.
"But… you're keeping me locked up here. Why are you doing this?"
"I don't really get it either."
"…"
An awkward silence settled between them.
A few minutes later the girl couldn't stand it anymore.
"What day is it today?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"Because I don't even know what day it is… I can't tell how many days I've been locked up. It's really scary."
"Oh… I forgot."
Of course Takumi had no idea what year or date it was in this world. The girl hurriedly said,
"My phone can show the date! Just turn it on and look!"
"Sorry. Modern phones have GPS tracking. Right now it's probably sleeping peacefully in some sewer."
"Then… is there any other phone? I just want to call home."
Takumi laughed. Was this girl naive or just plain stupid? She quickly explained,
"I-I just want to tell them I'm safe! They must be really worried since I disappeared… I promise I won't say anything about being locked up!"
"Sorry. No can do."
He refused cleanly. The girl's shoulders slumped, tears spilling down her cheeks. Takumi looked away and started walking back to the chair.
"I'm thirsty…"
"Plain water okay?"
"I don't like plain water… I like those vegetable juice packs. The ones they sell at the station."
Takumi said nothing. She pleaded in a soft, sweet voice,
"Naa… since you know me, you should know what I like, right? Please…"
"Sorry. Too far."
"Far? Is this place really that far from the station?"
Takumi smirked. So she was trying to figure out the general location from his words and his supposed familiarity with her hometown? Pretty clever.
"Can't tell you."
"…"
"There aren't any windows… Is this a basement?"
"Why do you think that?"
"The air feels really stuffy… It's hard to breathe. It feels like even the air is locked up. It's terrifying. Are there any rooms here with windows?"
"There are."
"Naa… then do you live here?"
"Nope. This is just my secret base."
"Is it… an abandoned unfinished building?"
She asked eagerly. Takumi only smiled and stayed silent. He had no idea either, but he had to admit—he was impressed she was still trying to gather information like this.
"How are your parents doing?"
Seeing he wouldn't answer, she changed the topic again. Takumi chuckled.
"They're doing great."
"Then… don't they worry when you don't come home?"
"Don't worry about that. They're far away and rarely come back."
"Naa… I think I hear someone coming from far away."
"You're hearing things. No one's coming here."
"So… it's just you and me in this place?"
"Yep. So scream all you want—no one's gonna save you."
"…"
"How long are you planning to keep me here? Can't I at least use the bathroom or take a shower? It's so hot and stuffy… I'm sweating a lot. You wouldn't like a girl who smells bad, right?"
"It's fine. You're a beautiful girl, Nao-chan. I don't mind if you sweat a little."
"…"
Total defeat.