Chapter 86: Witnessing the past (1)

I have no idea what the heck is going on! Seriously!

Where the hell am I!?

Did I have a stroke or something? What if this is some hallucination? Or even worse: did I accidentally eat a funky mushroom this morning?

No, that can not be. Rachel is a respectable cook and takes great pride in preparing our food. Determined to become a notable figure in the industry, I doubt she would not let anything toxic enter our meals since that would be a blemish on her ability.

Plus, I have never seen her doing something that...unconventional. Rather than giving hallucinogenics items to someone, Rachel would be more comfortable making them pass out as she did to our protagonist. After all, she could do it whenever she wanted. Mushrooms were obviously redundant to her.

Besides, the images in front of me are too vivid to be hallucinations.

Shadow people walking around aimlessly, well-defined ridges and edges of white walls, transparent glass windows that cover half of the corridor, and a beautiful azure sky with a giant fireball on top of everything. Finally, a distinctive murmuring sound can be heard from all around me. It can not get any more familiar, can it? I mean... I have been to this place an uncountable amount of times already.

This is unquestionably the way leading to our classroom.

But that is neither a question nor an answer to anything. The real question is why??? Why am I here all of a sudden? What just happened? And most importantly: Who did it? Who could actually pull a trick that completely baffled me like this one?

One moment, I was on the school's rooftop, trying to pull Kurokawa back from the edge to prevent her from diving to her doom. Then the next one, everything around me changed drastically, as if space and time have no meaning whatsoever.

Hold on, let me rephrase that. Rather than saying that my surroundings have changed, I think it makes more sense to say I was teleported to another place. That is how utterly ridiculous whatever is happening is to me. My world is entirely fictional. And I have already gotten used to such a fact. Because of its unbelievable nature, physics should not be considered too strictly since it can be broken by anyone within the main cast. But it has to be a bit of a limit somewhere, for Christ's sake!

However, I do not have the time to think of anything else. Kurokawa, who was supposed to be in my arms, is nowhere to be seen! She just suddenly vanished after our brief touch!

"Haaaaa..." Trying to calm my loud thumping heart down, I breathe out a heavy sigh. Sadly, it does not seem to soothe me at all. "At a time like this, and I lost her again..."

Fortunately, after so many years, I have learned every nook and cranny of our school, so much so that I understand it like the back of my hand. Or else I would be freaking my ass off right now. I do not even want to think about what would happen if I was teleported into an unknown room.

"Kurokawa?" Using all my breath, I scream out the bookworm's name. "Where are you?"

Of course, no one amongst the shadow people bats an eye at my loud voice. Except for their unintelligible noise, they make no other sound. Like well-oiled machines or well-paid social workers, the shadow people move toward their predesigned destinations without delay. Thanks to their ignorance, I can do whatever I want, or I would have caused a scene by now.

There is...something odd about their sudden appearance, though...

Am I missing something here?

...

On second thought, I should be freaking my ass off regardless of the cause. When I got to the school's rooftop, the students were supposed to be in class! Judging by the look of this, the time should be around lunch break or recess! I heard no chimes signaling the beginning of a break, either.

This is not normal. Not at all! Now I have no idea the time, place, the cause... nothing is making any sense to me! It is obvious to say I am not a bright guy, but this is clearly outrageous!

What if something horrible is going on? What happened during the time I touched Kurokawa and now?! What if I had a sudden blackout and Kurokawa was let down because I abandoned her?

What if... she makes a second attempt?

Or worse...What if she has already succeeded?!

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"Damn it! DAMN IT!"

Nevertheless, my feet start moving with haste, and my body pushes through the crowd to make way. It is unknown if it is because of the adrenaline coursing through my bloodstream or something else. But the shadow people have never been so easy to move aside. Under my anxiety's influence and the strength created by it, they seem to be weightless. Even feathers would have some force pushing back if I touched them, but not these shadow people. Alas, I am not paying them much attention. Kurokawa's safety is still more important than anything at this moment.

As I scan the surroundings, trying to find any signs that our bookworm left behind, her blood is the one thing I am trying to look for. Dripping like a leaking faucet, the moment I find her crimson trail is when I bolt toward her location. This is not an exaggeration. Kurokawa is in no condition to be left alone. She must have someone by her side, or she will do something drastic!

I know her enough to make that conclusion.

"Kurokawa?" While running toward the rooftop, I yell her name for the second time. This is where I know she would come up first in her state of mind. "Can you hear me? Please, don't do it!! I'm coming up with you!"

However, weird things keep coming at me. Kurokawa's blood trail is no longer there.

"...?!"

Now that I am noticing these, the tiles on my way leading to the school's rooftop are spotless. For some unknown reason, there is no blood. No red spots or brown spots, no nothing. Either someone cleaned it all up, or it never existed in the first place. And I know how hard it is to clean blood spots with household items. The only person with that kind of knowledge currently would be none other than Rachel.

The fact that she and Laura are nowhere to be seen bothers me greatly. After all my yelling and running, they should be worried and come after me. Although we met just a few minutes ago, I have no doubt that the two would find a place to hide and observe the situation rather than go to class. Their obsessive nature forbids them to return without knowing everything about their loved one. It is not me speaking highly of myself, but their defining traits that give them the heroine roles.

Yet...Blondie and the class rep did not show themselves anywhere once. Not just one of them, but all of them.

My head darts from point to point, looking for a familiar figure. Unfortunately, there is nobody in sight. Their usual presence is gone from my visual field.

This...feels lonely.

Nonetheless, I climb the stairs while ignoring the ever-growing discomfort within my chest. After a quick second, the door leading toward the school's rooftop is in front. On the ground, Kurokawa's blood trail is gone despite this being where I found her bleeding profusely moments ago. There should be at least a sign, some patterns, perhaps. But no. Still nothing.

Everything has been utterly confusing, to the point of being complete nonsense.

Honestly, I have no idea why, but I am starting to be afraid of the answer. Something tells me this is not related to Kurokawa.

It is related to me.

"...Can't stop now." Reaching for the handle, I steel my nerves for what is yet to come. Whether Kurokawa is behind this door or not, I will find out soon enough.

"Huh? The freak?"

Did my vision fail me? I swear I saw the handle going inside and then through my hand like I was a hologram.

Perplexed beyond words, I shake my head from left to right and make a second attempt to grab the door handle. This time with less force and more precision. What kind of a dumb character would I be if I could not open a tiny door? I am already useless. No need to create another level of worthlessness to achieve.

Anyhow, that should have been a fluke. Because of all the stress and confusion, loads of cold sweat covered my palms. Thus, my hand slipped. It can not be any simpler and would logically explain what just happened. These weird occurrences happening are probably making me lose my mind a little.

...How I wish that is the case...

 

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