Novel 'To Hell with Reincarnation' Episode 16: A Small Stroke of Luck and My First Act of Resistance

“Well then, I’ll let you know if I find out anything.”
“I appreciate it.”

I bowed deeply to Ms. Inagaki, who had come to see us off at the entrance of the community center. He followed suit and offered his own words of thanks.

“Thank you for everything today.”
“Not at all. If there’s anything I can do to help, please feel free to reach out.”

She smiled brightly as she said that. Even though we had only met today, I found myself growing fond of her smile. That gentle, warm expression reminded me somewhat of my mother.

“Saya? Let’s go.”
“Huh? Oh, right.”

When I realized it, he had already turned on his heel and was several meters ahead. I hurriedly turned my body to chase after him, but when I heard someone call out “Ms. Omori” from behind, I turned back halfway. I waited for her to speak, wondering what it could be.

“I think you could stand to be a little more honest with your own feelings.”

I couldn’t grasp the meaning behind Ms. Inagaki’s words, delivered with a smile. For now, I gave a slight nod to show I had heard her, and then I finally set off to catch up with his back.

“Ugh, the bus just left. Talk about bad luck.”

He, who had been waiting outside, grumbled while looking at his smartphone. The original plan was to head home immediately after the lecture, so we had calculated that we would have plenty of time to catch the bus, but because of the time spent talking to Ms. Inagaki, it seemed we had missed it.

“How long until the next bus?”
“Hmm... roughly a little over an hour, I’d say.”
“Wow, that’s quite a while...”

Having been blessed with the good fortune of exchanging contact information with an IKOI board member, I didn’t want to say I was unlucky, but having an hour of free time suddenly thrust upon me wasn’t exactly welcome.

“Well, it can’t be helped, so let’s just kill some time around here. Is there anywhere you want to go?”
“Huh?”

I couldn’t hide my agitation at his sudden suggestion. It was true that this area was the most prosperous part of the city, and there were plenty of places to kill time. But I had never dreamed that he would be the one to suggest such a thing.

“Well, maybe a bookstore...”

My true feelings slipped out, but I immediately realized it was a mistake. As long as I was in this “body,” I could kill time indefinitely as long as I had a book, but I didn’t think he was the type of person interested in books. I opened my mouth to retract my statement immediately, but his voice beat me to it by a split second.

“A bookstore, huh. The closest one from here is that place in the shopping mall, what’s it called? Is that okay?”

Since he moved the conversation forward without showing any sign of annoyance, I couldn’t back out and ended up nodding. And so, for a plan decided without any twists or turns, we moved our location to a shopping mall about a ten-minute walk away.

Being Saturday, the shopping mall was crowded with many people. The bookstore we were aiming for was located past the throng of people, up three flights of escalators.

“Oh. The results for this publisher’s newcomer award have already been announced.”

I said that in a voice I couldn't hide my excitement with, and picked up a book displayed on the storefront. Unlike those in a used bookstore, these books were clean, without any stains, creases, or scribbles, and I felt a small thrill. Novels, essays, poetry collections, magazines. I was drawn into the bookstore, my eyes darting from one thing to another.

"You like books, don't you?"

I had been so absorbed in all the new books lining the shelves that I was startled back to reality when someone called out to me from behind. I realized I had been completely lost in my own enjoyment and hadn't thought about him at all, and I suddenly felt awkward.

"Oh... I'm sorry. I was just getting excited on my own..."
"No, it's fine. You need a break sometimes, too."

Come to think of it, this was the first time I had ever come to a bookstore with someone other than my mother. I don't have the right to call him a friend, but there is a part of 'me' that wants to be forgiven for pretending, just for now, that I 'came to a bookstore with a friend.' That's how much 'I' was enjoying this time.

"Kukuri-san, do you not read any books?"

I blurted out the question, following the impulse that welled up from within me.

"Nah, I'm not good with text. I read manga, though—"
"Then please, tell me your recommended manga!"

I interrupted him before he could finish his sentence, took his hand, and headed toward the manga section. In a dream that would last only about thirty minutes, 'I' didn't want to waste a single second.

However, the world was, as expected, harsh toward 'me.' The time that serves as the world's servant, with its inherent cold-bloodedness, pulled the reality of the bus schedule toward us with tremendous force. When I was informed of that by his lips, this world surely didn't care at all about how shocked I was.

Though I felt reluctant to leave, I had no choice but to leave the bookstore. Just as when I arrived, I used the escalator to go down to the first floor and headed for the exit. During this time, my gaze was fixed entirely on my own feet.

"Ah."

He stopped walking suddenly, so I almost bumped into his back. When I stepped to his side, I could see a couple standing facing us. Moreover, the man among them was someone 'I' knew.

"Oh, hey, Shinsei. What a coincidence to meet you here."
"Oh, long time no see, Ryuji."

Ryuji Makuhara. A classmate from when 'I' was Yuu Isosawa, a handsome young man of talent and beauty. He was a natural lady-killer, but my assessment of Ryuji Makuhara was that he was by no means a bad person.

"And who is that girl with you? I don't recognize her face."
"Oh, um, I'm Saya Omori from Class 3."
"Omori-san, huh. Sorry. I don't really remember the names of people in other classes."

Ryuji Makuhara said that while showing his usual refreshing smile. However, at the same time, I was showered with a look of open hostility from the person next to him, and I instinctively took a step back.

"You're the one who should be talking, who is that girl next to you?"

When he asked about the girl who was stuck to Ryuji Makuhara's side and wouldn't let go, she opened her mouth to introduce herself.

"I'm Karin Tsuji, a second-year at Nishiko High. I'm Ryuji-kun's girlfriend."

Somehow, it sounded to me like she had emphasized the second part of her statement. The look she had directed at me just moments ago likely carried almost the same meaning. Between Minami Ishimoto and Karin Tsuji, it seemed that Ryuji Makuhara had been cursed with bad luck when it came to women, despite his blessed natural gifts.

“Huh, so you’re on a date, then? If the girls in our class found out you were seeing a girl from another school, they’d be in tears.”
“Ahaha, I wonder about that. But Shinsei, aren’t you one to talk?”

Ryuji Makuhara said that and gave me a quick glance, and between that and the clothes I was currently wearing, I felt my cheeks grow so hot I thought steam might start rising from them. To make matters worse, I was then subjected to a glare from Karin Tsuji so sharp I thought it might kill me, as she had completely misunderstood the situation.

“No, it’s not like we’re on a date or anything. We both just happened to have business at the community center, and we stopped by here on the way back.”

Seeing him respond so calmly without even a hint of agitation, 'I' felt a slight sense of unease. I felt like I had seen a similar exchange somewhere before, but was he really this calm back then? As I thought about that, I felt a strange, unfamiliar sensation slowly spreading through my chest.

“The community center?”
“Well, just some trivial business.”
“Hmm? I see. Oh, by the way, I have a favor to ask of you, Shinsei—”

As Ryuji Makuhara said that, he led him toward the side of the hallway, so I tried to follow them. However, the moment I took my first step, someone grabbed my wrist, preventing me from moving forward, and I was forced to turn around. Standing there was Ryuji Makuhara’s girlfriend, Karin Tsuji.

“Come here for a second.”

She said that in a low voice, then led me away from the two boys to a spot where she confronted me.

“I don’t like beating around the bush, so I’ll be blunt: can you stop making eyes at Ryuji?”
“Eh?”

I froze, unable to comprehend what had just been said to me due to the sheer absurdity of the remark.

“I said—! Ryuji is my boyfriend, so keep your hands off him! You were blushing when you made eye contact with him earlier, so don’t get any wrong ideas.”
“Huh...”

It was a complete misunderstanding from start to finish, but since it didn't seem like she was willing to listen to reason, I just let her claims wash over me.

“I’ve even stayed over at Ryuji’s house! There’s no room for you to get in between us, you know!”
“Oh, I see. So that means your relationship is officially approved by Ryuji-kun’s parents, then.”

Not wanting this to turn into a long ordeal, I carefully chose words that would appease her. However, her reaction to that was completely different from what I had expected.

“Huh? Parents? Why would I need my parents’ permission?”
“Eh? But you just said you’ve stayed over at Ryuji-kun’s house—”
“Karin.”

Ryuji Makuhara appeared from behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You shouldn’t trouble Omori-san so much.”
“But...”

Rebuked by Ryuji Makuhara, Karin Tsuji suddenly lost her bravado and shrank back, as if a balloon had been deflated.

“I’m sorry, Omori-san. Karin didn’t mean any harm.”
“No, it’s quite alright.”

Since I didn't want to be viewed with any more hostility, I took care to avoid making eye contact with Ryuji Makuhara as much as possible, and moved to stand next to him, who had returned a step behind me. He looked at his smartphone screen and spoke up, looking a bit flustered.

“Oh crap. The bus is coming, so we’ve gotta go. See ya, Ryuji. Sorry for the interruption.”
“No, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it. See you later, Shinsei.”

And so, we both disappeared into the crowd. However, after walking a little way, I felt a gaze from behind and was forced to look back once. But Ryuji Makuhara and Karin Tsuji were no longer there. It was probably just the lingering sensation of the gaze Karin Tsuji had been directing at me until just a moment ago. I decided to think of it that way, turned back around, and chased after his back.

Since we had agreed that he would be in charge of approaching the counselor currently assigned to Higashi High, my school life after the weekend was supposed to be no different from usual. Until the fourth-period class ended and I took out my lunch box, I was completely convinced that it was just as usual—that it was my daily life.

“Sa-yacchi!”

I was so startled by the hand suddenly placed on my shoulder that I dropped my chopsticks. And in the next instant, I realized that my original daily life had suddenly returned from the far shore of two months of time to stand right before my eyes.

“Hey, hey, it’s been a really long time since we talked like this, hasn’t it? I was so lonely. You never call out to me, Sayacchi.”

She rattled off such nonsense while using a pressure that wasn't quite words to pull me from my seat and lead me outside. The two girls from before were waiting at our destination, just as I had expected.

“I’ve brought Saya-san!”
“Oh, it’s Saya-san. Long time no see!”
“I missed you, Saya-saaan!”

Clownish lines and devilish laughter instantly surrounded me. The painful memories I had almost forgotten surged back into my consciousness, and I felt as if I were about to be crushed by the terror from both inside and out.

“We’re going to run out of lunch break, so come on, hurry up and take it out, Saya-san.”
“You’ve been saving up for us while we weren’t together, right? No need to be coy about it.”
“Come on, hurry! Hurry!”

They continued to get carried away, clapping their hands and chanting “hurry” over and over. Having once been terrified that their evil deeds would be exposed due to the suicide attempt video incident, they had resumed bullying me, as if embodying the proverb that one forgets the heat once the danger has passed.

My body trembled, and cold sweat seeped out. I slowly reached into my uniform pocket to grab my wallet, and as I tried to pull it out—

“Hey? What’s wrong?”

I pulled my hand out of my pocket without grabbing anything. I stood there, gripping the fabric of my skirt tightly instead of my wallet. And with vocal cords that refused to cooperate, I forcibly squeezed out the words.

“I don’t want to...”
“...Huh?”

A brief silence enveloped the area. Staring at the ground, I caught them in my field of vision from beneath my lashes during that strangely long silence—and I felt my internal organs go cold with a terror that froze my spine. All that was there was intense dissatisfaction and resentment that their possession was not doing as they pleased.

“Hey, what did you just say? Say it again!”

A classmate on the track team grabbed me by the collar and shouted. I felt like giving in to that irresistible physical dominance, but I gritted my teeth and let out the definitive words.

“I said I don’t want to!”

My shout made them freeze in surprise. But it only lasted for a split second; once they made up their minds, they began to close the distance between us.

“Hey, don’t get cocky, you ugly brat.”
“We aren’t scared of you just because you’re shouting with teary eyes.”
“You’ve gotten way too full of yourself since I last saw you. Looks like you need a lesson—huh!”

I was shoved back by the collar they had been gripping, fell backward with force, and slammed my lower back against the concrete. As I curled up in pain, they surrounded me and all three began to kick me at once.

“You should just shut up and be our wallet!”
“Know your place, you ugly brat!”

Pain shot through every part of my body. Without even knowing why I had done such a thing, I desperately endured their violence. If I broke here, I knew I would never be able to stand up to them again. That was why I absolutely had to endure it.

However, time flowed slowly, as if to break my will. The distortion of time and space, so intense that I felt the illusion that this hell might last forever, gradually wore me down. The thought that perhaps I was truly destined never to be freed from this misfortune crossed my mind, rapidly draining my ability to resist.

It might be easier if I just broke—the moment that thought finally surfaced, that voice suddenly shook the eardrums of everyone present.

“You girls! What on earth are you doing!”
“Oh crap!”
“Let’s run!”

At the sudden angry shout echoing from afar, they all ran away at once. The owner of that voice rushed over to where I was curled up in pain, crouched down, and placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Hey! Are you okay!?”
“Arai... sensei?”

There was Arai-sensei, speaking to me with a spirit I could never have imagined from his usual listless classes.

“I’m taking you to the infirmary right now. Can you stand?”

I tried to stand up while enduring the pain all over my body, but I felt a sharp pain near my left ankle and involuntarily crouched back down.

“Did they get your left leg? Alright, I’ll lend you my shoulder.”

Arai-sensei said that and helped me up by putting my left arm around his neck. However, since he had to lower his shoulder to match my height of about 150 centimeters, his posture became quite strained. We entered the school through the staff entrance and reached the infirmary without running into anyone.

“Mizuno-sensei!”

Arai-sensei opened the infirmary door with force, and Mizuno-sensei, startled by that, looked even more shocked when she saw my condition.

“Arai-sensei! What on earth happened!?”
“This girl was being kicked by other students. Please treat her.”
“W-what? Kicked!? Oh no...!”
“U-um!”

Sensing that the commotion would only grow if things continued this way, I suddenly raised my voice. The two teachers were startled by my sudden shout and fell silent.

"Could you please not make a big deal out of this? I'll be fine, really..."

The teachers looked at each other as if they had no idea what I was talking about, then turned back to me with expressions of bewilderment and began to argue.

"What do you mean you'll be fine... that's impossible, isn't it?"
"Mr. Mizuno is right, this is—"
"Um! How should I put this... I just want you to handle this as quietly as possible. So, um... could you please not contact my mother?"

At the strange request that had tumbled out of my mouth, the two teachers looked even more conflicted. Mr. Mizuno, in particular, tilted his head and wore a troubled expression.

"Even if you ask us that..."
"Please! I just really don't want my mother to find out about this!"

I bowed my head and pleaded with Mr. Mizuno, who was still being indecisive. If my mother found out about this incident, she would surely insist on transferring me to another school. And if that happened, the financial burden on our household would inevitably increase, forcing my mother to work even harder than she already does. Looking at her current state, it was clear as day that such a thing was impossible.

After a moment of silence, Mr. Arai placed a hand on my shoulder and told me to lift my head. With anxiety written all over my face, I timidly raised my gaze.

"For now, let's prioritize your treatment. We can talk about what to do next after that. Mr. Mizuno, are you alright with that?"

At Mr. Arai's calm tone, Mr. Mizuno nodded as if reluctantly. I breathed a sigh of relief, having escaped the immediate crisis for the time being. After arranging for the three of us to talk after school, Mr. Arai said "I'll leave it to you" to Mr. Mizuno and left the infirmary.

"Well, now that the man is gone, why don't you take off your clothes so I can see the extent of your injuries? Oh, of course, behind the bed curtain."

Although my concerns were still piling up, I resigned myself to the fact that I had no choice but to receive treatment from Ms. Mizuno, and I dragged my aching feet toward the bed as instructed.