I Saved the First Victim of the Horror Game (The Idol in My Class), and She Became the Ultimate Sweet Heroine Who Smiles Only at Me - 18-19

Chapter 18: A Girl That Seems Like the Main Heroine!

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“Your shoes are fine as they are, right?”

Trying not to make a sound, we neatly placed our shoes at the entrance. The inside was surprisingly spacious, and a distinct, lived-in smell hit my nose. Every step made the floorboards creak, and right now, it sounded like a ticking bomb, making my heart race.

“Ueno-kun… this way.”

Murase-san gently tugged at my shirt, guiding me into a roughly six-tatami-mat-sized Japanese-style room at the end of the hallway. Worn cushions and faded hanging scrolls were still there. At first, I was sure I was terrified of a place like this, but habits were scary indeed. Now this kind of place didn’t bother me at all.

“In here… even if a light shines from outside, our shadows shouldn’t be very visible.”

Moonlight filtered through the shoji, making Murase-san’s pale skin glow ghostly. We sat against the corner of the room, the darkest spot, with our backs pressed to the wall.

“Ueno-kun, are you close with Hoshino-san?”

“I don’t think so.”

“But you seemed close.”

“Really? I thought it was normal.”

When I answered, Murase-san frowned slightly and inched closer. Our shoulders bumped, and I could feel her warmth directly. In the cold air of the abandoned house, that little area was intensely hot. Was it like this in the first shed too?

“Hm…”

She hugged her knees, resting her chin on them, and stared at me with an upturned gaze. Usually expressionless, now her lips seemed slightly pouted. 

Is she sulking…?

“My head feels all messy. I feel like I’m going crazy.”

Murase-san dropped her face in her hands, looking downcast.

“I feel like there’s so much I should remember, but I can’t. I know for sure that Ueno-kun is on my side…”

“Murase-san…”

“But when you’re talking to someone else, it makes me feel bad. I don’t understand this at all…”

Her voice was barely a whisper, as if talking to herself. She clutched the hem of my shirt weakly but with the determination that made me feel she wouldn’t let go.

“I feel like this happened before too. You were laughing somewhere I didn’t know about… and I was the only one far away…”

Then Murase-san said something that made me stop in my tracks—

“Hoshino-san is always like the main heroine…”

Her words hit me. Hoshino-san, the main heroine…? Hearing it from Murase-san made me think about so many things. Come to think of it, whether the first choice was [Yes] or [No], Hoshino-san always got involved. Could she be the trigger for events!?

Choice [Yes] led to a natural (?) horror scenario with the classmates. Ignoring the choice led to a bugged-world scenario trying to forcibly kill Murase-san. So choice [No]…? Horror without meeting the classmates? In [Yes], the first person we met was Yamamoto. In [No], the first person we met was Hoshino-san.

Then where were they when the choice was ignored…? Somehow the classmates had escaped.

“I don’t knooooow!”

I hadn’t progressed beyond the synopsis, so I had no idea! But if I went further, Murase-san would die! This dilemma was insane!

Calm down, me. I have to figure out this loop or we’ll be stuck here forever. For now, I’ll assign roles in my head:

Yamamoto → Trouble maker

Tanaka → Loud one (probably second to die)

Sato-kun → The culprit

Hoshino-san → Suspected main heroine (?)

Nanase-san → Creepy role

Totally my own judgment! But thinking this way, even if we encounter classmates, maybe we can prepare a bit.

“U-Ueno-kun?”

“Just so you know, my main heroine is Murase-san!”

“W-Wh-what are you…!? Suddenly saying something weird like that…!”

Murase-san’s face turned bright red and froze like a boiled octopus. Gone was the sulking mode from earlier. Her heart thumped directly through our connected hands.

“Even if it’s just an empty flattery… my heart can’t handle this…”

She covered her face with both hands. But through her fingers, I could see her eyes. They were hotter than before, yet somehow carried a sense of relief.

I just said something embarrassing.

I was aware it was a reckless, tactless comment in my desperation to conquer the world, but now, I had to keep Murase-san’s heart connected to me. If her heart broke or fear consumed her, that would be the ultimate death flag.

“Main heroine… I’m not something sparkling like that…”

“Eh?! You’re an idol, and you’re resisting sparkle? I can’t believe it.”

“I’ve even thought about quitting being an idol…”

Oh, that might be the first time I’ve heard that.

“Why?”

“I’m absolutely not suited for it. You get it, right?”

“Well…”

She doesn’t talk much, keeps a blank expression, doesn’t smile to charm others, and doesn’t seem to have any special skills. 

That was definitely the impression I had so far. But…

“What a waste. I’m going to see your live show, so you should keep doing itt.”

“Ehhh, no way!”

“I want to see Murase-san as an idol at least once!”

Because I still half-don’t believe it! That she’s an idol! Thinking about the stereotype, the first to die being a “classmate idol” seems like it’s set up for something bad to happen!

“B-But idols can’t date…”

“Did you say something?”

“Nope, didn’t say anything.”

Her voice was so quiet I could barely hear it. She murmured alone, covering her face.

Maybe I should learn those fan chants. Waving a penlight full force might be fun too.

“Hey, Ueno! Air-chan!”

The penlight—or rather, the flashlight—light reflected on the shoji!

Oh no! That’s Sato-kun’s voice!

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Chapter 19: The Closet: A Confined Space, Close Contact, and Secret Story

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“—!”

The shadow of Sato-kun reflected on the shoji froze in place. The flashlight’s beam penetrated the thin paper of the shoji and reached right up to where we were.

Is he in the garden…?

I could tell from the angle of the light coming through the shoji. The beam wasn’t coming from the hallway side but from the veranda facing the garden, slicing through the darkness outside and entering the room.

“Ueno’s pissed, huh… Jeez, what a pain. That torii is just a rumor anyway, they should just go through it already. And why the heck is Air-chan even here for the test of courage…”

Muttering to himself, Sato-kun shuffled around near the garden. The flashlight he carried distorted the shoji’s lattice like a glowing saber in the darkness. We carefully lowered our posture to avoid the beam, moving away from the shoji. There was a closet nearby… Opening a closet in a house like this took courage, but hiding might be the better option.

“Murase-san, let’s hide in the closet behind us.”

“Hyah!”

When I whispered to her, she let out a strange sound.

“Hm—?”

Sato-kun’s footsteps stopped abruptly.

Crap, he definitely heard that “hyah!” I held back my heart from jumping out of my chest, instinctively pulled Murase-san close, and slid into the closet behind us. The musty smell of mold and decades-old cotton filled the air. I pushed Murase-san to the back and twisted my body into the cramped space, slowly closing the sliding door without making a sound.

—Rustle.

Just outside, the sound of footsteps on the garden grass suddenly sped up.

“Th-there’s someone there…?”

Sato-kun’s voice trembled with fear. Inside the pitch-black closet, Murase-san froze, eyes wide, in my arms. Whether from embarrassment over her earlier “hyah!” or sheer terror, I could tell even in the dark that her face was buried against my chest, her earlobes flushed bright red.

“(…S-sorry…)”

Her voice was barely audible as she clenched my shirt. Instead of replying, I gently placed my finger over her lips to quiet her.

—Thump, thump.

Our hearts beat against each other’s, the sound bouncing back and forth, making it impossible to tell whose was whose. Her warm breath brushed against my finger, trapping both our heat in the small closet.

Clatter.

The veranda’s sliding glass door opened. Sato-kun had entered the room.

“I-I’m taking this…! If someone’s there, come out!”

I heard the sound of him picking something up and yelling.

Why is he coming inside?!

Creak… creak… Each step drew him closer. I hugged Murase-san tighter. Her soft body and the faint scent of soap combined with the fear of death, making my brain go numb. The closeness was agonizingly sweet. And yet, Sato-kun, who attacked us last time, was just beyond the sliding door. Despite the extreme situation, Murase-san wrapped her small hand over mine, trembling but firm.

“(…This time, I’ll protect you…!)”

A hushed whisper brushed against my ear like feathers. Trembling, she pressed her hand harder over mine, her eyes filled with resolve as she stared straight at me in the darkness.

No… That’s not right. Because the person I want to protect the most in this world is Murase-san!

“…Is no one here? But I swear I just heard a girl’s voice…”

Sato-kun’s voice trembled. Last loop, he had been the frenzied, crazed version who hunted us like prey. Now, he sounded like a frightened classmate himself.

“(…No one’s here? Hey, Yamamoto! Tanaka! If you’re joking, come out! This is scary!)”

His voice sounded weak again. Inside the dark closet, I was confused. The frenzied Sato from the previous loop, who tried to kill us, was nowhere to be seen. Now he was just a scared classmate.

“(…Ueno-kun, something’s wrong. Sato-kun… he’s about to cry…)”

Her whisper tickled my ear, making my spine shiver. Murase-san clung even tighter, as if entrusting her heartbeat to me.

“I… I’m the kind of person who notices this kind of thing… Animals or humans, it doesn’t matter.”

The footsteps stopped right at the closet door.

“It’s… around here, right?”

Sato-kun’s hand touched the door handle. The old wood clicked.

“(…No… don’t come…!)”

Murase-san instinctively buried her face in my neck and held on tight. Her hair brushed my nose, releasing a sweet scent that overwhelmed the senses. My heartbeat seemed so loud it might echo outside.

Then…

“Sato-kun? What are you doing?”

A voice, cold as ice, came from the room’s entrance.

It was Nanase-san, the one who had gone missing last time.

“N-Nanase!? D-don’t scare me like that…”

“What are you doing here alone? You’re looking for Ueno-kun and Mio-chan, right?”

“Yeah, but…”

“Don’t forget that promise.”

“That promise?”

“The one about Mio-chan.”

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