I Want to Completely Avoid Troubled Girls, but It Seems I’ve Reincarnated as a Background Character in the Most Dangerous Yandere Academy - Chapter 28

Chapter 28: Ruriko’s Intense Feelings and The Reason Behind Them

The thrilling swimming session ended.

What awaited me next was a scolding session from Ruriko.

She demanded an explanation for the gestures of affection I had received from the three beautiful girls at the pool.

Each of them seemed to have their own reasons.

Ruriko, in particular, seemed unable to forgive me for being distracted by anyone other than her.

“After school, come to my house. This is non-negotiable,” she declared coldly.

I had no right to refuse. I had to calm Ruriko’s barely concealed anger.

To avoid suspicion from Yuu and Kurokawa, I decided to stagger my return home.

I arrived later, rang the doorbell, and entered with a nervous heart.

Invited to sit on the sofa, Ruriko began speaking.

“Um, Ruriko…”

“You look like you have something to apologize for.”

“Yeah. About the pool earlier, I let myself be distracted by the other two, and I regret it.”

Although apologizing felt awkward, it was the only way to ease Ruriko’s anger.

“I don’t need shallow, insincere apologies. It’s obvious when you’re not being truthful.”

“…I see.”

“You’re thinking, ‘What else am I supposed to say?’ aren’t you? I can tell exactly what you’re feeling.”

How was I supposed to respond to that? I cursed silently in frustration.

“You’re wondering what you should do now, aren’t you?”

“You’re reading my mind like an open book. Do you have some kind of telepathic ability?”

“Not at all. But when you know someone deeply, it becomes almost like mind-reading. Fufu.”

“What are you scheming, Ruriko?”

She hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Do you believe in fate?”

This wasn’t the first time I’d heard that question.

“I do. Or rather, I can’t help but believe in it.”

Satsuki was a prime example. Even after her death, I encountered her in a new world—a brief but meaningful reunion that felt like destiny.

“I strongly believe in it. Every encounter, every event has meaning. That includes my meeting with you.”

“You’re being quite cryptic.”

“This is just the preparation. The main topic starts now. Come with me to that room.”

With an ominous tone, Ruriko added, “The room where I once confined you.”

A chill ran down my spine, fearing I was about to face trouble again.

Assuring me she bore no ill intent, she handed me the key to the locked room.

I stepped into the sterile, damp room.

Bookshelves packed with notebooks and documents lined the walls.

“I’ve never explained this room in detail to you before. But now, I will.”

“What do you mean?”

Ruriko took out a notebook titled Issei-kun.

“What’s this?”

“Exactly what it says. A notebook about you.”

She flipped through the pages.

I couldn’t help but grimace.

Each page was filled to the brim with information—my personal details, preferences, habits, thought patterns, and more.

It seemed this notebook understood me better than I understood myself.

“Of course, it’s not just one notebook. There are many, including ones about the other girls. A lot, actually.”

“This is terrifying. Analyzing someone to this extent…”

I’d heard stories about obsessive lovers wanting to know everything about their target, but Ruriko’s dedication was astonishing.

“Why would you go this far?”

“I wonder. But knowing more about you is far from meaningless.”

“Stop dragging this out and tell me already.”

When I urged her, Ruriko smiled faintly.

“You’re direct, and I appreciate that. What I’m about to say might sound utterly absurd, but please listen with that understanding.”

“Alright. At this point, I can probably accept anything.”

“Good,” she said softly.

“The truth is…”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve experienced school life with you dozens of times already.”

“Dozens of times? What does that mean?”

“In short, I’ve been in a special kind of time loop.”

This bizarre world had been strange from the beginning.

It didn’t surprise me to learn one of the heroines was a time traveler. This wasn’t part of the original game, of course.

Talk about deviating from the source material.

“I see.”

“That’s all you have to say? Aren’t you shocked?”

“Of course, it’s surprising. But at this point, I can accept it as just another possibility.”

“I knew it. This time, you’re clearly different from the others. I’m glad I told you.”

“First, tell me more about your ability.”

She explained that while she could time-travel, she never returned to exactly the same past.

Some classmates changed, and different events occurred each time.

Essentially, she jumped to similar but distinct parallel worlds.

I interpreted it through my understanding of Ultimate Yandere Academy.

The game had multiple routes and branching timelines.

After completing one route, you could explore another.

Ruriko had experienced various routes. When one ended, she returned to the same save point, only to start over in a slightly different world.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

“What triggers the shift to another timeline?”

“…When you, Issei-kun, are broken.”

“Broken? How?”

“Through accidents, being killed, or having a mental breakdown… In other words, a bad ending.”

“Come on!”

Ultimate Yandere Academy was notorious for its brutal bad endings. So this stuck to the original game’s difficulty.

“The only things that loop with me are this room and myself. All the information I’ve gathered across loops is stored here.”

“That explains a lot.”

“I know so much about you because I’ve observed countless versions of you.”

Ruriko took a deep breath before continuing.

“I’ve spent years watching you, Issei-kun. I’ve tried countless times to save you, but I’ve always failed. In the end, another girl always breaks you.”

“I see.”

“That’s why this time, it has to end. To make that happen, the person who knows you best—me—must love you deeply. The one who truly knows you should be the one you’re with.”

Then, with trembling words, she proposed:

“Let’s stay in this room together forever. Just the two of us, where no one can interfere. It’s the only way to survive. You understand, don’t you, my dearest Issei-kun?”

Her voice shook, and her eyes had lost their light.