I Want to Completely Avoid Troubled Girls, but It Seems I’ve Reincarnated as a Background Character in the Most Dangerous Yandere Academy - Chapter 41-42

Chapter 41: My Return

After nearly drowning in the sea and being rushed to the hospital, I was fortunate enough to find no major abnormalities in my body.

“For now, take a full day to rest,” the doctor instructed.

“Seriously, don’t ever wander between life and death like that again,” Ruriko scolded me, clearly worried.

She had every right to be. It was unexpected that I would be the one who ended up drowning, despite the warning that someone might.

If I had died, the loop would start over, forcing Ruriko back to square one.

“I truly caused you worry. I’m sorry,” I said.

“Don’t apologize. You came back alive, so everything is okay,” she replied.

“Thank you for being concerned,” I added.

“That’s the right answer,” she said with a smile.

I wasn’t alone in the hospital room with Ruriko.

“I was on edge thinking you might actually die again. Promise me you won’t do anything reckless,” Kana said, her tone calm but firm.

She, too, had her reasons. Once, Satsuki’s soul, the ex-girlfriend who killed me, had possessed her. Her words reflected that memory.

“Please, don’t leave us. Losing someone as amusing as you would dull life’s colors,” Yu teased, smirking as usual.

“Don’t treat me like a source of entertainment,” I retorted.

“Impressive. You’re spirited enough to argue with me,” Yu quipped.

“Shut up,” I muttered.

Yu was being herself, but her remarks still caught me off guard.

“Really, be more careful. If you disappear, I’ll have to cross your name off my fiancé list,” Rukawa said, casually adding fuel to the fire.

“My lady is right. Please don’t make us worry,” her butler, Shikkou, chimed in.

“I can’t exactly promise that,” I replied, sighing.

“In that case, I’ll wait with her as long as necessary,” Shikkou said, standing behind Rukawa like always. His attempts to box me in made ignoring him impossible.

“This isn’t right. Issei belongs to me,” Ruriko declared.

“Ridiculous. He’s obviously mine,” Kana argued.

“No, no, you two don’t deserve him. I’ll take responsibility for him,” Yu interjected.

“Good energy, but in the end, I’ll use my authority to claim him. Right, my lady?” Shikkou said, smiling while making an outrageous statement.

“Don’t just decide things without me,” I complained.

“Issei, this conversation is only happening because you’re alive. So don’t make that ‘oh brother’ face,” Ruriko said.

“Was I making that face?”

“You were. Don’t get carried away just because you’re being doted on,” she teased.

“Understood,” I replied.

“And no cheating. Got it?”

“Hey, that sudden threatening tone is scary,” I said nervously.

I truly meant it.

At that moment, the male teacher in charge entered, once again offering both admonitions and concern.

As he glanced around the room, full of mostly girls, he muttered under his breath, “So this is a harem…”

I didn’t miss that. From an outsider’s perspective, he wasn’t wrong. What else could you call this?

After telling me to take care of myself and that life was precious, the teacher left.

“You looked like a scolded puppy,” Yu teased.

“Where’s someone who would grin about this?”

“True, but this side of you is kind of endearing,” she added with a laugh.

“Shut up,” I grumbled.

“You’re so stubborn,” she said, still amused.

After that incident, time passed peacefully.

Finally, the last day before summer vacation arrived, and I had fully recovered, feeling as healthy as ever.

—

Chapter 42: A Summer Vacation Full of Strange Events

Recovering my energy is a relief, but…

“Good morning, Issei-kun! Today’s breakfast is perfect, don’t you think?”

It’s been almost a week since summer vacation began.

Ruriko has seamlessly blended in as if she’s part of my family.

“Hey, why are you still here?”

“After all these days, isn’t it a bit late to ask that question?”

“I don’t want weird excuses. Can I have a normal one, please?”

“It’s perfectly normal! To ensure I don’t miss your crises or your happiness, living together and staying close is the logical course of action. It makes perfect sense!”

“That kind of outrageous logic won’t fly with me!”

With things like this, I can’t exactly kick Ruriko out.

The breakfasts she makes every morning are quite good. It’s what they call being captivated by someone’s cooking.

But Ruriko isn’t the only one sticking to her convictions.

“Are they watching again today?”

“Most likely.”

Nearby, there’s a car parked, as always.

Of course, it belongs to the Rukawa family.

Like a detective on a stakeout, they park a luxury car within our neighborhood.

It’s quite the nuisance, but saying anything is pointless, so I let it slide. If there were surveillance cameras or bugs planted inside, I’d take action, but I doubt it’s gone that far.

We maintain a belief in the inherent goodness of people. We hold a strong conviction that no one would do anything to betray our trust.

“Well, no matter who’s around or not, the fact that I won’t let go of Issei-kun remains unchanged.”

“Coming from someone who’s lived through high school multiple times, that statement carries weight.”

“It’s profoundly heavy, isn’t it? Isn’t it amazing?”

“…Amazing, huh?”

“Don’t hesitate there.”

I wondered if I could fully accept Ruriko.

You’d need to be someone with a big heart to manage that.

At the very least, in this timeline, I know about the feelings Ruriko has accumulated over dozens of loops.

Knowing that, I can’t be the same as the version of me in another timeline.

“Yeah, it’s amazing.”

“Really?”

“It might still take some time to completely accept it, though.”

“Do you hesitate at the thought of choosing me?”

“I don’t.”

“You don’t?”

“You’re the one who sought this out, and now you’re looking at me suspiciously. That’s very Ruriko of you.”

No matter the choice, doubts always creep in, even if just a little.

For now, my resolve had reached a certain level.

“I’m a heavy and troublesome woman, so be prepared.”

“Of course, I’m prepared. As long as you don’t turn into a yandere and stab me like my ex-girlfriend did.”

“If I took your life, it would defeat the whole purpose. I won’t do something like your ex.”

“Promise me that. Being stabbed to death twice is not something I want to experience again.”

“Don’t worry,” Ruriko said, trying to reassure me.

“By the way…”

“Yeah?”

“In this timeline, I was the one who drowned at the beach. That means we’re not on the route where the girl who saved me gets attached to me, right?”

I voiced the thoughts I’d been suppressing.

“What does that mean for the branching paths ahead?”

In the Yami Disease Academy game, there shouldn’t have been a route where the protagonist drowned.

“This is uncharted territory.”

“So, I’ve unlocked a brand-new route, huh?”

Ruriko nodded.

“The future of this timeline is shrouded in darkness. Whether it’s the first loop or the umpteenth one, it doesn’t change.”

“Yeah, I figured.”

The structure of the Yami Disease Academy world had twisted far beyond what Ruriko and I could imagine.

My presence, along with the irregular interference of Satsuki’s spiritual form, must have caused a significant disruption.

The original three beautiful girls had been altered into the Four Great Beauties to accommodate Satsuki’s inclusion in the world.

Someone among the beautiful girls should have been the one to drown, but somehow, I ended up taking their place.

Countless other irregularities, big and small, had piled up.

“At this point, all the information I’ve worked so hard to gather feels like scrap paper. I feel like an idiot.”

“…Sorry, I don’t even know what to say.”

I knew it wasn’t an apology she was looking for.

Despite her complaints, Ruriko’s eyes sparkled with determination.

“It’s fine. I’m just… happy. I’ve been sick of the unchanging routine, clinging to hope for the faintest ray of light to pierce through someday.”

Her voice grew louder, her words flowing faster.

“It was you, Issei-kun, who broke the walls of this world and expanded it. I’m truly grateful.”

“I suppose… you’re welcome?”

“Perfect answer.”

Though the future remains uncertain, I’ll walk forward with Ruriko. The compass that had been spinning aimlessly finally pointed in a definite direction.

“If danger ever comes for you or me, I want you to go to that room. The one filled with the memories of past loops.”

Before I could ask why now, Ruriko continued.

“That room likely exists in a different flow of time. Until now, after a reset of the timeline, I always restarted from there. I think it holds some kind of meaning, so I’ve avoided dying there.”

If that room truly held the key…

“This is purely a worst-case scenario. I’m not suggesting we test it out by recklessly dying.”

“So, you want to keep our options open, as insurance?”

“Not insurance, more like a gamble. We don’t know what’ll happen. There’s no guarantee we can return to the loop.”

Ruriko proposed a pact.

If either of us suffered a fatal injury, we’d die in that room.

And then…

“If one of us is gone, the other’s death will also take place in that room.”

“A true bond in life and death, huh.”

It was a strong agreement, one most people would instinctively reject.

But I had already decided on a different answer.

“If it’s you saying it, there’s no point trying to dissuade you, right?”

“You saw right through me.”

“It was obvious. Still, no matter what, I refuse to die. I’ll cling to life as stubbornly as I can.”

“I expected you’d say that.”

There was no turning back now. Not that it was ever a new development.

It was like stepping into a swamp.

At first, only half my body was submerged. But now, I was fully immersed. That’s how it felt.