I Was Blackmailed Into Accepting Bullying Using My Childhood Friend as Leverage, But When I Found Out My Friend and Bully Were Together, I Abandoned All Compassion and Swore to Take Revenge with Everything I Had - Chapter 56: Sumie Fudo - Extra Edition: Because of Love... 6/8

Chapter 56: Sumie Fudo – Extra Edition: Because of Love… 6/8

The school attack incident even made it onto the local news, giving the school a bad reputation. But honestly, I couldn’t care less. Kenichi-kun, having fought back, was now feared by everyone, and no more pests dared to get close to him.

At school, I continued taking care of Kenichi-kun, and occasionally, I got assigned as a housekeeper for him during my part-time job. Everything seemed perfect.

But one day, something terrible happened. We received news that Kenichi-kun, along with some old novelist and an editor named Kanamori from my mom’s company, had gone missing after their boat sank during a cruise on Tokyo Bay.

“Sumie! I’m heading there right away. Stay with your dad and wait!”

“No! I’m going too! This time, I’m definitely going with you!!”

My mom eventually gave in to my desperate pleas, and we headed to the temporary search headquarters.

“Oh, Junka-san, Sumie-san, I’m so sorry for worrying you…”

Kenichi-kun was by an ambulance, soaked and covered with a towel, but thankfully, his body was unharmed. I felt such relief that I almost collapsed.

“So, Kenichi… what happened?”

Kenichi-kun glanced at me and gave a gentle smile. My mom must have understood the situation because she told me to wait in her car, giving them space to talk.

(Kenichi-kun… his whole aura has changed… That gentle smile he gave me… Ahh, what should I do?♡)

From the car, I watched as a few police officers, my mom, and Kenichi-kun, who was sitting and being treated, talked for a while.

In the end, Kenichi-kun was the only one rescued. The other two were never found. Kenichi-kun had to stay in the hospital for a few days for observation.

“This time, let me take care of you, okay?”

I insisted on looking after Kenichi-kun, and every day after school, I stayed with him until visiting hours were over.

At school, Iketsuki and his gang’s arrest led to their expulsion, and the school initiated an investigation to deal with the bullying and chaos. An external agency conducted a thorough investigation, revealing that the principal and vice principal had been taking bribes and unfairly favoring certain students. They were both fired and arrested for tax evasion, adding more scandal to the school, which became a daily topic in the news.

As for the worthless childhood friend, she became pregnant, suffered a miscarriage, and learned she could never have children again. The emotional shock caused her to withdraw from everything, and it seemed inevitable that she would also be expelled.

Kotone, the pest, became strangely quiet after receiving Kenichi-kun’s letter. She stopped joining in on conversations with the class and spent her free time silently studying on her own.

I didn’t know what was in the letter, but as long as she stayed away from my Kenichi-kun from now on, I decided to just ignore her.

After Kenichi-kun was discharged, he held a press conference where he apologized for the incident and announced a temporary suspension of his publications.

During the conference, footage showed the grieving families of the other victims, including Kanamori’s family, shouting insults at Kenichi-kun before being escorted out by security.

I agree that encouraging the driver to drink wasn’t the right thing to do, but the one who actually drank was Kanamori. It didn’t seem fair for Kenichi-kun to be blamed so harshly. Yet, in the conference, he still bowed his head and apologized to the families.

For me, the most important thing was that Kenichi-kun survived. That alone made me feel like everything was going to be okay… or so I thought…

“What!? Onii-chan!?”

It was a sudden phone call from my mom. Right after the press conference, Kenichi-kun had complained of a severe headache and collapsed in the waiting room. He was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.

My mom, who had been with him at the press conference, rode with him in the ambulance. Now, he was undergoing emergency surgery, and the situation was critical. My dad and I rushed to the hospital immediately.

(Please God, please God, please…)

I sat in the back seat of the car, praying desperately.

When we arrived at the hospital, we headed to the waiting room near the emergency entrance, where I saw my mom sitting tensely, staring at the clock.

“M-Mom! What about… Kenichi-kun!?”

“Sumie… calm down. He’s in surgery right now… We just have to wait quietly.”

(Please God, please God, please…)

I sat next to my mom, praying the entire time. After more than four hours, the red “In Surgery” light turned off, and the automatic doors opened. The doctors, covered in bloodied scrubs and with sweat on their brows, emerged from the operating room.

One of the doctors noticed my mom and my dad, who had been pacing up and down the hallway, and asked us to join him in a meeting room.

“No! I’m coming too! I need to hear this!”

“Alright, Miss, you can join us.”

Once inside the room, the doctor pulled up a scan of Kenichi-kun’s brain on the computer screen.

“To get straight to the point, your son had a blood clot in his brain. It’s likely that this clot caused his collapse both this time and possibly before as well.”

My mom, shocked, asked, “A blood clot? So… you’re saying this clot has been there for some time?”

“Yes, exactly,” the doctor confirmed as he switched to another image, zooming in to explain further.

“This part of the brain controls the body’s pain receptors. We believe that Kenichi has had this blood clot here for quite a while.”

The doctor continued, “When a clot forms in this area, it can cause a person to become desensitized to physical pain or emotional distress. Movements that would normally be limited by pain could go unchecked, meaning Kenichi may have been able to push his body beyond its natural limits.”

“But Doctor! Why did Kenichi develop a blood clot in the first place?”

“It’s likely due to repeated trauma to the head, possibly from something like boxing or martial arts, which involve frequent blows to the head. Another possibility is extreme emotional stress—perhaps a significant, long-term mental burden that the patient couldn’t bear.”

(It was because of Iketsuki’s constant violence and his childhood friend’s betrayal, which trampled on the precious memories he had with Aunt Youka…)

“The clot has been removed, but the damage to the brain was severe. Most of the left side of his brain is no longer functioning.”

“W-What does that mean, doctor…?”

“I’m afraid it means that, even if he regains consciousness, he will likely suffer long-term damage, leaving his right hand and left leg impaired.”

(No… Kenichi-kun… Kenichi-kun…)

“Huh? What’s it to you who I bully? Anyway, you’re pretty cute. Forget that loser, why don’t you go out with me? I’ll show you a good time, haha.”

“Why should I be blamed just because the guy who confessed to me happened to be bullying my childhood friend?”

“I feel a bit bad about his mom’s keepsake, but do I really deserve to be blamed this much?”

I can’t forgive this…

I won’t forgive this…

I won’t forgive them for being alive…

I won’t forgive them…

I felt an overwhelming, deep hatred toward Iketsuki and Himeno. 

There’s no way I can let this go.

I will lead them both to ruin.

First, I send a letter anonymously under the name Kurohitsuji to Iketsuki, revealing the truth that Shizuku Himeno had been pregnant with his child, but lost the baby after being gang-raped by delinquents. The assault left her unable to ever have children again.

I don’t know Iketsuki’s mental state, but his parents have already separated, and even if he gets out of prison, he has no home to return to.

If he realizes that someone is suffering a lifetime of pain because of his actions, he might try to make amends in his own way once he’s released, possibly seeking contact with Himeno. 

Even as the trash he is, Iketsuki is bound to try something with her. 

Considering how terrible he is with women, it’s likely he’ll try to use Himeno as an easy target for his needs.

As for Himeno, I’ll send her comforting messages through DMs, just like before.

Kurohitsuji: “I know your situation is really tough, Hime-chan, but the real question is, what do you want to do now? How do you feel about the people who did this to you?”

Hime: “Yeah… right now, I’m filled with regret and resentment… I want to apologize to my childhood friend… but I don’t deserve that.”

Kurohitsuji: “Forget about your childhood friend for now. Focus on your anger, your hatred toward the one who wronged you. That strong emotion can give you a reason to keep going.”

With that, I plant the seeds of “atonement” in Iketsuki and “revenge” in Himeno, driving them toward each other.

I will never forgive those bastards…