I, Who Acquired the Ability to Read Memories, Am Being Swallowed by Darkness - While I Should Be Protecting Beautiful Girls, I Am Being Drawn into Darkness Each Time I Use My Power, Yet for Some Reason, My Harem of Beautiful Girls Keeps Growing - Chapter 45: A Sense of Unease

Chapter 45: A Sense of Unease

Lately, I’ve been feeling something off about the atmosphere at school.

The first thing I noticed was the increase in girls’ absences.

Especially prominent were the core members of sports and cultural clubs.

Not the flu, not COVID.

But when they return after a few days, they seem… different.

Then, there’s the sudden change in personalities.

For example, Watanabe, who was always irritable, suddenly became considerate of others.

It’s like they’ve been replaced.

“Nagase is absent again…”

I mutter, looking at the attendance sheet for 3rd year Class B.

Nagase Mirei.

The ace of the track team.

Yet, she hasn’t been seen since last week.

“Sato, lend me that.”

Suzuki from the next seat calls out.

“Huh? Even Morikawa is absent?”

That’s right.

Morikawa Saori from 2nd year Class A.

She’s been absent for a week too.

It’s not normal for the energetic health committee member to be out for so long.

“There’ve been a lot of girls absent lately, haven’t there?”

Suzuki tilts his head.

“And all for about a week.”

I hear voices from the back of the classroom.

“Tachibana’s personality has changed, right?”

“She used to fight so much…”

Tachibana Anko.

The troublemaker of 2nd year Class C.

Arguing with teachers was a daily occurrence.

Now, she’s as quiet as a model student.

Looking out the window, I see another concerning scene in the courtyard.

Watanabe Tomoya and Yoshida Mai.

A popular couple in love since last year.

But now, they pass each other like strangers.

“They broke up, you know.”

“And Watanabe didn’t even give a reason…”

“He blocked her on LINE, apparently.”

Rumors spread throughout the classroom.

Yesterday, it was Tanaka-senpai from 3rd year Class C.

Before that, Kimura-san from 1st year Class B.

Everyone, sudden changes.

And unexplained absences.

“Sato-kun.”

Misaki’s voice snaps me back to reality.

“The student council meeting is starting.”

“Oh, right…”

The busy days before summer vacation.

“Ryuuji-kun, check this.”

Misaki calls out in the student council room.

A special way she addresses me only when no one else is around.

“Yeah.”

I’m not a student council officer, but this year I’ve been helping with their work.

Officially, it’s said to be in gratitude for tutoring them.

The cultural festival poster vendor’s estimate.

I’m shocked by the higher-than-usual amount.

“30% more than last year…”

“Hmm, it’s over budget.”

Piles of documents on the desk.

Newsletter drafts, budgets, applications.

It’s especially busy before summer vacation.

Amidst all this, something is definitely going wrong.

As I leave the classroom,

I hear another new rumor.

“Hey, did you hear?”

“Now it’s Kono-senpai…”

The voices fade into the summer cicada chorus.

Onizuka Go.

Once called the biggest delinquent in school.

He was mischievous even in elementary school, and we’ve had fights.

But now, he’s strangely quiet.

“Hey, Onizuka-san!”

Even when underclassmen call out,

“Sorry, I’ve got something urgent…”

He hurries away.

—Recalling a month ago—

“Yamashita! Go buy me a can of coffee!”

Onizuka’s shout echoed through the hallway.

“Y-yes!”

The skinny Yamashita Ginta clutched his wallet with trembling hands.

Unable to meet anyone’s eyes, he scurried away, hunched over.

“Hey, don’t forget to bring my favorite curry bread too!”

“S-s-sorry!”

Mocking laughter.

The other students looked away.

Yamashita was always the target.

Small stature.

Large black-rimmed glasses.

A stutter.

Unable to meet eyes.

The perfect target for bullies.

Especially Onizuka was obsessed with him.

“He likes killing bugs, you know.”

“Creepy guy.”

He spread such rumors, further isolating Yamashita.

And two weeks ago,

Yamashita was hospitalized.

“It was an accident.”

“I heard Onizuka pushed him down the stairs…”

“But Yamashita himself denied it.”

After that, Onizuka changed.

He stopped fighting.

He began distancing himself from underclassmen.

Like a completely different person.

“I saw him throwing up in the infirmary.”

“Someone saw him wandering the school at night.”

New rumors began to spread.

“Hey,”

Suzuki next to me muttered.

“Onizuka’s really changed, huh?”

“Him avoiding people…”

True.

Usually, during lunch break,

he’d be making a ruckus on the field,

but now he spends his time alone in the library.

“Since Yamashita’s incident…”

“It’s like he feels guilty…”

I look out the window.

In the corner of the schoolyard, there’s a small flower bed.

The place Yamashita used to care for.

Now, no one tends to it.

Only weeds grow quietly.

One week later, just two weeks before summer vacation.

“Good morning…”

A quiet shock runs through the classroom.

Yamashita Ginta has returned.

Still small in stature.

Baggy uniform.

Eyes downcast behind his black-rimmed glasses.

But something’s different.

Subtly, yet definitely.

“Yamashita!”

Onizuka jumps up from his seat.

“Let me carry your bag.”

The classroom freezes.

Why is the bully Onizuka acting like this…?

“Th-thank you…”

The stutter remains.

But his voice carries a hint of confidence.

“You guys!”

Onizuka glares around, intimidating everyone.

“Yamashita is my best friend. Got it?”

No one dares speak.

Everyone is stunned by the sudden role reversal.

“Hmm… Yamashita’s back, huh?”

A cold voice from the back row.

“Killing bugs…”

At that moment—

“You bastard!”

Onizuka’s roar echoes.

“Take that back!”

The student who spoke cowers and apologizes.

Yamashita watches, his eyes distant.

“Are you okay?”

Onizuka asks gently.

“Want to rest in the infirmary?”

“N-no… I’m fine.”

Yamashita shakes his head slightly.

Lunch break.

The two disappear into the library.

Onizuka carrying Yamashita’s lunchbox.

“Isn’t this weird?”

“Onizuka, that Onizuka…”

“He’s protecting Yamashita.”

Rumors spread.

But no one knows why.

I look out the window.

The flower bed Yamashita used to care for has been weeded and tended.

Who took care of it?

Another mystery in this strange summer.