You’re Right, They’ll Expel Me if I Run into the Store with a Weapon!! - Chapter 8: Carrying People on Your Shoulders is Heavy

It was four days after the Daiichi Bank incident.

Hiroki let out a sigh.

Before going to school, in his living room, he fixed his eyes on a lottery ticket.

(What to do…)

Four days had passed since the Daiichi Bank incident, but he still hadn’t found a suitable bank to meet his conditions. With his arms crossed, Hiroki furrowed his brows and glared at the lottery ticket.

(No use thinking about it now…)

He stored the lottery ticket in his wallet and finished preparing for school.

“Hey, Hiroki!”

“Saiki.”

“Yo! Good morning!”

Greeting loudly, Saiki placed his bag on the desk. Saiki’s seat was in front of Hiroki.

“What’s up? You look like you didn’t sleep well.”

“Nah, just been searching for something on the internet lately.”

Hiroki had frantically been searching for a suitable bank for four days since the Daiichi Bank incident, which resulted in dark circles under his eyes.

“Oh? What were you searching for?”

“Various things.”

“Come on, what exactly?”

Hiroki would never tell the truth. Saying “I’m searching for a bank” would only lead to more questions. He knew any connection to the lottery ticket must be severed.

The classroom door opened, and the teacher for the next class walked in.

“That’s all for today.”

With the last class of the day over, the teacher gathered her materials.

“Stand up, bow.”

With the command, everyone started preparing to leave. It was an ordinary day, like any other.

“Hey, we’ve been talking more lately, haven’t we?”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

Ever since Hiroki shared his combat power with Saiki, their relationship had deepened compared to the initial days.

“Wanna go to the arcade?”

“…No, I have something else to do.”

“Still searching for something?”

“Yeah.”

Having more important tasks than hanging out at the arcade with friends, Hiroki declined Saiki’s offer.

“Alright, see you later then.”

“Yeah.”

The homeroom teacher finished conveying the last items before dismissal.

“Stand up, bow.”

People chatted with friends, some left immediately for home, and others headed to club activities. Hiroki and Saiki were among those leaving immediately.

“See ya! I’m heading to the arcade now! I’ll invite you again sometime!”

“If I’m free then, I’ll go.”

Saiki left Hiroki behind and exited the classroom. Hiroki slung his bag over his shoulder and also left.

(What’s that crowd about?)

At the school exit near the shoe lockers, Hiroki saw a crowd of students. The gathered students varied in grade and gender, all looking at the wall on the right side of the exit. Hiroki wanted to see what was happening, but the crowd blocked his view.

“Hey, Hiroki.”

“Saiki, what’s this crowd?”

Part of the crowd peeled away to reveal Saiki, who had just been with Hiroki.

“Oh, some celebrity is here.”

“A celebrity?”

“Not sure if it’s true though.”

Saiki gave an uncertain response.

“There’s a student from Combat College here, apparently a big shot.”

“Combat College? Apparently?”

“Yeah, I heard it’s Shiori Himeji who’s here.”

“Shiori Himeji?”

Hiroki heard a name he didn’t recognize. But from the crowd’s excitement, he could tell she must be someone significant.

“An idol?”

“In a way, an idol. But, not sure if it’s her. There’s some information control in Combat College, so there aren’t many photos of her.”

“Huh. So, this Shiori Himeji is an idol because…?”

“She’s cute and strong.”

The Combat College is known for its strong and cute students.

(I want to see it.)

“Saiki, could you squat down for a second?”

“Huh? Okay…”

Confused by Hiroki’s request, Saiki squats down without questioning. Hiroki then straddles Saiki’s neck, putting his weight on him.

“Okay, stand up~”

“Am I your servant or something?!”

Despite his complaints, Saiki slowly stands up.

(Let’s see…)

Hiroki peers through the crowd.

He sees a girl with bright, chestnut-long hair leaning against the wall. She looks annoyed by the crowd but seems to be searching for someone.

(Wait, have I seen her before…?)

Hiroki feels he has seen her face somewhere before. There’s a slight sense of incongruity, but her eyes and facial features deeply resonate with something engraved in Hiroki’s memory.

(Right, she was at the bank…)

Hiroki freezes.

(I messed up…)

Leaning against the wall near the shoe lockers, Shiori is dejected over her mistake.

Shiori decided not to use any underhanded tactics against Hiroki Ogino, deeming him smarter than her. Instead, she came straight to Hiroki’s school.

(I was so focused on Hiroki, I forgot about my fame.)

Shiori Himeji is well-known. She often disguises herself for missions. But at the bank, she used light makeup to leverage her student appearance.

(Maybe I shouldn’t have come in my real face…)

Thinking Hiroki would see through any disguise, she came with her real face to show she wasn’t planning anything. However, this resulted in the creation of the crowd.

(But with such a crowd, Hiroki might show up.)

Turning her failure into a potential success, Shiori scans the faces in the crowd.

(He’s not here…)

Hiroki is nowhere to be seen.

Shiori had checked the timetable and had been lying in wait since before school let out. Hiroki’s class’s shoe lockers are also here, so it’s certain he’ll use this exit.

(Come on, hurry up… Huh?)

Frustrated by Hiroki’s absence, Shiori suddenly notices something.

From the depths of the crowd, something starts rising upwards. The moment she sees it, her mind freezes beyond its limits.

The Hiroki she wanted to meet unexpectedly emerged from behind the crowd. Caught off guard by this unplanned reunion, she is frozen.

“……”

Both of them lock eyes in a silent standoff.

Then Hiroki is the first to move.

“Saiki… let me down…”

“Got it.”

As Hiroki slowly sinks back into the crowd, Shiori watches him intently. It’s like a scene from a movie where a passenger ship slowly sinks into the sea.

After getting down from Saiki, Hiroki smoothly grabs his shoes from the locker and runs off down the corridor, leaving through the front exit.

(Why is he hereeeee?!)

She mentally screams, with her visible acceleration increasing. Hiroki starts running towards a different exit.

“Hirokiiiiiiii!”

Regaining her senses, Shiori yells Hiroki’s name. But Hiroki has already been gone for ten seconds. Her shout is lost in the crowd noise.

“Kuuuh!”

Shiori begins to enhance her physical abilities through her combat power. There’s no visible change, but her legs are steadily strengthening. It takes three seconds for the enhancement to complete.

“Ah!”

She stamps her right foot on the ground and leaps over the crowd, landing where Hiroki was just moments ago. However, he’s no longer there. Long corridors stretch on either side of Shiori.

(Where, where, whereee?!)

She enhances her vision next. She scans the left corridor thoroughly, but he’s not there. She then turns to the right corridor.

What Shiori sees is Hiroki, seventy meters away, turning a corner in the hallway.

(Found youuuu!)

Shiori smiles, but to Hiroki, it might look more like hatred.

She hasn’t ceased enhancing her legs yet. Shiori heads down the corridor Hiroki disappeared into.