You’re Right, They’ll Expel Me if I Run into the Store with a Weapon!! - Chapter 94: …

Before I met Hiroki…

A story from a time when I didn’t even want to step outside of my own volition…

And then, the past when Ogino Hiroki had not yet set foot in Combat College.

Ding-dong

“Hm?”

Wondering if it was a delivery, I checked the monitor. But what I saw was a slightly aged man with a bit of white hair.

“……”

I returned to my original position and resumed my game.

Ding-dong

“……”

Ding-dong

“……”

Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong Ding-dong

“So noisy!”

The call sounded as if someone was playing around. It was unclear whether they were joking, being sarcastic, or truly desperate. However, one thing I wanted to shout was for an adult of their age to stop pressing the intercom incessantly.

As a result, I…

“……Yes?”

“It’s been a while, Suzuko-chan. Would you mind showing your face for a bit?”

I lost my patience to the principal of Combat College.

“Hey there, Suzuko-chan… Hm?”

“It’s been a while… Yes… So, what do you want?”

“Before that, could you unchain the door? And show your whole face, please.”

I had only shown half of my face outside the door, which was secured with a sturdy chain. I didn’t want to have any barrier between us, meeting this person was the last thing I wanted. No, it was just bothersome.

“The top educator came to see me in person… there must definitely be some bothersome matter at hand.”

“I came in person because I wanted to leave as little evidence as possible. I didn’t want to use any electronic tools like phones… Hey, what are you trying to close?!”

“Absolutely a troublesome fellow. Just go back already.”

“Please don’t read too much into it and reject everything! You are, after all, a ranked individual, so please cooperate a bit!”

“Go away!”

I can’t close the door because he’s put his shoes and hands in the gap.

“I’ll call for help. I’ll scream that there’s a pervert here!”

“You seem to forget! At your request, I arranged for this floor to be unlivable by anyone but you! And I’ve already informed and bribed the tenants above and below, as well as the manager! Even if you scream, no one will come!”

“!?”

“Come on, open up! We’ll talk after that!”

“I don’t have tea. I don’t have snacks. There’s no place to relax. If you touch anything without permission, I’ll rampage.”

“Please don’t rampage. If you went all out, the entire apartment would collapse.”

I wouldn’t mind that at all. If I wanted, I could easily make it happen. I’d like the principal to understand that the apartment’s fate depends on his words.

“So, what do you want?”

“Before that, how about some ventilation? It’s bad for your health.”

“I’m continuously exerting my ability around me and my computer equipment. Harmful things won’t get close.”

“Even so, I am—Ahh! Cough! Cough!? Hey, stop it!! What are you sending towards my face!?”

“I’m directing the dust, bacteria, moisture, and even the bad smells floating in this room… especially towards your eyes, nose, and mouth.”

“Only you would use it this way!? Please stop! My eyes hurt and I feel nauseous!”

“If you scatter it, I’ll make sure it all sticks to your suit.”

“Are you a demon!? Please, I’m begging you! Have mercy! Really, stop it!”

“……..Tch.”

“Did you just click your tongue!?”

“I didn’t.”

Not at the principal. I clicked my tongue at my own leniency. If I were more wicked, I would have continued using my ability until he left. But I am kind and too soft-hearted. That’s why I stopped my ability.

“So, what do you want?”

“That phrase again, huh… Alright, I’ll get straight to the point.”

“……”

“I need to protect a certain boy’s—Eww! Cough! Cough! Stop it! Please stop!!”

“I won’t stop until you leave. I don’t want to hear anything you have to say.”

“It’s not a joke! It’s quite a serious matter! So please, listen to me till the end!”

He slammed both hands and his head on the table, assuming a posture similar to prostrating.

Yeah, this is not something a mature adult should do.

“I don’t understand a word from the start. I could accuse you of obscenity.”

“The situation is complex. Just hear me out. First, let me introduce a boy.”

“I don’t need names… Just tell me the key points, briefly and concisely.”

────

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“So, basically… ignoring the pretense of the mission I just heard about, there’s a certain individual you don’t want placed next to the somewhat dangerous rank tenth—”

“You want me to take care of him while keeping an eye on him. Considering the incident at the bank, I believe he’s not a bad boy. The danger is just a suspicion at this level.”

Let me conclude.

“I refuse.”

“No! Can’t you please consider it? Among the ranked individuals, you’re the most harmless, and no one is more suited than you for self-defense and control.”

“What about school life? I’m not attending.”

“I’d like that to change as well, but inside the school, ‘Shiori-kun being watched by the teaching staff’ plans to keep an eye out. You’re supposed to befriend him in his private life—”

I understood what the principal thinks of the tenth rank… but,

“Impossible.”

“You know the issues that Shiori-kun is facing, right? If things go wrong, she might—”

“It’s none of my business.”

Saying that I concentrated my ability on one hand.

It was a collection of the creepy somethings that floated in this room.

I named it,

“If you say any more, I’ll throw a…ugh, ugh…sick ball at you.”

“What is that exactly?… What are you planning to do?”

“This place hasn’t been cleaned in over a year… The drains in the toilet and kitchen… Something leaking from the trash bags… Used food containers… The harmful substances secreted from these, floating in the air around the room, are all concentrated—

—The principal will end up receiving all of it with his face.”

“This is no joke! Really, no joke at all!”

It doesn’t have to be a joke.

I just want to remove the obstacle in front of me now.

I don’t think it will kill him, but I do think it’ll leave psychological trauma or aftereffects—yeah, whatever.

“You mean to say I should spend more time with this person? Move next to them, and try to interact as much as possible… A lover?… Absolutely not.”

“I didn’t say, lover. But if you refuse, it will be left to Shiori-kun. Then, there could be a rift in your relationship.”

“I don’t care. Leave it all to the tenth rank. I won’t do anything.”

“…Is it no good then…”

The principal sounded worn out and dejected.

“Our agreement with the Combat College… you haven’t forgotten.”

“If you bring that up, I have nothing to say.”

“As long as the conditions are met, I’ll cooperate with the Combat College… But I’ll refuse all other requests.”

Bringing up a past agreement to refuse this request.

“Is that all for this discussion?”

“No, there’s one more thing.”

With that, the principal took a bundle of documents out of his bag.

“This could have been communicated otherwise, but I came to tell you while I was here.”

“Hmm… A reactor?”

“For experiments and development. I want you to protect the workers and equipment from harmful substances with your ability. It should be an easy job for you, right?”

“…Hmm, okay. I’ll take it.”

Normally, I’d only agree to help with experiments regarding my ability, but I won’t complain if it’s an easy job.

I’ll be thanked, get a hefty salary, and be able to buy new parts. Killing two birds with one stone.

“It helps a lot. With you here, we almost don’t need any preparation time at all… Really, it helps…”

He sighed with relief, then pinched the bridge of his nose as if remembering something.

“Other countries’ agencies complain to me, monopolizing you. Your ability is versatile, with unmatched activation range and duration…”

“It depends on the object of manipulation… If the mass is heavy, the volume large, or the number high, the range and duration decrease significantly… Also, I’m not good at manipulating living organisms…”

“That’s right. By the way, it seems you are using your ability right now—”

Judging by the powered-on computer and its air vents, the principal understood.

Dust is strictly prohibited on precision machinery.

I was completely preventing it with my ability.

“How many hours since you started this activation?”

“…Hmm, well, it’s been over three hours.”

“…A prodigy, indeed. Frightening.”

“Just for the dust…”

“Just for substances lightly floating… Considering the limit of your activation range, I think you could even change the weather.”

“Weather manipulation?… Can’t do it. If it’s too far away, the precision of the manipulation drops.”

“Is that so? Weather is greatly influenced by simple changes in the atmosphere.”

Looking at the blue sky outside the window, the principal showed off his self-taught knowledge.

“If you destabilize the atmosphere a bit, you might even cause a sudden downpour.”

“…Is the discussion over?”

“Yes, it’s over, but don’t you want to keep the conversation going a little?”

“No need.”

I wouldn’t think so.

What’s the point of that?

“Lack of conversation. If you don’t fix it soon, you’ll eventually become unable to communicate anything.”

“That’s fine.”

“What about a counselor?”

“Don’t need one.”

“…Well, I have to say this,”

He sighed and then spoke with a bit more seriousness in his voice.

“You’re human too. There will come a time when you’ll seek someone else. When that time comes, you will regret how you’ve been up to now.”

“That time will never come.”

“No, it will. I can say that for sure.”

Insisted strongly, as if highlighting the difference in experience.

“You will regret it. Surely, for the past, you’ve built up…”

The tenth rank is… with Hiroki… have we been together until now?

Could I… originally… have been there?

Why… This isn’t what I wanted!

The tenth rank is living next to Hiroki?

Always… always… always… always…

What was I doing at that time?

Is it my fault?

Because I refused?

Because I denied?

Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me.

Ah, this is…

…Regret, isn’t it?…