• This is an interlude episode.

Three days had passed since the complete revenge against Tensho Junior High School and the destruction of the gang that came for retaliation.

Shoot hadn't done anything in the real world since then. He spent his days and nights playing games, converting the gold bars he had previously transmuted into products to sell for money, living a decadent life.

He still hadn't gone through the final procedures for transferring to the local public junior high school, completely neglecting it.

"There's no need or value in going to school anymore. A place like that... full of hypocrisy and discrimination, dirty adults pretending to be educators, and idiotic, foolish peers who think they're great just because they're at the top of the caste system within the narrow confines of a classroom, a garbage dump of a facility... why should I bother going there now? It's ridiculous.

I'd rather be adventuring in another world than going to a place like that."

Today, too, Shoot vehemently criticized school while skillfully manipulating the controller, his eyes glued to the game character on the TV screen. Anyone who didn't know his circumstances would undoubtedly judge him to be a hikikomori.

(If my dad and mom come home and tell me to go to school, I'll go through the transfer procedures. Until then, I'll just live a decadent life in this modern world.)

Thus, it was past noon, and another day of gaming was about to begin.

The intercom buzzed from the monitor. A visitor at this time of day on a weekday was unusual, and Shoot assumed it was a salesperson or a delivery.

Thinking he would pretend not to be home if it wasn't a delivery person, he checked the person on the monitor and his eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected visitor.

(...I could pretend not to be home, but since she came all this way, I'll entertain her. It'll be a good way to kill time during my game break.)

Deciding this, he walked leisurely to the front door and opened it to greet the visitor.

"Well, well. I thought it was a delivery person or some salesperson, but it's an unexpected guest."

"........."

The visitor to Shoot's house was Akemi Hanamiya, a student from Tensho Junior High, a girl who was in the same class as Shoot and served as the class representative.

"Did I tell you my address?"

"...At the beginning of the school year, when we were just put in the same class, Shoot-kun, you mentioned that your house was in this area... so I came here and asked the neighbors, and that's how I was able to find you."

What was my past self blabbering about... Shoot cursed his past self inwardly. He quickly regained his composure and asked Akemi her business, his eyes sharp.

"What did you come here for?"

"I'm worried about how you've been doing since... that day, and I wanted to talk to you properly..."

"Worried? You're worried about me? A heartless girl who knew about the bullying and ignored it, who should have become a complete stranger after I left school, is saying she's worried about me?"

"...!"

Shoot deliberately spoke loudly so that others could hear. Akemi was visibly shaken and looked down, as a housewife and children from the neighborhood turned their attention to them.

"Hey, isn't that uniform...?" "From that prestigious private junior high..." "I heard that everyone in the class pretended not to know that 'SHOT'-kun was being bullied..." "Even minors should know what they shouldn't do..." "I wonder how the parents of those kids raised them..." "Oh dear, I just told that girl where the Mitsugi's house was. If I had realized she was from that school because of her uniform..."

Akemi's face paled as she listened to the thorny whispers around her. Shoot watched her with a slightly amused look, then said,

"Everyone, she's one of the few good people who tried to do something about the bullying. So please don't speak ill of her!"

The residents, hearing Shoot's casual remark, seemed convinced and lost interest in them.

"Shoot-kun... why did you...?"

"It's true, isn't it? Well, you were too weak to do anything, so you couldn't really help me."

"...Thank you for covering for me."

"Whatever. More importantly, you said you wanted to talk to me properly, right?"

"Yes.... That day... when you last came to school, and the time before that, we couldn't really talk properly."

"Why do I have to have a proper conversation with you?"

"First, I want to apologize for not being able to stop the bullying. And I also have something I want to tell you."

"I don't give a damn about apologies, but the thing you want to tell me is intriguing.

Well, I've been bored lately, so I'll entertain you for a while. Come in."

"...! Th-thank you."

Akemi's gloomy expression brightened, and she smiled happily. Shoot led her inside without saying anything.

Akemi's heart was pounding with nervousness and excitement. She had never been to a boy's house her age before, so she was giddy with this first-time experience. Usually, Akemi tried to remain calm in any situation, but she couldn't help but be flustered by visiting the home of a boy she was interested in.

Shoot was about to lead Akemi to the living room, but he decided to ask something that had just occurred to him.

"I have a basement in my house, and I sometimes hear strange noises coming from there. I can hear it a little now, Hanamiya, can you hear this sound?"

It was a test to see if Akemi could perceive the black swirl in the basement. Akemi, unaware of anything, found Shoot's remark a bit creepy and reacted with slight fear. When Shoot asked her what she thought, Akemi replied hesitantly, "I don't hear anything."

(No one but my family can hear the sound... Then they probably can't see the swirl either. This confirms that only I can perceive the swirl.)

Inwardly satisfied with confirming this fact, Shoot led Akemi to the living room and had her sit down. While Shoot prepared drinks, Akemi looked around the house with interest. She seemed unable to resist checking out what the inside of the boy she was interested in's house looked like.

After taking a sip of the tea Shoot prepared, Akemi made a request.

"Um... can I see your room, Shoot-kun? I thought we could talk there..."

"Huh? No way. Don't get ahead of yourself."

"S-sorry..."

What's with her getting all excited, Shoot thought, feeling a bit disgusted.

"By the way, you... or rather, you guys in 2-A were attacked by the rioters who stormed the school the other day, weren't you? You seem to be okay, but what happened to the others?"

Shoot only knew what had happened to the people at the school from the news on TV. Thinking he'd ask Akemi, who was directly involved, for details, he inquired, and Akemi began to answer with a pained expression.

"Everyone... was panicking. I was scared too. Some of us got caught up in the rioters' violence.

The rioters all cursed us terribly. They declared that we were evil and trash because of the bullying and said they would punish us... it was truly a horrific scene that almost drove us mad.

It's true that we were a terrible class that ignored the bullying. But that doesn't mean we were going to silently endure the violence, so I desperately protected my friends with self-defense techniques.

Thanks to the police arriving, we didn't suffer too much damage, but I think everyone has been deeply scarred..."

"Oh, is that so? They were deeply scarred? I have to thank the rioters!"

Akemi felt a surge of anger at Shoot's cheerful laughter, but she remained silent. She knew she had no right to be angry with him.

"So, let's hear what you want to tell me."

Shoot tapped the table, urging Akemi to speak. Akemi nodded slightly and began.

"You know about the Nakazato Corporation, right? And that Yuta Nakazato, who's in our class, is the chairman's son."

(Our class... I'm not your classmate.)

"When Mitsugi-kun, as the, um... 'SHOT,' exposed the truth about the bullying at school and what kind of people the teachers are in that live stream, the Nakazato Corporation was also severely criticized by the public."

(Oh, she also knows I'm SHOT. But here...)

"Hey, don't just assume I'm that SHOT. I'm not SHOT."

Just like with Sumire, Shoot denied being SHOT.

"Eh... i-is that so?"

"It is (a big lie). Don't jump to conclusions."

"S-sorry..."

"So, continue."

"Okay... So, I think it's to escape the bashing, but the chairman... Nakazato-kun's father stopped funding Tensho Junior High School and tried to pretend he had nothing to do with it, but he's still being criticized by the public. Of course, Nakazato-kun himself is also being bombarded with abuse every day. Because of the uproar, the corporation's credibility is declining day by day, and it's continuing to fall."

They're falling just as planned, Shoot smirked.

"By the way, you seem well-informed? How do you know so much about the corporation?"

"My father works for the Nakazato Corporation... and he's in a position directly under the chairman."

"So that's how it is. Then, as I suspected, you were... you were being threatened by that scumbag Yuta Nakazato, who used his parents' connection with yours as blackmail.

That's why you couldn't stand up to Nakazato and his gang even though I was being bullied. He must have said something like, 'If you interfere with us, I'll tell my dad to fire your dad,' or something.

Because of that, you had no choice but to become a half-assed, self-righteous bystander."

"Th-that's... how it is."

Well, I kind of figured, Shoot sighed deeply.

"Ah, sorry for interrupting. Continue."

Akemi continued, her face slightly pale.

"About SHOT's live stream that caused the public outcry. Even if Shoot-kun claims otherwise, Chairman Nakazato is convinced that you are SHOT. They deeply resent you, Shoot-kun."

"Jumping to conclusions and holding a grudge? How pathetic. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

Scoffing, Shoot thought about the Nakazato Corporation for a moment. He thought he was done with his revenge against Yuta Nakazato, but deep down, he felt unsatisfied. However, he was also getting a little bored with tormenting Nakazato himself.

As he pondered how to make him suffer more, Kurenai warned him with a worried look.

"So, please be careful...! That chairman is unpredictable. It's not just you, Shoot-kun, your parents might also be in danger...!"

"(My dad said he had a similar feeling.) Thanks for the warning. That's all you wanted to tell me, right?"

Akemi nodded slightly in agreement. This might be the first time someone her age has cared so much about me, Shoot thought vaguely.

"Shoot-kun, how have you been spending your days lately?"