Chapter 3: Unpredictable Future
The morning sunlight was more effective than anything else at clearing the mind—no one could sleep well under such conditions.
Hikigaya reluctantly opened his eyes, his drowsy and displeased gaze fixed on the window—he had forgotten to draw the curtains last night.
Since he had been sleeping on his side and hadn't changed positions even after falling asleep, his arm was numb and sore.
This reminded him of the unpleasant events of the previous day.
His elbow hurt like hell. The sensation now was clearly due to having compressed a nerve during the night, yet he couldn't help but associate it with that reason.
With these thoughts, after washing up, getting dressed, and picking up his schoolbag, Hikigaya appeared in the living room looking like a third-rate cripple.
"Big brother looks super lame today." In the living room, a lively and capable-looking girl said this as soon as she saw him. "You had only just started becoming a little normal—why'd you suddenly go back to your old self?"
The girl's name was Hikigaya Komachi. From the surname, it was clear they were family.
She was Hikigaya Hachiman's younger sister, currently a third-year middle schooler.
Even someone as dense as him could sense this girl's concern for her brother.
"There's no such thing. Your big brother is perfectly normal—not just a little bit normal," Hikigaya said as he walked over to the table and sat down. "I'm like this just because I slept in a weird position."
"What a weird way to put it." The girl scrutinized her brother, who had undergone such a dramatic change over the past year.
At first, he had scared her badly. The change hadn't been a good one at the beginning.
Her brother had seemed very strange, and he had looked at her with an extremely cold gaze. It wasn't just that it seemed like he saw her as a stranger—it really was a look you'd give someone completely untrustworthy.
Because of that, she had to alert their father and mother.
Although the doctor's conclusion was that his memory loss might be due to psychological reasons, neither she nor their parents believed it. It wasn't that they didn't trust the doctor—but rather that they knew Hikigaya Hachiman too well.
Fortunately, after a brief period of confusion, her brother seemed to return to normal—and genuinely became more normal.
He no longer looked at people with that rotten gaze, nor did he speak with those bizarre, overly-lonely ideologies. Their parents were both very relieved.
But Komachi always felt there was a greater crisis hidden underneath. If the old brother was a super shut-in type, this current one had a different, even more disturbing vibe.
When she saw him looking all lifeless just now, she had actually felt strangely relieved—because she felt that the current brother was even weirder than the one before.
"Ahem…"
A deliberately loud cough interrupted Komachi's thoughts, reminding her that it was breakfast time.
After quietly finishing breakfast, she followed her brother out of the house. As usual, they headed off to their respective schools.
The girl missed her first-year middle school days. Back then, she and her brother attended the same school, and as a result, most people praised her highly, treating her like an angel. That feeling had been simply amazing.
With a heart full of nostalgia for the past and hopes for the future, she watched as Hikigaya briskly disappeared around the corner. Only then did she reluctantly turn and leave.
As for Hikigaya, he could never possibly understand the complex emotions in the girl's heart.
Like Before the school wasn't too far from home. If he left early enough, he could walk there just fine.
Having suffered countless times in the past from his original body, he now especially cherished this healthy and energetic body.
Even though he'd only gained it through such unusual circumstances, there was no reason not to treasure it.
However, this good mood was shattered as soon as he entered the school.
"Oh? Not just your eyes—has your whole body finally started rotting too?"
Seeing Hikigaya's clearly unnatural walking posture, a passing (allegedly) female teacher commented like this.
"Thanks to you…" Hikigaya tried with all his might to preserve the seed of good mood within his heart, hoping to let it bloom again at noon. But reality was just that cruel.
Looking at this woman—who would be absolutely perfect if she didn't talk or smoke—he deeply felt the world's malice toward him.
"Are you thinking something rude right now?" The woman, who in Hikigaya's eyes had become the embodiment of worldly malice, frowned. "Your homework from yesterday—I'll let it slide. But don't forget what you have to do today."
"There's something today?" Hikigaya looked surprised.
If he remembered correctly, they didn't even have Japanese class today. By all rights, this person shouldn't be anywhere near him.
It wasn't that he didn't like seeing beautiful women, but a violent one—especially one who could blatantly beat him up without consequence—if he still liked that, it meant he had some very special tastes.
Hikigaya was pretty sure he didn't have those kinds of twisted preferences. And besides, there were plenty of beauties in this class. If he wanted to treat his eyes, he had tons of chances to do so. No need to wear out his body for aesthetics, right?
"You really asked that with a straight face," Hiratsuka Shizuka sighed. "It's been a while since you went to the clubroom, hasn't it? There's a poor student asking for your help. As a club member, shouldn't you do your part?"
"I never joined that weird club in the first place, though?"
That's right—he hadn't joined that weird club at all!
Unlike the original world, he had rejected it on the very first day.
This was not hi original world. There was no way he could endure that, alright?
Even if Yukinoshita existed here as well, she was not his Yukinoshita.
Or did this teacher think that if you put two twisted personalities together long enough, they'd cancel each other out?
If it's such a high-difficulty game, please find someone else to play it. Besides, he wasn't even the real Hikigaya. His personality wasn't twisted as before—he was a student with perfectly sound values. Why couldn't this woman understand that?
Hikigaya couldn't figure out where the problem was. Or maybe, was it because he wasn't originally from this world, so his behavior looked strange to others?
If that's the case—please just tell him straight!
"Young man, are you saying I remembered it wrong? Then let your body honestly help you recall everything."
"Understood! I'll go right after class!"
The boy, who had cheerfully and powerfully surrendered to violence, had no idea that what awaited him later. Because this would be quite the experience.