Chapter 1: The Scum, the Rebel, and the Hypnosis App
1: Daily Life at the Bottom of the School Caste
July. Early summer.
The cicadas were chirping nearby in the sweltering heat.
“Ugh, it’s so hot and boring. I think I’ll skip the next class.”
A girl sat with her legs crossed in a seat by the window.
Her name was Aira Miyano.
She was the top beauty in this school.
She had a very small face, big eyes, and cat-like round pupils. Her bewitchingly narrowed eyes would captivate any man or woman.
Her figure was also model-like. Her breasts were so full that they would naturally captivate any man, and the buttons on her uniform were straining.
As the daughter of a top idol, she had stunningly good looks.
“Hey, Misato. Can I sit here and we can chat during class?”
“I don’t mind.”
Sitting next to Aira was Misato Mayama.
She was also a beauty, but in contrast, she had a somewhat cool aura.
Her shoulder-length black hair was meticulously cared for, as vibrant as satin. Her bangs were grown out on one side, hiding her eyebrows.
Her eyes tended to droop, but her sapphire-blue pupils were highly praised, and they were always mentioned whenever anyone talked about her.
“But,”
Misato turned to face me.
“Isn’t that Raccoon’s seat?”
Their gazes fell upon me as I stood at the back of the classroom.
Raccoon was my nickname.
My last name was Watanuki, so they took out the “wa” and called me Raccoon.
My first name is Ryugo.
It was originally supposed to be a term of endearment among friends, but ever since they found out, they’ve been using it almost exclusively as a derogatory term.
Aira said with a grin.
“Oh, come on. It’s cooler here. It’s fine. We’ll just make him stand. … Hey, Raccoon?”
Asked to respond, Ryugo struggled to answer.
If I said the wrong thing here, there was no telling what kind of abuse I would receive later. Ryugo, who was losing his former rebellious spirit, was sufficiently depressed.
Aira was at the top of the caste system in this class.
This classroom was ruled not by the homeroom teacher, but by them.
I remembered all too well what happened to students who talked back.
They had their uniforms torn, their chairs broken… and if the person was male, they might even resort to physical violence.
Ryugo’s best friend had also been stripped of his clothes, had his limbs tied up, and had been forcibly stuffed into a cleaning caddy.
Who knows what would have happened to him if the janitor hadn’t found him dying of dehydration after school while making his rounds?
The school had covered it up as “never having happened.”
Aira’s mother was a former top idol in the entertainment industry, and her agency was the biggest in the business.
Her father was the CEO of a major corporation.
Neither the media nor the PTA could hold a candle to their lofty status.
My close friend, who was almost killed, was forced to transfer schools.
In an ordinary family, we had no choice but to succumb to the pressure.
Even now, I can recall the bitter taste that welled up on the back of my tongue that day.
“Answer me, Raccoon. Don’t just stand there spacing out. If you don’t answer, I’m going to have some fun decorating Raccoon’s desk with this permanent marker~”
“…The teacher will tell you to go back to your seat later.”
“The teacher loves Ira, so it’ll be fine~. So, Raccoon, just keep standing there~! Ahahahaha! Or maybe you should just get out of the classroom? You’re stinking up the air. I’ll even throw your desk away for you~”
A surge of anger boiled within Ryugo, and he forced himself to utter the strongest bluff he could.
“I’ll… I’ll kick your desk over!!”
“Huh? If you do that, won’t Ma-kun have you killed?”
Ma-kun is Ira’s boyfriend in this class.
Makoto Uga (Uga Makoto), so Ma-kun.
The highest-ranking boy in the class caste system.
Apparently, he’s in the soccer club and is considered a candidate to be the ace in his first year.
He’s a certified piece of trash in his own right.
I can still clearly remember how he kicked a physically uncoordinated student in gym class and bruised his leg.
Apparently, he started dating Ira just a month ago. Since they’d been close since entering school, no one thought it was strange that they’d started dating so quickly.
“What’s it to you?”
A familiar, deep voice rang out behind me.
“Hey, Raccoon. Are you giving Ira lip again?”
Before I could even turn around, I was roughly punched in the shoulder.
A piercing pain shot through my muscles.
I stumbled from the force of the blow but managed to regain my balance and look back.
My assailant sneered at me with a grin.
He had the kind of looks that could be described as handsome.
But his vulgar eyes filled me with nothing but disgust.
“Look, I told you, right? I’m a nice guy, so I’ll tell you as many times as you need to hear it. Don’t make a fuss over something as trivial as a seat. Everyone’s happy as long as you’re the one standing, so just shut up and stand there. For Ira’s sake.”
Makoto’s arrogant way of speaking wasn’t anything new.
If you didn’t listen to his orders, he’d punch you, kick you, and keep tormenting you until you submitted.
I’d tried to resist a few times, but I’d already reached my limit.
Countless defeats had left me battered and broken, both physically and mentally. I’d lost the will to fight before I could even raise my fists.
Makoto saw how easy it was to bully Ryugo and showed no hesitation in resorting to violence.
Even so, I couldn’t afford to lose for the sake of my friend.
“…I refuse.”
“You… I’m seriously going to kill you.”
He tightened his grip on my shoulder, and a sharp pain shot through me as if I’d been stabbed with a needle. His nails dug into my uniform.
I’m scared.
A heavy, murky feeling filled my mind like sediment. My limbs felt numb, as if they were tied down to my fingertips.
It would be easy to give in to fear.
But I have my own reasons for not being able to back down.
I glare at him.
Glare back at me.
“Tanuki, man, seriously, why are you fighting us? Your partner’s long gone, and there’s no way you can win, right?”
“E-everyone’s, like, sick and tired of it! Tired of your stupid attitudes! Just realize it!”
“Then let me ask you this. Hey! Do you guys hate us?”
Makoto yelled at the entire classroom, but
“…”
No one affirmed it.
Everyone averted their eyes and turned a blind eye.
Not a single voice was raised… that was the only answer they could give.
I didn’t expect it, but I couldn’t help but be disappointed.
But who could blame them?
If they just ignored it, they wouldn’t get hurt.
“Ha!”
Makoto burst out laughing, clutching his stomach.
“You don’t hate us, do you? Why did you lie? You.”
“Because you…”
“Don’t you dare lie!!”
In an instant, a sharp pain shot through the pit of my stomach.
“Gah…!”
Makoto’s fist was thrust into me.
The blow, which reached my internal organs, forced all the oxygen out of my lungs. Stomach acid rose up and burned my throat.
As I wrote on the floor, a foot was mercilessly placed on my back.
Unable to withstand the pressure, I crawled on the floor.
“Gu…gah…”
“Ha.”
Makoto put his weight on me, crushing me.
“Looks tough, huh? I bet you think I’m doing something really terrible. Seriously. You should probably go to the infirmary right away. Oh, but don’t tell the teacher. If you do, I’ll break your bones .”
“Don’t mess…aghhh!!”
He dropped his heel on my head, smashing my face hard into the floor.
At the same time as the sharp, stinging pain, the smell of iron rose from the back of my nose.
Aira hugged Makoto from behind and squealed, “Ma-kun, you’re so cool!”
“Say you’ll go to the infirmary until the second period! What? I’m just being nice, you know?”
“Guh…huh!?”
My ribs were kicked with his toes, making it hard to breathe, but I somehow managed to force out my voice.
“I’ll…go…”
“Oh, that’s a good idea. You don’t want to suffer, do you? I don’t want to do this either. But you’re the one to blame, aren’t you? I want you to feel guilty for making me do this.”
Released, Ryugo left the classroom with his hand over his nose, his steps faltering. He could hear laughter coming from behind him.
I lost again.
The rusty, metallic taste that flowed from my nasal cavity to my mouth was as bitter as defeat.
When Ryugo arrived at the infirmary, the female teacher said one thing.
“You’re such a wimp, even though you’re a boy. It’s nothing, really.”
Her attitude was totally indifferent.
In reality, Ryugo’s nosebleed had almost stopped, but that didn’t give her the right to be so rude.
Still, her attitude was justified.
It was obvious that Ira was the reason for this injury. The teacher had always maintained the stance that “it’s your own fault for getting involved with Ira.”
“It’s not a serious injury, but you can rest here until someone comes.”
“Y-yes…”
“…You should just behave yourself.”
“…”
The softness of the bed was the only thing that brought him comfort.
Unlike the hospital, the infirmary was relaxing.
Was it because of the atmosphere? He naturally let his guard down.
He curled up on the pure white sheets, his body wracked with sobs of humiliation. The back of his eyes ached, and his vision blurred.
He had tried to fight back, but in the end, he couldn’t do anything.
He couldn’t even stand up to them on his own.
Ryugo used to have the courage to stand up to those guys.
But after losing his best friend, fear shocked his body and mind, and all he could do was pretend to have a sense of justice.
“Damn it…”
He tried to distract himself with his phone.
The best thing to do was to forget about it and move on.
The home screen was cluttered with SNS and game apps, almost hiding the dog wallpaper behind them.
“Huh?”
There was an unfamiliar app among them.
It had a purple background with an illustration of an eye enclosed in a triangle.
The app name was simply “Hypnosis,” but it was ominous nonetheless.
“What the… is this…?”
He tapped the app without thinking.
The screen went black, and then a crudely made screen appeared with white text on a black background.
‘Hypnosis App’
‘Use this to make the person you like do all sorts of things, from the tame to the wild!
But beware! Strong hypnosis requires a high level! To level up, do good deeds and earn good deed points! For more details, see the tutorial!’
“W-what is this ridiculous text…?”