Now what's up with this damn system?
It just appears like that.
I looked at the message again:
"Depending on the decisions you make, it could lead down one path or another." What does it mean by this? It's incredible that every time I investigate more, thinking I've already discovered everything, more mysterious things appear.
"Are you listening to me?" Elin asks kindly.
Ah, right, she was there. I had gotten so absorbed that I forgot she was still there.
I turned my head to check if anyone was watching us and—surprise! THE WHOLE DAMN CLASSROOM WAS WATCHING! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THEM, WHY DON'T THEY JUST MIND THEIR OWN BASTARD BUSINESS!?
"Uh-uh."
Damn it, what had she said? I completely forgot. I think I should practice my information retention more. THAT'S NOT WHAT'S IMPORTANT!
I need to escape; there are many eyes lurking. For fuck's sake, my normalcy is in danger.
I'll look like a crazy person but, it's to save my damn normal student ass!
I stood up from my seat and fled the classroom.
After getting far enough away from that classroom, I let out a deep and relaxing sigh.
——
"Haaaah"—Yes, that's it, finally rest from the presence of those gossips. They were looking at me like I was a damn zoo animal. What do they want? Isn't it normal to see a girl talking to a boy? (If you can even call that a «conversation»).
[ALERT!!]
>YOU JUST LOOKED LIKE AN IDIOT IN FRONT OF HER. THAT HAS MADE IT DEFINITELY IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU TO EVER HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH HER AGAIN.
...
AND WHY SHOULD I CARE! To hell with that mission! What's more, why should I be accepting stupid demands from something I don't even know? It's just dumb. And what are you going to do about it, huh? Damn Spam?
...
At that moment... At that precise moment, the whole world stopped—not metaphorically, not poetically—literally, the world stopped.
It's as if they had paused the world with a remote control. I didn't even feel a speck of wind on me... the birds that were flying around were static, without any reaction, the other students who were there in the high school courtyard, everything... Absolutely everything was still.
I felt my blood run cold, how my pupils dilated, I instantly started to break out in a cold sweat, a terrible shiver ran through me from the tips of my toes to every fiber of my hair.
At that moment everything returned to normal, as if it were a bad dream. It was momentary but... This clearly didn't give me a good feeling.
Wh-... What the hell happened?... Something wasn't right. No... Everything is very wrong. This isn't just a mocking and sarcastic system anymore. There was something much bigger behind this. Something that, I'm sure, I don't think has good intentions.
Without realizing it, I noticed I was trembling, as with each involuntary tremor, my body weakened more, as if something were absorbing my vital energy.
I tried to forcibly calm my tremors, but the fear was still there, beating like a second heart.
"This is making me paranoid..." I murmured, grabbing my arm, clinging to the only thing I had and what kept me going because, deep down, I probably wasn't going to last much longer.
Ting Ting Ting
The sound of the bell abruptly tore me from my absorbed thoughts.
I had to go, right? It was my obligation... But I remained there.
Still.
Motionless.
Like a statue.
Nothing moved me, because fear ran through every vein in my body, activating my primal instincts.
Reverberating in my head again and again... Saying:
"FLEE"
...
"Hey kid," says someone with a hoarse voice.
I looked in the direction of the voice; it was a teacher.
"What are you doing here kid, you should go back to your classroom... Oh, hey, are you okay? You're extremely pale. Do you want to go to the infirmary?"
"N-no worry, professor, I-I'll g-go back to the classroom right now," I said, trying to hide the dread that devoured me inside.
The man observed me with a mix of doubt and annoyance in his gaze.
"... Okay, then do it quickly. And don't let this ever happen again," he said, scolding me with a dry tone.
"S-sure," I murmured, starting to walk in the direction of my classroom, with slow and trembling steps, as if each one cost double the effort.
——
Upon arriving in front of the classroom, I listlessly raised my hand and gave a couple of soft knocks on the door, hoping the teacher would hear them.
"Haaaah, this is going to be a problem," I murmured with a tired sigh, as if every word weighed down my soul.
I heard steps approaching from the other side. The door opened with a slow creak... and there he was: the teacher, frowning and with his patience in shreds.
Of course he was angry. And how could he not be? Surely he thought I had escaped from school or something...
Does he think I'm an idiot? How would I escape from school without a backpack? Jumping like a damn ninja or something?
"Mr. Eiran Solen."
Yes... that's me.
"What is the reason for your lateness to class?"
I swallowed hard. For a second, I considered telling the truth: that time stopped, that the system is crazy, that I'm probably being manipulated by a cosmic entity with a twisted sense of humor...
But no. It wouldn't be very convincing.
"I had... a small inconvenience, professor," I said, forcing a smile that not even I believed.
Obviously, the professor wasn't going to buy that.
"Haaaaah..." he sighs as he brings two fingers to his brow, massaging it as if just looking at me hurt him.
I just nodded. Any attempt to justify myself would only dig my grave deeper.
"Come in, and sit down," he said, opening the door wider with a gesture.
I didn't need him to repeat it. I walked inside the classroom with my head down, feeling all those eyes drilling into me as if I were a weirdo.
When I lifted my downcast head, I realized something...
My dear and beloved magic seat was unoccupied.
Wasn't Elin occupying that seat? Did she change seats?
I looked around, checking every corner of the room out of the corner of my eye. Rows of bored students, one or two whispering, but... not a single trace of her. Her distinct flaming reddish hair wasn't there, nor her fair skin, nor her pine-green eyes that distinguished her from other girls.
Elin had disappeared.
She wasn't in her seat, nor nearby, nor by the window, not even pretending to listen in the back row like those fed up with life usually do. Nothing.
A shiver ran down my spine.
I decided to ask... Just out of curiosity.
"Pr-professor?"
"Yes?" he responded clearly, his voice irritated, as if he were sick of me.
"Where is Elin Mora?"
The professor looked at me strangely and confused, as if he didn't know her.
"Elin Mora?"
The whole classroom fell silent; there was absolute silence in that four-walled room.
"Yes, her. Sh-she was here th-this morning... she sat r-right there." I pointed at the empty seat as if that could prove anything.
The professor frowned even more.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Eiran, but... there is no student with that name in this class."
The whole class looked at me as if they were seeing a lunatic.
I laughed. A little. Barely. Like an idiot.
"Wh-what? No, no, no, she has r-reddish hair, sh-shoulder-length hair, g-green eyes, fair skin. I-I even talked to her just a little while ago!"
The professor observed me in silence. The rest of the students too. One of them muttered something, barely audible: "Who's Elin?"
And that was the worst part.
Nobody remembered her.
Nobody.
...
A shiver went up my neck, as if someone invisible were breathing down my neck.
And just then, the screen appeared.
[IMPORTANT NOTICE!!]
>YOU HAVE FAILED THE MISSION. YOU DESERVE TO BE PUNISHED.
>REMEMBER STUPID... YOU ALWAYS BEAR THE CONSEQUENCES.
What?
Punished?
Hey...
Are you serious?
WHAT THE FUCKING HELL IS GOING ON?!