Chapter 161 | After the Incident

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[Shinji's Point of View]

Rika was bullied, and a few days later, she finally seemed to have recovered mentally. We decided to head to school together.

“I'm feeling so gloomy about school…”

“Really? I think it'll be fine,” I replied.

“Why do you say that?”

Next to me walked Rika and my younger sister Dahlia. For the past few days, the three of us had been spending time together.

Though Rika had been withdrawn due to the shock of being bullied, it seemed that being with us had lifted her spirits.

But putting that aside for now…

“It looks like the cleanup is done,” I said.

“Cleanup…?”

“You'll see when we get there.”

Both Rika and Dahlia tilted their heads in confusion as we arrived at school.

“…Ueda's here.” “…Oh no, it's Ueda.” “…We shouldn't make eye contact.”

At the entrance, we encountered some first-year students. They were casting fearful glances our way—mostly directed at me.

“Hey Onii-chan, did you do something?” Dahlia asked timidly.

“Well… sort of…”

It wasn't directly my doing, but I felt curious enough to ask what had happened.

I approached a nearby first-year student.

“Um…”

“H-Huh! I-I'm sorry! I don't have any money!”

“Huh? No, wait—I'm not asking for money…”

“I'm sorry! I'm so sorryyyyyy!”

With a terrified expression, the first-year student dashed away in a hurry. What was going on here?

“…Isn't Ueda the guy who beat up delinquents and threw them off the rooftop?” one of them whispered.  

“…I heard the rooftop was covered in blood.”  

“…He seems so quiet; it's scary.”  

What?! It seemed like rumors were spreading around about me.

“Shin-chan, are you okay…? Is there bullying going on…?”  

Rika looked at me with concern etched on her face. Oh no…

“It's fine; probably not bullying… I think.”

I would confirm the truth later. Changing into our indoor shoes, we headed towards our classroom.

Even then, classmates and upperclassmen continued to stare at us…

This felt strange; everything from last time should've been resolved properly…

After a short while…

“! O-Onii-chan…! There's no one in our classroom…?”  

When we reached Class 1-A, no one was there. The chairs were empty; it felt eerily deserted.

“Oh… right,” I muttered.  

This must be because of Grandpa's influence—he tends to go overboard sometimes.

“What? Shin-chan… does this mean…?”  

Ahh… This could definitely raise suspicions about what happened before.

What should I do? Would Rika be put off by this?

Just then—

“Ueda! Matsumoto has arrived!”  

“Miharashi Touge-sensei?”  

The gym teacher Miharashi Touge-sensei entered our classroom.

“S-Sensei… what does this mean?”

“Oh…I've become your temporary homeroom teacher since the previous one is gone. Even though it’s almost time for third term—just a few days left—I'll be taking over as your substitute homeroom teacher for Class 1-A.”  

“W-Wait…”   

Rika looked shaken by this news as well. With everything happening around us—and now changing teachers—it was bound to raise concerns among everyone else too…

They'd surely suspect that I did something!

“Shin-chan…”   

This wasn't something I’d keep silent about anymore—but how should I handle it?

If Rika denies knowing anything about what I’ve done…

“Ueda, can we talk for a moment?”  

“Huh? Ah, yes… Sensei.”   

Mihara-touge called me over. My mind was still racing from worrying about Rika while trying not to draw attention from him either…

“I'll be right back,” I told her softly.

“Oh um… okay—be careful out there Shin-chan…”   

How would I explain things to her afterward? The thought of making her dislike me worried me deeply…

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