Chapter 4: Revenge.

Translated and Edited by: ynlucca.

Common Honorifics:
-san: A polite suffix, but not excessively formal.
-kun: A common suffix among friends and younger people.
-chan: A common suffix among people you’re close with, mostly used for feminine nicknames and girls, since it’s cutesy and childlike.
-senpai: A common suffix and noun used to address or refer to one’s older or more senior colleagues in a school, workplace, dojo, or sports club.

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Airi Nakabayashi stood before me. Two years ago — or one month in this world — she killed me.

Her well-proportioned face and almond eyes paired well with her long black hair, suiting her aura to a tee. Her slender limbs were also akin to those of a model. Though her cleavage was a bit lacking, she was undoubtedly a beauty comparable to Miriya.

As I face Nakabayashi, I realize the heavy beads of sweat trickling down my face. The old scar I made sure to erase with magic throbbed with pain, and the very depths of my abdomen ached. I couldn’t help but put a hand on my stomach with a twisted look on my face.

“…If I ever got the chance to see you again, I’ll take revenge. That’s what I’ve decided.”

Yet she kept her mocking eyes on me. “That’s right. It feels like I’m dreaming, seeing a detestable enemy back from the grave. I swear you were dead, ghost.”

“I still have my legs.”

“I’d rather you were an apparition. That way I’d be sure you were dead.”

My bowels coiled within my stomach like snakes; crawling, churning, seething. With every fiber of my being, I wished to end her right then and there, or at least deck her in with a punch or two.

After all, bringing her to justice by legal means was impossible. There was no evidence she’d killed me, and I’m still standing right here. Thus, all I could really do was torment her until my heart felt ever-so-lighter. Even if that made me a criminal.

However, there’s something I had to ask her. Everything else could come after that. So, with heavy breaths, I erased any emotion from my face. “I’ve something to ask you.”

“Figured. I do too,” she waved dismissively.

“I’ll go first, as the victim.”

“Victim, huh? Well fine. What is it?” She chuckled then crossed her arms, returning to seriousness.

She’s willing, it seems. “There are actually two things I want to know. First, why did you target me, and where did my body disappear to?”

“Let’s start with the latter, which can be referred to as your motive and past life, I suppose. And it’s easier to answer.”

“Sure.”

Nakabayashi then raised one of her crossed arms and answered bluntly, “It disappeared.”

“What…?”

“Just as the words imply. When your breath ceased, your body, clothes, and even the bloodstains—all of it vanished without a trace.”

“…Seriously?”

Her answer put some ideas in my mind. That is, when I regained consciousness for the first time after my “death” before that witch, my clothes remained intact. That completely eliminated any possibility of charging Nakabayashi with murder. There were no cameras around either.

“So, why did you kill me?” I kept the ball rolling. As soon as those words left my lips, however, “Crisis Detection” flared off. What followed was a sharp sound and a sudden gust of wind grazing my cheek. I felt my skin part and blood seep out of a wound.

With terrifying dexterity, she aimed her right hand at me, a glare as cold as ice. Her eyes bore unadulterated and unapologetic intent to kill. Such bloodlust coming from a beauty sure was terrifying to witness. Seriously.

“It was for revenge. I’ll never forgive you,” she spat.

“…I haven’t led a life where I’m remembered by beautiful women like you, you know?”

“In this world, at least.”

“—!” Her last words were enough to push any sliver of doubt out of my mind. She had been from that other world as well. And judging from her refined wind magic, she was pretty skilled.

Nakabayashi’s skill only made me think about my own. It’s been a few days since I realized how useless my “Crisis Detection” skill was, after all. Ignorant of my thoughts, she wore a triumphant smile and kept speaking.

“I don’t even need to ask you my question. Your reaction alone told me you went to that other world.”

“…Thanks to you, that is.”

“Whatever. I don’t want to see your face anymore.”

“Are you running away?!”

Nakabayashi didn’t respond to my provocation. Instead, she turned on her heels, leaving behind only the coldest of glares. “There’s no point in engaging with an enemy that won’t die no matter how many times one kills them. I’ve sown the seeds long ago; now I’ll let them sprout.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Who knows? I’ll keep an eye on your progress as a fellow student. Farewell.”

“Wait—!”

Unable to finish my phrase, she silently vanished before my eyes. It was a complete invisibility skill, unlike mine. Hers was called “Full Stealth.” In fact, no sound or scent remained, as if she’d disappeared from the world entirely. I recall that even my perception skill didn’t react, and it seemed like special tools were necessary to detect it. Expensive ones, too.

“How annoying…”

The first impression I had upon reuniting with Nakabayashi Airi was quite pathetic. Sure, I vowed to exact revenge, but it seems I couldn’t do anything… Sigh… I really hate this. What kind of connection do I even have with such a beautiful woman in the first place?

There were unsettling remarks, which piqued my curiosity, but there’s no use thinking about it now. Alone on the rooftop, I scratched my head absentmindedly. “Well, anyway, I’m looking forward to the next time I meet her.”

My phrase may have sounded nonsensical, but I can assure you it was logical. I will execute my revenge no matter how small the opportunity, even if it wasn’t within my own power this time.

Perhaps due to my personality, I ended up making more enemies than I thought in that other world. Now that I’m here, though, it’s all in the past.

“…Should I skip the first period?”

I lay down on the rooftop, where the wind blew fiercely. Closing my eyelids, another girl’s meddlesome face floated in my mind.

“Miriya’s always been overly cautious, using her Reflection skill left and right.”

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Airi Nakabayashi opened the door to Class 2-A with her usual poker face. The first period had already begun.

“…Sorry for being late.”

Although her expression was grumpy, Airi possessed a unique charisma that made her popular in her class. So, one of her classmates called out to her.

“Oh, good morning, Airi-chan! —Whoa! You went for a daring change, haven’t you?”

“Huh?”

For a moment, she couldn’t understand her classmate’s words. Upon hearing the word “change,” she immediately touched her hair.

“—?!”

Then, she finally noticed something awful. Her bangs were cut diagonally, forming a weird fringe.

“Wha… wha…”

Airi had always been confident in her own appearance. Her hair, in particular, was a precious inheritance from her own grandmother. She’d never dyed it once before, and she never dared deviate from her grandma’s style.

However yet, it had been forcibly changed…As if it’d been sliced by a blade of wind. Soon as that thought hit her mind, she thought of the reason.

It’s that guy! Izuru Orikata

When Airi showed force at the rooftop using her Wind Blade on Izuru, she heard a slight sound as if grazing glass. At that moment, she thought it had been only defensive magic. Moreso, she had even thought she’d become faster, as she had genuinely gone for his head. But she had been wrong, so wrong.

That was Reflection magic! And strong enough to deflect my Wind Blade!

Still, it was too late when she realized it. And it would take two painful months for her bangs to grow back.

Airi, who considered her hair a precious memento from her beloved grandmother, quivered in sheer anger at the damage done to it.

“I’ll… I’ll… I’ll…”

“Airi-chan?”

Ignoring her classmates and the teacher who kept the lesson going, Airi suddenly yelled, “I’ll kill youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!!”

“What?!” The entire classroom exclaimed.

That day, no classmate dared to approach or speak to her.

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