W-W-What do I do?
I was going to witness my past self jump off the deep end. He was going to commit social suicide, and I was helpless to stop it.
My legs refused to move, and my mouth refused to open. I felt a thick swathe of saliva gather in the back of my throat; I couldn't say anything.
I felt my hands tremble as the chanting continued.
"Mud Bath! Mud Bath! Mud Bath!" They screamed into the air, their fervor at a fever point.
"Even though I know they're under some kind of control... I don't know what to do..." I whispered, speaking to the voice.
"You've been given everything you need to make a difference, you've just yet to say it," She explained with a bored tone.
"S-Say what!? I still don't know what the hell you're talking about!" I shouted in exasperation.
"Huh?" One of the students looked back, alerted by my shout.
"S-Sorry," I mumbled to them.
"N-No problem, haha" The boy stuttered as the dazed look in his eye faded.
"Wait, what am I doing here? Oh crap, I'm gonna be late!" He cursed as he looked at his watch and separated himself from the crowd.
I watched him leave, no one else noticed him go but me.
"What just happened?" I muttered.
Speaking to that boy, it was as if I had dispelled that effect on him from Eric. Was this something that I could do...?
"Ewww, he's gonna do it, haha!" One girl cackled as a chill ran up my spine.
As I peered over the crowd again, I saw that Lee had begun to slowly undress. He unbuttoned his shirt, exposing his tank top from underneath.
Think, think, what can I do!?!
If Eric Graves has a [System], then maybe he too had spun from the Wheel of Life. Maybe he had gotten an amazing title, a title that allows him to control crowds; to gain favor.
If he's like me, then...
"I know what the magic word is," I declared.
"Oh? And what would that be?" The voice asked in a mocking tone.
"What else than saying the name of your 'power', any geek would know this," I sighed as I prepared myself to say.
"[H-Heartbreaker]." I stuttered out.
But nothing happened.
"Mmm, that's a little weak. Yawn." She mocked me.
"W-What!? I'm sure that's the magic word for whatever the heck this [System] crap is!" I complained.
"Say it like a magical girl, maybe I'll do it then, pfft," She snorted.
"A m-magical girl??" I said in disbelief.
"I-I can't do that, that's too embarrassing!" I begged.
"Either you do it, or ol' Piggy over there is gonna show the class what he's hiding under all that blubber,"
I looked back over at Lee, he had his shirt off and was now fiddling with his belt. A minute more, and he'll be down to just his underwear.
"Nnnnnghhhhh!!!! FINE, I'LL DO IT!!!---"
My mind is like a pond,
serene and calm.
There is a gentle breeze,
the chill of the morning air.
"[HEARTBREAKER!!!]" I choked into the air as I posed, forcing a wide smile as I daintily locked my knees together; flourishing with a peace sign by my eyes.
I... I want to die...
"Mmm, good enough,"
"[System Initialization: Heartbreaker]" She said.
Suddenly, a visual display appeared before my eyes; it had the same color and style as that infodump from before.
But this time, instead of just affecting myself, small squares appeared atop the other students in my vision now.
I could see their names, their ages, and even their... h-huh?
"[Lucy Breen] [Age 16] [Heart's Desire: To gEt ErIC GRAVEs tO nOTIcE HER.]" I muttered under my breath.
As I looked at the other squares, they all shared the same desire to get Eric to notice them. But the way it was written was odd, it wasn't in the same neat typeface as that of all the other information. Instead, it was erratic, as if it was forcibly written into the square.
"This is your [System], because I'm feeling nice, and because it was so pathetic to see you try that 'magical' pose of yours; I'll skip the usual tutorial for now and get you on track to help Piggy." She explained.
"What do you mean by pathetic?-- N-Nevermind, please, what do I do!?" I asked her as I watched the crowd.
"If you focus, you'll see thin 'Strings of Desire' all connecting to one person, Eric Graves. Sever these strings and Piggy will be saved,"
Sever them? What did she mean by 'sever'?
"How do I do that?" I asked.
"Simple, change their [Heart's Desire]. What they currently have isn't genuine, it's been forcibly changed by another [System]. Cut these false strings, they're nowhere near as strong as someone's true [Heart's Desire]."
Thinking back to earlier, when I had caught that boy's attention accidentally, having him break his focus from Eric was enough to take him out of his daze. Maybe that was all I needed to do, to just distract them from him.
"H-Hey, excuse me?" Gathering my courage to speak to a girl, I reached a hand out to Lucy Breen's shoulder; the first student I had noticed.
"H-Huh? Oh, hello." She said as she turned around, the daze in her eyes dissipating.
"It's getting late, class is about to start!" I informed her as I showed her the time on the watch.
It was 7:27 AM.
"T-Thank you!" She said as she shook herself out of the crowd.
As I watched her run off, I saw her String of Desire cut away from Eric, dissolving into the air.
"[Heart's Desire: Impress Mr. Ruthford with my new look]." It read on her information square. Her String then reappeared and jumped forward, digging into the school's walls and into a classroom from afar.
"Not bad, maybe you have the makings of a real magical girl just yet," The voice mockingly said.
"T-Thanks, but I don't think I'll have enough time to cut everyone's String to Eric before Lee loses his boxers!" I exclaimed as my past self was now just wearing his underwear.
"There is one way you can speed this up, call it your boss battle of sorts," She began to explain.
"Talk to Eric Graves and change his [Heart's Desire] yourself."