'Now that I'm calmer... Next up,' Yuuto thought, stepping out of the bathroom. The hallway was empty, and he made sure to move quickly, his eyes locked straight ahead.
'I need allies before I make any bold moves. I need a cushion to soften the blow when the next social hit comes. Right now, I've got nothing. Yuuno saw to that with his stunt. One life, and the whole damn world's out to get me. It's like a rhythm game—one wrong move and I'm done. I have to hit 1,000 perfect notes per second just to survive,' Yuuto muttered in his head as a group of sneering kids walked past him, their laughter sharp and cutting.
'I also need to keep the headcount low on who I hit next—at least for now. God knows I'd love to crack their teeth in, but three's already a crowd. The three I wrecked in the bathroom are enough heat for now. If they all start blabbering about how I beat them, flashing their bruises around, it'll look like bullshit thanks to my reputation. But if too many kids start pointing fingers, someone's bound to connect the dots.'
His thoughts steeled, Yuuto pushed open the classroom door, stepping inside with a bold stride. His gaze swept the room, catching the whispers and side-eyes that followed him like a cloud of flies until he settled in his seat.
"He's here..."
"Still in one piece? I thought for sure Sousuke and the others would've torn him apart..."
"Maybe he begged them, sucked them off for mercy..."
Laughter buzzed around him. Not one voice on his side. Not one person.
'I guess this world's on hard mode,' Yuuto thought, moving to his seat, ignoring the stares drilling into his back. 'Hiroki's world? That was easy. Even with the supernatural aspect.'
The classroom door slammed open. In waddled the homeroom teacher—a fat slob of a man, his gut spilling over his belt, face unshaven, mouth exhaling something foul, as if he'd gargled sewer water.
The same man who had been leering at Yuuto's mom.
"ALRIGHT, YOU LOT, SIT DOWN AND BE QUIET!" he barked, his eyes scanning the room, finally locking on Yuuto.
A glint of something disgusting flickered behind his eyes.
'Didn't break you yet, huh?' the teacher thought, scratching his belly, annoyance curling his lips. 'Whatever. I'll tie you up in one room and fuck your mom in the next. That'll teach you... Wait, where the hell is my wallet?'
The fat bastard began patting his body, his movements frantic as realization hit—his wallet was missing. Yuuto smirked internally, knowing it was currently lying in a ditch outside the school, where he had tossed it earlier.
'You know what,' Yuuto thought, catching the teacher's searching gaze. 'I think I've found my first 'ally.'' His hand twitched as he stared daggers at the man.
'Of course, whether he'll help me willingly or not is a different story,' Yuuto mused, his fists clenching under the desk. 'A piece of rotten shit like you, leering at students' moms while their kids are being destroyed unjustly... I doubt your skeleton closet's anywhere near clean.'
His glare deepened as his lips curled into a near-silent snarl.
School was over. Yuuto had managed to avoid trouble, slipping past any remarks or confrontations. Before long, he was home.
His mother, usually there to greet him with her weary gaze, stood silently in the kitchen, her usual spot. This time, she said nothing.
Yuuto froze.
'You know what? I need to update my ally-gathering priority list...' he thought, his glare sharp enough to make her shiver.
She turned swiftly toward him, but he was already heading upstairs, his back to her.
As he passed the sisters' room, he noticed the open door, the lights off.
'That traitorous cumbucket's probably at Yuuno's place. Figures. Oh well. Works for me,' he thought, stepping into his room and shutting the door behind him.
Downstairs, his mother couldn't shake what the teacher had told her earlier that day. The thought churned in her mind until she reached a decision.
'It's for the best,' she concluded grimly. At the end of the year, Yuuto would be sent off to a boarding school.
Night fell.
Yuuto crept back down the stairs, silent and deliberate. His mother was sitting in the living room, staring at a family photo. Her tired eyes seemed even more drained than usual.
The sister still hadn't come home.
Yuuto paused, watching his mother from the shadows. Then he moved closer, each step measured.
'Time to make her my ally again. Should I act like a guard dog, barking at everyone who dares to come near? WRONG. That bastard probably expects me to lash out. He even said he'd go after her next. So how do you secure someone like her? Through force? WRONG AGAIN.'
He drew closer, his movements careful and deliberate.
'Force has no place in recruiting allies. Instead...'
She heard his footsteps and turned to face him. "Yuuto. I still haven't forgiven you for—" she started, her voice tinged with exhaustion and resentment.
But before she could finish, Yuuto pulled her into an embrace, one hand supporting her back, the other cradling her head.
'...You do it like this,' he reasoned, as her breath hitched and her eyes widened in shock.
"I'm sorry, Mom," he murmured, his voice soft. "But not for what I did to that guy's sister."
"What...?" she whispered, startled by his boldness and the strange mixture of sincerity and defiance in his tone.
"What I'm sorry for is how I've failed to be a son you can be proud of. I'm sorry that every time you look at me, your eyes are a blink away from closing, that you force yourself to stay awake just a little longer, just for me."
'It was no surprise she was tired of her son. Of Yuuto. He was pathetic, always leaning on her for support. If she weren't his mom, she would've left. I could see it in her eyes—the exhaustion, the resignation. But what truly gave it away was that sigh in the very first panel of the original manga when she found out her son was being bullied. She wasn't just tired; she was used up, a mother who had given everything to console her son and had nothing left for herself.' He tightened his embrace, holding her as if he could make up for years of weariness in that single moment.
"What...? I... I don't feel that way..." she murmured, her arms wrapping around him reluctantly, weak and weary, mirroring her state of being.
"Shh..." Yuuto hushed softly, his hand gently patting the back of her head, fingers brushing through her hair. She gasped, a quiet sound that betrayed how deeply the gesture struck her. Her heartstrings unraveled. No one had done something like this for her. No one. She had no one to lean on. And Yuuto knew.
"I know you felt that way," he whispered, his voice soothing yet deliberate. "You forced yourself for my sake, pushed yourself beyond human limits. Even now, after what I've done, you never stopped being my mom. You didn't disown me, even though normal parents would've by now. So while I can't make you forgive me... or magically change who I really am at heart..."
He eased her back, meeting her gaze. Her wide eyes brimmed with tears, spilling over as his words pierced through her.
"I can carry your bag and open the door for you when you come back from work," he said gently, and her breath hitched.
"I will help you cook and clean," he promised.
"I'll get groceries and do the shopping for you."
"And... it may not be much," he said, his voice trembling with sincerity, "but I want to be a son you can lean on too."
"Oh, Yuuto..." she whispered, tears streaming freely down her cheeks. He pulled her close again, his voice low as he leaned toward her ear.
"It must have been so hard... being so alone all this time," he murmured.
Her knees buckled, and she collapsed, sobbing into his arms. "I was never alone... I was never alone...! You and your sister were always there for me!" she cried, clutching him tightly. Her embrace, once weak, grew stronger, fueled by emotions she could no longer hold back. Yet, deep down, she knew the truth—she had been alone in every way that mattered.
"And... to say something so cruel... I would never disown or leave you!" she sobbed, guilt stabbing at her as she suppressed the memory of nearly deciding to send him to boarding school, as the homeroom teacher had suggested.
"You don't have to change..." she cried softly, her voice breaking. "You're perfect just the way you are... You're my son... You just... made a mistake you need to make up for..."
Her tears fell steadily as she clung to him, realizing that this change—this moment—was all she'd ever wanted from him.
"Yuuto... Yuuto..." she murmured, her voice trembling with both relief and a lingering ache.
She remembered. This was her son. All his life, he had been nothing but a boy—a helpless, young boy who needed her support. She recalled how deeply she had loved him when she first held him in her arms at the hospital after his birth. And now, with his words, she felt that love returning.
More than anything, a thought struck her:
She wasn't a failure of a mother after all. She had done something right in raising this boy. In the words he spoke, in the warmth he could give—not just take endlessly—she found proof of that.
An hour later, they stood by the entrance to her bedroom.
"Do you need help arranging the sheets, Mom?" he asked with a smile.
"No... I'll manage," she replied, her voice warm but still weak, her strength bolstered by their earlier moment. "Go to bed. I'm... I'm still angry at you, for what you did, Yuuto," she added, her tone almost cheerful, her face tinged with a colorful blush. "So... go to bed and get ready for school, alright? Good night, Yuuto."
She gently began to close her door, pausing as she waited for his reply.
"Good night, Mom," he said softly.
As the door neared its final click, Yuuto suddenly placed his palm against it, stopping it just an inch before it closed.
"Yuuto, is something—?" she began, her voice filled with concern, but he interrupted her with a whisper.
"Mom," he said through the small gap.
"I love you."
The tenderness in his voice made her reel back, her breath hitching as she gasped.
Have I ever... heard those words from either of them? she wondered as a solitary tear trickled down her face. Through the gap, she saw his earnest, warm eye peeking at her.
"Y-Yuuto..." she murmured, her heart swelling threefold. Then he spoke again:
"I'll close the door now. Sleep well," he whispered gently, and the door clicked shut.
'I'll... This boy... No matter what...' her thoughts raced, her resolve strengthening a hundredfold. 'I really, truly almost gave up... I will never be disowning you, like a normal parent would, he said...'
'I would NEVER. Never leave you,' she thought fiercely, collapsing onto her bed and sobbing into her pillow.
Meanwhile, Yuuto stood in the dark hallway.
He turned and walked back to his room, the azure glint returning to his gaze as he turned around, glaring at her room.
'You are also a failure of a mom...'
'Choke on those tears. You dared to believe someone else's lies about your son—that I(Lesser Yuuto) would harass a helpless girl? All his life, he wouldn't hurt a fly, even though he should've. Please. You were just looking for an excuse to get rid of me. Maybe the whore tendencies my dear sister shows come straight from you,' he thought venomously, his pace steady.
His footsteps echoed faintly as he neared his room.
'Either way, this is how you secure an ally. I've given her a boost—her mental fortitude and resistance. Whatever that dumbfuck bully tries to pull to seduce her now will be much, MUCH less effective.'
Yuuto's jaw tightened, his teeth nearly grinding together as the image of the bully forced its way into his mind—that arrogant smirk plastered across his face.
'You really thought. Nah, you really, REALLY thought you had something going for you,' he thought, his fists clenching so tightly his nails almost pierced his skin.
'You can seduce either of them all you want... You can beat me all you want. But there's just one thing you did that I'll never forgive. One thing that made you my sworn enemy...'
'You. DARED. To make a FOOL of ME.' His mind burned with fury. 'No one—NO ONE—has ever pissed me off like this.'
'It's so funny...'
'That I'm not even laughing,' he thought, his eyes narrowing and then widening sharply in an intense, almost uncontainable fury.
Had anyone dared to meet Yuuto's eyes in the dark, they wouldn't have seen a boy—they'd have seen a demon.
He stepped into his room, closing the door gently behind him, sealing himself in the shadows.