A wave of evil, violent energy swept through the activity room in an instant. Hikigaya Hachiman was frozen, unable to move. A deep coldness climbed up his spine, making his whole body tremble violently, and even his breathing stopped.
It felt like being stared at by a prehistoric beast. Adrenaline surged, and cold sweat soaked his back in an instant.
I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die!
His biological instincts were screaming a death warning like an alarm.
The next moment, the strong sense of oppression disappeared. Hikigaya Hachiman instinctively stepped back, lost his balance, and fell off his chair. He looked at Yukinoshita Yukino with a terrified gaze, gasping for breath.
She turned her head and looked at him in surprise. Although the terrifying aura from before was gone, Hikigaya Hachiman still didn't dare to move.
'See?'
Hayashizaki said.
'What did you do? Why is he so scared?'
Yukinoshita Yukino asked curiously.
'I just released a bit of Sukuna's aura. For an ordinary person, not wetting his pants is pretty impressive,'
he said, somewhat surprised.
'It's like being avoided like a contagious disease.'
'Wrong, it should be a nuclear bomb,'
Hayashizaki corrected.
'Because they've been bombed before, they're scared. This boy's reaction is just a survival instinct. If it were an experienced sorcerer, they'd be even more scared.'
Yukinoshita Yukino was silent for a moment, deciding to control herself and not say harsh words to Hayashizaki in the future.
'What should we do next?'
'Don't rush, the teacher is still eavesdropping outside.'
As soon as Hayashizaki finished speaking, Hiratsuka Shizuka, who had heard the sound of a chair falling outside, opened the classroom door and walked in.
"What happened?"
She looked at Hikigaya Hachiman, who was sitting on the ground with a look of horror on his face, and asked in confusion.
However, Hikigaya Hachiman couldn't say a word. He just stared at Yukinoshita Yukino, ready to pull the clueless Hiratsuka-sensei away at any moment.
This kid's problem seems to be more serious than I thought. Is he really that scared of being in the same room with a girl like Yukinoshita?
Hiratsuka Shizuka didn't think the problem was with Yukinoshita Yukino. Based on her understanding of Yukinoshita, although she was strict and harsh, she wouldn't do anything out of line.
Besides, while eavesdropping outside to observe the situation, she didn't hear Yukinoshita say anything too harsh.
So the problem must be with Hikigaya.
Seeing that Hikigaya wasn't responding, Hiratsuka Shizuka turned her attention to Yukinoshita Yukino.
"I just looked at him. I don't know why Hikigaya-kun fell,"
Yukinoshita Yukino explained.
"That's it?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka couldn't help but glance at the distressed Hikigaya Hachiman. She scratched her head in frustration.
"If you're really that resistant, then forget about joining the club."
Yukinoshita Yukino didn't say anything. She just looked at Hikigaya with a stiff smile, as if to say,
"If you dare to run, you'll die!"
So scary. Why is the most famous student in school such a terrifying person? No, is the person sitting in front of me even human?
Forget about quitting the club. If he could, Hikigaya Hachiman would even transfer schools. But he couldn't quit or transfer. If he agreed to quit the club, he might never see his dear sister Komachi again.
"No, I'm fine. I just accidentally fell,"
Hikigaya Hachiman said softly. Then he got up, fixed the chair, and sat back down, placing his hands neatly on his knees like a well-behaved elementary school student.
"Are you really okay? Don't push yourself too hard, Hikigaya,"
Hiratsuka Shizuka said with a slight frown. She seemed to associate Hikigaya Hachiman's behavior with social anxiety or some psychological disorder.
"Sensei, do I look like someone who would push myself?"
Hikigaya Hachiman forced a smile that looked worse than crying.
"To live an easy life, I chose to give up working and aim to become a househusband."
Although he was joking, he was crying inside.
Please leave, Hiratsuka-sensei! If you make Yukinoshita angry, she might kill you!
After what happened earlier, Hikigaya Hachiman no longer doubted the scary monsters he saw that morning and subconsciously linked Yukinoshita Yukino to those monsters.
"Is that so? Then get along well,"
Hiratsuka Shizuka said, feeling something was off but couldn't pinpoint it. She shrugged and left.
This time she really left. As a Japanese teacher and life guidance counselor, she was busy and couldn't watch over them all the time.
After Hiratsuka Shizuka left, the activity room became quiet again. Hikigaya Hachiman carefully glanced at Yukinoshita Yukino's expression.
I understood her eye signal and stayed here as she wanted. She should be satisfied... right?
Her expression looks very unhappy!?
Cold sweat dripped from the boy with dead fish eyes.
'I told you to smile! Smile! Does that look like a smile? It should be meaningful, not scary! No wonder you have no friends!'
The annoying voice echoed in Yukinoshita Yukino's mind.
'Smiling or not has nothing to do with having friends. It seems your brain has rusted over time. Besides, being forced to smile unnaturally is normal.'
'Indeed, when someone shares happy news, respond with that creepy smile you just had!'
'Not being able to smile naturally when forced doesn't mean I can't smile normally. Using confusing logic to gain an advantage is a bad guy's trick.'
'Hikigaya is looking at you.'
"..."
Yukinoshita Yukino's face showed a complex expression, making Hikigaya Hachiman nervous. Although he felt an awkward vibe from her, it was like witnessing a middle school syndrome scene.
But after being intimidated by Hayashizaki, Hikigaya didn't dare to think badly of the girl. He just felt she might be plotting something unknown.
Maybe she's already thinking about where to bury me.
...
...