Isn't reading an oddly addictive hobby?
I somehow ended up staying up all night.
They say books are food for the soul, and I really gained a lot of useful knowledge.
Did you know? There are actually over 200 bones in the human body. They say it varies from person to person, but it's roughly around 206.
Blood vessels are divided into arteries, capillaries, and veins. Among these, arteries are particularly important. Well, they're all important, but arteries are located inside the body and have high pressure, so if they're damaged in any way, it's a big deal.
Just like when I cut my wrist last time, the blood gushed out like a fountain. I laughed it off, but a normal person would have died from excessive bleeding after a short time, right? Haha, I've definitely memorized where the arteries are located.
Next time, I should start from there—
Wait, what am I saying?
Honestly, the book was so interesting that I ended up reading it over and over again, which then prompted me to pull an all-nighter.
They say that the more you chew meat, the tastier it becomes, and I guess it's true for reading books too.
Even though I didn't sleep, my mind was clear. This is the great thing about having a regeneration type supernatural ability. My stamina is different from that of an ordinary person. Besides, my supernatural ability is super regeneration; a top tier amongst the other regenerative abilities, so I'm confident in my stamina. I could probably survive not just a day, but several days of no sleep without any problem.
In the early dawn before the sun fully rose.
I dislocated my shoulder and left arm to verify if there were any errors in the book's content.
As expected, it hurt.
I even tried fracturing it.
The area swelled up and bloated, so I pressed down harder. Everything turned white in front of my eyes, and I couldn't utter a sound. People can't scream when they are in so much pain. All I could manage were coughing breaths.
For the first attempt, I stabbed a knife into my chest. The fat in my chest was more obstructive than I thought. I was aiming for the blood vessels, and warm blood burst out. I left it just like that for a moment, and my heart stopped.
Oh, that's bad. I was really about to cross over to the other side while intentionally suppressing my regeneration. Thank you, my survival instinct.
As I spent such an exploratory time, before I knew it, it was already time to go to school.
Eh, but there were still many experiments I wanted to try.
What would it feel like to pull out a rib while I am still alive?
My skull, isn't it hard? How much strength would it take to crack it?
I won't die even if my head is cut off. But what would happen if I cut it and left it? Would a new head grow back? Then what about the severed head?
I'm curious. I'm so curious. Leon, what have you been doing all this time? You should have tried something like this at least once. You should test the limits of your regeneration.
Ah, but since I have no memories of Leon's past, even if Leon did try it, I wouldn't know the results. Ugh.
There are many things I want to try, but the thing that stirs my curiosity the most is certainly fire.
I can't forget the crimson flame that Elsia ignited.
But there are too many issues with trying it in the dorm.
If I burn a person, there will be a lot of smoke, right? And it will smell. Since there are perception type supernaturals here, what will I do if I get caught? I guess I have no choice but to sneak out of the academy to do it.
"...Hehe, am I getting too heated?"
I snapped back into reality after realizing the alarm I set up had rang three times, signaling the start of school day.
No, no. I'm different from Leon. I am different. I don't crave pain. I don't enjoy it. It's not fun. It's just... yeah, it's just out of curiosity. It's for the training of my abilities.
Is that true? Really.
Supernatural abilities get stronger the more you use them, so I am diligently contemplating how to train my super regeneration. After all, Leon was weaker than the other members of the golden generation. Leon's battle method involves offsetting him insufficient power with her recovery ability, engaging in a dogfight. For the upcoming incidents, enhancing my regeneration is essential.
...Yeah, whatever.
It would be a lie to say I'm completely uninterested.
But I am a much more rational person than Leon. I know how to keep a line.
At least I don't walk around at night wearing just a trench coat with nothing underneath, right?
I'm not a pervert or anything. Only Leon, with his masochistic tendencies, would do such a thing, haha.
But I am a normal person. Even if I self-harm, I wouldn't do such a thing.
"..."
Um.
Hey.
...Should I try it?
That would be incredibly embarrassing... Just thinking about it makes my face flush, so I can't lift my head.
My heart for once raced for a different reason than pain.
Well... wouldn't it be okay? Just for a moment? Just a few minutes walk on a dark night when there are no people around. That should be fine, right? Just to refresh my mood.
"Heh, hehe... Uhe..."
Ah, I drooled.
Bubbles rose from mixing my drool with the blood on the floor.
Do I have a trench coat... Ah, I do. When I opened the closet, it was right there.
Oh, a leash? I didn't know I had this. Why am I just noticing it now?
I unfolded the brown trench coat. It seemed well-kept with no wrinkles. I sniffed it. No dampness, it's fine. Swallowing my saliva, I reached for the leash. The leather leash was of deep red color. My fingertips touched the leash. Just as I tried to pick it up carefully...
Beep beep beep.
The fourth alarm rang out.
I jumped in surprise and pulled my hand back from the leash.
I shoved the trench coat back into the closet and quickly closed the closet door.
"...This isn't the time to be doing that. Where's my mind at?"
I'm glad I prepared multiple alarms.
Leon's body. Isn't it too driven by desire?
This is why Leon despised himself yet couldn't deny his instincts.
If it weren't for me, I might have continued on this path today; if it were Leon himself, he probably wouldn't have been able to go to school.
I shook my head vigorously to clear my thoughts. There really is no time. If I don't get ready and run now, I'm definitely going to be late.
In a hurry, I cleaned up. I thought about doing it after school, but if the blood dries and leaves behind stains, it will be hard to clean.
Since I've been doing this often, maybe I've gotten the hang of it. I finished earlier than I expected.
This means I won't need to run to barely avoid being late.
But just in case, I hurriedly moved. It's precarious, not leisurely.
I changed into my school uniform and stood in front of the door.
Suddenly, I suppressed the urge to glance back at the closet.
Breakfast... Hehe, I forgot to eat again.
Let's just make do with some toast.
Oh, a male student running to school with toast in her mouth.
That's quite the hero vibe, isn't it?
Ah, Leon is indeed a hero.
-----------------------------
There was no unfortunate incident of colliding with the protagonist while running with a toast in my mouth.
I arrived on time without being late, entering the classroom before the bell rang.
A light jog didn't even make me sweat.
As I walked to my seat, feeling anew through the physical capabilities of supernaturals, what awaited me was a pile of books stacked on my desk.
"...Huh?"
What is this?
Is this a new form of bullying?
Am I being ostracized at the academy?
Is it some cruel prank from a malicious classmate who thinks I'm so ignorant that I should just read books?
I've never heard of Leon being bullied.
But if you're going to bully me, at least do it properly. For example, putting pushpins on the chair. Then I would sit down without knowing it and—
Wait, what am I even saying right now?
Just as I stood in front of my desk, pondering, the culprit who had covered my desk with books came waddling over.
"U-um..."
"Alice?"
Surprisingly, the culprit was Alice.
Oh my. Alice is bullying me. The main heroine is bullying me.
How can I live with this? Will she shoot a beam at me next? Burn me with the academy's maximum firepower?
As I gazed at her with hopeful eyes, Alice wiggled her fingers and said,
"W-well, um... th-thank you, um... for the, uh... book from yesterday..."
Well, naturally, my assumption was just a delusion.
There's no way Alice would do such a thing, and just having books piled on the desk isn't considered bullying; that's too far-fetched.
"L-Leo... like, b-books... like.... right?"
She stammered with such disarray that it was hard to understand, but I could roughly guess what she meant.
It should be a repayment for helping to move the books yesterday. Judging by the pile of books, she must have recommended some interesting ones.
Did she bring so many because she didn't know what I would like? Hehe, Alice is so cute.
"I-if it's okay, um..."
Alice wouldn't normally be this proactive.
Was Frey egging her on?
"L-Leonn... um...?"
Oh yeah, in case you don't know who's Frey.
Frey is Alice's other personality.
In other words, Alice has a dual personality.
The introverted Alice and the outgoing, aggressive Frey are polar opposites.
And yet, she cares for Alice deeply. Knowing that Alice is lonely, did she try to encourage her to make friends with me?
"U-um..."
But this could be problematic.
This kind of approach would be better suited for Elsia, not me. Especially since the method is the same.
She's doing what she should have done with Elsia on me?
"Um..."
"Aah, sorry. I got lost in thought for a moment."
Did she think I was ignoring her?
Alice was on the verge of tears. I momentarily panicked and overthought everything.
What am I doing? Alice is a baby. I need to protect her.
"Are you recommending books?"
"Y-yes... um... I-I don't know what y-you... like, um..."
"So you brought a lot, huh?"
My guess was right.
I picked up the book from the top of the stack on my desk.
From the cover, it looks like a romance novel.
Good, that works.
Just last night, I had a wonderful realization about the joys of reading.
Even though it's a completely different genre and category compared to the book I read yesterday, reading is a good hobby.
Reading at night makes my eyes hurt a lot.
Especially under dim lighting; that makes it even worse.
"Thanks. I'll read it well."
"Y-yes...!"
Alice's expression brightened.
It was a bright smile, just like a sunflower blooming.