After realizing this contradiction, Haruto started carefully digging through his memories. And then, a terrifying realization struck him.
Most of his memories from before his transmigration had become blurry. It was as if something had devoured them.
And the most unsettling part?
Until now, Haruto hadn't even noticed.
When he first transmigrated to this world, he was certain his memories had been intact. But over time, his past life's memories had been slowly disintegrating, bit by bit.
The turning point had been when he obtained the divine fragment.
After gaining the Fragment of Intellectual Divinity—Cognitive Immunity, the collapse of his memories had stopped.
But the memories that had already been lost... were irretrievable.
This discovery led Haruto to a hypothesis.
Previously, his memories and perception had been affected by an anomaly at the level of a Supreme Divinity.
Did that mean that his past world; also based on Earth; had anomalies as well?
Did a Supreme Divinity-level anomaly exist there, too?
(T/N: I don't rlly know whats the original scp threat/classes level are so I can't really edit what the og author threat levels.
Y'all gonna have to deal with that as I am not in deep to the SCP lore.)
Was that why his memories had collapsed?
Even after acquiring the divine fragment, he had only managed to stop the collapse, not restore the memories.
Should he write it down? To prevent even the memory of his suspicion from disappearing?
The thought crossed Haruto's mind.
But he immediately rejected it.
If the anomaly affecting him was at the Supreme Divinity level, then certain actions might trigger an irreversible catastrophe.
Writing it down was one such action.
For now, the safest option was to trust himself and keep all the information stored in "Haruto's" cognition.
Because of the divine fragment.
Haruto temporarily buried this matter deep in his memory.
A Supreme Divinity... He had no way to fight against something like that for now. Though his thoughts were racing, only an instant had passed in reality.
Gabriel gave a sheepish smile and said,
"Um, Haruto... can you keep this a secret for me? If my angel identity gets exposed, I'll be punished by Heaven."
Haruto, intrigued, asked,
"Oh? What kind of punishment?"
Gabriel pulled a miserable face. "I'll be recalled to Heaven, my allowance will be cut, and I won't be able to play games anymore..."
Haruto: ....
For a moment, he didn't even know where to start with his retort.
"That's... a really light punishment. I thought they'd execute you. And wait, you still haven't given up on gaming?"
Haruto was a little impressed by Gabriel's determination.
Most people, after being completely destroyed in a game by a clueless player like Shiro, would probably never want to touch a controller again.
"Of course! Even though I face a mighty foe, I will never back down! One day, I will defeat that formidable opponent!"
Gabriel suddenly became fired up.
Haruto shrugged.
If she was aiming to surpass Shiro...
Then she probably had no hope in this lifetime.
Shiro's level of genius wasn't something that could be beaten with just effort.
The two of them entered the classroom.
Gabriel slumped onto her desk and immediately fell asleep. She had stayed up way too late gaming last night.
The heavy dark circles under her eyes were proof.
Originally, Gabriel had planned to skip class again, but unfortunately, she had been dragged here by Haruto. So she just decided to sleep in class instead.
Haruto didn't bother with her.
He had already completed his task of bringing Gabriel to school; whatever happened next was their teacher's problem.
Arriving at his seat, Haruto looked at the cute girl sitting behind him and smiled.
"Morning, Megumi."
"Good morning, Haruto," Megumi Kato replied with a smile. "You didn't forget about me."
Not being forgotten made Megumi visibly happy. Haruto reached out and patted her head.
"You left early yesterday," Megumi said as she enjoyed the head pats.
"Ah... I had some urgent matters at home, so I rushed back to take care of them. By the way, Megumi, you seem really concerned about me."
Haruto played the direct approach.
Eriri would get all tsundere in this situation, while Senpai and Nao would probably get shy.
But Megumi...
"Of course. Because you're special, Haruto, so I care about you."
Megumi fired back just as directly.
At that moment, Shizuka Hiratsuka entered the classroom.
"Alright, quiet down. Some people need to stop messing around, and those who are sleeping—wake up!"
Haruto and Gabriel, on the verge of being name-dropped, could only sit up straight and listen to their teacher.
"Before we start class, I have two announcements. Pass these papers to the back," Hiratsuka said, handing out two stacks of documents.
Once everyone had received one, she pointed at a promotional-looking flyer.
"Sōbu High's school festival happens every year at the start of the term. It's scheduled for next week and will last for three days."
The class immediately erupted into cheers.
The school festival was a major tradition in Japan's education system. It was an annual event where the school opened to outside visitors.
There was a main stage where each class could sign up to perform.
Since Sōbu High was one of the Big Three academies, its festival stage had a lot of prestige. If someone stood out, they might even catch the eye of talent scouts.
At the same time, classrooms were transformed into booths.
Most classes ran maid cafés or similar attractions.
Students could also earn a little extra cash.
It was a fun time.
"Ugh, that means a ton of people will be here? Humans are such a hassle... Might as well just destroy them all."
Gabriel muttered to herself.
Haruto heard her.
He decided that after class, he would go over and give Gabriel a beating, warning her that if she continued making anti-humanity remarks, he would have to contain her.
"Alright, quiet down!" Shizuka Hiratsuka called the class to attention.
"Those who want to apply for a performance at the school festival, fill out the application on the back and submit it to me after class. The classroom decoration also needs a theme. You guys can vote on that yourselves; I won't interfere.
The second thing is about our school's exchange program. You've probably heard of it."
At the mention of the exchange program—
The classroom fell into complete silence.
The exchange program was a special mechanism among the Three Great Schools.
Students from Sobu High could voluntarily apply to study for a semester at either the private Hyakkaou Private Academy or Shuchiin Academy.
Everyone had indeed heard of it.
At the same time, they also knew that, for Sobu High, this program was basically nonexistent.
No one wanted to go to those two monster schools to be tormented.
One was a pure aristocratic academy; if you didn't have a high-ranking official in the family or weren't from a wealthy merchant lineage, you wouldn't even be able to lift your head.
The other was even worse, notorious for its gambling culture; if you stepped in there, you'd likely be devoured without a trace left.
These were lessons learned in blood. Warnings passed down by Sobu High seniors.
So, no one wanted to stand out.
However, Haruto's eyes lit up.
He had originally planned to use the exchange program to go to Hyakkaou Private Academy.
"Looks like you all understand the exchange program, so I won't waste words. The exchange will take place after the school festival, next Thursday. You can still participate in the festival as usual. If anyone wants to sign up, just raise your hand now. Application forms have also been handed out."
Shizuka Hiratsuka scanned the classroom.
Dead silence.
Because that place was hell.
Haruto was about to raise his hand when he suddenly heard Shizuka continue:
"Oh, right. This year is a bit special… That genius in the corner, you received two invitations."
The class was stunned and turned to look at Haruto in shock.
Invitations?
Those two monster academies actually invited Haruto for an exchange?
Invitations and applications carried completely different meanings.
Since the exchange program started, almost no one from Sobu High had ever received an invitation.
And receiving two at the same time? That was unheard of.
The class was astonished, but at the same time…
If it was Haruto, it somehow made sense. Haruto himself was a bit puzzled.
Shuchiin's invitation was understandable.
Shinomiya Kaguya seemed to be quite interested in him, so it was likely she had pushed for this.
But even Hyakkaou Private Academy invited him?
Well, this worked out even better.
"Sensei, I'll go to Hyakkaou Private Academy. Please respond for me."
Haruto's voice echoed through the classroom.
The students were left dumbfounded.
Someone was actually volunteering to go to a monster academy as an exchange student?!
His seatmate, Yukino, nudged Haruto with her elbow.
"That academy is infamous for gambling. Be careful, or you might get eaten alive."
Haruto chuckled at her words.
"I'm touched that Yukinoshita-san is worried about me."
Yukino was momentarily speechless.
She didn't even know why she had bothered to warn him.
"But I don't think anyone can eat me." Haruto said casually.
Yukino then remembered—
The guy next to her… was a monster.
Her worries were unnecessary.
She should be more concerned about the people at Hyakkaou Private Academy instead.
Because—
A monster was heading to their school to devour them.
Shizuka Hiratsuka gave Haruto a long, meaningful look before nodding. If it was this genius, he should be fine.
After that, the class resumed as usual.
After class, Shizuka dragged Gabriel away by the ear—
After all, she had slept through the entire lesson…
The class grew lively again.
Before long, a girl ran up to Haruto.
"Haruto-kun, we have a drama project planned; we're performing Titanic!"
"Would you like to join us?"
Haruto looked up to see Yui Yuigahama inviting him.
Her playful pink hair was tied up in a bun, and she wore a short skirt, looking like a stylish gyaru, though her behavior was adorably airheaded.
"It's Bun-chan," Haruto responded casually.
"Bun-chan?" Yui tilted her head in confusion and instinctively touched her bun.
"Yeah, Bun-chan suits you, doesn't it?"
Haruto smiled.
Yui blinked, then nodded belatedly. She did love her bun hairstyle.
However, the "bun" in Haruto's mind wasn't as innocent as she imagined.
"Haruto-kun even remembers my name and gave me a nickname—wow!"
Yui's eyes sparkled.