Tears welled up in Nagumo's eyes, his clothes already soaked through with sweat.
He never imagined that he, of all people, would one day be treated like this.
Is the Natsuki Subaru standing before him really just a fifteen-year-old first-year student?
Nagumo felt that the boy in front of him was simply a monster. A monster wearing human skin.
Although the other party didn't exude any killing intent, his intuition told him that if he angered him, Subaru might actually kill him.
Nagumo didn't dare to gamble on what this person might do—he was fundamentally a madman.
And Nagumo still couldn't understand what was going on. Why were all ten coin tosses wrong? The probability was one in two to the power of ten.
Nagumo didn't know that he had actually guessed the coin toss far more than ten times. As long as he guessed correctly once, Subaru would choose to start over. Until Nagumo got them all wrong. Which resulted in this current timeline.
Of course, in several previous timelines, Nagumo had also been killed by Subaru a few times.
Nagumo begged for mercy incessantly; that humble, pathetic appearance formed a sharp contrast with his previously unruly and arrogant demeanor. However, Nagumo certainly couldn't have known about those events.
"It seems there are things you cannot control, after all."
Subaru's face wore a smile that seemed incredibly leisurely. He took in all of the panic, fear, and confusion on Nagumo's face.
This also proved one thing: Nagumo, as expected, had no color.
If Nagumo had maintained that high and mighty attitude, perhaps Subaru might have changed his opinion of him slightly. At least he could have proved that the possibility of possessing color still existed within him.
But Nagumo's submission allowed Subaru to confirm one thing with certainty: it was impossible for this person to have any color.
In Subaru's eyes, Nagumo held no value. The only reason he kept Nagumo alive was that he might be able to provide assistance to Kikyo Kushida and Kakeru Ryuen. That was all.
Nagumo's breathing became increasingly rapid, his face devoid of even a speck of blood. Originally, he thought he could handle Subaru however he pleased, even using the class's future as leverage. As long as he wished, he could have him expelled at any time, anywhere.
Not only that, even if Subaru refused to submit, he could have made every student in the second year his enemy. Nagumo enjoyed the feeling of manipulating others immensely.
However... Nagumo never expected Subaru to confront him like this. To even commit such acts. Has this guy gone completely crazy?
"Relax, Nagumo. As long as you cooperate with my actions, at least until graduation, no accidents will befall you—and no accidents will befall your family either."
Subaru spoke slowly.
"Are... are you threatening me?"
"It's not a threat. It's merely a statement of fact."
As Subaru spoke, he reached out and suddenly pinned Nagumo by the neck. The latter coughed violently due to asphyxiation, trying with all his might to break free, but found himself powerless. The strength in Subaru's fingers was terrifying.
But just as Nagumo was about to lose consciousness, Subaru released his hand.
"This is a threat."
Nagumo greedily sucked in the air. This was the first time he had felt the sensation of impending death.
"I believe the reason you won't report this isn't just because of your pride, but also because you don't want your family to be in danger."
"You... you, impossible..."
Nagumo couldn't believe Subaru's words. It should be impossible for Subaru to pose a threat to his family. Yet, he seemed to know his family's information clear as day. Most importantly, if Subaru really were expelled, the version of himself inside the school would know nothing. Likewise, he would be able to do nothing.
"Then you can give it a try."
Subaru's tone was incredibly calm.
Nagumo's mouth opened and closed, but he dared not speak the words at the tip of his tongue. Even though his fingers were twisted and the intense pain should have been unbearable...
At this moment, Nagumo felt that the pain was the most insignificant thing about him. His fear of Subaru had already overridden everything else. That was not a fear of violence or threats. It was an instinctive, root-level fear generated towards something incomprehensible.
It was like a lab rat locked in a delicate glass box, suddenly discovering that the breeder's hand could easily crush the glass, reach in, and snap its limbs at will, yet not kill it—simply because it deemed the rat more useful alive. This kind of fear was colder than death.
"What... what exactly do you want... me... to do..."
Nagumo's voice had completely lost its initial pride and composure; it was hoarse, broken, like dregs squeezed out from the depths of his throat. He didn't even dare to look up at Subaru's eyes.
Subaru looked down at him from above, his dark gray eyes devoid of any fluctuation. That gaze wasn't looking at a person, but evaluating an instrument that had just shown some flaws but was still usable overall.
"How many times do you need me to say it?"
Subaru seemed to sigh.
"Continue to engage with Kikyo Kushida. Give her hope that seems close yet remains out of reach. Make her feel she can use you, make her think her revenge has a higher-level channel. When she makes requests of you, satisfy them appropriately, but also refuse them appropriately. Don't let things go too smoothly for her, but don't let her despair completely—keep her hatred in a 'burning' state."
"As for Kakeru Ryuen, you don't need to contact him directly. When the time is right, he will naturally come to find you."
Nagumo lay paralyzed on the ground, listening to Subaru allocate his future uses in a tone reserved for discussing experimental equipment. That humiliation of being thoroughly objectified even outweighed the severe pain coming from his fingers.
But what was more terrifying was—he actually... felt... relieved?
Because at least, at least this monster wouldn't torture him anymore for now. In fact, he seemed to need him healthy to complete these tasks.
"What if I... don't cooperate?"
Nagumo's voice was so light it was almost inaudible, like a desperate, final instinctive struggle.
Subaru didn't answer. He simply raised his hand gently and made a coin-tossing gesture in front of Nagumo's eyes with his index and middle fingers. The coin flipped in the void, fell, and was caught by Subaru.
"Guess." Subaru said.
Nagumo's pupils contracted violently.
"...Heads." He said, trembling.
Subaru opened his palm. Tails.
"Guess again."
"Tails... Tails..."
Heads.
"Third time."
Nagumo's breathing was completely disordered, cold sweat dripping from his jaw onto the floor.
"Heads... Heads..."
Tails.
Subaru did not continue. He closed his fingers; that non-existent coin seemed to have never appeared.
"The probability of you guessing correctly is one half," he said flatly. "But you have never guessed correctly. Even if you threw it yourself, it would be the same."
"That's impossib... im... possi..."
Nagumo couldn't understand the true meaning of that sentence. He only knew that his body was trembling violently beyond his control. It wasn't cold, it wasn't pain. It was the shudder of a switch deep in his soul being forcibly pried open and flooded with ice water.
"You think you can control everything, but in reality, you cannot. I have not granted you such a right."
"Now, answer me."
Subaru withdrew his hand, lowering his eyes to look at him.
"Will you cooperate?"
"...I will."
Nagumo heard his own voice gushing from the depths of his throat, dry, obedient, as if it didn't belong to him.
"I will cooperate."
Subaru nodded, as if everything was within expectations. He said nothing more and turned to walk toward the door. Upon reaching the door, he paused for an instant and turned his face sideways.
"You asked just now what exactly I want you to do."
Subaru's tone remained without any fluctuation.
"Kikyo Kushida and Kakeru Ryuen, they have the opportunity to generate color. That is something you will never possess."
"And what you can do is make the colors that might be born in them... a little more intense."
"This is your only value, and the reason you can still remain in this school. Recover well, Nagumo."
The door was gently pulled shut.
Nagumo lay paralyzed alone on the cold floor, maintaining the same posture for a long, long time.
The night outside the window had completely settled. The light of the streetlamps passed through the blinds, slicing stripes of alternating light and shadow across his body, like the projection of a cage.
He looked down at his hands. Of ten fingers, eight were broken. Swollen, twisted, glowing with an abnormal purplish-blue. Under the fingernails were clots of coagulated blood.
The pain had never stopped. But what occupied his entire consciousness right now was not the pain. It was that last sentence from Subaru.
"Something you will never possess."
That sense of humiliation surged instantly into his heart. Coming along with it was the pain he had previously almost ignored.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
Nagumo let out a hysterical scream.
Hatred, confusion, humiliation—all sorts of emotions completely filled his heart.
"Tool... Haha... Tool..."
A broken laugh issued from his throat. But beneath this boundless humiliation and fear, a darker, more twisted thought drilled into his mind like a venomous snake.
Subaru... You want to treat me as a tool to polish two other samples you're interested in? Fine... I will play the role of this tool well.
I will help Kikyo Kushida. I will stimulate Kakeru Ryuen. But I will do it my way. You let them use me, unaware that I will be using them. I will make them completely destroy you!
Just you wait, Subaru!
Nagumo's laughter revealed a trace of madness.
"Natsuki—"
At this exact moment, the room's main door was pushed open violently. The smile on Nagumo's face vanished instantly, replaced by an expression that could even be described as well-behaved. He thought Subaru had returned.
"You are... Nagumo from the second year, right?"
Just then, a slightly unfamiliar voice rang out. Nagumo looked at the person and recognized their identity: a member of the school staff, likely responsible for checking the administration building at night.
Nagumo immediately hid his hands behind his back.
"It's so late, you haven't left yet? I just heard some noise over here."
"I still had some things to handle..." Nagumo's face revealed an incredibly forced smile.
"By the way, Teacher, did you just see any other students leaving the administration building?"
"Other students? No, I didn't see anyone. You're the only one left here. I'm getting ready to lock up."
"I understand, Teacher. I'm leaving right now..."
At this moment, there was only one thought in Nagumo's mind. Get to the infirmary immediately.
Several hours later.
Night had completely shrouded the school. Nagumo, with both hands wrapped in bandages, finally walked out of the infirmary.
The doctors who saw Nagumo's injuries were stunned and asked how he got them. Nagumo claimed he was accidentally smashed by the piano cover while playing the piano.
Although the doctors found it hard to believe, they still treated his injuries as quickly as possible. Fortunately, the injuries weren't too serious. He even felt somewhat fortunate that summer vacation had just begun. Although life certainly wouldn't be very convenient, it wouldn't have much impact on the next semester, and not many people would notice him...
"Miyabi?"
Just then, a familiar voice rang out from behind Nagumo. He subconsciously turned his head to look. It was Nazuna Asahina, with whom he had a very close relationship in the second year.
Looking at the casts wrapped around Nagumo's two hands, Asahina looked blank, but soon couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Miyabi, have you turned into Doraemon?"
"?"
...
On the other side, Subaru had already returned to his dormitory. Nothing much should happen during the coming summer vacation. After all, every student would be busy with their own affairs.
Although he had already laid the groundwork, the main event would definitely have to wait until the start of the next semester.
He couldn't help but recall his actions this semester. Compared to himself during his time as the Purge King, he was much more restrained, wasn't he? Perhaps... simply because he hadn't killed that many people.
It was also possible that he had sunk into an even darker abyss. A pitch-black darkness, a blackness without color. Without even a single point of light.
Perhaps he was even worse than before? Even more... incurable?
Those people who voluntarily jumped into the water, yet subconsciously made survival reactions because of drowning. Would he make such reactions?
And just at this moment, Subaru's terminal rang.
[Subaru-kun, are you free tomorrow?]
It was a text message from Hiyori Shiina.
____
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