Chapter 88 - The Shiroichi Siege Aftermath (Part 2)

The [Student Council President] set down the PA system microphone after repeating his announcement several times, giving a relieved sigh.

A thought crept into his mind, then, as he was leaning back in the chair at a small desk in the corner of the council room: 'the circumstances of my life may have evolved drastically, but I still have a duty to uphold.' Glancing around, he wished there was someone to tell it to, but saw only the corpses of his fellow student legislative body members.

There was nothing in the council member's guide, pertaining to a situation like this. And for that, he was actually quite proud of himself for being able to take the initiative, with this idea of his…

But now, all there was left to do was wait. To see if his plan would bear fruit.

"Tadaaki-saaaan!"

He quickly turned at the sound of the door and a bright, cheery voice hailing him. To find it was Akari, waving at him with a closed-eyed, mouth-open smile.

"Hi, hi! I never knew that was your name."

"Oh." He frowned, promptly returning his gaze forward. "It's just you."

"Eh?!?!" Akari gawked. "You big jerk!"

In actuality, Tadaaki was too embarrassed to look at her while she was dressed in only her strangely sexy underwear. As, with his head turned, he could keep hidden the fact he was blushing.

Besides that, her [Shiroichi Watch] wouldn't stop buzzing, at a consistent rate of every few seconds—due to the continual stream of [Gross Public Indecency] demerits. Something which everyone had been able to ignore before, whereas now there was nothing to distract himself from it. 

"Put some clothes on already," Tadaaki snapped, with a scoff. "You can buy a new uniform at one of the kiosks."

"Why should I?" Akari said as she wore a sly grin, demurely posing with one hand rested just above her modest chest. "We're in a post-apocalyptic world with no rules, now."

Tadaaki raised an eyebrow, half-turning to her with a scowl. "Are you using your schoolmates' deaths as an excuse?"

She came up behind him, caressing his shoulders. "Well, isn't it our responsibility to repopulate the school? I should try to look as appealing as possible so that you'll pick my womb to use up over and over again."

"I really can't tell if you're being serious," Tadaaki said, rolling his eyes. Grinning like a dog with a milk bone balanced on its nose, being told to "wait."

At which Akari giggled, lowering her voice to a seductive whisper and tenderly stroking his face as if it would grant her good fortune. "Tadaaki-saaan! You're such a handsome, smart, dependable guy," she sang. "My baby chamber wants to gobble up your genes like a bowl of oatmeal!"

He snorted, becoming agitated. "Now I'm certain you're full of it."

"Oh, yeah? Is that really what you think?"

She leaned closer, their faces grazing. Her voice lowered to a seductive whisper: "Or, is it because you already have your eyes set on another girl…?

Tadaaki at once bristled, turning to face her completely. "What?!"

Akari was smugly grinning, poking him in the chest. "I've seen how awkward you and Kaneko-san are around each other, so don't bother trying to deny it!"

Tadaaki shot up from his seat. "Of course it's awkward when we're in the same room!" he retorted with his voice raised, betraying beads of sweat ensuing along his face and neck. "Because I'm the council president, and she's a delinquent!"

But Akari's smugness was only further magnified, as she briefly chuckled to herself. 

"Likely story! The truth is so obvious…"

Just then, the doors slammed open to reveal Mizuru. And, judging by her intense glare aimed at Akari, she'd been eavesdropping on their conversation. 

"Aha, you're finally here!" Akari said. "I was just saying to Tadaaki-san—GUH!"

Without a word, Mizuru delivered a hard right hook against Akari's face. Dropping her instantly; unconscious. As Tadaaki let out a shrill cry in alarm.

"Mizuru-san!" he pleaded, holding up his hands in front of him and sheepishly smiling. Retreating from her slow advance by climbing on top of the chair he'd been sitting in. "I swear, this is all just some weird misunderstanding! Akari-san flew in all of a sudden, making such wild claims without any basis—or a shred of truth to them!"

"Relax. I'm not going to hurt you," Mizuru said softly, giving a faint smile. Then pausing, to bite her lip while she lowered her gaze to the floor. "And, um, about those things she was saying…"

"What about it?" Tadaaki asked, raising an eyebrow.

No longer feeling endangered, he stepped down from the chair and stood before Mizuru, confused about the vibe she was giving off.

"Is there something...you've been meaning to get off your chest?"

"Y-yes." She raised her head sharply.

Their gazes met. A brief spell of silence passed.

A warm smile then graced Tadaaki's lips.

"There's some history between us, isn't there?" he said plainly.

Mizuru answered with a slight nod.

"And neither one of us can remember..."

"I can't explain it," Mizuru said, nervously brushing her arm. "It's this...feeling I get. Usually, I'm angry. Like, all the time. Like I wanna beat someone up"—she punched her fist in her palm, with a furious expression—"just smash someone's fucking face in."

"Kaneko-san…!" Tadaaki gasped.

Her lip was trembling. Her face, showing the frustration brought upon her by these complicated emotions that, until now, she only knew how to cope with by becoming the school's most infamous [Delinquent].

"But when I look at you…" she said, blurry-eyed in her hesitation.

Tadaaki held her, placing his arms around her waist as she buried her face in his neck. "Kaneko-san...I feel strongly about you, too. And I've started to have visions, like how Nakamura-san described it. Visions of us, when we were together."

Mizuru was smiling, through her tears. "I hope we can both get our memories back. So things can return to how they used to be, in your visions. And I'll never have to let go of this feeling again..."

Akari was still laid out on the floor, listening with pleasure as the two proceeded to kiss—reunited at last.

Just like how she remembered.

'Kanna. Vash. I swear, I won't let anything break you two apart this time.'

Some minutes later…

Keiko and CITA were in the safe room where all the surviving students were being holed up, the school desks and chairs pushed aside to clear a space for the wounded to lie down awaiting treatment: mending through a combination of Keiko's [Chi Healing], to restore their missing [Health], and CITA's proficient usage of her [Mana Threads] to suture wounds.

"My power has a wide variety of applications," CITA explained when she noticed Keiko's curious eyes watching her work.

"I've noticed," Keiko said, impressed.

"However, I cannot wield chi. Nor can I attack with any weapons."

"Weapons…" Keiko mumbled.

Hearing the word, jogged another part of her memory. Promoting her to attempt making the gesture with her hands which, as she recalled, would open her inventory.

However, nothing happened.

"INVENTORY: OPEN!" she tried yelling.

But still, there was nothing.

CITA explained, "player inventories appear to be disabled within the Shiroichi."

"All the better to maintain the illusion, I guess," Keiko grumbled. "And to keep players locked out of accessing their best gear, should they regain their memories and attempt to revolt."

CITA frowned. "I may not be able to speak from the perspective of a human, but I doubt anyone would want to live like this."

Keiko couldn't agree more. She'd suffered through High School already; the Shiroichi just seemed like a more extreme version of that. Albeit, one that is partially concealed underneath a "[Perfectly Normal]" veneer. 

"Not to mention the Flying Monkeys," Keiko said with a serious face.

"And spiders, flocks of ravens, swarms of bees," CITA added. "The whole nine yards—and the attacks only started recently, just before you three arrived here."

"Interesting." Keiko was curious to hear more. But their talk was attracting concerned looks from the other students.

So, they continued out in the hallway:

"It can't be a coincidence!" Keiko exclaimed. "These attacks—something must be targeting us!"

"That is my theory as well," CITA said. "The Shiroichi has only existed for a span of a few months. Before that, it was a regular city: the Ivory Quarter of Mithil, home to its wealthy elites. That is until an unknown, rogue program was able to compromise Deep Karma's security protocols, to gain privileged access to the root metadata of the Ivory Quarter region. Whatever has tried to achieve here, never did it resort to killing off the students."

"Unless something changed," Keiko interjected. "Like us regaining our memories."

"Mhm. So now, it wants you and your friends dead, so that it can continue with its plans unimpeded." She suddenly looked downcast. "Unfortunately, the doors to the principal's office, where we suspect the culprit might be hiding, are bobby-trapped. Furthermore, the room itself is protected by a powerful digital barrier, making it impossible to phase in through the walls or the floor."

"What happens when the door is opened?" Keiko asked anxiously. To which CITA responded by staring sadly at her for a while, saying nothing.

"CITA. Tell me," Keiko urged. Grabbing and shaking her by the shoulders.

Until, finally, receiving a mumbled reply:

"A complete...reboot. Of the entire Shiroichi School."