Rin Yuki exhaled softly.
Before him, the frozen horde of undead stood like grotesque statues trapped in time.
CRACK—!!
The sound tore through the silence as fractures spidered across the ice.
Then—
Shatter.
The undead exploded apart like brittle glass, limbs and torsos snapping into frozen fragments before dissolving mid-air, melting into mist and vanishing into nothing. The pavement was soon slick with nothing more than harmless puddles of water.
No corpses. No stink. No trace.
Just silence.
Saeko stepped forward beside him, her posture upright and respectful. She bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Yuki-kun. Truly."
Her voice was calm, but the warmth in it was unmistakable.
Yuki smiled at her gently. "No need to thank me, Senpai."
"We're friends, aren't we?"
That simple reply made her chest tighten.
Just friends?
Her heart stung—just for a second—but she swallowed the feeling down, and with her usual serene grace, she returned the smile.
"…Right. Let's move on. The area's clear."
Yuki nodded.
They had just started moving when—
Honk! Honk! HOOOOONK!!
A blaring horn shattered the calm. The group turned just in time to see a glaringly yellow school bus clumsily rumbling through the gates of Fujimi Academy.
The bus jerked forward like it was being driven by a blindfolded amateur. It swerved slightly, then skidded to a stop right in front of them.
Hiss—
The doors slid open.
Out stepped a man with slicked-back black hair, glasses perched precisely on the bridge of his nose, and an all-too-familiar fake corporate smile. He looked like a politician's assistant who thought he was smarter than everyone else.
His eyes lit up when he saw the group.
"Ah, Ms. Marikawa! Are these the students you rescued?"
He adjusted his glasses in one smooth, rehearsed motion.
"Heading to an evacuation site, I assume? How about joining us? Safety in numbers and all that."
He added with a practiced sigh, "And… does anyone here know how to drive? Marikawa-san is absolutely useless behind the wheel."
Saeko's brow twitched.
Saya Takagi's lips curled in disgust.
But it was Rei Miyamoto who reacted the most strongly.
The moment she laid eyes on him, her face darkened with pure loathing.
Shido Koichi.
The man who intentionally failed her, kept her back a year, and now stood there smiling like he didn't reek of manipulation.
"Shido-sensei," Rei said flatly. "They weren't rescued by us."
Shizuka chirped in happily, oblivious to the tension.
"It's thanks to Yuki-kun that we're safe~!"
"And he's the one leading us now!"
Yuki didn't respond immediately. His gaze moved past Shido, eyes narrowing slightly.
Inside the bus, he saw three familiar figures:
Kōta Hirano. Hisashi Igo. Takashi Komuro.
So that's where they ended up… and with him of all people.
Yuki's smirk curled faintly at the irony. In this version of reality, the main male leads from the original story had chosen Shido. What a downgrade.
"Lin Yue? A student of ours?" Shido squinted with forced politeness. "Don't recall ever seeing you before."
He eyed Yuki's clothing with subtle disdain.
"And you're not even in uniform… Just who are you?"
His eyes narrowed. The threat in his tone was soft but unmistakable.
Yuki didn't blink.
"Who I am is none of your concern."
His voice was low, calm, and carried a chilling finality.
Behind him, Rei tugged gently on his sleeve. She didn't want Yuki to be manipulated by this snake.
He glanced back and gave her a calm, knowing nod.
Relax. I've got this.
Shido's fake smile thinned into a sneer.
"Ah, if it isn't our problem child, Miyamoto-san!" he said, voice dripping with condescension. "A word of advice, young girl—choose your friends carefully. Bad company leads to bad outcomes."
Then, more sharply:
"Just consider it… friendly advice. From the son of a city councilman."
His meaning was crystal clear.
A threat dressed as politeness.
Raiden Ai: "Using family status to intimidate a teenage girl? What a trash heap."
Seitenshi: "I hate people like this. Weak men in powerful families."
Huaizhu: "His grudge against Rei must go deep."
Artemis: "What the hell is a 'councilman' and why does that matter? He threatened Yuki! Unforgivable!"
Seitenshi: "Hold on, I'll explain political structures in a second—"
Yuki didn't need an explanation.
He chuckled.
It was cold, mirthless, and full of disdain.
"Oh? Was that a threat, Councilman's Son?"
He stepped forward slightly, his voice quiet.
"Let me be clear—who I keep company with... is my business. Not yours."
Shido opened his mouth to reply—
BOOOOOOM!!!
The ground exploded.
A geyser of concrete, dirt, and force erupted beneath Shido's feet, launching him airborne before slamming him brutally into the side of the bus.
CRUNCH.
He hit the metal like a ragdoll. The bus rocked with the impact.
Silence.
Then—
"…Oops."
Yuki calmly dusted off his coat.
"Must've slipped."
The atmosphere changed.
A godlike pressure radiated from Yuki's body—dense, crushing, inhuman.
Shido gasped, his body trembling as if gravity had suddenly multiplied tenfold.
He collapsed.
THUD.
His knees smashed against the pavement, unable to hold his weight.
"Wha—W-What is this?!"
He tried to stand, pushing with shaking arms—
And Yuki's voice rang out, soft but commanding:
"Who said you could stand?"
"…Kneel."
CRACK!!!
Both of Shido's kneecaps shattered under the weight of Yuki's will.
He screamed.
A raw, agonizing howl that echoed down the street.
"AAAAAGGHH—!!!"
His face contorted with horror and humiliation, trying to understand how everything had turned so fast.
Inside the bus, the students jumped at the sound. They rushed toward the windows—only to freeze when they saw their teacher broken and groveling before a breathtaking young man who radiated divine authority.
"H-Help me!" Shido screamed. "This guy's a monster!"
He pointed toward Yuki, desperation turning to venom.
"They're trying to steal the bus!!"
"Wha—? That's a lie!" Saya gasped. "We never said anything like that!"
Rei, however, just folded her arms and smirked.
You deserve every second of this.
Everything that scumbag had done to her—every unfair grade, every sarcastic dismissal, every chance he'd taken to humiliate her in class—all of it was being repaid tenfold.
And Rin Yuki was the one delivering the justice.
Her heart thudded in her chest, and a strange warmth bloomed inside her.
Not just gratitude anymore.
Something deeper.
Adoration. Obsession. Devotion.
Her eyes locked onto Yuki's back like he was the only thing in the world that made sense anymore.
"Eh?! But that's not what happened!" Shizuka said innocently, looking from face to face. "They're all misunderstanding!"
But it was too late.
The students in the bus weren't listening.
Their eyes were filled with hatred.
Minds twisted.
Fists clenched.
Every one of them was now staring at Yuki's group like rabid dogs, ready to pounce.